Hawaiian macaroni salad
Creamy plate-lunch mac salad
Every Hawaiian plate lunch, from drive-ins in Hilo to the lunch wagons of Honolulu, comes with two scoops of rice and one of this soft, creamy macaroni salad. It is simpler than American pasta salads: overcooked elbow macaroni soaked in vinegar while hot, then folded with lots of mayonnaise, a little milk and grated carrot. Chef's tip: cook the pasta past al dente, a few minutes longer than the packet says; plate-lunch mac is meant to be soft so it soaks up the dressing.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
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Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Cook the 10 ½ oz elbow macaroni in boiling salted water for 3 minutes longer than the packet says, until very soft. Drain well.
14 minStep 2: While still hot, toss with the 2 tbsp cider vinegar, 1 carrot and ¼ onion and leave 10 minutes to soak in.
10 minStep 3: Whisk the 1 cup mayonnaise, ½ cup milk, 1 tsp sugar, ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper and fold half into the warm pasta.
2 minStep 4: Chill for 2 hours, then fold in the rest of the dressing and the 1 celery stick. A common mistake is adding all the mayo at once; the pasta drinks the first half and the salad turns dry.
120 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 6 g
- Carbs
- 32 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does hawaiian macaroni salad take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of cider vinegar?
- Lemon juice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of carrot?
- Parsnip or sweet potato, same weight.
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