Easy Macaroni Salad — Down-Home Comfort

Virginia Willis' Macaroni Salad for FoodNetwork.com

Macaroni Salad

Virginia Willis' Macaroni Salad for FoodNetwork.com

Photo by: Virginia Willis ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

Virginia Willis, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

Although it’s pasta-based, old-fashioned Easy Macaroni Salad is pretty far away from anything that might remotely be considered Italian. Only in Middle America would something made of pasta and mayonnaise be considered a salad. Believe me, Rome, Georgia, and Rome, Italy, are more than just a few miles apart. Instead, consider the deli cases all across the U.S. that have mini-tubs and buckets of this lined up like soldiers and at the ready for afternoon picnics and summer suppers on the deck. Macaroni salad is all-American Down-Home Comfort. Moms and dads are also quick to go to this to recipe to accompany BBQ chicken or burgers on the grill. And we all know that store-bought is fine, but homemade is nearly always better.

True to Down-Home Comfort criteria, old-fashioned Easy Macaroni Salad is simple, trouble-free and inexpensive. When it comes to Italian or Mediterranean pasta salad, other pasta types with the necessary nooks and crannies to catch the saucy bits and pieces, —including penne, ziti and even orecchiette — might be used, but not here. When it comes to this easy side, macaroni salad is made with old-school elbow macaroni.

Virginia Willis' Macaroni Salad for FoodNetwork.com

Macaroni Salad

Virginia Willis' Macaroni Salad for FoodNetwork.com

Photo by: Virginia Willis ©2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

Virginia Willis, 2014, Television Food Network, G.P. All Right Reserved

Things are kept pretty simple across the board with old-fashioned Easy Macaroni Salad; a few chops of the knife and enough mayonnaise to coat and you’re done. Some recipes call for chopped hard-boiled egg, and you could also add steamed broccoli florets or halved grape tomatoes – as long as you know you are venturing into “gourmet” territory. If you absolutely feel the need to dress things up, additions to consider would be peeled, chopped cooked shrimp or grilled strips of chicken breast. Of course, you could add drained canned tuna or salmon, and my mother has been known to add a couple of cups of lump crabmeat for “extra-fancy” macaroni salad. However, I strongly suggest you resist doctoring things up too much. Just because you're making a dump-and-stir Easy Macaroni Salad, don't succumb to the urge to empty the contents of your refrigerator into the bowl. Too many “improvements” will change the DNA of the dish.

Even as simple as it is, there are a couple of hard rules to adhere to when making macaroni salad. Never rinse hot pasta — except when making macaroni salad. Rinsing freshly cooked macaroni washes away the excess starch, stops the cooking to ensure that the macaroni will stay firm, and helps saturate the noodle to retard the need for lots and lots of dressing. Secondly, if you make it a day or so ahead, just know that you might need to add another dollop or so of mayonnaise, as macaroni salad seems to have a tendency to dry out overnight, even when tightly covered. Otherwise, you’re good to go with this super-simple summer salad, mayonnaise and all.

Bon Appétit, Y’all!
Get the Recipe: Easy Macaroni Salad

Georgia-born, French-trained Chef Virginia Willis has cooked lapin Normandie with Julia Child in France, prepared lunch for President Clinton and harvested capers in the shadow of a smoldering volcano in Sicily, but it all started in her grandmother’s country kitchen. A Southern food authority, she is the author of Bon Appétit, Y’all and Basic to Brilliant, Y'all , among others. Follow her continuing exploits at VirginiaWillis.com.

Next Up

Cheesy Summer Squash Casserole — Down-Home Comfort

This recipe is just cheesy and rich enough to let the delicate flavor of the squash shine through.

Classic Southern Macaroni and Cheese — Down-Home Comfort

From the familiar blue box to gourmet eight-cheese combinations, we can’t seem to get enough of mac and cheese. It may be the be all and end all of down-home comfort food. It’s rich, flavorful and satisfying — friendly and familiar but never dull.

Scalloped Potatoes — Down-Home Comfort

Scalloped Potatoes. Potatoes au Gratin. Potato Cheese Casserole. Potato Cheese Bake. Many names describe this mouthwatering, golden-brown, bubbly dish of down-home comfort.

Summer Succotash — Down-Home Comfort

Succotash is essentially an all-American stir-fry.

Tailgate Chili — Down-Home Comfort

I think the perfect tailgate food just might be chili. The one thing that can be agreed upon is that anyone who loves making chili thinks that theirs is the greatest. Well, that and that their team is the best.

Blueberry Delight — Down-Home Comfort

Blueberries are the Disney version of summer fruit, round and gentle like a bouncing sing-along ball. They bring to mind fingers stained purple-blue, fruity tarts, pies and cobblers, and warm, fresh-from-the-oven muffins.

Country-Fried Steak — Down-Home Comfort

Country-fried steak is called chicken-fried steak in Texas and pan-fried steak, cube steak or smothered steak in other regions; but frankly, once you taste this dish of down-home comfort, you're not going to care what it's called.

Chocolate Meringue Pie — Down-Home Comfort

Some folks like sweets, some folks like chocolate. The chocolate meringue pie is the best of both worlds. Try this on your sweetie for some down-home comfort.

Shrimp and Grits — Down-Home Comfort

Down-home comfort has caught fire in the last 10 years or so with the classic low-country dish Shrimp and Grits. It’s being served in white tablecloth restaurants from Savannah to Seattle.

Summer Tomato Pie — Down-Home Comfort

Tomatoes are, in fact, a fruit, but their affinity for other savory ingredients means that they are usually classed as a vegetable. Fruit or vegetable, they are a rock-solid part of summer down-home comfort.