Southern Tuna Macaroni Salad
Tuna macaroni salad holds a special place in my heart. It reminds me of big summertime cookouts and family reunions in Elberton. In my mind, I can see my funny aunt Adrienne smiling her pretty, infectious smile while whipping up her always requested tuna macaroni salad. It’s just not a cookout without Aunt Adri’s tuna macaroni salad!
I’m surprised to hear a lot of folks have never had tuna macaroni salad before. Maybe it’s more of a southern thing because I grew up on this stuff. I didn’t like it as a child though (the whole tuna thing, ick) but as I got older I fell in love. It’s made with elbow macaroni pasta, tuna, mayonnaise (Dukes), hard-boiled eggs, relish, diced veggies and seasoned to perfection. What you end up with is a creamy, cool tuna pasta salad that belongs right next to the potato salad.
Tuna macaroni salad is pretty doggone addictive as well. I find myself dipping into it whenever I go into the kitchen, a spoonful here, a spoonful there. I prefer it plain as a side dish next to grilled meats, but you can eat it with crackers, rolled in lettuce, or even as a sandwich topped with fresh tomatoes (which is what my husband does)
It comes together really easy and honestly there’s no correct recipe as far as measurements. Everybody makes it different and that’s the beauty of it. It’s one of those pasta salads that you just taste as you go, adding in as much or as little ingredient as you like.
Watch me make this tuna macaroni salad from start to finish!!
Get the Recipe: Tuna Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups elbow macaroni, uncooked
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
- 1/3 cup finely diced mixture of celery, green bell pepper, and onion (see note)
- 1/4 cup dill relish
- 2 tablespoons sweet relish
- 2 6 oz cans tuna, drained
- 1 1/2 cup mayonnaise, I used Dukes
- black pepper, Old Bay, seasoning salt to taste
- parsely, paprika, garnish
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package and rinse with cold water when done. Drain & set aside.
- In a large bowl, add cold pasta, chopped eggs, celery, bell pepper, and onion mixture.
- Toss to combine.
- Add in dill relish, sweet relish and tuna.
- Stir to combine.
- Stir in mayonnaise.
- Season to taste with black pepper, Old Bay and seasoning salt (if needed)
- Spread into a casserole dish.
- Garnish with paprika and parsley flakes.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
Video
Notes
ADD MORE MAYO: If you find your salad isn't as creamy the next day feel free to add in more mayo.
Is there a recipe that can be done with chicken instead of tuna
I made this for a friend’s Labor Day BBQ and my family was trying to eat it all before I left. It barely made it to the bbq. It was a hit! Recipe wise, I added another half cup of veggies and I only used sweet relish because it as all I had on hand. Still turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m from the south and we made this every spring and summer. My fav side dish It’s not as heavy as mac and cheese so when we cook on the grill I’m ready to make this dish as a side. This is exactly how my mom made her tuna so I passed this site down to my friend so she can have it because this site brings back a lot of memories.
I am a new fan. I just found about about this site yesterday. I made this Tuna Macaroni Salad and the vegetarian collard greens today for Father’s Day. My hubby killed his food! Thanks so much. I did switch out the noodles to Rotini noodles. (My Mother always used them). I also didn’t have mayo, so had to use Miracle Whip. And the store only had sweet relish (Delaware is terrible with variety), so I had to use that and pickle juice. No dill relish. Wish I could’ve tried it that way. But trust and believe, this was still awesome. You are great. Keep up the good work. I will be watching and following.
This is fantastic. Everyone loved it and it was gone in a flash.
I love all of your videos I like the way you make it funny keep the good work up!!!!!