Macaroni Salad

This is one of those dishes where, if you bring it to a cookout once, you're going to be asked to bring it to every cookout you attend until you fuckin' die. Enjoy.

Ingredients

I generally use cucumber, tomato, and bell peppers, but this recipe is flexible about what veggies you add. Experiment until you find the right combination for you!

  • 1lb elbow macaroni  I recommend a brand whose elbows have grooves, I use Barilla.
  • 1 cucumber, sliced and quartered  Peeled or skin-on is entirely personal preference
  • 1 package cherry tomatoes
  • 1 red (or orange or yellow) bell pepper
  • A couple slizes of red onion, diced
  • 1 can solid tuna in olive oil  I recommend Pastene
  • Mayonnaise  Cains or GTFO
  • 1 TSP vinegar
  • Pinch of sugar
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Recipe

  1. Cook the pasta per package directions. Do not cook al dente. In fact, depending on your pasta, you may want to cook it a little past what you would consider 'done' if eating it hot, as it tends to seize up in cooling, in my experience. 
  2. Drain and rinse the pasta, then set it aside to cool.
  3. Chop your veggies and add them to a large mixing bowl. Use a bigger bowl than you think you need, trust me.
  4. Once the pasta is cooled, add it to the bowl with the veggies, stir.
  5. Drain the tuna and add it to the bowl.
  6. Add the vinegar (1TSP), sugar (a Pinch), a couple heaping scoops of mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. Stir well.
  7. Keep adding salt, pepper, and mayo until it suits your tastes, then cover and chill in the fridge for at least an hour or two, but ideally overnight.

Tips & Tricks

  • If making just a couple hours before serving, I find it helps to run the pasta through a salad spinner to really get the extra moisture from cooking out. If not done, the salad will be kind of wet when serving.
  • If tuna isn't your thing, you can leave it out, but the overall flavor will be lacking. Consider adding additional seasoning if the tuna is omitted.