Filipino Macaroni Salad

Filipino Macaroni Salad is a classic traditional side dish that is often prepared for almost any Filipino gathering. It’s especially a staple at Christmas time! This sweet pasta salad with crunchy vegetables is easy to make and a great make-ahead dish.

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When people think of Filipino food, they often automatically think of Adobo, Garlic Fried Rice, or Lumpia. But there’s another dish that is served just as often, and is just as treasured as those more well-known Filipino dishes.

Growing up, Filipino Macaroni Salad was a staple at pretty much all the family gatherings. Barbecues, birthdays, and especially at Christmas Eve and Christmas meals, you could always count on someone to bring the macaroni salad.

🇵🇭 What makes Filipino macaroni salad different?

At quick glance, you might think that this Filipino-style macaroni salad is just like any other macaroni salad you’d find at a deli in the United States. But like most Filipino food, our macaroni salad is a mix of the many different cultures that make up Filipino culture, thanks to the various occupations over the centuries.

During the American occupation in the early 20th century, the classic macaroni deli salad was introduced to the Philippines. The Filipino style is similar to the Hawaiian-style macaroni salad in that it’s on the sweeter side and full of island ingredients and tropical flavors. It also includes pickles which create a sort of sweet relish.

❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe

• This easy recipe uses simple ingredients that you can find at your local grocery store.
• Filipino macaroni salad is great for large gatherings, special occasions, or during the Christmas season.
• It’s versatile – it works both as a side dish and a main dish.
• You can easily make a large batch ahead of time and have plenty of delicious leftovers the next day.
• With the addition of tropical pineapple, it contains just the right amount of sweetness.

🍍 Filipino macaroni salad ingredients

Basic Ingredients:

• Pasta – elbow macaroni pasta is the traditional pasta used in Filipino macaroni salad. If you don’t have elbow pasta, you could also use ditalini pasta.
• Mayonnaise – the delicious glue that holds this salad together! I always use my fave dairy-free mayonnaise to keep this dairy-free, but you can certainly use whatever your favorite mayo is. Or, for you overachievers, you can also use homemade mayo.
• Chicken – to save time, I use shredded or diced rotisserie chicken. You could also poach a chicken breast and then shred it.
• Eggs – I use cage free brown eggs that I’ve hard-boiled in the Ninja Foodi, then chopped and sliced (here’s how I get perfect easy-peel, hard-boiled eggs that every time!). I’ve included instructions in the recipe card below for hard-boiling eggs on the stovetop.
• Pineapples – similar to how pineapples are used in Hawaiian macaroni salad, this adds a sweet tropical flavor to Filipino macaroni salad. I use a small can of crushed pineapples, but you could use freshly diced or freshly crushed pineapple chunks.
• Carrots – shredded carrots add delicious sweetness and a bit of soft crunch to this dish.
• Celery – I prefer to finely slice celery for this salad, but you can also roughly chop celery if you want more crunch with each bite.
• Pickles – dill pickles add that classic tangy flavors that balance the sweetness of the pineapples and carrots.
• Kosher salt and ground black pepper – these two basics are all the seasoning you need for this salad!

✅ Step-by-step instructions

Exact measurements of ingredients and instructions are in the printable recipe card toward the bottom of this post. Here are some helpful tips to guide you as you make this recipe.

This Filipino favorite is so easy to make. The bulk of the work is in the prep. Then once your ingredients are all prepped, it’s just a matter of mixing them all together!

Here’s the order I make this side dish, for maximum kitchen efficiency.

1. Make the pasta and the hard-boiled eggs.
2. Prep the ingredients – Chop, slice, dice the chicken, pineapple, red onion, carrots, celery, pickles, and eggs.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients evenly with the mayonnaise.

🧀 Additional mix-in ideas

Traditional Filipino style macaroni salad contains raisins. Feel free to add raisins if you wish. Nobody in my house likes raisins, so we leave them out. As I kid, I always picked out the raisins, much to my mother’s embarrassment.

You can also add:

• shredded cheddar cheese for extra richness
• diced ham
• mustard to add tanginess
• white vinegar for extra acidity
• diced yellow onions
• bell peppers for some extra crunch

Although my mother swears you should never add BOTH chicken AND ham – “it’s one or the other!” she says – some families will put both in for an extra meaty macaroni salad.

⏲ Kitchen equipment

You don’t need any fancy appliances or cooking tools to make this delicious macaroni salad! You just need:

• A large bowl
• Wooden spoon
• Cutting board
• Knife

🥡 How to store leftovers

This salad is best eaten within a couple of days, but you can keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days. When you’re ready to eat the leftovers, try adding some mayonnaise to the macaroni salad to “wake up” the ingredients and flavors before serving.

🍽 What to serve with macaroni salad

This dish goes well any of these Filipino recipes:

• Instant Pot Filipino Adobo
• Filipino Pancit Bihon
• Filipino Lumpia Shanghai
• Filipino Garlic Fried Rice
• Grilled Honey Garlic Chicken Skewers
• Baked Teriyaki Chicken Wings
• Grilled Shrimp Pineapple Skewers
• Filipino Pandesal

🥂 What wine pairs with this Filipino dish?

If you’re serving this and enjoying it as an appetizer, pair it with either a Chardonnay or a Sauvignon Blanc. Fuller-body Chardonnays will stand up to the richness of this dish. While the high acidity in many Sauv Blancs will complement the macaroni salad’s island fruit flavors.