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This Hawaiian Macaroni Salad is truly island-style, from how it’s made to the ingredients used. This recipe uses pantry ingredients to create a creamy, no-frills macaroni salad that is the perfect side dish for any Barbecue or Luau.
Authentic Hawaiian Mac Salad
Hawaiian Macaroni Salad is one of my biggest guilty pleasures because it reminds me of my time on the North Shore of Oahu. When I lived there, I often frequented a restaurant called L&L Hawaiian Barbecue where I always ordered the same thing: a plate lunch with macaroni salad and rice on the side.
And If you follow a vegan or healthy diet, we’ve added alternate ingredients that will allow you to enjoy this macaroni salad recipe.
For the complete Hawaiian experience, be sure to try our other recipes, such as Malasadas (Hawaii’s version of donuts), Haupia (Hawaiian coconut pudding), and Huli-Huli Chicken (Hawaiian grilled chicken).
Mac salad when you can’t be in Hawaii
This past weekend, I had a flashback to my Hawaii days when we ordered food from Honolulu Grill in St. George, UT. Everything we had there was delicious and seriously the most authentic Hawaiian food I have had since leaving Hawaii.
The macaroni salad, especially, hit home and suddenly made me wonder why we haven’t gotten a good Hawaiian mac salad recipe here on Favorite Family Recipes yet!
Keep it simple
Authentic Hawaiian Mac Salad is ridiculously simple. It is a no-frills mac salad yet, it is so creamy and flavorful. I had a friend in Hawaii who was also a caterer there. He explained to me long ago that true Hawaiian macaroni salad is pretty much just macaroni, carrot, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper. This is the way the locals make it.
There are a few other ingredients you can add like celery, extra onion, potatoes, fresh crab, or relish, but the basic recipe is my favorite. Once you start getting into adding ham or pineapple, you are getting way off course.
Adding ham or pineapple to something does not make it “Hawaiian Food”. Pineapple and ham have no business being in a Hawaiian mac salad. EVER.
Healthy Hawaiian Macaroni Salad
This recipe may seem a little mayo-heavy, it’s true. That is what makes it so stinking good. If you are really concerned about the mayo-ness of it, you can substitute Greek yogurt in whatever amounts you would like (i.e. half mayo, half Greek yogurt).
You will get a likeness of mac salad but I am telling you, it won’t be quite the same. In Hawaii, it’s all about the mayo. As far as the BRAND of mayo, it has got to be Best Foods. Period. No other mayo will taste right.
Substitutions for a Vegan Hawaiian Mac Salad
We are so grateful for comments we get from our readers, especially when adapting recipes for special diets. We received a comment from Mimi that I thought would be helpful for anyone wanting to make this a vegan recipe. She substituted Hellman’s Vegan Mayonnaise for the regular mayo in the recipe, and Silk Unsweetened Cashew Milk for the regular milk. She said it turned out great. Thank you, Mimi!
How to make Hawaiian Mac Salad ahead of time
If you make this ahead of time and it seems a little dried out, add some mayo mixed with a little milk until you get the right consistency back. Fold it in with a large rubber spatula so you don’t tear the macaroni noodles. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
More Delicious Hawaiian Food
If you love this Hawaiian Macaroni Salad, try more of our other authentic Hawaiian recipes:
Authentic Hawaiian Macaroni Salad
Video
Equipment
- Stove Top
- Large Sauce Pan
Ingredients
- 1 pound macaroni
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 carrots, shredded
- ¼ cup shredded onion (optional)
- 2 ½ cups Mayonnaise Best Foods or Hellman's mayonnaise (no substitutes!)
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- kosher salt, to taste
- ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain well and place in a large bowl.
- While macaroni is still hot, sprinkle on vinegar. Add carrot and onion. Toss together until well combined. Refrigerate for 15 minutes, or until cooled.
- In a separate, small bowl, whisk together mayo, milk, and sugar. Fold the mayo mixture into the macaroni until all the noodles are evenly coated. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (best if overnight). Gently stir before serving, add a little more milk if needed, no more than a tablespoon or two.
Notes
- I like to put my boiled macaroni and ingredients directly in a Tupperware bowl with a lid so I can easily refrigerate it.Â
- Make sure you use Best Foods or Hellmann’s mayonnaise-no substitutes!Â
This recipe is EXCELLENT.
When the Hawaiian food stand at our farmer’s market runs out of mac salad, I pick up food elsewhere–that’s how important a good mac salad is to the plate lunch. This recipe needs zero mods. Absolutely perfect!
That being said, people in my family have milk allergies. I left out the milk and added more mayo and a small amount of cold water. I made a double batch, so I ended up using the entire 40 oz. jar of mayo. (6 cups)
I also used 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper and 1 tsp table salt.
I also measured out my carrots. I shredded 4 carrots into a bowl, and it looked like way too much for us. I decided to measure it out and save the recipe with that measurement (since carrot sizes vary drastically.)
I used 2 cups of shredded carrot.
Can anyone tell me how much salt/pepper they use? I’m not a Mayo fan but I’m making it for a party and well – I can’t salt & pepper to taste. Lol
To a double batch, I added 1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper (fine powder) and 1 tsp. table salt. It was perfect for us.
I should also mention that I modified the recipe. Some of us have milk allergies, so I added about a cup of extra mayonnaise and a small amount of cold water (after it had been refrigerated overnight.)
This is good just on it’s own to eat! I love it! I also found out that Best Foods and Hellmans are the same product . I was knocking myself out to find Best Foods when I found out it is the same mayo just called Best Foods on the West part of the country.
Made this for a picnic and it was a hit! I’m making it again for dinner tonight! I added drained pineapple tidbits to mine and it was yummy!
Very good recipe and close to what I grew up eating as a kid here in Hawaii. The only thing missing from the way mom made it was boiled eggs. She would add about four boiled eggs, chopped up into the mix. That pretty much covered it. Myself, would add a cup of thawed frozen peas.
I love the boiled eggs and green peas addition, I’ll have to try that!
My family lived on Oahu from 1992 to 1996 and LNL was my favorite place to eat! Your macaroni salad is really good. I’ve been making mine since we left the islands. I prefer Huli Huli chicken or shoyu chicken thighs and to add a little more flavor to the macaroni salad, add a couple of dashes of Shoyu sauce.
Thanks for posting aloha and Mahalo
Yum, I’ll have to try that!
I made this tonight to go with pork tenderloin and fresh pineapple. I tweaked it…I know, I know, but I don’t need 3600 calories from fat in my macaroni salad. I know it’s the standard, my husband lived on the Big Island and Oahu and he always said that the macaroni salad was swimming in mayonnaise. I decided to do 3/4 mayonnaise and 1/4 light sour cream with 1 Tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, salt, pepper, and finely diced red onion with the shredded carrot. I didn’t do anything else and it was SCRUMPTIOUS! My kids loved it, my husband said it was awesome and I didn’t feel one iota of guilt eating it. It was wonderful and your recipe with the minor tweak I made, will become a household staple, so I thank you sincerely!
This definitely is just like a Hawaiian restaurant here in Utah’s macaroni salad..We actually like this recipe better. I made this and it was all gone in less then 24 hours. 😊 only recipe I use for Hawaiian macaroni salad!!
Authentic recipe, can confirm. Kewpie mayonnaise is even better, but best foods is traditional. I like mine with white and black pepper and peas. North shore tradition 🤙
My go-to Hawaiian mac recipe!
I made this a few months ago for a Hawaiian themed potluck party. I wanted to make an authentic dish that was not beyond my capabilities. Not only was this dish a hit, there were no leftovers and multiple requests for the recipe. I also want to add that the only pineapple served was fresh cut wedges that were served along with dessert.
I made this recipe for fellowship yesterday and everyone like it.I took some out and put in separate container because I was adding red onion to the rest and I used miracle whip with olive oil.There a lot left over so three people was able take some home with them.
I was wondering if you could put cooked ham in it.
Sounds delicious!
Miracle whip is a sacrilege, but other than the vinegar, REAL mayo and sugar, you can play around with the ingredients. Spam is a local addition, so ham wouldn’t be too far off. I’ll have to give red onion a try 🤙
The ratios in the sauce is the closest to my moms recipe I have ever eaten … loved it!
I wanted a little more color to the salad so I added a small can of Mandarine Oranges and instead of milk I used a little bit of the juice instead of milk. I love the taste. I know it’s not true Hawaiian. I’ll try the original and see how I like it. Thanks for sharing.
It’s delicious! Do you think it’s still gonna be good in the fridge after 3 days?
It should be!
I know there are a ton of comments, but I have to say this is the real deal. I had plate lunches all around the islands, including Zippy’s!! This Mac Salad is LEGIT!! I’ve not had anything like this since being back on the Mainland. Thank you for sharing!! Mahalo!
How long will this stay good in the fridge for?
It will stay good for a couple of days in the fridge!
use kewpie mayo
Oh my goodness. This tastes exactly like the macaroni salad by husband orders from the local Hawaiian restaurant!
I made this recipe using onions (optional). It was so simple, yet so tasty. The only add that I made was chopped jalapeño peppers. Great recipe