Macaroni Salad
This was always featured at my best friend's parents Christmas party. I make it all year and think of it as Maryland-style macaroni salad.
This was always featured at my best friend's parents Christmas party. I make it all year and think of it as Maryland-style macaroni salad.
- Carbohydrate 573.1921952835 g
- Cholesterol 6873.1862012 mg
- Fat 396.8706240005 g
- Fiber 20.4585002839565 g
- Protein 303.2101551735 g
- Saturated Fat 83.2554514868 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (3176g)
- Sodium 7837.7693538 mg
- Sugar 552.733694999543 g
- Trans Fat 39.008986688 g
- Calories 7038 calories
Step-by-step
- cook macaroni and eggs together
- mince onion, celery (optional) and pickles.
- add mayo and mustard, Old Bay, salt and sugar in a bowl
- add cooked macaroni and diced hard-boiled eggs to mixture and stir
- add shrimp and fold in carefully so they don't break
- add additional mayo if too dry.
- add some pickle juice
The Mixing Vessel Problem
Cold pasta salads bound with heavy mayonnaise require significantly more bowl capacity than home cooks typically expect. A standard four-quart mixing bowl will cause dressing to slop over the rim the moment folding begins. Transfer the cooked macaroni and hard-boiled eggs into a six-quart or larger stainless steel bowl to allow adequate clearance for the spatula. Stainless steel prevents the absorption of aromatic compounds from minced raw onion and celery during the resting phase. Chill the bowl in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before combining ingredients to keep the mayonnaise emulsion stable.
Shrimp Integrity and Folding Technique
Frozen salad shrimp release residual moisture that rapidly liquefies mayonnaise if added directly from the package. Thaw the shrimp completely in a colander, then press them firmly between clean paper towels to extract excess water. Fold the dried shrimp in last using a wide silicone spatula, cutting down through the center of the pasta and sweeping around the bowl edges. Over-mixing breaks the tender shrimp into unappealing fragments and smashes the hard-boiled eggs into a paste. Stop mixing the exact moment the yellow mustard and Old Bay streaks disappear into the white dressing.
Scaling and Storage Realities
Halving this recipe presents challenges because standard eggs are difficult to divide into fractional proportions. Cook four whole eggs instead of six when reducing the batch by half, accepting slightly higher protein density to maintain structural binding. Store the finished salad in an airtight glass container for no longer than 48 hours. Mayo-based salads containing seafood degrade rapidly in cold storage, and the celery will leach water into the pasta past the two-day mark.
