This big batch old fashioned macaroni salad with egg recipe has a bit of a surprising combination of ingredients in its dressing. Filled with fresh veggies and hard-boiled eggs -- always a crowd favorite!

macaroni salad with egg in a glass bowl garnished with hard boiled eggs and fresh dill and a wooden spoon on the side

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Old Fashioned Macaroni Salad With Egg Recipe

I can hardly believe that we're only a little over a week out from the Fourth of July! The summer feels like it's flying by, even though we haven't been doing much of anything. Well, except kayaking...

My husband and I bought kayaks on a whim (!!!), and we've been taking a spin around our little local lake a few times a week. I'm totally loving it!

Fireworks and festivals have all been canceled for the summer here, so our 4th of July festivities are going to be much more low key than in the past. We usually host a big cookout, but it's looking like it will just be our family this year.

We grill out pretty regularly during the week, so I thought it would be nice to get away from our usual burgers and brats. I've decided to take a cue from the picnics my mom used to put together when I was little.

So we'll be having fried chicken and my mom's old fashioned macaroni salad with egg, along with some fresh watermelon.

Only problem? I *hate* making fried chicken. I have a terrible track record of burning myself with the grease splatters, and it's just messy and a BIG pain in the behind in general. But I've got an awesome alternative...

classic macaroni salad in a bowl paired with Walmart deli fried chicken and fresh watermelon slices

Walmart Deli Fried Chicken + Easy Macaroni Salad

Walmart deli fried chicken!! Yep, you just can't beat it. Succulent and juicy fried chicken that tastes homemade -- without the huge mess and for an absolute STEAL.

I'm guessing the pricing varies slightly by store, but around here, you can get an 8-piece order for $6.23. However, I always upgrade to the 16-piece for the low price of $10.98 to feed my larger-than-average family.

If you're looking for an even bigger order to feed a crowd, call ahead to your local Walmart Hot Deli to order a 50-piece batch for around $45 or a 100-piece for around $75.

And if there happens to be some left over? Well, it makes the BEST fried chicken salad the next day.

In any case, all the sizes pair perfectly with this easy macaroni salad recipe. AND they're easy to grab while you're picking up the ingredients for it or just doing your regular grocery shopping. No need to make a special trip to the store!

Pro Tip: How To Reheat Fried Chicken

If you want to pick up your Walmart deli fried chicken earlier in the day (or even the day before your gathering!), it reheats beautifully in the oven.

Just place the pieces of fried chicken on a wire cooling rack set on a baking sheet, leaving some room for the air to circulate around each piece, and bake at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes until heated through. It will be just as crispy and delicious as it is straight from the Walmart deli counter!

old fashioned macaroni salad ingredients in a glass bowl with a black and white kitchen towel

Classic Macaroni Salad Ingredients

I'm a big fan of pairing a store-bought main dish, like this yummy fried chicken, with a homemade side. I just think it gives more of a personal touch to a gathering. And why not when this old fashioned macaroni salad is so easy to prepare?

Let me give you a quick rundown of the macaroni salad ingredients:

dry elbow macaroni -- cook according to the package directions (or try this Instant Pot pasta method!!). Then drain and rinse with cold water to cool it down quickly and remove the starchy coating.

slaw dressing + sour cream -- a bit of a surprising combo, because a macaroni salad recipe without mayonnaise is unusual. But when combined with yellow mustard, dried dill, and some kosher salt, they make an amazingly tasty and unique dressing for macaroni salad!

chopped hard-boiled eggs -- I love the flavor and creaminess that hard-boiled eggs add (made easy with this Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs method!). You can also pick up already peeled hard-boiled eggs at Walmart, which can be a huge timesaver. Whichever method you use, I highly recommend one of these egg slicers to make chopping them super simple!

diced tomatoes, celery, red onion, and green peppers -- yes, that's a LOT of dicing, but you can make quick work of it with this countertop vegetable chopper. Absolutely one of my fave kitchen gadgets!

all-purpose seasoning -- this gives the diced veggies a little punch. My mom swears by Spike seasoning, which is a bit difficult to find these days. Mrs. Dash or Accent seasoning are good alternatives if you can't find it.

sliced black olives (optional) -- not everyone loves black olives, so you can totally skip these if you want. I like using the sliced variety because they're large enough for guests that don't like them (and my kids!) to pick out.

Once the prep work is done, it's all smooth sailing! And if you focus, you should be able to complete it all while the macaroni is boiling.

How To Make Macaroni Salad

Before I share how to make macaroni salad, I should note that it really needs to chill it for at least two hours before serving, so allow yourself time for this. I usually make it the morning of the event I plan to serve it at. That said, this is how I streamline preparing this old fashioned macaroni salad recipe...

How do you make macaroni salad? Well, it's actually pretty simple:

1| Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, and cook the elbow macaroni according to the package instructions.

2| While the water is coming to a boil and the macaroni is cooking, dice the hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, celery, red onion, and green peppers. Combine them in a bowl with the all-purpose seasoning of your choice and black olives (if using) and set aside. Make the macaroni salad dressing by whisking together the slaw dressing, sour cream, dried dill, and kosher salt.

3| At this point, the macaroni should be done cooking. Remove it from the heat, drain, and rinse under cold water to cool it off and remove the starch.

4| Stir everything together in a large bowl. Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours.

5| Before serving, give the macaroni salad a quick stir. If it seems a little dry, add a little more sour cream or a couple of tablespoons of milk to loosen up the dressing. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.

Finally, garnish with additional sliced hard-boiled eggs and/or fresh dill as desired.

Best Macaroni Salad For A Crowd

One last thing, this classic macaroni salad with egg recipe as written makes a BIG batch -- so if you're looking for the BEST macaroni salad for a crowd, well, THIS IS IT!

But if you don't need such a large quantity, it scales down easily. Just use half of each ingredient, and it will be perfect.