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Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad Recipe

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Do you want to be the most popular person at the picnic? Then make my Grandma's Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad! Meaty chunks of shrimp, crispy celery and onions and tender pasta covered in a creamy and super flavorful dressing. Everyone will be back for seconds!

Do you want to be the most popular person at the picnic? Then make my Grandma's Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad! Meaty chunks of shrimp, crispy celery and onions and tender pasta covered in a creamy and super flavorful dressing. Everyone will be back for seconds!

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Macaroni salad is the quintessential summer side dish. It's one of those things I will make and then go back to all day, every day to nibble on. I don't know what it is, but it just keeps calling me back to the fridge for one more bite!

And this macaroni salad recipe is a sure winner! It's my Grandma Eve's recipe, so you know it's going to be awesome (aren't Grandma recipes always awesome?). I can remember so many meals that include this shrimp pasta salad and everyone raving over it.

Up until now I'm sad to say I had never made it. So when I finally got the recipe, I was a bit surprised by some of the ingredients. They just weren't what I expected to see in a macaroni salad recipe, at least not this one. But they actually add some really awesome levels to the overall flavor and are probably what gives this salad it's addictive quality.

Macaroni salad recipe

Tips for making the best macaroni salad:

  • If you can, buy shrimp that's already cooked, it's one less step for you.
  • Make it ahead. Letting it sit in the dressing a little bit helps it all meld together and deepens the flavor.
  • Taste the dressing as you go. This is pretty much the case for any cooking recipe (not so much baking) but take the measurements as a starting point and make this to your taste.
  • This recipe makes a pretty large amount. If you're not serving a crowd, or you don't want as many left overs, half it.

Easy macaroni salad

Helpful tools:

  1. Measuring spoons
  2. Measuring cups
  3. Mixing bowl
  4. Whisk
  5. Chef's knife
  6. Cutting board
  7. Wooden spoon
  8. Saucepan

Shrimp pasta salad recipes

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Shrimp Macaroni Salad

Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad

Jessy Freimann
Do you want to be the most popular person at the picnic? Then make my Grandma's Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad! Meaty chunks of shrimp, crispy celery and onions and tender pasta covered in a creamy and super flavorful dressing. Everyone will be back for seconds!
4.98 from 46 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Resting time 1 hr
Total Time 20 mins
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 10 servings

Ingredients
  

Salad:

  • 1 pound medium shell pasta, cooked as per package directions to al dente
  • ⅔ cup onion, finely diced
  • 1 ¼ cups celery, finely diced
  • 2 Tablespoons parsley, chopped
  • 1 ½ pounds large shrimp, cooked and roughly chopped into large chunks

Dressing:

  • 1 cup mayonnaise,
  • 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • 1-2 generous pinch sugar
  • ½ teaspoon hot sauce (I used Frank's Red Hot)
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Instructions
 

Salad:

  • Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
  • Add dressing and mix well to combine.
  • Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until you're ready to serve.

Dressing:

  • Whisk all ingredients until well combined.
  • Taste and adjust seasonings to your taste.
  • Pour over the salad.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

If you tried this recipe please comment and rate it 🙂 I love hearing your feedback and answering your questions!

Looking for some other easy side dish recipes?

Other favorite summer salads include:

You can find a full index of my recipes here.

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Let’s keep the conversation going- join my Facebook group!  Do you want to be the most popular person at the picnic? Then make my Grandma's Very Best Shrimp Macaroni Salad! Meaty chunks of shrimp, crispy celery and onions and tender pasta covered in a creamy and super flavorful dressing. Everyone will be back for seconds!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Bec says

    This is great timing! I just bought some of the tiny shrimp on sale at the grocery store. This will make a great side dish this week!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Perfect! Enjoy :)
      Reply

    • Janet S Kammerer says

      Family enjoyed this on Memorial Day. Even the 1 person who doesn't like shrimp ate it.
      Reply

      • Jessy Freimann says

        Wow, that's fantastic, Janet- so glad it was a hit <3
        Reply

    • Betty says

      Big plump shrimp are what makes thee difference in macaroni salad …
      Reply

  2. Tara Teaspoon says

    I understand the "going back to the fridge for tastes!" thing. I'm sure I'll be doing that on this salad! Thank you!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      It gets me every time! Enjoy :)
      Reply

  3. Kat Jeter says

    I can see why this makes you so popular! What an amazing pasta salad. Looking forward to making it for my summer potlucks!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Thanks Kat- I hope you enjoy it!
      Reply

  4. Megan @ Megunprocessed says

    Celery and onion just make a pasta salad pop! Love those flavors together!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I totally agree- the flavors and especially the crunch!!
      Reply

  5. Carolyn says

    This sounds incredible! I can't wait to try making this!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Thanks Carolyn!
      Reply

  6. Denise says

    I made this salad a couple of days ago and everyone enjoyed it! What a delicious sauce....! A keeper for me. Thanks!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Thanks Denise- I'm so glad you loved it as much as we do!
      Reply

  7. Kelly Mathieu says

    Thank you for the recipe my family loved it just made it today as a side for fried catfish nuggets. I made an extra batch of the dressing and we dipped the nuggets in it mmmmgood!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Awwww thank you Kelly- I'm so glad you loved it and BRILLIANT idea with the dressing! On a side note, catfish nuggets sound delicious- where can I find that recipe? Yum!
      Reply

      • Kelly Mathieu says

        Oh I'm chagrined to say there is no recipe... I buy the fresh catfish nuggets prepackaged from the grocery and fry them in canola oil using a prepackaged fish fry batter. The directions are on the package of batter 😇
        Reply

        • Jessy Freimann says

          I love it - work smarter, not harder! I am definitely going to have to make some. I haven't had catfish in ages and I miss it! Thank you for sharing!
          Reply

  8. Mary Oczkowski says

    I made this today and it is delicious. I'm thinkiing next time, I might try it with smoked salmon instead of shrimp. Can't wait to try the dressing as a dip like Kelly Mathieu did!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I'm so glad you liked it! Smoked Salmon sounds like a seriously delicious addition- please let me know how you like it with that :)
      Reply

  9. Rena says

    OMG! This will be my go to from now on till infinity! Did what you instructed and kept tasting, thought it needed a little more zing so added about a quarter cup Miracle Whip. Perfection for my family’s tastes! Thank you so much for sharing.
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I'm so glad you love it as much as we doo! It sounds like you made a tasty addition!- thanks for sharing!
      Reply

  10. Karen says

    Can I use a spring onion instead of a regular onion
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      You can totally use spring onions. The flavor may be a little stronger, but if you like onions this will be a good swap. Enjoy!
      Reply

  11. Diana says

    I made this for my family for Nochebuena - absolutely DELICIOUS! I wanted to incorporate seafood somewhere in our dinner, and this is perfect. We haven't even had dinner yet but I had to get a bowl for myself because it was that good. I'm in love with the dressing too! I added some carrots for some more crunch and color. I can tell I'll be making this over and over! Thank you so much!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I'm so happy you loved it and will be making it again! The carrots sound like an awesome addition :)
      Reply

  12. Verne says

    Can I leave out the hot sauce
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Hi Verne- you totally can. But maybe add a tiny bit extra of the other ingredients to balance it out (taste it as you go). Enjoy!
      Reply

  13. Lorraine says

    I've made this three times now, first time exactly as written (an excellent base recipe!), the second time swapping scallions for the onion and adding finely grated lemon zest (I loved it, but my hubby thought it was too strong), and now a third time. Today I went a little wild on the changes/additions: scallions again, extra 2T lemon juice, about 1/4 - 1/3 cup sour cream, 2T dried dill, swapped cayenne (1/8 t) for the hot sauce, and added a diced red pepper. YUM.
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Lorraine, your additions sound SO delicious! Great job! Thanks so much for sharing- I'm glad you love it <3
      Reply

    • Lisa says

      Everyone loved it, got tired of making my famous tuna macaroni salad so I tried this instead for my brother’s barbecue, the only thing I did different was adding a little miracle whip and hard boiled eggs to give it a little boost, now this is my go to dish for barbecues
      Reply

      • Jessy Freimann says

        Yay- thanks for sharing Lisa! So glad you loved it!
        Reply

  14. Justin says

    First attempt and folks were asking for 2nds and 3rds!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Yaaaassssss! So glad to hear it!
      Reply

  15. Eric says

    Family loved it......excellent recipe thanks.
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      So glad you enjoyed it!
      Reply

  16. Maria says

    Love this! My only change was to add some OLD BAY seasoning since I’m from Maryland and we put that on everything. Such a great recipe - thanks!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Yum- I bet it's great with Old Bay! So glad you loved it!
      Reply

  17. Jenny says

    I’m from Maryland too. I added Old Bay. It’s delicious. Thank you!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      So awesome Jenny- it's so much fun hearing the different ways people make these recipes their own <3
      Reply

  18. Beverly says

    I. Would have to add some Old Bay seasoning
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      You should try it with that addition- I've had several readers add it with great success :) I always encourage people to adapt my recipes to make them their own (which is very easy here since it's not baking). Give it a try!
      Reply

  19. Rod Miller says

    This recipe is very good but I kicked it up a notch by adding 1 tsp of Old Bay Seasoning which really brought out the flavor of the Shrimp! Even if you added 1 1/2 Tsp of Old Bay Seasoning depends on your taste! You can start with one Tsp and add until you hit your magic level!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Thanks for sharing Rod- it sounds like a delicious addition!
      Reply

  20. Anita Joy says

    Made this tonight for our church share group. Love it!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      So glad you loved it Anita! It's perfect for a crowd!
      Reply

  21. John howard says

    First rating I've ever given,, but this recipe is deserving. I did however add a twist , got shrimp from butcher already seasoned (old bay) and read hot Saudi wrong and put 2 teaspoons in..Wow what a dish, willl definitely make again as original recipe call for because this is excellent!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Thanks John- I'm so glad you loved it! Sounds like delicious changes!
      Reply

  22. Joanne says

    I made this today to take to a Memorial Day barbecue at my brother's. I added a egg, celery salt and celery seed. This is the BEST macaroni salad I have ever made. I will always use this recipe from now on. Thank you for sharing. Delicious 😋😋
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      Hi Joanne- What awesome additions you made- they sound delicious! I'm so glad you loved this!
      Reply

  23. Danielle says

    I was skeptical about this but I gave it a try. Oh my goodness! I’m so very impressed. I did add a bit of pickle juice just because to me it was missing something. We have a big family event coming up next month and this will be on my list for the potluck! Thank you!!!!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I'm so glad you loved it Danielle- I bet it tasted fantastic with the pickle juice, what a great idea!
      Reply

  24. Ashlee says

    The ingredients seemed so weird to me but I decided to try it anyway. I'm so glad I did! This was a hit with the whole family, even my shrimp hating husband. Will definitely be making this again!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      It's funny you say that, the first time I made it I felt the same way- and ended up loving the flavor combo as well! So glad you loved it!
      Reply

  25. Val says

    Just made this for a holiday salad to bring and was a huge hit..Hostess wanted the recipe the next day…I did add 2 hard boiled chopped eggs and some seasoning salt..thank you..great one to use for large gatherings!
    Reply

    • Jessy Freimann says

      I'm so glad to hear that Val- your additions sound delicious!
      Reply

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