| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 28 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 8 min |
| Yield: | 4 to 6 servings |
Ingredients
- 1/4 medium red onion, minced
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus additional for salting water
- 8 ounces elbow macaroni (about 2 cups)
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 6 ounces cooked ham, cut into 1/3-inch cubes
- 3/4 cup frozen baby peas, thawed (about 4 ounces)
- 2 ribs celery, with leaves, diced
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Instructions
- To mellow the minced onion, soak it in cold water while you make the salad.
- Bring a large pot of cold water to a boil over high heat and salt it generously. Add the macaroni and boil, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain the macaroni in a colander, put in a serving bowl, and toss with the milk. Allow the macaroni to cool slightly while you make the dressing.
- For the dressing: Whisk the vinegar, mustard, the 2 teaspoons salt, and black pepper to taste in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in the olive oil, starting with a few drops and then adding the rest in a steady stream to make a smooth, slightly thick dressing. Whisk in the sour cream.
- Drain the onions, pat dry, and add to the macaroni along with the ham, peas, celery, and dill. Add the dressing and fold to coat the pasta evenly. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 330 |
| Total Fat | 18 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 31 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Sugar | 3 g |
| Protein | 11 g |
| Cholesterol | 23 mg |
| Sodium | 426 mg |
Reviews
I have been making this salad using this recipe for four or five years now, and it’s a huge hit. One thing I’ve noticed from making it so often is that tasting the dressing before it’s mixed with the pasta is a mistake. It is a condensed flavor and not meant to taste good before its distributed with the milk and the pasta. TRUST ME!! The recipe is right on, give it a chance before you modify it too much. Also, the salad seems to taste best on the second or third day after the ingredients have had a chance to marry. This is a much requested dish in my neck of the woods,and I’ll keep making it, just as the recipe is. No need to add more mayo.
Very good, although I’m a fan of both ham and dill…added a couple jalapenos too which I really liked.
This has become our main potluck-style salad over the last year. Since we first made it, we’re modified it slightly and it’s always a hit. First, we eliminated the white wine vinegar altogether. We use 1/4 cup olive oil and only 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Most importantly, if you’re making this ahead of time, double up the dressing and save some on the side. The next day it’s usually pretty dry. I personally don’t mind it that way but it’s nice for people to have the option.
I thought this would have a fresher taste with the fresh dill, but it was too sour tasting. The milk was not enough to cut the vinegar. I won’t be making this again.
I wanted an easy summer salad, and this was it! It was very quick and easy and the dill really makes the flavors pop. It tasted refreshing and seemed almost healthy. I doubled the recipe, but halved the salt, and used light sour cream. Turned out great and everyone loved it. I’m not the biggest ham fan (but I still loved this salad), so next time I might try replacing the ham with shrimp.
I made this EXACTLY as written, omitting the salt as previous writers recommended. It was too vinegary!! I doubled the sour cream and added
1/3 C of Best Foods mayonnaise. It turned out quite acceptable. The recipe
makes a lot, even without the extra sour cream and mayo, so count on at
least 6-8 servings!!
1/3 C of Best Foods mayonnaise. It turned out quite acceptable. The recipe
makes a lot, even without the extra sour cream and mayo, so count on at
least 6-8 servings!!
I made this the night before a BBQ and I after I finsihed it all the prominent taste of the vinegar and mustard was left in my mouth. I ended up trying to add more other ingredients to take away from the mustard and vinegar taste. If I were to do it again I wouldn’t use vinegar and not so much EVOO. Too greasy for my taste.
Loved this refreshing variation of Macaroni Salad. I was glad for the hint on cutting back on the salt and only used 3/4 t. I also used Rice vinegar since I didn’t have the white wine vinegar on hand. A flexible recipe that can be adjusted to your own taste! I will make it again for our 4th of July bash.
I made this salad for Father’s Day and it was a BIG HIT. I did make some changes – I added some diced red pepper for color; used half the amount of ham – smoked Virginia ham , and cut the ham in 3/4″ cubes instead of the 1″x3″ strips. I added a little mayo for a richer flavor; the dressing tasted way too salty when I tasted it so I added some sugar to decrease the saltiness. Next time, I will start with half the salt! I may or may not add sugar the next time. The fresh dill really made a difference and added to the fresh taste. Everyone had extra helpings of the salad and several of the guests asked for the recipe. I will definitely make this dish again.
I really enjoyed this recipe. I did alter it a bit…Instead of ham I used thick, center-cut bacon. I cut the white wine vinegar down by 1/2 tblsp. I omitted the peas. I added 1 tblsp. of fresh grated parmesean to the the dressing prior to adding the olive oil. I also added some cubed medium cheddar cheese. It’s pretty darned good.