Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad

May 7, 2021
Bring back the retro days of Kentucky Fried Chicken with this copycat KFC Macaroni Salad recipe. Long ago removed from the KFC menu, you can easily make and enjoy this signature side at home. -- And believe me, it tastes every bit as good as the original!

Serving Spoon of Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad Image

Remember the days when KFC was actually called Kentucky Fried Chicken? And when the Kentucky Fried Chicken menu had a lot more sides to choose from?  

Sure, back in the day KFC's classic mashed potatoes with gravy and creamy coleslaw were on the menu as sides to choose. But there were also quite a few more choices than now. -- Choices like baked beans, bean salad, and creamy potato salad.  And my favorite of them all? -- Their signature macaroni salad.

As a kid, I remember how excited I was when Mom and Dad would say we were getting a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken for dinner. I loved pulling up to our little small-town shop with its red and white striped roof, and walking in with Dad to place our order.

Long ago removed from the KFC menu, you can easily make and enjoy this signature side at home.

The most fun part of all was being allowed the duty of choosing our sides. Yes, I loved it when Dad let me do the choosing.  And of course, we always went home with a container of macaroni salad when I was put in charge of the sides.

Kentucky Fried Chicken's macaroni salad had a signature flavor all its own. I didn't know at the time, but have come to learn the salad's unique flavor came from sweet gherkin pickles. Along with very finely minced celery and carrot, chopped sweet gherkins are the ingredient that truly creates that signature KFC macaroni salad flavor we love.

Since the slimming down of KFC's menu offerings in recent years, macaroni salad is no longer a side option to choose. But fortunately with this copycat KFC Macaroni Salad recipe, we can still enjoy the classic deliciousness by making it ourselves. 

With this recipe, it's the retro days of Kentucky Fried Chicken at home! And believe me, it tastes every bit as good as the original.

Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad Image

Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad Ingredients:

It doesn't take a whole lot of ingredients to make copycat KFC Macaroni Salad. To whip up a bowl, you'll need:

  • Elbow macaroni - Forms the noodle base of this retro salad.

  • Minced celery & carrot - The simple, classic vegetable mix-ins for Kentucky Fried Chicken macaroni salad. Finely minced celery and carrot bring nice flavor and crunch.

  • Sweet gherkin pickles - Chopped sweet gherkins are the ingredient that truly creates that signature KFC macaroni salad flavor we love.

  • Dried minced onion - Flavors the salad nicely, without any harsh onion taste or chunks of onion to bite into. Dried minced onion is the minced onion you find in the spice section of the grocery store. 

  • Miracle Whip & mayonnaise - A combination of both Miracle Whip and mayonnaise creates the creamy base of this classic salad's dressing. 

  • Granulated sugar - A small touch of granulated sugar rounds out the salad's flavor.

  • Dry mustard - This is the dry mustard powder you find in the spice section of the grocery store, not yellow prepared mustard.

  • Salt & pepper - Salt and pepper season the salad simply and enhance its flavor. Stir some into the mayonnaise dressing, and then add more to taste at serving time, if needed.

Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad Ingredients Image

How to Make KFC Macaroni Salad:

Not only does copycat KFC Macaroni Salad taste great, it's really easy to make, too.

Start by cooking some elbow macaroni in salted water, according to its package directions. Drain the cooked macaroni and rinse it under cold water to cool it down. Drain it again and place it in a large bowl.

While the macaroni cooks, finely chop some celery and carrot. To truly replicate Kentucky Fried Chicken macaroni salad, be sure to get the carrot and celery chopped into very small pieces.  There were no big chunks in the original. Then also dice up some sweet gherkin pickles.

Stir the celery, carrot, and gherkins in with the cooled cooked macaroni.

How to Make Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad Image

For the salad's dressing, whisk together some Miracle Whip, mayonnaise, dried minced onion, sugar, salt, pepper, and dry mustard.  Using a combination of both Miracle Whip and mayonnaise as the dressing's creamy base is important in recreating the original salad's signature flavor.

Combine the mayonnaise mixture with the macaroni mixture and fold them together until the macaroni is well coated.  Cover and refrigerate the salad for at least 4 hours (or overnight) to allow the flavors to meld before serving.

Then you're ready to enjoy the classic deliciousness!

Serving Spoon of Copycat Kentucky Fried Chicken Macaroni Salad Image

So bring back the good-old retro days of Kentucky Fried Chicken with this copycat KFC Macaroni Salad. 

While we may no longer be able to order this classic at the restaurant itself, you can easily make and enjoy this signature side at home. -- And believe me, it tastes every bit as good as the original!

Copycat Kentucky Fried Chicken Macaroni Salad Image
Thank you for stopping by The Kitchen is My Playground. We'd love to have you back soon!

KFC macaroni salad recipe, Kentucky Fried Chicken macaroni salad recipe, how to make KFC macaroni salad, KFC macaroni salad
Salads
American
Yield: about 6-8 servings
Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad

Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad

Bring back the retro days of Kentucky Fried Chicken with this copycat KFC Macaroni Salad recipe. Long ago removed from the KFC menu, you can easily make and enjoy this signature side at home. -- And believe me, it tastes every bit as good as the original!
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 20 MinInactive time: 4 HourTotal time: 4 H & 40 M

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 c. (8 oz.) uncooked elbow macaroni
  • 2 ribs celery, finely minced
  • 1/4 c. finely minced carrot
  • 1/3 c. diced sweet gherkin pickles
  • 1 1/2 c. Miracle Whip
  • 1/2 c. mayonnaise
  • 1 T. dried minced onion
  • 1 tsp. granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper
  • 1/4 tsp. dry mustard

Instructions

  1. Cook elbow macaroni in salted water, according to the package directions. Drain. Rinse with cold water to cool; drain again. Place in a large bowl.
  2. Stir in celery, carrot, and sweet pickles.
  3. Whisk together Miracle Whip, mayonnaise, dried minced onion, sugar, salt, pepper, and dry mustard.
  4. Combine mayonnaise mixture with the macaroni mixture and fold together until macaroni is well coated.
  5. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight to allow flavors to meld before serving. Stir macaroni salad before serving. Adjust salt and pepper, to taste, if needed.
Created using The Recipes Generator


Copycat KFC Macaroni Salad ~ Enjoy the retro days of Kentucky Fried Chicken with this copycat recipe. Easily make & enjoy this signature side at home. -- This macaroni salad tastes every bit as good as the original!  www.thekitchenismyplayground.com



Affiliate links are included in this post. As an Amazon.com associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

This post is linked with Weekend Potluck.

4 comments

  1. Not a frequent KFC customer, but this looks amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mmmm! Macaroni salad is a favorite of mine! This was last week's most clicked from the Snickerdoodle Create Bake Make Link Party! You'll find it featured this weekend.

    Alexandra
    EyeLoveKnots.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi, This is as close as I can find to the original macaroni salad from KFC. But I once inquired in a KFC restaurant and they said, it was like Kraft Diner, then all the ingredients of KFC. I just went now on a Top secret site and they put Velveeta in salad, do you remember this? Anyway.... we still have the macaroni salad here, but without cheese. I will try your recipe and put some KD powder in it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for the note. We do not remember the cheese; maybe including cheese was regional? Please let us know how yours turns out.

      Delete

I love your comments ~ I read and appreciate each and every one. When you choose to leave a comment, we collect and display your name, as provided by you. Clicking "publish" to submit your comment indicates your explicit consent for name collection. If you click the "notify me" checkbox {which is optional}, your e-mail is also collected. Clicking the "notify me" checkbox indicates your explicit consent for e-mail collection. Thank you so much for visiting The Kitchen is My Playground!

Blog Design: Tracimichele.com. Powered by Blogger.