Mexican macaroni salad is a real dish named ensalada de coditos and it’s beyond amazing. Bring this to the next cookout and blow peoples minds!
The flavors in Mexican dishes are unmatched. Mexico always comes out in the top when they do a census for the best countries for food around the world.
Did you know?
There are many Mexican dishes that are not Mexican at all? Most are adopted by us and the restaurants just go along with it. For example, a taco with cheese is called a gringo taco.
However, this is a real dish and I have the stamp of approval to share it with you.
This Mexican macaroni salad has all the flavors of a Mexican dish but is super easy to make, keep reading.
How To Make Mexican Macaroni Salad
You’ll need these ingredients first
- Macaroni Noodles
- Cubed Ham
- Pineapple (canned or fresh)
- Carrot
- Picked Jalapeños
- Mexican Crema
- Mayonnaise
- Corn
- Salt & Black Pepper
Helpful tips before starting the recipe
- In this Mexican macaroni salad recipe I used canned crushed pineapple. The reason is the tiny bits of pineapple were all through the salad. If you use fresh or cubed there will be chunks but that will come to personal preference.
- Many people ask can they make a salad ahead of time. This is the perfect salad for that because the macaroni adopts the flavors the longer it sits.
- You can use canned corn if you can not find fresh corn on the cob. To add more flavor, toast the corn in a dry pan on low heat for about 5 minutes to release some of the sugars in the corn before adding into the salad.
Making the ensalada de coditos
- To start, make the macaroni per instructions of the box. While the macaroni noodles are cooking prep all the ingredients. Chop the carrots finely and chop the jalapeños.
- In a bowl, add mayo, the Mexican crema and jalapeño juice from the jar. Give this a good mix to combine everything.
- Once macaroni is finish cooking rinse with cold water so you can jump straight into making the salad. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients.
- Now, add the dressing and gradually add in salt and pepper to taste.
- You can cover the bowl for later or serve immediately. This salad is wonderful later or the next day when the flavors have had time to come together.
Storing the recipe
When there are leftovers this salad will keep about 4 days in the refrigerator. For storing, cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap when ready to store in the refrigerator. This is not a recipe to be frozen.
What to serve with Mexican macaroni salad?
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Mexican Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 1.5 cup macaroni, dry
- 1/2 cup cubed ham
- 1/2 cup corn (1 cob of corn)
- 1 cup can of crushed pineapple, drained
- 1 cup pickled jalapeño, chopped
- 1 carrot, minced
- salt & black pepper to taste
Dressing
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup Mexican crema
- 3 tablespoon juice from jar of jalapeños
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- To start, make the macaroni per instructions of the box. While the macaroni noodles are cooking prep all the ingredients. Chop the carrots finely and chop the jalapeños.
- In a bowl, add mayo, the Mexican crema, apple cider vinegar and jalapeño juice from the jar. Give this a good mix to combine everything.
- Once macaroni is finish cooking rinse with cold water so you can jump straight into making the salad. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients.Â
- Now, add the dressing and gradually add in salt and pepper to taste.
- You can cover the bowl for later or serve immediately. This salad is wonderful later or the next day when the flavors have had time to come together.