Skip to Content

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad. A recipe for those who miss the discontinued boxed macaroni salad mix from Kraft. This recipe replicates the garlic and herb flavours and adds a little fresh red pepper too.

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

This copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad recipe was one that I decided to develop because of some chatter from folks on Facebook. They were lamenting the fact that they could no longer find the Kraft brand Macaroni Salad boxed mix on their supermarket shelves.

(2018 note: Although I am hearing over a year later that it is available in some areas. Did they change their minds? In any case, this recipe provides an option that has no artificial colours or flavours, so that’s reason enough to try it anyway.)

The box came with the uncooked dry macaroni pasta and a little packet of seasoning mix that was stirred into mayonnaise or jarred salad dressing like Miracle Whip.

This particular macaroni salad was a bit of a contentious one in our clan during family get togethers. My sister Brenda loved it and served it often when inviting us over for Christmas leftovers.

I always preferred our standard family recipe which I always made for a Traditional Newfoundland Cold Plate after many holiday occasions throughout the year.

For the most part, I am a from-scratch kind of cook and rarely use any kind of boxed mixes for anything. Still, looking at a couple of discussion forums and even on The Kraft Facebook Page, it is clear that many folks did indeed love it.  

With that in mind, I set myself the challenge to replicate the garlic herb flavours in the salad from memory. I think I came pretty close to the flavour that I recall.

Capturing the flavour profile of  Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

The flavour that I remember was an intense, garlic-herb, ranch dressing sort of taste. The garlic flavour in the dry seasoning packet was obviously powdered garlic and I think that was what divided most opinion on this pasta salad.

I’ve started with a base amount for this recipe but you can always adjust it to your taste.

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

For a bit of a mellower garlic flavour, I’d suggest making the salad dressing a day ahead of time using very finely minced fresh garlic. The day of sitting in the fridge can let the garlic flavour mellow and meld with the other flavours nicely.

Come to think of it, if you have the time, that’s not a bad idea to try if you are using garlic powder too.

Looking at the photos online of the Kraft Macaroni Salad box, there appear to be red flecks in the mix as well. Since there is no real spicy heat in the salad that I recall, I don’t believe them to be chilli flakes but perhaps dried pimento or red pepper.

I’ve added fresh diced red pepper to the recipe for a little added sweetness, colour and texture. I hope you enjoy it.

Dijpon and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

Dijon and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

By the way, if you are wondering about that delicious looking baked ham in the background, you can find the incredibly simple recipe and instructions for Dijon & Brown Sugar Glazed Ham here.

Looking for more?

For plenty of other pasta and potato salad recipes, please check out our post Newfoundland Cold Plate.

Newfoundland Cold Plate

Newfoundland Cold Plate

Like this Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad recipe?

You’ll find lots of other great ideas like this by browsing the photo gallery in our Side Dishes Category.

To keep up with the latest home style cooking & baking ideas from Rock Recipes plus daily recipe suggestions from decadent desserts to quick delicious weekday meals, be sure to follow Rock Recipes Facebook Page and follow us on Instagram.

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad with text

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

You can also sign up for our FREE newsletter to know immediately when we add new recipes. You’ll also get weekly suggestions for great family friendly  meals and desserts too!

Rock Recipes a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Our product recommendations are almost exclusively for those we currently use or have used in the past.

 

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad
Yield: 8 or more servings

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad

Prep Time: 18 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Copycat Kraft Macaroni Salad - a recipe for those who miss the discontinued boxed macaroni salad mix from Kraft. This recipe replicates the garlic and herb flavours and adds a little fresh red pepper too.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups uncooked macaroni
  • 1 cup salad dressing, (See Recipe Notes)
  • 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 Tbsp onion powder
  • 3/4 tsp powdered garlic, (or 2 cloves very finely minced garlic)
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp white pepper
  • 1 tsp basil
  • 1 tsp celery salt
  • 1/2 cup red pepper, finely diced

Instructions

  1. Cook the macaroni in salted water for about 12 minutes or until just al dente. You don't want to overcook the macaroni because your salad will be too mushy. The macaroni will continue to absorb moisture from the salad dressing, so a tiny bit underdone would be far preferable to overdone.
  2. Rinse the cooked macaroni in a colander and allow to drain well for several minutes.
  3. While the macaroni is draining, add all the other ingredients to a large mixing bowl and whisk together well.
  4. Transfer the drained macaroni to the large mixing bowl with the dressing and mix well until all of the macaroni pieces are well coated.
  5. Transfer to a serving bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

SALAD DRESSING: Most potato and pasta salads call for salad dressing which is the jarred, spoonable type dressing, like Kraft Miracle Whip which looks much like mayonnaise. If you want to make a substitute using mayonnaise, simply mix together 1 cup mayonnaise with 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, 1 rounded tablespoon of white sugar and a dash of paprika. Stir well and let stand for 5 minutes before stirring again and using in the recipe.

Nutrition Information

Yield

8

Serving Size

1/8 of recipe

Amount Per Serving Calories 210Total Fat 14gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 11gCholesterol 8mgSodium 442mgCarbohydrates 18gFiber 1gSugar 2gProtein 3g

The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.

Did you like this recipe?

Do you love our "Real food recipes for real people'? Share the recipe on Facebook to let your friends know about us. They'll thank you for it.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Kate

Sunday 7th of February 2021

Hello, Thoroughly enjoy your recipes and look forward to my everyday email. My question is,after making your copycat Kraft Macaroni salad, I found it a bit too dry, I prefer a creamier salad (like Kentucky fried chicken macaroni salad). Would you suggest adding pasta water? Or is that the texture your salad is supposed to be. Thanks KB

Barry C. Parsons

Wednesday 10th of February 2021

I'd adjust the amount of salad dressing to your taste.

Crystal

Tuesday 25th of June 2019

I made this today and it was delicious! The Kraft Box is still available here in Nova Scotia and continues to be a favourite for many, but with this recipe I can control what goes into it. This will be my go-to from now on.

Amy

Wednesday 27th of February 2019

I made this for the first time today and it is delicious. Thanks for the great recipe!

Connie

Friday 22nd of June 2018

It works quite well for me

Diane

Thursday 24th of August 2017

I loved it! It's very close to the salad mix in the box as there isn't much of a difference at all.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Skip to Recipe

Sharing is Caring

Help spread the word. You're awesome for doing it!