Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe

So this salad is sweet. Like, sweeter than you think pasta salad should be. And it’s got pineapple chunks in it. Raisins. Sometimes cheese cubes.

I know what you’re thinking because I thought the same thing the first time I saw it.

But here’s the deal—Filipino Macaroni Salad shows up at literally every Filipino gathering for a reason. Birthday party? It’s there. Christmas? Yep. Random Sunday lunch at someone’s house? There it is on the table. And it always disappears fast. Like people-going-back-for-thirds fast.

The whole sweet-and-creamy thing works way better than it sounds. The mayo dressing has condensed milk mixed in, which sounds wild but that’s what makes it stick to everything and taste like… I don’t know how to describe it exactly. It’s just good. Cold from the fridge. You don’t eat this warm or room temperature—that would be wrong.

Why This Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe Works

Okay so my coworker Maria brought this to our office potluck three years ago. I’ll be honest—when I saw fruit in pasta salad, I thought she was playing a joke on us. Then I tried it. That sweet-savory thing happening with the creamy dressing and the little pops of pineapple, it just worked in a way I didn’t expect. I asked her for the recipe right there, standing by the break room table with my second helping.

This recipe isn’t complicated. The ingredients are normal stuff you can grab at any grocery store. Elbow macaroni, mayo, a can of condensed milk. Some chicken, vegetables, whatever you’ve got.

It’s cheap too which matters when you’re feeding a crowd. One big bowl serves like 12-15 people easy.

And you make it ahead. Actually you SHOULD make it ahead because it tastes better after sitting in the fridge overnight. The flavors do that thing where they… mesh? Blend? Whatever you call it. Point is, less work the day of your party.

People always ask what’s in it. That’s when you know you made something interesting.

Ingredients You’ll Need for Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe     

The Pasta 

Elbow macaroni (16 oz) – Those little tubes are perfect. They catch the dressing inside each piece. Don’t use rotini or shells or whatever—elbow macaroni just works better here.

The Creamy Dressing

Mayonnaise (2 cups) – Real mayo. Not Miracle Whip. I go with Best Foods usually but Kewpie is amazing if your store has it. That Japanese mayo is on another level.

Condensed milk (1/2 cup) – This is the secret weapon. Like I’m serious, this is why Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe tastes different from regular macaroni salad. The sweetness plus the thickness it adds to the dressing. Don’t skip it or substitute it with something else.

The Protein

Cooked chicken breast (2 cups, shredded) – Rotisserie chicken from the deli works great here. Saves you time. I’m not trying to poach chicken breasts when I don’t have to. Just shred it up with your hands or two forks.

The Fruits

Pineapple chunks (1 can, 20 oz, drained) – Drain these REALLY well. And I mean really well. If you leave them too wet your salad gets watery. Squeeze them a little over the sink even.

Raisins (1/2 cup) – Yellow or dark, doesn’t matter. Some people hate raisins. If that’s you, just use less or skip them. I’m not the raisin police.

The Vegetables

Carrots (1 cup, finely diced) – Dice these small. You want little pieces, not big chunks. Gives you that crunch and makes it look prettier with the orange color.

Celery (1/2 cup, diced) – That fresh crispy thing that cuts through all the sweet creamy stuff. Balances it out.

Red bell pepper (1/2 cup, diced) – Adds color mostly. You could skip it but it makes the salad look better. Pretty matters.

Optional Add-Ins

Cheddar cheese (1 cup, small cubes) – Not required but a lot of Filipino families put it in. The sharp salty cheese against the sweet dressing is good.

Salt and black pepper – To taste. Go light on the salt if you’re adding cheese.

Equipment

Big pot for boiling pasta. Colander for draining. Really big mixing bowl—and I mean BIG because this makes a lot and you need room to mix without stuff flying everywhere. Cutting board. Sharp knife. That’s it. Nothing fancy.

How I Make Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe

Cook Your Pasta Right

Get a big pot of water boiling. Salt it—like a good amount of salt, maybe a tablespoon. Throw in the macaroni.

Cook it al dente. That means it still has a tiny bit of firmness when you bite it. If you cook it mushy, once you mix it with all the wet stuff it’ll turn into paste. Nobody wants paste. Check the package time but start testing like a minute early.

Drain it in your colander. Rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. Keep rinsing till it’s actually cold to touch. Shake the colander a bunch to get the water out. Let it sit there draining for a minute while you get other stuff ready.

Make the Dressing Part

In your big bowl, dump in the mayo and condensed milk. Whisk it together until you don’t see any streaks of white condensed milk.

Taste it real quick with a clean spoon. Sweet and tangy, right? If it’s too thick that’s fine. It’ll thin out once everything else goes in.

Mix Everything Together

Add the pasta to your dressing. Fold it in gentle-like. You’re not beating the life out of it, just coating everything so each piece has dressing on it.

Put in your shredded chicken. Mix that around. Then the pineapple—make sure you squeezed out that juice first or I’m telling you it’ll be soup.

First time I made this for a summer barbecue, I forgot to chill it long enough. Served it after maybe an hour in the fridge. People ate it and said nice things, but I knew something was off. Tasted kind of flat. Made it again for the same group two weeks later, properly chilled overnight this time. Three people asked if I changed the recipe because it tasted so much better. Same recipe. Just patience.

Anyway. Add your carrots, celery, bell pepper. Sprinkle the raisins around so they don’t all clump together. Cheese cubes if you’re using them.

Salt and pepper. Go easy on salt if you added cheese because that’s already salty.

Mix it all up. Takes maybe two minutes of folding and stirring. You want everything spread around evenly, not all the chicken in one spot and all the vegetables clumped in another.

The Waiting Part

Cover the bowl. Plastic wrap works. Or a lid if your bowl has one. Stick it in the fridge.

Here’s where patience matters—let it sit for at least 3 hours. Overnight is way better though.

I know you’re hungry. Make a sandwich or something. Trust me on this one. Cold pasta salad that’s had time to sit is completely different from pasta salad you just mixed together. The flavors need to hang out with each other for a while. The pasta soaks up some dressing. Everything gets friendly.

Tips That Actually Help

Don’t dump all your dressing in at once. Save a little bit. Pasta sucks up liquid as it sits and you might need to add more mayo the next day.

Cut everything small. Like really small. Each bite should have a mix of different stuff in it, not just one big piece of whatever.

If it’s too sweet for you, squeeze in a tablespoon of lemon juice. Brightens it right up. Some people add a tiny bit of mustard too but that’s not traditional.

Some families use sweet pickle relish instead of celery. About a quarter cup. Gives it more tang and a different texture. My aunt does this and hers is good.

Let everything sit at room temp for like 10 minutes before you mix it. If it’s all ice cold straight from the fridge the mayo doesn’t coat as nice. Room temp stuff combines better.

Easy Variations

Make It Lighter

Use half mayo, half Greek yogurt. You lose some of that rich creamy thing but it’s healthier I guess. Still tastes decent. Different, but decent.

Add More Fruit

Green grapes cut in half are good. Mandarin oranges work. Diced apples if you’re into that. Whatever fruit you like really. Some people go crazy and add strawberries even.

Skip the Meat

Leave out the chicken if you’re vegetarian. Add more veggies instead to bulk it up. Corn kernels work. Diced cucumber too. Or just make it all about the fruit and vegetables.

Try Different Proteins

Shredded ham instead of chicken changes the whole flavor. Kind of porky and salty. Canned tuna is traditional in some parts of the Philippines. Cooked shrimp if you’re feeling fancy and have money to spend.

Extra Filipino Touch

Add nata de coco if you can find it at an Asian grocery store. It’s this chewy coconut gel thing. Comes in jars. Or kaong, which is sugar palm fruit. Both add interesting texture that’s fun to bite into.

Storing This Salad

Don’t heat this up. It’s a cold salad. Heating it would be… just no. Wrong.

Keep it in an airtight container in your fridge. Lasts about 3-4 days. Maybe 5 if nobody’s been sticking their fingers in it or double-dipping spoons.

It’ll probably look dry the next day. That’s normal. The pasta keeps absorbing the dressing like a sponge. Just stir in a few more spoonfuls of mayo to loosen it back up. Splash of milk works too if you run out of mayo.

Do not freeze this. The mayo separates when you thaw it and the vegetables get all mushy and sad. Not worth it.

If you’re bringing it somewhere, cooler with ice packs. It has mayo and chicken in it so you need to keep it cold. Food safety matters. Don’t be that person who gives everyone food poisoning.

Little Cultural Thing About Filipino Food

Filipino Macaroni Salad shows up at every “handaan.” That’s the Filipino word for when there’s food at an event, which is basically every event because Filipinos always have food.

The sweet thing is very Filipino. We do sweet spaghetti too—that’s a whole different conversation but same idea. Sweet flavors are just part of how Filipino food works. It throws people off at first but then they get it.

This salad is like… American mayo-based salads met Filipino love of sweet things and they had a baby. The Spanish and Americans both influenced Filipino cooking over the years through colonization and stuff.

Every Filipino family makes it a little different. Some people put marshmallows in theirs. Others add Vienna sausages. There’s no single “correct” way to make it. You just make it how your family likes it and that becomes your version.

Questions People Ask

Can I make Filipino Macaroni Salad Recipe without condensed milk?

You can but it won’t taste right. The condensed milk does something specific that sugar and regular milk don’t do. It adds this creamy thickness and specific sweetness. If you absolutely can’t use it, try mayo mixed with heavy cream and powdered sugar. That’s close-ish. Not the same though.

Why does my macaroni salad turn out watery?

Two things usually. One, your pineapple wasn’t drained enough. Those chunks hold so much liquid. Really squeeze them over the sink with your hands. Two, your pasta was too wet after cooking. Let it sit in the colander for five minutes after rinsing and shake it good a few times.

How early can I make this?

Day before is perfect. It needs minimum 3 hours in the fridge but overnight is ideal. That’s when it tastes best. I wouldn’t go more than 2 days ahead though. The vegetables start losing their crunch and getting soft.

Can I use different pasta shapes?

I mean… you can use whatever pasta you want. It’s your kitchen. The texture will be different. Gluten-free pasta soaks up more dressing so keep extra mayo ready to add later. Whole wheat has that nutty flavor some people really like. Some people think it doesn’t belong here. Your call.

Do I really need the fruit?

If you don’t put fruit in it, it’s just regular macaroni salad. The pineapple and raisins make it Filipino. They’re what gives it that surprise sweetness people don’t expect. At least keep the pineapple. That’s kind of the whole point of making the Filipino version.

What I Use to Make This

Nothing fancy here. My biggest mixing bowl is the one I got at Target like six years ago. Still works fine. I use my regular pasta pot—the one with the dent in it from when I dropped it on the garage floor. Sharp knife for chopping vegetables. That’s pretty much it. You don’t need special anything to make this.

Final Thing

This recipe is pretty forgiving. You don’t have to measure everything exactly like you’re in chemistry class. Want more chicken? Go for it. Love pineapple? Add extra chunks. Not a raisin person? Use less or skip them entirely.

The main thing is keeping it sweet and creamy and cold. That fruity tropical thing is what makes it Filipino style. Mix it however you want as long as you keep that basic vibe going.

Every time I bring this somewhere, it connects me to Maria and that first office potluck. And through her to this whole tradition of Filipino gatherings and families sharing food. There’s something nice about food that has history and culture behind it like that. Makes a regular pasta salad feel like more than just pasta salad, you know?

Make it. Chill it. Serve it cold. If the bowl comes back empty, you did it right.