Filipino Chicken Macaroni Salad Recipe – When you think of holiday meals, many dishes come ot mind. However, macaroni salad may not be the first. In the Philippines, though, it is one of the fairly common holiday dishes. A macaroni salad may seem simple, but done in the Filipino-style, it is a dish packed with plenty of flavor. A Filipino macaroni salad is generally one that involves chicken with onions, carrots, and bell peppers. What makes this salad different from others is that it usually includes tidbits of raisin and pineapple.
While the combination of chicken and vegetables with raisins and pineapple is the classic mix, this salad is not limited to it. There are many ingredients you can try out with this salad. But if you want to try the classic route, this is one Filipino Chicken Macaroni Salad to try:
Filipino Chicken Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless chicken breast
- 1 lb elbow macaroni
- 1 1/2 cups Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise
- 1 can pineapple chunks 20 oz
- 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 bottle pimiento 6.5 oz chopped
- 1 cup carrot chopped
- 1 piece green bell pepper chopped
- 1 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup sweet relish
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 teaspoons salt this will be used when boiling chicken and macaroni and as a seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup Water (for boiling)
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken. Start to boil the chicken by pouring 1 quart water on a cooking pot over a stove top. Apply heat and let boil. Add 1 teaspoon salt and put the chicken breasts into the pot. Cover and boil in medium heat for 22 minutes. Remove chicken from the pot. Let it cool down. Manually shred into pieces and set aside.
- Prepare the macaroni by following package instructions. Boil 3 quarts water in a pot. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Pour the macaroni into the pot. Stir. Cover the pot and continue to boil the macaroni in medium heat for 9 minutes or until al dente. Make sure to stir every 3 minutes to prevent the macaroni from sticking to each other. Drain the water. Set macaroni aside.
- Arrange Macaroni in a large mixing bowl. Add shredded chicken. Toss.
- Put-in pineapple, pimiento, green bell pepper, raisins, carrot, sweet relish, and cheese. Toss until ingredients are blended.
- Add lady’s Choice Mayonnaise and garlic powder. Gently toss until well blended.
- Season with salt and ground black pepper.
- Serve! Share with the family and enjoy.
Additional Notes for a Filipino Chicken Macaroni Salad Recipe
The chicken macaroni salads is just one of the different types of pasta salads you can make in Filipino cuisine. If you want to take the sweeter route, there is a macaroni fruit salad you can try. It brings an interesting combination of pasta, fruit, and cream that can be rather tasty. But if you want to stick to the more savory route that’s light on sweetness, there are variations of the dish to try. One option you can experiment with is the addition of ham and cheese. If this all seems a bit much for you, you can try your hand at making a chicken macaroni soup instead.
Other Filipino recipes you can try making include our “Embutido Recipe” and “Poqui Poqui Recipe.” If you want to explore other chicken dishes, there is “Chicken Inasal.”
