Best Seafood Pasta Salad Recipe
A simple, yet delicious, Pasta Seafood Salad with big chunks of Crab Meat and Large Shrimp! Add in hard-boiled eggs, chopped celery, green onion, with a delicious creamy dressing. It’s a fantastic side or a great main course on a hot summer day!
Anyone else love a great summer Pasta Salad loaded with all the seafood your fish-loving heart can handle?
For years, I’ve been trying to come up with the Ultimate Seafood Pasta Salad Recipe. One that is loaded with flavor and icy cold! Perfect on a hot summer’s day!
A few weeks ago, on Father’s Day I made the “men folk” at this Nest their favorite summer dish…Crab and Shrimp Boil! It’s SO good! A must-try recipe if you haven’t yet!
I also made a grilled tri-tip for the “non-fish” loving son, so he’d have something to nibble on while we all gorged on baby red potatoes, corn, sausage, crab legs, and big jumbo shrimp. There is nothing better than sitting around a big table, laden down with all that seafaring goodness… dunking in carafes of melted lemon butter. Throw in big thick slices of crispy sour dough bread…sigh…we ate till we nearly exploded! (It was like that scene in Willy Wonka…only an entire family sitting around, blowing up like big ol’ balloons!)
When dinner was over, besides all the waddling going on…there was a LOT of leftover seafood! So the next day, I sat down and removed all the leftover crab from the remaining crab legs, and chopped up the giant shrimp and got to work making this amazing seafood salad!
This is the perfect Seafood Macaroni salad for your summer holiday celebrations, Memorial Day, Labor Day, and, of course, the 4th of July!
How to Make Cold Seafood Pasta Salad
Start off by cooking 1 pound of pasta according to the directions on the package. Rinse and cool.
In a large bowl, place the cooled pasta, add 1 cup of finely chopped celery, 3 green onions, finely chopped, and 1 cup of flaked crab meat. (Honestly…that crab meat gets me every. Single. Time. YUM!)
You can use any size of shrimp you want, since I was using the leftover shrimp from the seafood boil, they were very large, ginormous! I didn’t want any choking on a shrimp…so I cut them into bite-size pieces! Whatever size you use, make sure the shrimp is bite size for this salad. It’s always a good rule of thumb when it comes to cold serving pot-luck-friendly salads!
Add salt and pepper to taste.
TIP: I recommend going light on the salt in the beginning. You can always add more, but ya can’t take it out! (Have you ever tried to pick grains of salt out of a pasta salad? It can be really time-consuming! Lol)
Dressing ingredients for Pasta Salad
Now this may seem strange…but I add the dressing ingredients at this point and then add the chopped hard-boiled eggs. It makes mixing everything together easier! That’s just me though…you can toss it all in the bowl and then just get busy combining things. It’s all about personal preference.
Add in 1 cup of Mayonnaise…raise your right hand, place it over your heart, and repeat after me… “I will add Mayonnaise and stay far, far, far, away from the evil Miracle Whip”! (That step is crucial to the success of this dish!)
Add one cup of sour cream. I know, this seems so strange…but the combination of the two is AMAZING! You just have to trust me. Add 1 tablespoon sweet relish, and 2 teaspoons sugar.
Mix carefully, so you do not break up the crab meat too much, but be sure everything is well combined. (It’s like walking and chewing gum! I sound like I’m contradicting myself…but if I can do this… You can do this!)
Finishing Touches for Pasta Salad
Now that you have everything but the eggs mixed together…add in the 8 diced hard-boiled eggs. Mix until well combined.
TIP: If you want perfect hard-boiled eggs, try cooking them in your instant pot. I have the perfect step-by-step instructions for making hard-boiled eggs in your instant pot. They turn out beautiful every single time! Cook a few extra and make deviled eggs. Your family will love you!
That’s a lot of YUM in that bowl! Don’t ya just love a cold creamy pasta salad? I know I do! Cover the bowl, and place the Seafood Salad in the refrigerator. Chill for 4 hours or overnight. (The salad! Not you! You have things to do! Like the dishes!)
Recipe Wrap-up
This pasta salad is not overpowered with “fishy” flavors. It’s the perfect blend of seafood, creamy eggs, and crunchy veggies! It’s a great mayonnaise-based seafood salad and keeps well in your refrigerator for days. I store it for up to 6 days and eat it all week! Best Lunch EVER!
I love that this salad can be made ahead of time and is ready to go on party day! It’s perfect for potlucks, backyard BBQs, and Summer Holiday get-togethers!
Your family, friends, and guests will really enjoy this yummy summer side dish…but honestly it’s good anytime! All ya really need is a fork and a love of seafood!
Here are some other great Summer Salad Recipes
- Broccoli, Pomegranate, and Cranberry Salad
- Raspberry Layered Jello Salad
- Grandma’s Pea Salad with Peanuts
- Classic Red Potato Salad Recipe
- BLT salad with fresh basil dressing
- Muffuletta Olive Pasta Salad
- Blackberry Feta Spring Salad
Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting with me today! I hope y’all have a wonderful 4th of July and make a big ol’ heaping bowl of this delicious Seafood Salad!
Happy Nesting!
Printable Recipe Card
Best Seafood Pasta Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound box macaroni pasta
- 1 cup flaked crab meat
- 1 cup cut up, large cooked shrimp
- 1 cup finely chopped celery
- 3-4 green onions finely chopped
- 8 hard boiled eggs diced
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 Tablespoon sweet relish
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Rinse and cool.
- Boil the eggs, peel, and dice.
- In a large bowl, combine cooled pasta, crab, shrimp, celery, onions, slat and pepper, and diced eggs.
- Add in sour cream, mayonnaise, relish, and sugar. Mix until well combined. Cover and chill 4 hours or over night.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
About the Author
Meet The Author
Hi! I'm Norine, the cook, baker, and recipe creator behind Norine's Nest. I love sharing and creating recipes that invite family, friends, and neighbors to gather around the dinner table. Sharing good food and creating memories with those we love brings me happiness. Thanks for stopping by my Nest!
Lastly, boiling your noodles and seafood in shrimp/crab boil adds great flavor. Crawfish tails to this is a really tasty combo.
I like to add grape/cherry/diced tomatoes, diced cucumbers, few splashes of lemon juice to taste, garlic powder, onion powder, and Roasted Red Pepper/Zesty Italian dressing to this recipe. I also hold off on the egg yolks when using seafood.
You can also use leftover steak vs. seafood or leave out all meat/seafood for a cheaper version.
I just made this salad. My go-to has always been macaroni tuna salad, so was a bit skeptical about this (sugar? Sweet pickle relish?!), but let me just say DEE-LICIOUS!!! Also, I only had the fake crab but it worked fine. I just squeezed it pretty dry and cut it up. First taste test was so good, but I can’t wait to try it again later after the flavors have gotten better acquainted.
One more thing, can’t thank you enough for sharing the boiled egg/Instant Pot connection! I tried it and it worked like a charm & saved me so much time. I didn’t have to steam up my house (in late July) boiling eggs, or struggle with peeling, it was like magic. Thank you! For this yummy recipe and the no-fail boiled eggs (I’ll never boil again). And I can’t wait until my next pot luck to showcase this recipe!
Hi Jackie!
Goodness me Thank You so much for taking the time to share with me! You made my day! I love making hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot. I’m with you. The only way to go!! Especially with all this heat right now.
Have a Great Week! Come back again soon.
Norine
This is a first time trying this recipe will let you know . So far I love the ingredients
I made this I left out the eggs just didn’t sound good. It was very bland so I added a few drops of Franks hot sauce and about 3/4 cup of robert rothschield roasted pineapple and habanero sauce (you buy through Amazon) really made a big difference.
Hi Cheryl!
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your tips with us. I wasn’t sure about the egg at first either, but I really like the egg in this recipe. But we all have different tastes. I do love your additions of hot sauces. Thanks again for sharing. I love when others put their own twist on one of my recipes.
Have a great week!
Norine
I don’t like pickles or pickle resishes. Is there anything else I could use? Or maybe just the juice from the relish?
Hi Linda!
Sorry it’s taken me so long to get back to you! You could just use some of the juice to give it the flavor, or just omit it and I think you’d be okay.
Norine
this is so good. my new favorite.. thank you
Hi Susan!
I’m so glad you like this salad! I love this salad! It’s a meal by itself, isn’t it. LOVE IT!!! Thanks for stopping by to share. Come back soon and have a great weekend.
Norine
Did you use imitation crab meat. I would like to make this for the 4th
Hi Charlotte!
I’m late in responding as I’ve been out of my office over the Holiday. You can use imitation crab if you’d like. I use real crab meat. I just prefer the flavor and texture.
Thanks for stopping by!
Norine
@Charlotte Spivey, I use the imitation crab all of the time. My family loves it! I wind up doubling or sometimes even tripling my recipe for different occasions so the imitation crab allows me to do that affordably. Besides that my family just loves the taste of it.
I can’t wait to make this. My grocery store has King Crab legs and 1 should do it – I got spoiled on my choice of crab for the 3 years I was stationed at Elmendorf AFB, – Anchorage, AK. I did however cut this down from 12 – 6 servings as there is only me, but I will share this with 2 of my neighbors. Thank you so much for posting this recipe. With 109 degrees here in Sacramento today – I am off to the store and this will be dinner.
Can you replace the sweet relish with dill relish? My grandmother who passed away used to make this for every family gathering, but she didn’t have a recipe and I would like to try and recreate this dish for my mom for Mother’s Day. Thank you!
Hi Ashley!
I’m sorry I’m so late responding to this message. I took a “Mother’s Day” break from everything. You can substitute dill for sweet relish…but it will change the taste. Dill has a sharper vinegar flavor than the sweet relish does. It could over power the fish. If you like a stronger flavor then I say “go for it”. I hope you had a good Mother’s Day and I’m so sorry for answering late.
Thanks!
Norine