This creaming Hawaiian potato salad is packed with spam, macaroni, and a zesty kick of lemon for an explosion of flavor. Serve this island-inspired side dish at your next cookout or get-together!

Hawaiian potato salad is a unique twist on traditional potato salad as it includes spam and a combination of potatoes and cooked macaroni. This delicious blend has characteristics of both a pasta salad and a macaroni salad all in one. The spam adds a savory element to this creamy, hearty dish.

Why use spam in potato salad?

Spam is a great addition to potato salad, especially when browned first in a skillet. Similar to bacon or ham, spam adds a bit of saltiness that compliments the creaminess of a homemade potato salad. Serve this crowd-pleasing Hawaiian potato salad with smoked pulled pork or Hawaiian style ribs. It’s great, and it’s all on its own, too!

We used lite spam for this recipe to keep the salt and calorie count low, but you can certainly use regular spam, turkey, hickory, or any of the spam varieties as long as the flavors don’t clash with the creamy dressing.

What is Hawaiian potato salad?

Hawaiian potato salad is similar to the mainland version but can include chopped fried (or cold) spam, macaroni, green onions, and lemon juice. Spam is a widely used ingredient in Hawaiian cooking and appears in such dishes like fried rice, moco loco, musubi, and potato salad.

What you’ll need

• 3 medium russet potatoes or large Yukon gold potatoes
• Cooked macaroni pasta
• 3 hard-boiled eggs
• 7 ounces of light spam 
• Green onions
• Flat-leaf parsley
• Real mayonnaise (or Japanese mayonnaise)
• Fresh lemon juice (sub with apple cider vinegar)
• Dijon mustard (substitute with yellow mustard if needed)
• Hot sauce (use a mild vinegar-based hot sauce)
• Paprika (regular, not smoked)
• Onion powder
• Garlic powder
• Olive oil 

How to Make Hawaiian Potato Salad

• Boil potatoes in a medium pot for 20-25 minutes, until tender but not mushy. Drain and quickly place into a large bowl with cold water and ice (ice bath). Drain potatoes once more and chop them into 3/4″ chunks. Set aside.
• Cook macaroni pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• Brown the spam: Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add spam slices and brown each side for 2-3 minutes, then cut into bite-sized pieces.

Dressing the potato salad

• Combine mayonnaise, lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder, hot sauce, and granulated garlic in a large mixing bowl. Add chopped 3/4 each of the green onions and parsley. Stir and adjust salt as needed.
• Add potatoes, cooked macaroni, chopped spam, and 2 chopped eggs to the bowl. Gently fold to combine with the mayo mixture.
• Transfer Hawaiian potato salad to a serving bowl. Garnish with the remaining 1/4 each of green onions, parsley, and the remaining egg cut into fourths.
• Cover the dish with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before serving.

Tips and Alternatives

• Safety first: Keep your potato salad covered and cool during service. Pack the outside of the bowl with bags of ice, or use an insulated serving dish that keeps food cold for up to 6 hours.
• Store leftover potato salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Add some extra crunch to your salad! I recommend 1/3 cup diced red or green bell peppers, or 1 large finely diced carrots or celery stalk folded right in.
• Not a fan of spam? Substitute it with chopped steamed shrimp, freshly cooked crab meat, or imitation crab in this Hawaiian potato salad. You can also use chopped ham or bacon.

More crowd pleasing potato salads

• Texas Potato Salad
• Bacon Lover’s Potato Salad
• Tangy mustard potato salad

Print

Hawaiian Potato Salad

Creamy Hawaiian potato salad with spam, macaroni, and a zesty kick of lemon. Perfect for cookouts or get-togethers!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American BBQ, Hawaiian

Keyword hawaiian potato salad, Potato Salad, Side Dishes

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 7

Calories 491kcal

Author Sabrina Baksh

Ingredients

• 3 medium russet potatoes peeled and chopped into fourths
• 2 cups cooked macaroni pasta
• 7 ounces light spam cut into 4 slabs
• 3 large hard-boiled eggs peeled
• 1 teaspoon salt for boiling water
• 1 cup real mayonnaise
• 3-4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (substitute with yellow mustard)
• 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce optional
• 1/4 teaspoon regular paprika
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 cup flat leaf parsley finely chopped
• 3 medium green onion finely chopped
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil (use cooking spray if preferred)

Instructions

• Boil potatoes for 20-25 minutes, until tender but not mushy. Drain and quickly place into a large bowl with cold water and ice (ice bath). Let potatoes sit in cold water for 3-4 minutes to halt the cooking process. Drain potatoes once more and chop them into 3/4" chunks. Set aside.
• Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.

  Finely chop 2 boiled eggs for the salad and cut the third egg into fourths for garnish. Set aside.
• Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add spam slices and brown each side for 2-3 minutes. Remove and place spam onto a cutting board. Let them cool for at least 5 minutes before cutting into bite-sized pieces.
• Combine mayonnaise, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, paprika, onion powder, hot sauce, and granulated garlic in a large bowl. Add green onions and parsley, setting aside tablespoon each for garnish.
• Add potatoes, cooked macaroni, chopped spam, and 2 finely chopped eggs to the bowl. Gently fold to combine with dressing.
• Transfer Hawaiian potato salad to a serving bowl. Garnish with the remaining green onions, parsley, and the third egg cut into fourths.
• Cover the dish with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before serving.
• Store leftover potato salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Notes

Tips:

Safety first: Keep your potato salad covered and cool during service. Pack the outside of the bowl with bags of ice, or use an insulated serving dish that keeps food cold for up to 6 hours.

Store leftover potato salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Not a fan of spam? Substitute with chopped steamed shrimp, freshly cooked crab meat, or imitation crab. You can also use chopped ham or bacon.

Some recipes call for both potatoes and cooked macaroni. If you’d like to add pasta, use 1 cup cooked macaroni in addition to the potatoes for this Hawaiian potato salad recipe.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 491kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 15g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 113mg | Sodium: 1008mg | Potassium: 589mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 403IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 2mg

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