Wow - you will need a big pan to cook all that macaroni!
It could be easier to prepare the pasta in batches, about 4 trays should cover for 40 people.
To give you an idea - 8 ounces of uncooked pasta will have a volume of around 4 cups once cooked. 2 ounces per person is standard but remember you can always bulk out the macaroni salad with some healthy greens, salad leaves and potatoes!
What could be more perfect than a picnic, good luck :)
Hi! I think you should allow about 3 oz of dry macaroni per person, so that means a total of 7 and a half pounds - that's a lot of macaroni! And a lot of people!
If you're having a picnic there's always room for a bit more salad and of course macaroni salad will be perfect for leftovers the next day.
Here in the UK I don't think we eat so much macaroni salad but we love our macaroni cheese!
However you might be interested in this. In our family we do things a bit differently! My mother-in-law hated cooking so she used to have a shortcut macaroni cheese, with bacon.
You boil the macaroni (and in England we have straight macaroni, not elbow shaped) and when cooked, drain and add grated cheese straight onto the macaroni. Then add cooked bacon chopped finely! No sauce to prepare, and it's tasty and nutritious! My children love it.
I found the really good video of English macaroni cheese (posh) versus packaged macaroni cheese! It's a bit unfair really - homecooked beats packet any time - in any country!
Enjoy your picnic!
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?