Hellmann’s Mayonnaise is celebrating its 100 year anniversary this year. In honor of the anniversary, Mario Batali, the renowned chef, restaurateur and expert on Italian cuisine, has made over 6 of Hellmann’s classic recipes.

One of the recipes that Chef Batali remade was for Hellmann’s Classic Macaroni Salad, a perennial crowd favorite. Mario put his spin on the recipe by using bow tie pasta and adding tender strips of chicken along with green olives and raisins. See the recipe here.

There is a contest going on now to put one’s own take on the Hellmann’s recipes that Mario Batali updated. The winner will get to sit at the World’s Longest Picnic Table for Hellmann’s 100th birthday celebration in NYC in September.

So, inspired by Mario Batali’s reinvention of Hellmann’s Macaroni Salad, I decided to try my hand at coming up with a recipe of my own.

I am a huge fan of sushi and the fresh flavors of Japanese cuisine, so my update includes ingredients that emulate those dishes. I used homemade wasabi mayonnaise mixed together with soy sauce, rice vinegar and chopped pickled ginger. Gemelli pasta is a nice visual complement to the shredded carrots and slivered snow peas. A dusting of black sesame seeds and a drizzle of additional soy sauce elevate the flavor.

Serve the Pasta Salad With Wasabi Mayo And Pickled Ginger as a side dish or glam things up and serve it as a light supper, plated with some dots of wasabi and pickled ginger (see my photo below).

If you want to enter a recipe yourself you can find all the details at Hellmann’s Making Over The Best site which you can link to here.

Pasta Salad With Wasabi Mayo And Pickled Ginger

Ingredients:

1 lb gemelli pasta
1 cup Hellmann’s Mayonnaise
2 Tbs prepared wasabi
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs rice vinegar
1 Tbs pickled ginger, chopped
1 cup snow peas, sliced lengthwise
1 carrot, shredded
Black sesame seeds and cilantro, to garnish
Additional soy sauce, to drizzle

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, adding the snow peas during the last minute of cooking time. Drain.

2. Combine mayonnaise with the wasabi in a large bowl. Add the soy sauce and rice vinegar. Stir until smooth and well mixed.

3. Add the pickled ginger and carrot along with the cooked pasta and snow peas. Stir to combine.

4. Sprinkle pasta with sesame seeds and cilantro. Drizzle with soy sauce right before serving. Serve warm or chilled.

Serves 8 as a side dish, 4 as a main course

To go along with today’s recipe, it seems fitting to go with music that Mario Batali enjoys and that I, myself, love as well.

Here is a quote from the great chef himself:

“It should be love and joy and
music and art and dance and being together
that drive us to cook, to eat, and to share.”

My sentiments exactly.

You can check out some of Mario Batali’s Music Picks on his Website.

One of his faves is Iggy Pop’s ‘Lust For Life’.

Yep, lust for life should be what it is all about.

Check out Iggy Pop on his Website, where you can learn upcoming world tour dates and buy the music.

Cheers!