Best Tuna Salad Recipe

My favorite tuna salad is with chopped celery, celery salt, pepper and mayo, very simple. For a change, I found this recipe years ago in a Quaker Oats cookbook - use the above, but add some toasted oats and some chopped green onion - it's really very good!

As far as I'm concerned the only canned tuna with any flavor is the one packed in olive oil (which is very good for you). Drain the oil, flake the tuna, add finely-chopped onion (to taste), finely chopped celery, mayonaise (or Miracle Whip if you prefer)mix well and refrigerate for a while so that the flavors blend. You can serve this as a sandwich on your favorite bread (with or without lettuce) or my favorite way....expecially this time of the year....take a medium sized tomato, remove the stem end and slice it into about six wedges almost to the bottom. Spread apart the wedges and pile on the tuna salad....YUM!!

That was a common summer dinner when Mom declared it too hot to cook! Usually the filled tomato was set atop a scoop of cottage cheese seated in a lettuce leaf.

I just like plain old tuna, miracle whip and diced up celery.

OT: My kids favorite chicken salad is chicken, miracle whip and dried onions! Easy, but good!

Dang I was such a lazy cook. LOL

I'm right there with you, Rapunzll...
chicken, mayo and Mrs. Dash - thanks to the sample ladies at Costco for that fancy recipe!

Can't abide canned fish of any sort (or anything made with such), so fresh tuna (poached is ok, grilled is better), fat-free Miracle Whip, minced onion & celery, sweet pickle relish, & LOTS of fresh-ground black pepper! A variation: chopped unpeeled Granny Smith apples, white Niagra grapes, & walnuts instead of onion & pickle relish. Either variation goes nicely on fresh-baked whole-wheat bread, with or without some diced Havarti cheese. I'll have to try the toasted oats idea! Re: canned fish: never tasted or smelled such an animal until I was a teenager. Growing up, if we wanted something besides pork or chicken to eat, we hunted, fished, or trapped it. Grandpa bought only coffee, tea, sugar, flour, meal, rice, salt, & pepper from the trade. Everything else we grew ourselves. (My poor city-raised kids refuse to believe we grew & made our own popcorn WITHOUT A MICROWAVE!)

My favorite is a can of tuna, minced yellow onion, chopped scallions, dill relish, finely chopped celery, chopped green olives w/ pimento, salt, pepper, onion salt mixed generously with Spin Blend salad dressing and served with thinly sliced salted tomatoes on rye bread.

I like it chilled, drained, mixed with mayo, minced sweet pickles, minced red onions, chopped cashews, chopped celery, and seasoned with garlic salt and black pepper between two slices of toasted black bread.

Andrea

Personally, I like the stuff that's put out by a lot of restaurants including (but not exclusively) the well-known chains. I've tried to duplicate it at home, but I can't. I pretty much make mine like Mavlily (including the use of oil-packed tuna--and I prefer the "light" to Albacore plus it has less mercury), but it's not as good to my taste as the commercial tuna salad. I'm not sure why I prefer it except a lot of pretty good memories associated with tuna sandwiches at Hot Shoppes and Howard Johnson's as a kid.

I guess it would depend on your type of taste, sweet or salty, as to whether you'd like my simple recipe. I'm a salty person so here goes:
Can of light water packed tuna, drained, Hellman's light mayo to your desired texture, a palm full of minced white onion. Blend together, spread on your choice of bread(7-grain does it for me) and top with thin slices of pimento stuffed green olives The more slices of olives, the saltier! YUMBO

I use water-packed Albicore, (drained, juice given to cat), a dash of ReaLemon, a couple of heaping tablespoons of sliced green salad olives with pimento, many shakes of granulated garlic or garlic buds, one scoop of Hellman's. Serve at room temperature.

As a variation, I play down the garlic and add lots of dillweed. Pinenuts can be added to this version for a nutty crunch.

Back in the '70's, there was a restaurant called "In Cahoots" in the university area of Cincinnati that served a great tuna salad plate. They'd put a big dollop of guacamole on the tuna salad and the two flavors were wonderful together. I keep meaning to try this myself...perhaps just a slice or two of avocado on tuna slad would be tasty.

Our tuna salad uses StarKist fresh pouch (whatever they call those) water-pack with mayo, celery, apples, diced cheddar, sweet pickle relish, salt, pepper, a dash of celery seed, a dash of garlic powder or salt (whichever I lay my hand on) and sweet onions.

Of course, I'm the only one in our household of five who likes it this way, so I have to make/serve in stages - tuna/mayo/cheese for one picky eater, tuna/mayo/cheese/celery/pickle relish & seasonings for the kids, and the addition of onions for me. Sounds absurd, but it's worth it.

I see a lot of posters use relish or diced pickles. My brother in law, who loves his food, clued me in: diced sweet banana peppers. He likes his with Hellman's Mayo and onions, my family prefers Miracle Whip, onions & finely diced celery. I'd prefer it on toasted wheat bread, but hey, I'm not fussy. Sometimes a package of small dinner rolls is heavenly when stuffed with tuna salad & lettuce, wrapped and left in the frige for anyone lucky enough to be looking for a little treat!

My favorite is chunk light tuna mixed with Hellmann's mayo, a good scoop of pico de gallo, and a dash of cumin rolled up in a tortilla. No purist, I.

I have two favorites. Fist one is tuma of your choice drained add pepper salt if needed taste first some tuna is naturally salty I find others are bland reconstitued sun dried tomatoes chopped up and whatever vegtables you desire and mayo. Second one is Tono Tuna right out of the can oil and all on a nice crusty bulkie or other hard roll with sliced red onion. Thats going to be todays lunch with Minestrone soup. Chow Jim

White Tuna
celery
vidala onion
red bell pepper
hellmans mayo
let chill an hour
top with a homegrown tomato on toasted potatoe bread

yum

Canned tuna in water drained well and mashed fine
Diced onion and celery to taste (I like lots of both)
Hellman's mayo to taste (I use 2-3 heaping tablespoons to a small can of tuna)
Salt and Pepper
Caraway seeds

Mom always made it with caraway seeds, so that's what I'm used to. Gives that "rye bready" taste with or without the rye bread.

I like it served on toasted rye, an onion roll or a fresh bialy (pure heaven!). Chips and a half sour pickle on the side please.

And I'll have a Dr. Brown's Black Cherry soda with it, too.

hey all,

thanks for the great ideas. i have terrible morning sickness, but have a craving for tuna salad today. usually, i'd follow suit and add onions or celery or even maybe water chestnuts for crunchiness, but veggies are making me nauseous. so i took the recommended path of tuna, mayo, a little mustard and relish, salt, pepper. toasted a hamburger bun, spread the salad on with a slice of mozzarella, romaine and avocado slices. perfect!

Beverly's Tuna Salad

Tuna in oil drained
chopped celery
chopped white cabbage
chopped white onions
emerald relish
boiled eggs chopped
black pepper
hot pepper sauce
mayo to mix

Really squeezing the water out of the tuna is a must, I drain albacore tuna and then put it in a paper towel of kitchen towel and squeeze the water out really hard. Then add Hellman's, minced celery, salt and pepper, in summer with garden tomatoes, in winter, a tuna melt is fine with tomato soup!

For a different flavor, try adding chopped cilantro!

Here is a favorite party recipe of mine. Add a spoonful of tuna salad to a halved, deseeded jalapeño, then wrap in a thin slice of Baby Swiss. Use a toothpick to hold it together.

As a kid, my dad would add chopped pecans to tuna salad. I liked it, but grew tired of it after a while.

as simply as possible. solid light tuna packed in water,
chopped onions and celery with just enough mayo to hold it together.
serve on wheat toast with ripe tomatoes.
the sandwich along with a cup of vegetarian vegetable
soup sold out every friday.

tuna in oil, drained.Mix with Hellmans mayo, diced celery, onion and dill pickle.A bit of salt and pepper.Yummy.........

Bill Voss or others,

Do you have a recipe for Tuna Frenchees? I want to ask suds to make them for me! Thanks KO

1 can albacore tuna in water (drained for my cat to eat the liquid)
1 can King Oscar sardines in Olive oil
just a spoonful of Hellmanns
4 tablespoons green salad olives chopped with pimentos
dashes ground pepper

mash everything together and sarve on your favorite bread/toast

Yummerlicious!

quote:

Originally posted by LegalLady

Have you ever tried Kraft Tuna Salad Maker? Not bad at all, I add a bit more onion & pickles and use the tuna in the package that isn't full of water or oil

LL

Hi LL,

There used to be a similar product called "Tuna Twist." Every time I make tuna salad, the ditty plays in my head:

"I'm Sir Celery!
I'm Miss Parsley!
We are the onion twins!

We're in Tuna Twist
So tuna tastes
Fresh as the garden!"

I guess you had to hear them sing it. Anyway, I mince Sir Celery, Miss Parsley and the Onion Twins (big chunks are not as good in tuna) and add a pinch of hot curry powder. Moisten with mayo, and spread on the bread! Rapunzll, your suggestion for sprinkling those canned fried onions on before you put the top bread slice on is fantastic! Never would have thought of it. Thank you!

Catherine

We use mayo, soy sauce, celery, water chestnuts and cashews!
Asian Tuna Salad, it's terrific, family & friends - love it.

The less mayo, the better! I prefer a mixture of cayenne/paprika, white pepper, celery seed, very light/thinned soy

and if you've got them: bay leaves, ginger & cloves are optional.

Can't believe I've never seen this thread before. Naturally, with a name like tarragon, you know that it's a part of my tuna salad recipe.

I turned to the albacore tuna several years ago--the taste difference is definitely worth it, mercury levels be damned (I really don't eat it that often). I usually use the vacuum packaged tuna now; it's much less messy. Here's my recipe, which is fairly simple:

albacore tuna, flaked with fork
season with shake of lemon pepper, Old Bay seasoning, and tarragon
a dollop or two of sweet relish
Miracle Whip salad dressing

Mix gently, spread on toasted bread, toasted croissant or (best) toasted onion roll.