Crunchy Tuna Salad with Tomatoes (2024)

Canned tuna is the perfect pantry staple. It’s affordable, versatile and easy to prepare. Plus, tuna is a yummy addition to a balanced lifestyle. The key to making a healthy tuna salad recipe is finding fresh ingredients that build the flavor and texture of the fish without adding unhealthy fat or excess calories. Make a healthy tuna salad recipe that your whole family will enjoy.

Is tuna salad healthy?

It certainly can be! On its own, tuna is a very healthy protein, containing B6, B12, vitamin A, iron, zinc, magnesium, potassium and omega-3 fatty acids. When buying canned tuna, choose the fish packed in water instead of oil to avoid extra fat and calories.

The other ingredients in the tuna salad recipe—especially mayonnaise or dairy—will determine if it’s healthy. With reduced-fat mayo, onion, celery, tomatoes and herbs, this one is a nicely healthy tuna salad recipe.

Healthy Tuna Salad Ingredients

  • Reduced-fat mayonnaise
  • Sweet onion
  • Celery rib
  • Fresh parsley or dried parsley flakes
  • Ground pepper
  • Albacore white tuna in water
  • Medium tomatoes

Directions

Step 1: Make the dressing

Combine mayonnaise, onion, celery, parsley and pepper in a bowl.

Step 2: Add the tuna

Stir in the tuna. Flake the tuna from the can with a fork, gently raking it out into the bowl. Stir until the dressing is evenly distributed.

Step 3: Serve

Serve with tomato wedges for a light lunch or snack. You can also slather it on bread, over a bed of lettuce leaves or as an appetizer while you finish preparing dinner.

Healthy Tuna Salad Variations

To customize your tuna salad, look for inspiration in your fridge and pantry. Here are some ingredients to get you started. Think about the flavors that will complement one another, and off you go!

  • Nuts:Walnuts, sliced almonds, cashews, pistachios
  • Herbs: Cilantro, oregano, dill
  • Aromatics: Fennel, capers
  • Fruits and veggies: Carrots, bell peppers, olives, dried cranberries, avocado
  • Cheese:Feta, blue, Parmesan

How long does healthy tuna salad last?

Tuna salad can last in the fridge for three to five days. Be sure to store it in a sealed container and refrigerate it right away to lock in freshness. If you notice that the tuna salad has changed in flavor, color or smell, pitch it.

Tips for Healthy Tuna Salad

What’s the healthiest type of tuna?

When choosing between oil- or water-packed tuna, water is usually the healthier option. Oil-packed tuna generally has a richer taste but you won’t know the quality of the olive oil used. Water-packed tuna may have higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids, as well as fewer artificial ingredients.

To buy more sustainable tuna, look for labels that say the tuna was caught by pole or line fishing. These methods are more environmentally sustainable than other options. These are our Test Kitchen’s favorite tuna brands.

What are some good substitutes for mayo in tuna salad?

While mayonnaise is almost always linked with tuna salad, it has no special powers that make it the only option for tuna salad magic. Mayonnaise is used to smooth out the tuna salad and bind the ingredients together, but these alternatives work just as well and add additional flavor:

  • Mustard
  • Hummus
  • Plain Greek yogurt
  • Mashed avocado
  • Chimichurri
  • Olive tapenade
  • Cottage cheese
  • Olive oil and red wine vinegar
  • Pesto
  • Aioli
  • Tzatziki sauce
  • Ricotta cheese
Test Kitchen Approved

Healthy Tuna Salad

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Prep Time20 min

Yield4 servings.

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise
  • 1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
  • 1 celery rib, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley or 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
  • 3/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 can (12 ounces) albacore white tuna in water, drained and flaked
  • 4 medium tomatoes, cut into wedges

Directions

  1. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, onion, celery, parsley and pepper. Stir in tuna. Serve with tomato wedges.

Nutrition Facts

1/2 cup tuna salad with 1 tomato: 280 calories, 16g fat (3g saturated fat), 50mg cholesterol, 656mg sodium, 12g carbohydrate (7g sugars, 2g fiber), 22g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 2 fat, 1 vegetable.

Author

Carrie Madormo, RN

Carrie is a nurse and health writer who has worked with Taste of Home for six years. As a former health coach, she’s written across a range of health publications and digital outlets and strives to translate the latest health and nutrition research into easy-to-understand information and actionable articles.

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Crunchy Tuna Salad with Tomatoes (1)

Author

Jennifer Schwarzkopf

Half Chilean, half Irish and all joie de vivre, Jennifer is a food writer and photographer who loves to share stories about different cultures and the magic that is sharing a meal together. When she's not working as an executive chef or freelancing, you'll find her hanging with family and friends, and just trying to "live deep and suck out all the ...

Read More

Crunchy Tuna Salad with Tomatoes (2)

On a hot summer day, there's nothing more refreshing than this salad. I grow a few tomato plants in my garden and the fresh-picked taste makes the dish even more of a treat. —Diane Selich, Vassar, Michigan

Recipe Creator

Crunchy Tuna Salad with Tomatoes (2024)

FAQs

Why does restaurant tuna salad taste better? ›

The highest-quality tuna is bought fresh from the market or fishmonger, so some restaurants process and cook fresh tuna before incorporating it into the tuna salad. Although time-consuming and expensive, many chefs prefer this approach.

What does Martha Stewart put in her tuna salad? ›

directions. Combine tuna, celery, apple, mayonnaise, basil, and lemon juice; mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Note: The original recipe calls for Lemonaise instead of Mayonnaise.

How do you make Paula Deen's tuna salad? ›

Directions. In a mixing bowl, combine the tuna, eggs, mayonnaise, lemon juice, chives, celery, relish, and onion. Season the salad with a big pinch of salt and pepper and stir to combine. Serve on a bed of salad greens or on toasted bread, if you like.

Why are restaurant salads so crisp? ›

The Keys to Crisp Lettuce

Lettuce actually needs a good amount of airflow, in addition to a bit of moisture (but not too much!), in order to stay crisp. That's why restaurants store their lettuce in special perforated bins that allow for air circulation while it's held in the fridge.

Is Miracle Whip better than mayo for tuna? ›

More viscous or fluid products may cause a more 'wet' tuna salad.” Less popular for tuna salad among our experts but still mayo MVPs, Kewpie and Miracle Whip both have distinct flavors that don't work as well with tuna, one more savory (Kewpie) and one sweeter (Miracle Whip).

Which tuna is better for tuna salad? ›

If you're looking for the richest, most luxurious tuna salad of your life, then you'll probably want oil-packed. The cool thing about canned tuna is its versatility: White or light, chunk or solid, oil- or water-packed, any variety will work just fine in any recipe that calls for canned tuna.

How do I thicken my tuna salad? ›

But for an easy and effective way to fix water tuna salad, go for hard-boiled eggs. Delicious, nutritious, and creamy, hard-boiled eggs are such a boon to tuna salad, that you might be motivated to include them even when the salad isn't overly soggy. Read the original article on Daily Meal.

Do you drain canned tuna for tuna salad? ›

If you are using canned tuna packed in water, drain it and add in 1 tablespoon of good-quality extra virgin olive oil. If you are using canned tuna packed in olive oil, you can use as is, without draining it.

How long should you keep tuna salad in the refrigerator? ›

According to FoodSafety.gov, tuna salad is good for 3-4 days when properly stored in the refrigerator. This goes for all cold salads too – egg salad, chicken salad, macaroni salad, etc.

Why is restaurant mayo better? ›

However, while both oil and acid play a part in the taste and texture, the ingredient that is the shining star in making heavy-duty mayonnaise superior is the egg. Eggs are responsible for binding all of the ingredients in mayonnaise together.

Why does store bought salad taste better? ›

Restaurants understand balance.

Chefs balance flavors and textures in salads with a mix of cooked and raw ingredients, proteins, grains, veggies, fruits, herbs, and dressing, Herpin said. Think about all of these components (as well as color!) to make the perfect bowl.

Do restaurants use canned tuna? ›

In fact, many restaurants use exceptional canned tuna, much of it imported. Generally, these chefs prefer to use solid, white albacore canned tuna as it has a superior, meaty texture. When it comes to using water versus oil-packed tuna, opinions differ.

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