As a kid, we ate a lot of tuna our house. Like if we ever said, “Hey, I’m hungry!” the automatic response was, “We have tuna and crackers in the cupboard.” Mayo optional. Suffice it to say that I wasn’t a huge fan of tuna salad sandwiches growing up.
When I was in college and worked in a sandwich shop, I discovered that tuna salad on sandwiches can actually be delicious! Even better is tuna salad’s versatility–I got this recipe from Allrecipes and it has become a favorite for everything from lunch at home, all by myself to wedding luncheons. It’s delicious on whole wheat bread, a croissant, or in a pita with a leaf of lettuce or you could serve it on top of spinach or mixed greens or roll it in a leaf of lettuce. Serve with a bowl of soup and you’ve got an easy weeknight dinner!
Ingredient Notes
- Tuna – Use whichever tuna variety you prefer. Solid albacore tuna has a mild flavor and large, solid pieces. Chunk light is from a smaller tuna fish species, is a touch more tender, and comes in small flakes. Chunk light tends to have a slightly more fishy flavor than solid albacore.
- Mayonnaise – Use your preferred mayo– regular, light, avocado, etc. I have not tried this particular recipe with miracle whip, but if you can certainly experiment if you’d like.
- Apple – Diced apples provide a sweet, crunchy element to this salad. A tart variety like Granny Smith is preferred, but use what you like.
- Pickle Relish – Again, use your preferred variety. I personally prefer dill.
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine a can of tuna, some diced celery, diced apples, and diced onions. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine some mayonnaise, honey mustard, curry powder, relish, and salt and pepper.
- Pour the dressing over the tuna mixture and toss to combine.
- Before serving, add toasted almonds. Serve on bread or over greens for a salad.
Serving Suggestions
Tuna salad is great with crackers, tortilla chips, on toast, in a sandwich, in a lettuce wrap or tortilla; it’s incredibly versatile! If you’d like some accompaniments, consider serving alongside a good soup like one of these:
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can this be made ahead of time? Absolutely. This salad is best when it’s had a chance to chill and for flavors to marry. Make it one day and use it for lunches for a few days!
Did You Make This?
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Tuna Salad
Description
Classic tuna salad is taken up a notch with a few tasty additions like honey mustard, curry, and diced apples in this grown-up version.
Ingredients
- 1 6-ounce can of your preferred tuna (solid albacore or chunk light)
- 1 stalk celery, minced
- 1/2 small tart apple, chopped
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon honey mustard (Dijon if you’re South Beaching it)
- 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon pickle relish (I prefer dill)
- salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine tuna, celery, apple, and onions. Set aside. In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, honey mustard, curry powder, relish, and salt and pepper.
- Pour over tuna mixture and toss to combine.
- Before serving, add toasted almonds. Serve on bread or over greens for a salad.
Questions & Reviews
I love tuna salad especially on toasted bread. Curry and mustard? Interesting. I’m not a fan of either ingredient but definitely willing to give it a try. The best tuna in my opinion is Kirkland Albacore (Costco brand). It’s a little more than your other tuna cans but so so worth it! Thanks for the tuna recipe Kate!?
Just made this recipe. Pretty tasty!
I accidentally added 1 Tablespoon honey before I realized it said “honey mustard”. Whoops!
I added 1 Tablespoon of dijon mustard to counteract the straight honey.
Tastes great and I’m not a true tuna lover. Will definitely try this recipe again and again.
Thank you for sharing.
I need a new tune casserole recipe. Do you have one? I have got way too many cans of tuna in my pantry.
I don’t really make tuna casserole because I’m not a big seafood fan, but I’ll check with Kate!
Made this today and loved it. I hope it saves well as I am planning on eating for my lunch over the next couple of days! Thanks for sharing!
When I was a little girl, my mom put diced apple in our tuna sandwiches. All my friends and family since then think it's nuts. Thank you for validating that it is not that weird after all! For some reason, diced apple and celery taste so good in tuna sandwiches. Can't wait to try it! Love your blog!
Darcy–It'll serve 4.
How many should this recipe serve?
I just found your website last week and this was my first recipe to try. I wanted to make something easy for lunch and this fit the bill. Oh my word!! The best tuna salad I’ve ever had. Loved it! Can’t wait to try more of your great recipes!
sooo…i tried it with chicken and have been having it for the past few days! i love it! it’s my new favorite lunch meal! i like it on a pita :o)
alright…i don’t like tuna…BUT i love the chicken tuna stuff (thats what i call it) so i am going to try this with the canned chicken. it looks delish! :o) plus a little less mayo and more mustard! hehe.
I’m a huge fan of tuna, but I’ve never tried it with these ingredients! Thanks for the great idea!
I just tried this recipe for lunch and it was DELICIOUS!! I love recipes like this because they are cheap (my favorite), quick, and you can change alot of things in it to your liking. Also, if you have leftover chicken you could cut it up and put it in instead of the tuna and if you don’t have apples you can easily switch it out for grapes.
Thanks for this recipe, I will definitely be making it often!
Erin
My friend Christina (above) was talking about this recipe on Tuesday at our playdate. It’s been on my mind ever since. I can’t wait to try it. Thanks!
My hubby turns his nose up at tuna. But I made this today and he gave it a try. “Not bad!” was the response. Personally, I LOVED it!
Om nom nom! You’re making me hungry!! I love tuna, any way you serve it..
My grandma used to make some super-doctored up tuna, with apples, hb eggs, nuts, celery. I asked her once why she did it that way – growing up on a farm, apples and eggs were cheap, canned tuna wasn’t!
I love Tuna. I go all out even though I only ever make it for myself. The ingredients always vary, but there always HAS to be relish. I can’t eat Tuna without relish. Mmm, and banana peppers. I’m going to try it like this next time. Thanks!
I’ve had something just like this except with chicken, which I like much better (sorry, but not a fan of tuna). I think you could probably even use canned chicken.
I’m with Sara – if it lives in the sea, don’t bring it near me! However, this looks so tasty I might just try it with chicken!!
Your mom sounds a little like me. The kids say, “I’m hungry!” and my response is, “We have oranges in the bowl on the counter.”
Who knew that plain old tuna could look so great?!? I can’t wait to give this a try, it sounds wonderful!
Apples huh? I am going to have to try this… I love tuna! I might even be able to convince my husband to eat it! I’ll let you know how that goes!
Oh yes! I love this. I love Tuna but I get bored of the “stick some mayo in it and smush it around tuna”. Thanks!
I always like the idea of tuna but usually end up having one bite and that’s all I can handle. I’m pretty sure it has to do with a bad pregnancy experience!
Oh, and I’m really glad that we’re now going to have one more recipe in our sad little seafood section! haha
Becca’s right- I don’t do tuna because it lives in the sea and I’m weird like that. But I have to say that this actually sound good! I’ve never seen tuna salad like that and I’m thinking it would be really good with chicken too, so I might try that and come back to report!
I love apples and curry in tuna salad! I also really enjoy putting dried cranberries, and sometimes red grapes that have been halfed – but never cranberries and grapes together. The cranberries go great with the apples though!
That looks awesome! I can’t wait to make it! =)
I am very excited to try this. I love tuna but never quite know what to do to make it more interesting.
I eat a lot of tuna, just like my sister. Ok that’s a lie- Sara won’t touch the stuff with a ten foot pole. But I really do like tuna and I am always looking for ways to make it more exciting. I have never added mustard or curry to it, and definitely not apples. I am excited to give it a try!