Looking for the best recipe for tuna salad? It’s right here, and it’s super simple to make!
This simple but amazing tuna salad recipe is perfect for sandwiches, salads, or eating with crackers for lunch.
You probably already know how to make a basic tuna sandwich. Mix some canned tuna with mayonnaise, slap it on some bread, and enjoy, right?
Wrong! Just a few extra ingredients can turn a basic tuna sandwich into a fresh, flavorful lunch experience that you’ll look forward to!
Onion, celery, dill pickles, fresh herbs, and lemon juice elevate canned (or pouch) tuna fish to be the best that it can be: The perfect homemade tuna salad.
You should also try my easy ham salad recipe or creamy turkey salad made with leftovers. Homemade chicken salad and egg salad are two other sandwich spread classics!
Want to make the most amazing tuna salad sandwich? Serve it on homemade no-knead artisan bread with some lettuce. Yum!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- No Cooking Required – Many of my favorite recipes go straight from the fridge to my plate, which is perfect for lunchtime, or a cool meal on a hot summer night.
- Balanced Flavor – Canned fish and mayonnaise can be a pretty bland combination, and it just begs for fresh acidic notes. Fresh lemon juice and dill pickles add the perfect amount of acidity to this delicious tuna salad.
- Economical – Tuna can be a very inexpensive protein source, and it can last in the cupboard for a long time, so feel free to stock up when you see it on sale!
Tuna Salad Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make the best tuna salad recipe:
- Tuna: Use canned flake tuna fish packed in water (not oil) for tuna salad. Be sure to drain as much of the water out of the tuna as possible before mixing it in with the other ingredients.
- Mayonnaise: For the very best tuna salad, use full-fat mayonnaise. If you need to, low-fat mayo can be used as well. Greek yogurt also makes a good healthier mayo alternative.
- Dijon Mustard: A little bit of dijon adds richness to the mayo.
- Celery and Onion: These bring flavor, but they also bring much-needed crunch to your tuna salad. Be sure to dice both very finely so that you get some in every bite.
- Dill Relish: You can also finely chop dill pickles if you don’t have relish. Capers are another pickled item that can be very tasty in tuna salad. Anything that has that briny, vinegary flavor.
- Fresh Parsley: I love the flecks of dark green that chopped parsley adds.
- Lemon Juice: Please use juice that you’ve freshly squeezed from a lemon! bottled lemon juice just doesn’t taste as good.
- Salt and Pepper: Finish your perfect tuna salad with simple seasonings.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How To Make Tuna Salad
- Prep Your Ingredients: Drain the tuna and chop the celery, onion, and parsley. Then add the tuna and veggies to a bowl along with mayo, Dijon mustard, relish or diced dill pickles, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
- Stir: Use a spoon or spatula to combine all of the tuna salad ingredients together. That’s it!
Tip!
Tuna that comes in a can is often cheaper than the kind that comes in pouches. Since we’re breaking up the fish, there’s no need to spend the extra money if you don’t want to. Canned tuna in water is perfect for tuna salad!
Recipe Tips
- Use tuna packed in water. Tuna packed in oil isn’t the right type for making salad.
- Dill relish is my favorite part of this recipe. If you don’t have dill relish in the fridge, do as I did and chop up a few dill pickles instead. I added extra diced pickles to the top of my salad too. Yum! And if you like pickles as much as I do, make sure to try my Dill Pickle Pasta Salad next.
- Try this recipe with canned salmon for an extra special treat.
- For a lighter version, use greek yogurt in place of the mayonnaise.
- Scale the recipe: If you’re just making enough tuna salad for one or two people, you can easily cut this recipe in half to use just one can of tuna. You can also double or triple it too!
Storing Tips
If you aren’t going to enjoy your homemade tuna salad right away, be sure to promptly refrigerate it in an airtight container.
Tuna salad will stay fresh for 3-4 days in the fridge.
How to Eat Tuna Salad
Aside from a simple tuna sandwich, or tuna on toast, there are plenty of ways to enjoy this recipe!
Instead of making a sandwich with bread, stuff tuna salad into a halved avocado, bell pepper, or seeded cucumber.
Try a scoop of tuna salad on top of a delicious shrimp cobb salad, or whatever greens and veggies you have in the fridge.
Mix tuna salad with cooked pasta and a bit of extra mayo and you’ll have a super simple tuna pasta salad.
Learn how to make a classic tuna melt sandwich, just like your favorite diner makes!
Pack a container of tuna salad in your lunch along with fresh veggies and crackers to dip into it with.
More Easy Sandwich Recipes
All Sandwiches
Recipe FAQs
I prefer to use mayonnaise for tuna salad because Miracle Whip is a bit sweet, and it throws off my savory flavors too much. If you love Miracle Whip, feel free to use it here and let me know what you think!
If properly refrigerated, tuna salad will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Yes! Place it in a freezer container and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator. You will need to drain away some liquid and stir well to bring it back to the right texture.
It’s really easy to make the best tuna salad ever! All it takes is a few extra flavorful ingredients to bring this simple staple from bland to beautiful. Pin the recipe for later!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Tuna Salad
Recipe Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 5-oz cans (2 145-gram cans) Flake white tuna packed in water
- ½ cup (125 grams) mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- ¼ cup finely diced celery
- 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
- 1 tablespoon dill relish or diced dill pickles
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Drain tuna from water very well.
- In a bowl, combine tuna with mayonnaise, dijon mustard, celery, red onion, relish or diced dill pickle, parsley, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- Stir to combine. Enjoy right away, or store in the refridgerator.
Notes:
- There’s no need to buy solid-packed tuna for making tuna salad since we’ll be breaking it up in the recipe, but you can use any canned tuna that you enjoy. Just be sure to use tuna packed in water, NOT in oil.
- Dice the onion, celery, and parsley very finely, so that there is some of everything in each bite.
- For a lighter version, use greek yogurt in place of the mayonnaise.
- Try this recipe with canned salmon for an extra special treat.
- Dill relish is my favorite part of this recipe. If you don’t have dill relish in the fridge, do as I did and chop up a few dill pickles instead. Capers can also be used.
- Scale the recipe: If you’re just making enough tuna salad for one or two people, you can easily cut this recipe in half to use just one can of tuna. You can also double or triple it too!
- To Store: Promptly refrigerate in an airtight container. Tuna salad with keep for up to 4 days this way. You can also freeze tuna salad if needed for up to 2 months.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Elizabeth says
Delicious recipe! 👌🏼
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Thank you so much for the great feedback!
Arnette says
This recipe when made, is so good. Please you must try it.
Soheila says
What can tuna you used?
Diana says
I used two 5-ounce cans of flake white tuna packed in water.
CARMEL says
YUM!!!!