Everything Green Tuna Salad Recipe

Tuna salad is a classic American dish that can trace its origins to the 19^th century, although it was first made with other kinds of fish, including white fish or trout. In an era before inexpensive groceries were sold in supermarkets, most people turned leftover food into other dishes to avoid waste. They would combine leftover fish or meat with mayonnaise and serve it on lettuce at a later meal. Nowadays, tuna salad, especially in sandwich form, is a staple lunch for many Americans. Since its invention, it has morphed into many forms, from simple mayo and onion versions to imaginative dishes such as Mexican, Italian, or Israeli tuna salad, tuna salad filled with fruit, and bánh mì tuna salad sandwiches.

Recipe developer Michelle Bottalico has created a very green version of tuna salad. This vibrant salad has a bright and fresh taste and packs in the nutrients from all of the green plant foods it includes. The salad itself contains cucumber, celery, and scallions for flavor and crunch, green grapes for juicy sweetness, and parsley and mint for a nice, herby touch. Even the dressing is green because it has mashed avocado mixed in with the mayonnaise. Lime zest and lime juice bring additional brightness to the mix. You can personalize this nutrient-rich spin on the original to your taste with any other green fruits and vegetables you prefer. You can also easily be prep the dish ahead for a convenient and creative meal.

For this recipe, you will first need two cans of water-packed tuna. Drain the water out of the cans before you begin. Gather the following green ingredients for the salad: cucumber, celery, scallion, green grapes, parsley, and mint. For the dressing, you'll need half of a Hass avocado, so making this recipe is a good way to use up leftover avocado, or you can reserve the other half for another use. You'll need a lime in order to use both the zest and juice, and the other dressing ingredients are mayonnaise, salt, and black pepper. Grab some lettuce leaves for serving the salad, and, if desired, additional fresh herbs for sprinkling on top of the tuna salad before serving.

Place the tuna in a large mixing bowl.

Add the cucumber, celery, scallion, grapes, parsley, and mint. Mix with a fork, breaking up any chunks of tuna, until combined.

To make the dressing, first scoop out the avocado flesh and place it in a medium bowl.

Mash the avocado with a fork.

Add the mayonnaise, lime zest, lime juice, salt, and black pepper to the bowl. Mix well.

Spoon the dressing over the tuna mixture and mix until evenly incorporated. Taste and adjust for salt, pepper, or lime juice, if needed. You can add more mayonnaise if you like it creamier.

Serve on a bed of lettuce and garnished with fresh herbs, if desired.

One of the most popular ways to serve tuna salad is in a sandwich. Some people consider the best type of bread for tuna salad to be multigrain bread because it's sturdier and holds together even if you go heavy on the filling. That said, tuna salad works on any kind of bread, whether that's white bread, artisan bread, rolls, or even a halved croissant. It's also a great filling for a traditional wrap or a low-carb wrap made from lettuce leaves.

If you're looking for an alternative to bread but don't want to serve tuna salad on veggies, crackers are a good solution. There are many varieties to choose from that suit different tastes and health preferences. Another option is to serve tuna salad in a bowl and turn it into a dip for crackers, pita chips, or carrot sticks.

Enhance the salad part of tuna salad by serving it on a bed of lettuce leaves. Whether you prefer romaine, iceberg, arugula, or any of the other 15 leafy greens that are perfect for salads, this is a delicious and healthy way to serve this dish. Top the tuna with chopped herbs or microgreens for a photogenic finish. Veggie lovers can opt to serve tuna salad on sliced cucumber rounds or celery sticks, or, for a beautifully presented dish, carefully stuff tuna salad inside halved tomatoes, bell peppers, partially hollowed-out avocado halves, cucumber boats, or mushroom caps.

Green goddess dressing is an ever-popular, green-colored, luxurious, and herby dressing. It's easy to get creative with green goddess dressing because it can enhance many different types of food. You can find recipes for dishes including green goddess sandwiches, chicken, salmon, guacamole, potato salad, dip, and soup. Tuna salad is another dish you can make in a green goddess version.

Classic green goddess dressing is made with mayonnaise, fresh herbs, and anchovies, but there are many versions, with some including other ingredients, such as shallot, garlic, vinegar, and lemon. You don't need to change the base dressing for this everything green tuna salad to turn the recipe into a green goddess version. Just whisk finely minced oil-packed anchovies into the dressing, mashing them with garlic first if you like a stronger flavor. Then, add more fresh green herbs to the salad. Choose your favorites from options such as parsley, basil, cilantro, tarragon, chervil, and chives. Finally, you can opt to use lemon instead of lime and replace the scallions in the salad with shallot, if desired.