Tuna Macaroni Salad
I have at least four recipes for tuna macaroni salad; one of them calls for black olives? Oh, wait, that’s just macaroni salad without the tuna – I’ll make that one later.
But, today’s lunch was a practically perfect tuna-macaroni salad. Pretty simple. I’m too impatient to wait the extra hour. I just eat it right away. Then, the leftovers will be extra tasty.
Noodles, peas (I do love the peas), celery (I tend to add too much), tuna, mayo (not too much), pickles (always have tuna with pickles), onions, lemon juice and seasoning. I spice it up a bit with paprika and dill, and both white or yellow onions and green onions. It makes a good balance of veggies-to-noodle ratio.
Variations:
- add 2 teaspoons of sugar to sweeten it
- reduce the mayo by adding 1/4 c. milk
- use vinegar instead of pickle juice
- use pickle relish instead of pickles
- skip the green onions and dill if you don’t have any
- add a bit of garlic powder to enhance the flavor
- add a teaspoon of yellow mustard
- ignore the paprika (because I like paprika on everything)
Tip: It is important to break up that tuna before mixing it. I just happened upon a long sharp bone making this batch. And don’t forget if you take it to a cookout outside: you must protect the tuna by keeping it cold (out of the sun and in a larger bowl with ice).
Tuna Macaroni Salad
Ingredients
- 8 oz macaroni noodles
- 1 c peas, frozen
- 8 oz tuna
- 2 baby dill pickles, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 2 green onions, sliced
- ¼ yellow or white onion, diced
- ¾ c Hellmann's Olive Oil Mayonnaise Dressing
- 1 T lemon juice
- 2 T pickle juice
- 1 t pepper
- ½ t paprika
- ½ t dill
- ½ t salt
Instructions
- Cook, drain and rinse pasta according to package (al dente + 1 minute). Add peas while pasta is cooling.
- Mix mayo, lemon juice and pickle juice in a small bowl.
- Chop and slice the fresh vegetables.
- Drain tuna as necessary and break it up well in a large bowl. Add vegetables, mayo mix and seasonings. Stir to combine.
- Cool in refrigerator one hour.
Notes
