Thai Tuna Salad

Thai Tuna Salad

Canned tuna is definitely one of those ingredients that tend to get overlooked.

However, during this pandemic, I feel like tuna is getting a new take on life and is SHINING! A lot of people are trying to figure out how to make tasty and easy recipes with their canned tuna and this Thai tuna salad, one of my oldest yet trustiest recipes, is here to help!

This Thai tuna salad recipe was posted on my blog years ago and its origination was from this cafe near my office. The cafe calls it Thai tuna salad so I didn’t change the name of it.

When my coworker introduced me to it, I was kind of skeptical. I didn’t think it’d be that good. She told me that I “have to try it” and ever since I got it, I realized that it is so.freaking.addicting.

Unfortunately, this cafe closed and now I’m not able to have my Thai tuna salads from there anymore but thank goodness I recreated it and now I can have it whenever I want at home!

I made a huge batch of this and I put it atop crostini but there’s a multitude of ways to serve Thai tuna salad. You can serve this over a bed of lettuce or spinach leaves or you can serve this atop cucumber slices as mini appetizers for a party or even on beds of endive or celery sticks.

Or, you could make a sandwich with it – kind of like a tuna melt. Or you can use butter crackers and kind of eat this like a dip.

I have also eaten this straight like this as a meal. It’s really versatile and it is full of sesame flavor. The cucumbers, peppers, and red onions just play so well with the tuna and sesame oil. It’s a fairly light dish but it’s so filling because of all the protein you get from the tuna. Omega 3’s anyone?

Other canned tuna recipes to try:

Zesty tuna pasta

Mediterranean tuna white bean salad

Tuna pasta bake

Mediterranean tuna orzo salad

4.25 from 4 votes

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Thai Tuna Salad

This Thai tuna salad is the perfect way to use up canned tuna in the pantry!

Prep Time: 5 mins

Cook Time: 5 mins

Total Time: 10 mins

Course: Main Entree, Salad

Cuisine: American

Servings (adjustable, but please note that results, timing, and cookware may vary when adjusting servings): 4

Calories: 184kcal

Author: Julie Chiou

Ingredients

• ▢ 3: 70 gram cans of tuna, drained
• ▢ 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• ▢ 1/2 red onion, diced
• ▢ 1 cucumber, sliced thinly and diced
• ▢ 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• ▢ Juice of 1 lime
• ▢ Salt and pepper, to taste
• ▢ Sesame seeds, as garnish

Instructions

• ▢
  In a large bowl, break up the tuna into smaller pieces.
• ▢
  Mix in the red bell pepper, red onion, and cucumber. Pour the sesame oil on top and stir to combine everything. Lastly add the juice of 1 lime and stir again to combine.
• ▢
  Salt and pepper to taste and garnish with sesame seeds before serving.

Notes

If you feel more sesame oil is needed, feel free to add more to your taste!

*Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate. 

Nutrition Facts

Thai Tuna Salad

Amount Per Serving (1 g)

Calories 184 Calories from Fat 135

% Daily Value*

Fat 15g23%

Carbohydrates 4g1%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 10g20%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Photography by Ari Laing