Sweet and Savory Tuna Salad
My slightly sweet, slightly savory version of Tuna Salad made with diced, crispy apple, and sweet pickle relish. Serve it with crackers or as a sandwich.
I’ve been sitting here staring at my computer screen for about thirty minutes now trying to think of something to say about tuna salad.
Tuna salad. Seriously?
It’s one of those things that most of us throw together without much thought. And I’d bet that almost every person reading this makes theirs just a little differently.
Maybe you like pickles in yours and maybe you don’t. Maybe someone else likes a tiny bit of mustard stirred in or some finely chopped scallion.
BeeBop definitely likes what I would say is a savory tuna salad. His version includes finely chopped dill pickles, finely chopped green onion, a tiny touch of mustard, and a bit of mayo to bind it all together.
I, however, prefer this sweet-savory tuna salad. It has just the right amount of sweetness from the apple and pickles and just the right amount of savory from the tuna and mayonnaise.
Must be my southern roots. Southerners love their “sweet and salt” you know. Give us a biscuit with a pat of butter, a slice of salty ham and spoonful of sweet peach preserves, and we’re in heaven. Or some perfectly cooked field peas or butter beans with a bit of pear relish on the side. It’s as much a part of us as “please and thank you”, “yes ma’am and no ma’am”, and “y’all.”
So, with a nod to my fellow Southerners who no doubt understood the previous paragraph perfectly, here’s my favorite tuna salad.
How to Make Tuna Salad?
It’s easy! To make my sweet-savory Tuna Salad, simply place all the ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and stir gently to combine. Serve as sandwiches or as a salad with fresh, sliced tomatoes and crackers or melba toast.
🧾 More Recipes You’ll Like
- Winter Shrimp Salad
- Tomato and Avocado Salad
- Cucumber Salad with Sour Cream and Dill
- Not Quite Classic Waldorf Salad
- Ham and Black Bean Summer Salad
- Cannellini Bean and Tuna Salad
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?
I’d LOVE to know what you thought!
Leave a rating below in the comments and let me know how you liked it!
WE’RE ON FACEBOOK, TOO!
If you’d like to hang out with lots of other Southern Comfort Food lovers, make sure to join my FREE PRIVATE Facebook group.
Tuna Salad
Ingredients
- 9 ounces tuna in extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 medium apple diced small
- 1 rib celery diced small
- 3 tablespoons sweet pickle relish lightly drained
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 tablespoons light mayonnaise
Instructions
- Drain the tuna of any excess oil.
- Place all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
- Stir gently to combine.
- Serve as sandwiches or a salad with fresh, sliced tomatoes and crackers or melba toast.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
Seriously. Walmart Brand Tuna. They win hands down if you haven’t tried it. I like their canned Salmon better than the other brands too.
Seriously? I would have never guessed that! Is it water packed or oil packed?
Well I use the water packed. I’m not sure if they have oil packed or not, I’ve never looked. It’s hit or miss, but a lot of times it’s not that mashed up stuff you get with the name brand stuff – it’s chunky. The canned Salmon is more pink than the name brand stuff I’ve found. Of course I have to take out all the bones, skin and dark stuff before I can do anything with it, but I’ve bought the $$ brand and it’s the same way.
Sounds like you have this recipe right. This is everything that I put in mine with a few exceptions. As you know, we have always added apple. Of course that comes from Polly. She learned it from her Mother so–it’s a family thing.
I didn’t know where that came from! I really like that crunchy, sweet apple in it. Bill likes his with dill and onion. I just make two different ones – one for him and one for me :-)
I was just craving a tuna melt!
I hear ya on the sweet-salty Southern thing! I think we invented the trend, but we’ll let Yankees take credit with their fancy fleur de sel caramels. We’ll eat Velveeta fudge, thankyoumuch.
:)
Ha! That Velveeta fudge is really good, too.
I was stumped on what to write in my most recent post too, sometimes it is just okay to share a fun recipe I guess:-) Your tuna salad sounds yummy, love putting pickles with tuna salad! Hugs, Terra
The ultimate sweet and savory combinations: PayDay candy bars and pineapple casserole (which gets extra points for cheese). Yep. Can’t beat ’em.
Miss P
Now you’ve done it. I’m suddenly craving a PayDay. I bet I haven’t had one in ten years. I’m on the verge of getting in the car and going to the store just to get one. Dang it.
I bet you could make one. Nougat + peanuts. Sounds great!
Miss P
BeeBop saw our comments and brought me one home from work. I think I’ll keep him :-)
Love the apples! And gotta have sweet pickles in tuna, it’s the best.
And, of course, celery. Gotta have that crunch.
I have never had apple in my tuna salad – so see, you did have something different to say about it!
Nancy – you must try a little apple in your tuna salad sometime. It’s different, unexpected, and altogether delicious!