Marinated Tuna Salad
Apr 21st, 2008 by Sylvia
We don’t eat much tuna these days because of the danger of heavy metals, so when we do I try to make it really special. Tuna salad is a mostly ordinary kind of dish, but if you add some really tasty marinade to the tuna before making it into the salad, it really makes it different and delicious.
I buy chunk light tuna, the kind that is white and is canned in small chunks, or Yellow Fin. The other type of tuna is great for casseroles, but for salad, the chunky, white kind is best I think.
I also buy tuna that is packed in canola oil. Tuna that is packed in water is pretty tasteless. You can now buy tuna that is marinated right in the can! So, if you want a really easy dish, look for Yellow Fin Tuna marinated in lemon and dill.
This recipe will serve 6 with side dishes.
You will need:
3 - 5.5 oz cans tuna
homemade mayonnaise or store bought
fresh dill weed
salt
black or white pepper to taste
2 Tbs chopped fresh chives
sweet pickles or cornichons, chopped finely
roasted red pepper, diced (optional)
boiled egg, diced (optional)
If you are using canned/marinated tuna, just refrigerate the cans as soon as you get them home. Then bring them out when you are ready to make the salad.
If you are using plain tuna, you will need to make the marinade. This is not a marinade in the classic sense, you leave this marinade in the tuna.
Marinade:
1 tsp lemon pepper
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs fresh dill weed, chopped
salt to taste
Add all the above to the tuna, cover and refrigerate over night.
In the morning, drain out the liquid from the tuna and prepare the salad. Save the liquid to add to the salad in small amounts as needed.
Mix the tuna and all the ingredients to taste. Some like a more saucy salad and some like a drier salad, make it the way your family likes it. You can add some of the marinating liquid to the salad to make it saucier. Refrigerate the salad immediately. Bring it out to room temperature before serving.
This salad is great with seasoned rice or couscous, and very nice topped on a ripe tomato.
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