Southern Tuna Salad with Dill Aioli
Southern tuna salad is a classic tuna salad recipe using good old-fashioned ingredients – with a slight twist. Instead of using traditional mayonnaise, I use homemade dill aioli.
Make this tuna salad into a sandwich using my sourdough sandwich bread recipe, a wrap, or place it over a bed of greens.
Related: Homemade Dill Aioli Recipe
Related: Salmon Banh Mi Salad Recipe
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What is southern tuna salad
Southern tuna salad has all the traditional tuna salad ingredients such as celery and pickles, but it also has onions and hard-boiled eggs to round it out!
how to make southern tuna salad
This tuna salad recipe is bursting with flavor and so simple to make! The homemade dill aioli gives this classic dish an unexpected twist.
tuna salad Ingredients
- Canned tuna – line and pole caught, chunk light (see below for reasons why this is the healthier choice).
- Hard boiled eggs – a southern twist on tuna salad.
- Celery – A tuna salad classic.
- Dill pickle – adds a nice crunch and a flavorful zing!
- Yellow onion – red onion would be great too, but I prefer the sweetness of a sweet, yellow onion.
- Fresh dill – we are really capitalizing on the dill in this recipe – it’s the secret ingredient that makes tuna salad so good!
- Sea salt and black pepper – we keep the spices simple since the rest of the ingredients pack such a punch.
- Dill aioli – use this recipe for dill aioli or this one for horseradish aioli – you’ll want to make extra because it’s that good.
Instructions
- Make your dill aioli (recipe here). Then set it aside to let the flavors marinate while you make your tuna salad.
- Chop and dice all your ingredients.
- Drain the canned tuna and dump into a large bowl.
- Add your hard boiled eggs.
- Toss in your celery, onion, pickles, dill, salt and pepper and stir to combine.
- Then pour in the dill aioli and toss it all to combine. You might want to start by only using half the batch, taste, then add more if you’d like.
In a pinch
Sometimes you just need an easy button when it comes to meal-time. Use the below tips when you’re in a pinch!
- Instead of making your own aioli, just use storebought mayo.
- Use prechopped ingredients
- Use relish instead of pickles.
storage instructions for Tuna salad
Store your tuna salad in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. You could also wrap your tuna salad in tortillas or place it in between bread for sandwiches and store it in the refrigerator that way.
Southern tuna salad Tips
- Stir – Stir the dry ingredients, prior to adding your aioli, to get them fully combined. If you add your aioli before stirring everything together, you’ll get some pockets of ingredients that don’t fully incorporate.
- Marinate – Do let the dill aioli marinate while you chop, dice and mix everything together. This makes it taste even better!
- Quality – Buy good quality canned tuna. It’ll not only taste better – but it’s healthier for you too. See below for how to buy the healthiest canned tuna (the answers might surprise you).
Serving Suggestions
sandwich
A good old-fashioned tuna sandwich is a delicious way to enjoy this southern tuna salad.
Use my homemade sourdough sandwich bread to make yours!
stuffed avocado
Slice an avocado in half, take the seed out, and stuff it with your southern tuna salad. From here you can enjoy as is, or top with some cheese and put in an oven on broil for 3-5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
Related: Stuffed & Roasted Avocados Recipe
Tortilla wrap
Use a tortilla (or a pita) to make your tuna salad into a wrap.
Here’s a recipe for sourdough tortillas!
lettuce wrap
If you want to incorporate more veggies into your southern tuna salad, just wrap it up in a leaf of butter lettuce or fresh romaine.
Bed of greens
Alternatively, you could also just toss a dollop of tuna salad atop a bed of your favorite greens.
Tuna melt
Top my provolone grilled cheese sandwich recipe with this southern tuna salad to make a great tuna melt.
make ahead
Make your tuna salad as a meal prep choice. Be sure to eat only about 12 oz per week to remain within recommended guidelines for how much tuna to eat per week.
southern tuna salad types
pasta
If you don’t want to put eggs in your tuna, add some elbow pasta into your tuna salad to make it more filling!
canned chicken
Not a fan of tuna? No worries! Use this same recipe with canned chicken – still a super easy recipe.
canned salmon
Still want seafood but don’t love tuna? Grab some canned salmon and use the same recipe!
Veggies
The vegetable options for tuna salad are endless. Here are some delicious ideas:
- Bell peppers
- Shredded carrots
- Chopped beets
- Arugula
Greek Yogurt
If you prefer a lighter option to the mayo or aioli, you could use greek yogurt instead.
how to buy the healthiest canned tuna
The techniques for buying the healthiest canned tuna may surprise you!
- line and pole caught – many of the very large tuna manufacturers use unethical fishing practices for catching tuna. They’ll use very large nets to catch the tuna, but they also catch sea turtles and other marine life. To avoid this, look for the term line and pole caught.
- Chunk light – the fancy types of tuna-like albacore and yellowfin may seem like the better choice, however, those larger fish actually contain more mercury than the smaller fish.
- Olive oil or water – If you can’t find tuna packed in olive oil, go for water. Most of the canned tuna you find on the shelves are packed in GMO soybean oil which is unhealthy.
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- Stand mixer
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more healthy recipes
Risotto Basmati with Italian Sausage
Easy Lemon Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Steak Arugula Salad with Salsa Gremolata
honey jalapeno chicken tenders recipe
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Southern tuna salad faq
Chunk light tuna is best for tuna salad. It has the lowest mercury levels and is great for combining with other ingredients to make a salad.
Traditionally, tuna salad ingredients are mayo, dijon, relish, and celery with some lemon, salt, and pepper.
Spices that go well with canned tuna are smoked paprika, salt, black pepper, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, coriander, cumin, and tons more. Just be sure you use spice combinations that pair well together.
use your favorite aioli in tuna to give your tuna salad better flavor. For a lighter option, use greek yogurt.
To make tuna taste good, use an aioli as a base, spice it up with yummy seasonings, and add your favorite vegetables.
The most tuna you should eat per week for chunk light is about 12 oz. If you’re using large tuna fish like yellowfin or albacore, stick to about 6 oz. per week. If you’re a child or pregnant, go with 6 oz. or less no matter the type.
Pin it for later – Southern tuna salad
Related: Horseradish Aioli Recipe
Related: Dill Aioli Recipe
print the southern tuna salad recipe
Southern Tuna Salad
Ingredients
Method
- Make your dill aioli (recipe here). Then set it aside to let the flavors marinate while you make your tuna salad.
- Chop and dice all your ingredients.
- Drain the canned tuna and dump into a large bowl.
- Add your hard boiled eggs.
- Toss in your celery, onion, pickles, dill, salt and pepper and stir to combine.
- Then pour in the dill aioli and toss it all to combine. You might want to start by only using half the batch, taste, then add more if you'd like.
Notes
In a pinch
Sometimes you just need an easy button when it comes to meal-time. Use the below tips when you’re in a pinch!- Instead of making your own aioli, just use storebought mayo.
- Use prechopped ingredients
- Use relish instead of pickles.
storage instructions for Tuna salad
Store your tuna salad in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. You could also wrap your tuna salad in tortillas or place it in between bread for sandwiches and store it in the refrigerator that way.Southern tuna salad Tips
- Stir – Stir the dry ingredients, prior to adding your aioli, to get them fully combined. If you add your aioli before stirring everything together, you’ll get some pockets of ingredients that don’t fully incorporate.
- Marinate – Do let the dill aioli marinate while you chop, dice and mix everything together. This makes it taste even better!
- Quality – Buy good quality canned tuna. It’ll not only taste better – but it’s healthier for you too. See below for how to buy the healthiest canned tuna (the answers might surprise you).
how to buy the healthiest canned tuna
The techniques for buying the healthiest canned tuna may surprise you!- line and pole caught – many of the very large tuna manufacturers use unethical fishing practices for catching tuna. They’ll use very large nets to catch the tuna, but they also catch sea turtles and other marine life. To avoid this, look for the term line and pole caught.
- Chunk light – the fancy types of tuna like albacore and yellowfin may seem like the better choice, however, those larger fish actually contain more mercury than the smile fish.
- Olive oil or water – If you can’t find tuna packed in olive oil, go for water. Most of the canned tuna you find on the shelves are packed in GMO soybean oil which is unhealthy.
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