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close view of tuna macaroni salad in bowl
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5 from 1 vote

📋Tuna Macaroni Salad

Tuna macaroni salad is a great twist on the classic macaroni salad. This perfect summertime cold salad is great for BBQ, picnic, and potluck! It’s so easy to make, throw together delicious macaroni, savory tuna chunks, peas, celery, red onion, boiled egg with creamy, zesty sauce to bind it all together.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
Course: Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 538kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 pound elbow macaroni
  • 3 5 ounces can tuna chunks packed in water, drained well
  • 3 hard-boiled eggs
  • 1 red onion diced
  • 4 ribs celery diced
  • 1 cup frozen peas thawed
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • ½ cup pickle relish
  • 1 ½ tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • 2 teaspoon smoked paprika optional

Instructions

  • Cook the pasta – bring a large pot of water to boil. Once the water starts boiling salt it well. Cook elbow macaroni in salted boiling water until al-dente. Drain and rinse pasta with cold water well until pasta is cooled.
    Tip: don’t skip rinsing pasta in cold water, to cool it. The hot pasta will stick together.
  • Whisk the sauce – while the pasta is cooking, whisk together mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, pickle relish, salt, and pepper until
  • Finish salad – rinse frozen peas until hot water. Drain well.
  • Add al-dente macaroni, thawed peas, red onion, celery, hard-boiled eggs, tuna chunks into a bowl.
  • Pour sauce on top. Mix with gentle hands until well combined.
  • Chill and serve – tuna macaroni salad tastes great after it has chilled for a few hours in the refrigerator. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

  1. Always cook pasta slightly under.
  2. Don’t skip rinsing pasta in cold water until it’s cooled completely. The hot pasta will stick together.
  3. Sour cream is optional. Adding sour cream cuts down the mayo and adds creaminess to the dish. It doesn’t taste all mayo-y.
  4. Thaw peas in hot water and drain well. Drain canned tuna well before use in salad.
  5. Tuna macaroni salad tastes great after it has chilled for a few hours in the refrigerator.
 
Nutritional Info – Please keep in mind that nutritional information provided is only a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.

Nutrition

Calories: 538kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 13g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 109mg | Sodium: 807mg | Potassium: 374mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 617IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 3mg