Tuna Pasta Salad

Tuna pasta salad with peas is a dish that many look back on fondly, remembering childhood meals and summer picnics. This is an easy recipe with a nice balance of soft and crunchy textures and sweet and tangy flavors, a perfect dish for a summer meal and, really, any time you want something cool and satisfying. It’s also great as a make-ahead dish for a potluck.

Tuna Pasta Salad Ingredients

• Pasta: Use small pasta shells; they’ll cook quickly and will mix better with the rest of the ingredients. Larger shells can throw the texture of the salad off-balance, as they take up too much space in each bite (assuming they don’t fall off the fork first).
• Tuna: Use light water-packed tuna, as tuna in oil may make the salad as a whole seem more oily and make it more difficult for the dressing to cling to the tuna.
• Peas: The peas add both flavor and bulk, along with a good helping of fiber. This recipe calls for frozen peas.
• Celery: Celery provides some crunch along with flavor. Otherwise, the salad would seem just a little too soft.
• Red onion: The other crunchy component, red onion is perfect in salads, as it isn’t too pungent but does provide enough of a kick to be noticeable.
• Mayonnaise: Mayonnaise provides most of the creaminess in the dressing. The flavor tends to be mild enough that it doesn’t overshadow all the other ingredients.
• Yogurt: Adding plain Greek yogurt makes the dressing a little lighter in texture. It also provides a little more protein.
• Lemon juice: The lemon juice gives the dressing a brighter, slightly acidic flavor.
• Dijon mustard: This adds flavor but also acts as an emulsifier, helping to keep the dressing together instead of letting it separate.
• Dill weed: The dill adds a pleasant, tangy flavor that goes very well with the lemon and mustard. Use dried dill for convenience.

Directions

Step 1: Cook the pasta

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Cook the pasta according to the package directions. When it’s done, drain it and rinse it under cold water.

Step 2: Mix the dry and wet ingredients separately

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In a large salad bowl, combine the pasta, tuna, peas, chopped celery and chopped onion. In another, smaller, bowl combine the mayonnaise, yogurt, lemon juice, mustard, dill, salt and pepper.

Step 3: Combine everything

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Pour the dressing ingredients over the salad and toss to combine. Make sure everything is coated, then cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve.

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Tuna Pasta Salad Variations

• Try other pastas: Small pasta shells are perfect for this recipe, but that doesn’t mean other bite-sized shapes won’t work. If you have small elbow macaroni, ditalini or even bowties, try those and see if you prefer one of those shapes to shells.
• Swap the tuna with canned salmon: Canned salmon does taste different compared with canned tuna, so the salad won’t taste exactly the same. However, salmon also pairs well with lemon juice and dill, so if you’ve stocked up on canned salmon, try it in this recipe instead of the tuna.

How to Store Tuna Pasta Salad

You can store this pasta tuna salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days, but the sooner you eat it, the better. The pasta can become mushy the longer it sits in the dressing. Using an airtight container is vital; you don’t want the odor from the tuna spreading throughout your refrigerator. Freezing is not recommended though, because the tuna, dressing and pasta won’t have a very good texture once thawed.

Can you make tuna pasta salad with peas ahead of time?

You can make this tuna pasta salad recipe ahead of time. Store it in the refrigerator, but serve it within a day (preferably the same day). While it might last longer than that, it will taste fresher if served sooner.

Tuna Pasta Salad Tips

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Do you really need to include peas?

It’s true that not everyone likes peas. Technically you could leave them out, but their sweet flavor really would be missed in this recipe. If you decide not to use frozen peas, use the highest-quality peas you can find, and try them before adding them to the recipe to ensure that they taste good and aren’t too soft.

How can you keep the pasta from absorbing all the moisture when storing this recipe?

If you’re storing this tuna salad with pasta before serving it, store the dressing separately from the rest of the salad ingredients, then mix them together just before serving.

Is there a way to stop the dressing from oozing to the bottom of the container in the fridge?

If you’ve stored leftover salad in the refrigerator (with the dressing already mixed in), give the salad a good stir once in a while to help keep the dressing evenly distributed.