I love dinners that I can throw together quickly on busy nights. And this tuna pasta salad fits the bill. It’s so easy to make and stores great in the fridge. You can even make it for dinner and pull it out for lunch the next day. Two meals for half the work? A total win!
Tuna Pasta Salad
This tuna pasta salad is super versatile. Not only does it hold its own as a light and fresh dinner, but it’s great for lunch or taken as a side to a potluck or party! It’s all about adding lots of tuna and vegetables. The protein and veggies help to round out this salad to make it feel hearty while still helping you meet your macros.
And while pasta salad can obviously be super carb-heavy, this one isn’t. Add some tuna and a good amount of veggies, and look what happens! A balanced, macro-friendly tuna pasta salad. Still carbs, but BALANCED.
Tuna Pasta Salad Ingredients
Have I convinced you to make this cold tuna pasta salad yet? You gotta do it. Trust me. It’ll be your new favorite pasta salad! Now, let’s get into the ingredients you’ll need to make this recipe!
Here’s what you’ll need to make the salad:
- Cooked pasta
- Albacore tuna
- Cucumbers
- Jarred roasted red peppers
- Jarred pepperoncini
- Red bell peppers
- Red onion
- Basil
- Fresh dill or parsley
- Arugula
- Crumbled feta, cubed or grated cheddar, gruyere, or jack
Ingredients for the tuna pasta dressing:
- Light balsamic vinegar
- Lite mayo
- Lemon
- Olive oil
- Garlic cubes (or minced cloves)
- Honey mustard
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
For the dressing, feel free to use any light balsamic or champagne vinegar. My favorite is a fruit-infused white balsamic like this Sicilian Lemon White Balsamic by Baker and Olive for that sweet kick! You’ll find it in my flagship shop for 15% off, no code needed. You can also mix things up and do half of a normal vinegar and half of the fruit-infused for balance if you want.
I LOVE these sweet Baker and Olive vinegars and use them all the time. They make every salad so much better! They’re already in beautiful bottles… but I love to pour them into these cute matching bottles. Or if that’s not your thing, just grab these spouts and stick them right in the original bottle.
How to Make Tuna Pasta Salad
Once you have all your ingredients purchased, pulled out of your fridge, and ready to go, you’re ready to start making this recipe! Here’s how to make tuna pasta salad:
- Cook the pasta. Begin by cooking 125 g of pasta, if you want just enough for this recipe. I always tend to cook a whole package and use the rest for simple dinners for my boys later on in the week or toss leftover pasta in green salads. Keep in mind that 125 grams will grow into 250 grams of pasta when you’re all done cooking. To strain the pasta, I love using this clip-on strainer – so handy!
- Combine salad ingredients. Then, to a large bowl, add the cooked pasta along with the rest of the salad ingredients. Make sure to break up the tuna a bit so you don’t have any huge chunks.
- Make the dressing. For the dressing, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, light mayo, lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic, honey mustard, kosher salt, and black pepper. Once mixed, pour it over the salad and toss well.
- Season and dig in! Add additional salt and pepper to taste. If the salad is drier than you like, add a little juice from the pepperoncini jar or additional vinegar. Enjoy immediately. Or store it in the fridge for your meal prep!
Ingredient Variations
If you’re not a tuna fan, then you can swap it out for chicken. You can use 420 grams of chicken in place of the tuna, and it will be a little higher in calories. And depending on if you use grilled or rotisserie chicken, the nutrition will vary a little. Not a big deal.
If you are tracking your macros and decide to use grilled chicken, the macros come out to be 402 calories, 11 fat, 33 carbs, 36 protein, and 2.2 fiber for each 325 g serving. The macros for rotisserie chicken come out to 388 calories, 12 fat, 32 carbs, 34 protein, and 2.2 fiber for the same portion size.
If you’re wondering why the two chicken options vary, grilled chicken has more water cooked out of it, making it a little more calorie-dense for the same weight. Rotisserie has a little more fat because of how it’s prepared.
Is This Tuna Pasta Salad Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free?
This tuna pasta salad recipe as it is written below is not gluten-free or dairy-free. But luckily, all you need are a few swaps and this pasta salad can easily be made so!
To make this gluten and dairy-free, substitute the pasta for gluten-free pasta. And then swap out the cheese for your favorite dairy-free cheese. We love the dairy-free feta by Follow Your Heart.
Similar Pasta and Tuna Salad Recipes
I’m a big fan of salad in just about any form, whether it’s a green salad, pasta salad, or tuna salad! Check out a few other salads from my blog. SO GOOD.
Tuna Pasta Salad Recipe
This quick and easy tuna pasta salad recipe is sure to be a hit with your entire family! It works great as a side dish or as the main course and is so yummy. To save time, prep it ahead and just pull it out of the fridge when you’re ready – no extra steps necessary. Enjoy!
If you’re not already, make sure to hang out with me on Instagram where I share all my favorite recipes and more. And if you need more easy, macro-friendly recipes, you can shop my cookbooks here.
All of my cookbooks are filled with macro-friendly recipes that have been calculated and loaded into My Fitness Pal, Macros First, and Lose It for you. Each book is filled with delicious recipes that your whole family will love while making hitting your goals easier. You can get your copy here!
Tuna Pasta Salad
- 1 ½ cups cooked pasta 250g*
- 4 5-ounce cans albacore tuna (420g drained weight)
- ⅔ cup cucumbers diced (90g)
- ½ cup jarred roasted red peppers chopped (60g)
- ½ cup jarred pepperoncinis chopped (60g)
- ½ cup red bell peppers diced (75g)
- ¼ cup red onion diced (75g)
- ½ cup basil chopped (20g)
- 2 Tbsp fresh dill or parsley chopped (5g)
- 3 cups arugula roughly chopped (70g)
- 2 oz crumbled feta or cubed or grated cheddar, gruyere, or jack (56g)
Tuna Pasta Dressing
- 3 Tbsp light balsamic vinegar* (45g)
- 3 Tbsp lite mayo (45g)
- juice of 1 lemon (30g)
- ½ Tbsp olive oil (7g)
- 1 frozen garlic cube or minced garlic clove
- 2 tsp honey mustard (8g)
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
-
Cook 125 g of pasta if you want just enough for this recipe. It will grow into 250 g of pasta once fully cooked.
-
To a large bowl, add cooked pasta along with the rest of the salad ingredients. Break up the tuna a bit so you don’t have any huge chunks.
-
Whisk together the ingredients for the tuna pasta dressing. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss well. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. If the salad is drier than you like, add a little juice from the pepperoncini jar or additional vinegar.
-
Enjoy immediately. Or store in the fridge for your meal prep!
Pasta: I like to cook a whole box and save the leftovers for my kids. I’ve included both the cooked and dry weight.
Vinegar: Feel free to use any light balsamic or champagne vinegar. My favorite is a fruit-infused white balsamic by Baker and Olive for that sweet kick! You can also do half of a normal vinegar and half of the fruit infused for balance.
Tuna: Not a fan of tuna, feel free to swap in chicken of course! Use the same 420 grams of chicken for the following macros:
- Grilled chicken: 402 calories, 11 fat, 33 carbs, 36 protein, 2.2 fiber.
- Rotisserie chicken breast: 388 calories, 12 fat, 32 carbs, 34 protein, 2.2 fiber.
Serving: 325gCalories: 330kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 27gFat: 9.4gFiber: 2.2g