Creamy yet light, this Tuna Pasta Salad is quick and easy to prepare. Ingredients like fresh dill, red onion, and celery add flavor, color, and texture. Perfect for lunch or served as a side dish.
Today’s recipe combines two classic recipes – pasta salad and tuna salad. I always love a good pasta salad, whether it’s an Italian pasta salad or creamy pasta salad, and tuna salad is one of my go-to’s for a fuss-free lunch…so it’s only natural to combine to two. This makes a great side dish but I enjoy it as lunch sometimes too!
Why You’ll Love This Tuna Pasta Salad Recipe
Here are a few reasons why I enjoy this salad so much.
- Quick and easy. Basically all you need to do is toss the ingredients together and enjoy. You can even serve it immediately, without letting it chill first.
- Made with basic ingredients. You’ll need whatever small pasta you have on hand, canned tuna, mayo, and a other simple ingredients to make this. I usually already have everything I need in the pantry!
- Great texture and flavor. The crunchy red onion and celery provide a nice contrast to the soft noodles and creamy dressing and fresh dill brightens the whole dish.
What You’ll Need
This creamy pasta salad with tuna is made with just a handful of ingredients. Scroll down to the recipe card below for measurements.
- Pasta – Any small shell pasta will work. Cook, drain, and cool before beginning the recipe.
- Tuna – See below.
- Mayo & Greek yogurt – I like to use both as the base to the dressing. The Greek yogurt adds a light tanginess to the mayo. You can also use sour cream.
- Lemon juice – I recommend using freshly squeezed but bottled lemon juice is fine in a pinch.
- Salt & pepper
- Veggies – Red onion, celery, and frozen peas add substance, flavor, and texture to the tuna salad.
- Fresh dill – Feel free to adjust the amount according to your tastes.
What’s The Best Tuna To Use?
I like to use a good quality white tuna to make this salad. Be sure to use tuna in water, without any seasoning. Do not use tuna in oil as it will add an oily texture and flavor to the pasta salad.
How To Make Tuna Pasta Salad
This salad only takes a few minutes to make, as long as you have the cooked pasta ready to go.
- Make the tuna mixture. Combine the veggies, cooked pasta, and drained tuna in a large bowl.
- Add the sauce. In a separate bowl, combine the mayo, yogurt, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Add half to the pasta and mix then add the remaining half.
- Chill. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until serving.
Tips & Variations
Here are a few things to keep in mind when making your tuna pasta salad.
- Cook the pasta in advance. The pasta should be completely cool before you add it to the dressing. I like to run it under cold water when I drain it to help it cool faster.
- Do I need to thaw the peas? Nope, you can toss them right in frozen! They thaw quickly since they’re so small and don’t hold onto water like other frozen veggies.
- Adjust the amount of dill. Some people aren’t a fan of dill and some people LOVE it. If you’re on Team Dill (like me!), feel free to add a bit more. Dry dill will work if you don’t have fresh. If you want to skip the dill, you can try a bit of parsley and tarragon instead.
- Add more mayo if necessary. The pasta will absorb the sauce while it rests so if you need to, you can add a bit more mayo and/or lemon juice before serving.
Can This Be Prepared In Advance?
I recommend serving this tuna pasta salad within 24 hours of making it, as the pasta will soak up the mayo dressing. You may need to add more mayo or lemon juice before serving or you can even store the dressing separately and add it just before serving.
That said, leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 2-3 days, either in an airtight container or covered.
More Pasta Salad Recipes
- Italian Sub Pasta Salad
- Creamy Bow Tie Pasta Salad
- Cowboy Pasta Salad
- Dill Pickle Pasta Salad
- Tortellini Pasta Salad
Tuna Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 8 ounces small shell pasta cooked, drained and cooled.
- 7 ounces white tuna packed in water drained.
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice.
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill minced or more to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the chopped celery, onion, peas, cooked pasta and drained tuna. Stir to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine the mayo, yogurt, salt, pepper and lemon juice.
- Add ½ of the sauce to the pasta salad and mix.
- Then add the remaining sauce and mix.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
- The pasta can continue to absorb the sauce while resting. You can add a little more mayo and/or lemon juice to moisten it up before serving.
Last Step:
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