What To Eat With Tuna Salad

Here are our top picks for what to eat with tuna salad. It's a simple dish, and with the right side it becomes a full meal. Whether you want something crunchy, salty, or warm and filling, these pairings turn tuna salad into more than just a quick snack

tuns salad on an onion roll with a pickle and cole slaw

My Favorite Side For Tuna Salad

I love fish. All kinds of fish, canned tuna included. When I was a kid, I ate it all the time. Chopped tuna, mayo, and a little celery was my favorite meal.

I was the easiest kid on the block to feed, but I was also very particular. One of my mom's friends chopped hard-boiled eggs into my tuna once, and I refused to eat it.

By middle school, the cafeteria started using Kraft salad dressing instead of mayonnaise in their tuna. That was the day I stopped eating school lunch and started bringing my own.

To this day, my favorite side for a tuna sandwich is salty potato chips. I prefer thin crispy Wise potato chips. If you add crispy chips inside a tuna sandwich, it can change your life. You should give it a try.

My friend Jill taught me this trick when I was four or five. I think my world got a little better that day.

Crunchy, Salty Sides

Crackers are always a good choice. Saltines, Ritz, flatbread crackers, and pita chips all work, especially if they're sturdy enough to hold the tuna.

Chips are another classic. Potato chips, pretzels, tortilla chips, pia chips, and homemade everything bagel chips add a good crunch.

Potato sides are also a natural match. French fries, crispy roasted Russet potatoes, tostones, sweet potato fries, and tater tots turn tuna salad into a full meal.

top down shot bagel chips with everything bagel seasoning and a bowl of cream cheese

How To Make Everything Bagel Chips

Homemade Everything Bagel Chips are simple to make and taste just like the ones from a bagel shop. Slice a bagel thin, brush with butter, sprinkle with everything seasoning, and bake until golden. They're great with dips, deli salads, or as a snack.

Recipe

Garlic Butter Pita Chips Recipe (Oven and Stove Top)

Baked pita chips are easy to make with pita bread, butter, and simple seasonings. Bake or pan-fry until golden and crisp. Perfect for hummus, tzatziki, onion dip, or snacking on their own.

Recipe

The Right Bread for Tuna Salad

The right bread makes a big difference when it comes to tuna salad.

Soft sandwich is classic and simple, while toasted white bread or sourdough adds a little crunch.

Fresh rye bread, my favorite, gives it that old-school deli feel. A Kaiser roll or hoagie turns tuna salad into a more filling sandwich.

A toasted bagel, bialy, or flagel, a flat bagel, makes it a true deli classic.

If you're down here in the Keys, get a box of bialys from Publix or Winn Dixie.

Bilays have flavor of a bagel with the texture of an English muffin. and a little onion in the middle. Just slice and toast. They come from Bell's Bagels in Oceanside, Long Island, and they're very good.

3 boxes of Ray's bialys in Publix Freezer.

Toppings for a Tuna Sandwich

Cheese is a popular topping. I didn't grow up eating tuna with cheese. My Cuban mother didn't know that American invention. I was introduced to it sometime in high school, and it took me a minute to wrap my head around tuna with a slice of cheese. Turns out, it's good.

You can add a slice of American, cheddar, Swiss, or Muenster. If you want a tuna melt, make it open-faced and slide it under the broiler until the cheese melts and gets bubbly.

Fresh vegetables work too. Tuna pairs well with lettuce, sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, pickle chips, and thinly sliced red onion.

For something a little briny, sprinkle a few capers on top.

Carle Place Diner Tuna Melt on an English Muffin.

Low-Carb Ways to Serve Tuna Salad

Tuna salad has no carbs on its own, so it fits easily into a low-carb meal. The key is how you serve it. Skip the bread and use fresh vegetables instead.

Check out NY Diner -Style Tuna Salad for my version of the perfect tuna salad plate with vegetables.

Avocado halves: Cut an avocado in half, remove the pit, and pile the tuna salad right into the center.
Tomatoes: Slice a large tomato in half, scoop out the seeds, and fill the cavity with tuna salad.
Cucumber boats: Slice a cucumber lengthwise and hollow out the center with a small spoon. Spoon tuna salad into the middle.
Bell pepper halves: Cut a pepper in half, remove the seeds and membrane, and stuff with tuna salad.
Lettuce cups: Butter lettuce, romaine, or endive leaves are sturdy and work like little boats. Garnish the plate with fresh herbs and olives if you like.

sweet creamy coleslaw with cabbage, carrots, peppers, and creamy dressing

Sweet Coleslaw Recipe

This sweet coleslaw recipe is super easy and delicious. It combines crunchy cabbage, a little carrot, and coleslaw dressing. Perfect for burgers, bbq ribs, sliders, chicken, or a summer barbecue, it's a side dish everyone will love!

Recipe

white potato salad with mayo and onions.

Deli Potato Salad

This NY deli potato salad is cold and creamy, made with thin-sliced russet potatoes in a sweet and tangy mayo dressing. Just like the kind you'd find at a New York deli. No mustard, no eggs, no relish. Perfect for picnics, BBQs, or any casual get-together. Great with pastrami, roast beef, or your favorite sandwich.

Recipe

Bowl of deli-style macaroni salad with mayonnaise.

New York Deli Macaroni Salad

New York Deli Macaroni Salad is a sweet pasta salad made with elbow macaroni, mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, vegetables, and a few finely chopped vegetables.

Recipe

Mixed Garden Salad

Learn how to make a mixed garden salad with fresh greens, tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion tossed in a light lemon Dijon dressing. It's ready in minutes and works as a side or a light meal.

Recipe

Sides To Make Tuna a Meal

These pairings are guaranteed to create a full meal.

Tuna Recipes

You can buy tuna salad at the local grocery store or deli, but tuna salad is so easy to make, it's best made at home. Here are my favorite tuna recipes:

Old-fashioned tuna salad with crisp lettuce, sliced tomato, cucumber, and scallions

How to Make NY Diner Tuna Salad

Tuna Apple Tuna Salad

Find more easy canned tuna recipes in our canned fish recipes.

Final Thoughts

When people ask what to eat with tuna salad, the answer is simple. You want something crunchy and salty like potato chips or crackers or something fresh, lettuce, tomatoes, and sliced cucumbers.

Most of the ingredients are already in your pantry or fridge. Tuna salad has been a favorite for over a hundred years, and these pairings are classic.

Check out all of my fish recipes for more seafood inspiration. And while Florida Keys fish doesn't come in a can, you'll have to visit us to try it fresh from the Gulf for a fish meal like no other.

FAQ

What to eat with tuna salad instead of bread?

You don't need bread at all. Tuna salad works well stuffed into avocado halves, tomato cups, or cucumber boats. Lettuce cups are another easy option. Romaine, butter lettuce, or endive all hold up well and keep things light.

What can I eat with tuna and mayonnaise?

Something crunchy and salty is best. Potato chips are the classic choice. Crackers, pretzels, bagel chips, or raw veggies like carrots and celery all work. A dill pickle on the side never hurts either.

What veggies go with a tuna sandwich?

Good veggies add crunch and balance the mayo. Try sliced tomatoes, lettuce, red onion, cucumbers, or pickles. On the side, coleslaw, carrot salad, or a simple green salad pair well.

Do I heat up canned tuna or eat it cold?

Most of the time, canned tuna is eaten cold. That's how tuna salad is traditionally served. You only heat it if you're making a tuna melt, casserole, or pasta dish.

What's the healthiest way to eat canned tuna?

For a simple, clean option, skip the mayo and dress the tuna with extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and salt. Add chopped celery or herbs if you like. It's light, high in protein, and easy to digest.