Tuna Pasta Salad, with a creamy dressing, albacore tuna, elbow macaroni, carrots, green peppers, onions, and kalamata olives, is a perfect meal for hot summer days! DELICIOUS!
I found this recipe in my trusty old recipe file box I’ve had for over 40 years. I used to write down recipes I had found on little 3×5 cards and file them in this old, beaten up box, and recently found this one for tuna pasta salad while looking through old recipes.
Scroll Down For A Printable Recipe Card At The Bottom Of The Page
Seriously… I have no idea WHERE I got the recipe from, because I didn’t write it down back in the day! I added a couple ingredients to the original recipe, and made it for lunch. YUM. This easy to make salad is not overpowered by the addition of canned albacore tuna… it actually is complimented by it! You might also enjoy my recipes for a classic Pasta Salad or Chicken Club Pasta Salad; they are delicious… especially on hot summer days!
Throughout the year I love to make chilled side salads for Summer BBQ’s and get togethers! Salads like Hawaiian Macaroni Salad, Homemade Potato Salad, Asian Kale Slaw, and Black Bean, Corn & Tomato Salad with Avocado Dressing are wonderful side dishes to serve a hungry crowd!
Okay… So HOW Do I Make Tuna Pasta Salad?
This salad is totally easy and very quick to make. In the time it takes to cook macaroni noodles, you can have everything ready to go. Then all you need to do is mix ingredients, let it “chill” in the fridge for an hour or two, and you’ve got yourself a great little side dish or main dish salad. Here’s how easy it is to make:
In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, milk, lemon juice, mustard, dill weed, salt and pepper. Stir until sauce is smooth. Set aside. If you want to save time, make the sauce while the pasta is cooking.
Cook elbow macaroni according to package instructions. Once fully cooked, transfer to a colander, rinse with cold water, drain, and then transfer pasta to large mixing bowl.
Add one can of albacore tuna (drained and flaked), a large carrot (shredded), finely chopped onion, chopped green peppers and sliced kalamata olives to the cooked pasta.
Pour the dressing over the salad and stir well, to mix everything together.
OOPS!!!! Remember to add the chopped green pepper (I forgot!). Kept thinking it was missing something for color, and realized I left them out. My bad. Gave it another stir, and salad was DONE!
Refrigerate The Tuna Pasta Salad Before Serving
Transfer the finished salad to a pretty serving bowl (preferably one that doesn’t have salad dressing smeared all over the sides from mixing the ingredients… (heh heh heh). Cover the salad with plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator for 1-2 hours. This not only chills it very well, but gives the flavors time to develop.
When ready to serve, remove salad from fridge, remove plastic wrap (because NO ONE wants to eat THAT!), grab a big old spoon or fork, and dig in! This tuna pasta salad is delicious, and will keep for 3-4 days (covered), in refrigerator.
I hope you enjoy this simple salad. We sure do! Hope you have a wonderful day, friends.
Looking For More Side Dish SALAD Recipes?
You can find all of my recipes in the Recipe Index, located at the top of the page. A few favorite side dish salad recipes include:
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↓↓ PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW ↓↓
- 3/4 cup light mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup low-fat milk
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
- 1 teaspoon dill weed
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 7 ounces elbow macaroni (4 cups cooked)
- 5.4 ounces albacore tuna (one can). drained, flaked
- 1 carrot (large) , shredded
- 1/4 cup white onion , finely chopped
- 1/4 cup green bell pepper , finely chopped
- 8 kalamata olives (or black) , sliced
- In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, milk, lemon juice, mustard, dill weed, salt and pepper. Stir until sauce is smooth. Set aside.
- Cook elbow macaroni according to package instructions. Once fully cooked, transfer to a colander, rinse with cold water, drain, and then transfer pasta to large mixing bowl.
Add albacore tuna, carrot, onion, green peppers and kalamata olives to the cooked, drained pasta. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir well, to mix everything together.
Cover salad with plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator for 1-2 hours. This not only chills the salad very well, it gives the flavors time to develop. When fully chilled, serve and enjoy!