Italian-Style Tuna Salad Recipe
You'll find tuna salad variations all across Italy, and depending on what region you're in, they may look a little different. Italian-style tuna salads, or even just European-style ones in general, are incredibly fresh, colorful, and bursting with flavor, often including ingredients like white beans, potatoes, tomatoes, or a variety of pickled vegetables. Having eaten my fair share of these colorful salads around the country, I have combined my favorite elements into this fresh and vibrant Italian-style tuna salad recipe. Featuring oil-packed tuna, buttery Castelvetrano olives, briny fried capers, toasty pine nuts, crisp shaved fresh fennel, red onion, verdant herbs, and plenty of lemon, this tuna salad puts an impeccably bright, fresh spin on that mayo-based stuff you may be used to. Calabrian chile paste adds a touch of fruity heat, while sweet golden tomatoes balance all of the tangy ingredients.
Italian-style tuna salad is perfect for a casual weeknight dinner, brunch with friends, or as part of a Mediterranean party buffet. It is hearty and satisfying enough to serve on its own, as the main course, but it also pairs beautifully with crusty fresh bread, cheeses, pasta with pesto, or deviled eggs.
Gather the Italian-style tuna salad ingredients
To begin this recipe, start with a few cans (or jars or tins) of oil-packed white tuna, and note that you'll use both the tuna and some of the oil in the recipe. You'll also need a couple of large lemons (both zest and juice), olive oil, kosher salt, capers, pine nuts, and Calabrian chile paste.
Additional ingredients include a bulb of fresh fennel (plus its fronds), a red onion for shaving, Castelvetrano olives, and a red bell pepper to add sweetness to the tuna mix. Italian parsley adds freshness, while tarragon pairs with the fennel for a hint of sweet anise. You will need a head of radicchio to use as your leafy base for serving, and gold or red vine-ripened tomatoes to encircle all of the wonderful flavors. Freshly cracked black pepper and kosher salt are also used for rounding out the seasoning.
Step 1: Zest a lemon
Use a zester to remove the entire peel from 1 of the lemons.
Step 2: Mince the zest
Finely mince the zest.
Step 3: Juice both lemons
Juice both lemons.
Step 4: Start the quick-preserved lemon
In a small saucepan, combine the zest, 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice, and the salt.
Step 5: Simmer until thickened
Simmer over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the juice has reduced and thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
Step 6: Heat olive oil in a small skillet
Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a small skillet over medium-high heat.
Step 7: Add the capers
Once the oil is hot, add the capers and fry for about 2 minutes, until crispy.
Step 8: Transfer the crispy capers to a plate
Quickly transfer the capers to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.
Step 9: Add the pine nuts to the skillet
Wipe the skillet clean, then add the pine nuts over low heat.
Step 10: Toast the pine nuts
Stirring frequently, toast the nuts in the pan just until they start to become golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as they will burn easily.
Step 11: Transfer the pine nuts to a bowl
Once toasted, transfer the pine nuts to a small bowl to cool.
Step 12: Pour out some of the oil from the tuna
Open the tins or jars of tuna and drain off all but 3 tablespoons of the packing oil.
Step 13: Make the vinaigrette
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the 3 tablespoons packing oil, the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the quick preserved lemon, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, and the Calabrian chile paste.
Step 14: Add the fennel and onion to the vinaigrette
Add the shaved fennel and onion to the vinaigrette, tossing to coat. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Step 15: Add the olives, bell pepper, pine nuts, herbs, and black pepper
Add the olives, red bell pepper, parsley, tarragon, black pepper, and toasted pine nuts to the bowl. Toss well to coat.
Step 16: Fold in the tuna
Break the tuna into large flakes and add to the salad, gently folding in to preserve the chunks.
Step 17: Line a serving dish with radicchio leaves
Line a shallow bowl or serving dish with radicchio leaves.
Step 18: Add the tuna salad and garnishes and serve
Spread the tuna salad out over the radicchio leaves. Garnish with crispy capers, fennel fronds, and a spoonful of Calabrian chile paste, if desired. Arrange the tomato slices around the salad and serve.
What to serve with Italian-style tuna salad
Italian-Style Tuna Salad Recipe
Our vibrant Italian-style tuna salad features high-quality canned white tuna, crispy capers and pine nuts, and a lemony, Calabrian chile-infused vinaigrette.
Ingredients
- 2 large lemons
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- ¼ cup capers in brine, pat completely dry
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- 3 (4-ounce) tins or jars oil-packed white tuna
- 2 teaspoons Calabrian chile paste, plus extra for garnish
- 1 bulb fresh fennel, trimmed and cored, shaved thin (reserve a few of the fronds to garnish)
- ¼ cup shaved red onion
- ½ cup pitted Castelvetrano olives, halved lengthwise
- ½ cup diced red bell pepper
- ¼ cup roughly chopped Italian parsley leaves
- 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh tarragon leaves
- ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 10 radicchio leaves (or as many as needed to serve)
- 2 large vine-ripened gold or red tomatoes, sliced into wedges
Directions
- Use a zester to remove the entire peel from 1 of the lemons.
- Finely mince the zest.
- Juice both lemons.
- In a small saucepan, combine the zest, 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice, and the salt.
- Simmer over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the juice has reduced and thickened. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
- Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a small skillet over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add the capers and fry for about 2 minutes, until crispy.
- Quickly transfer the capers to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.
- Wipe the skillet clean, then add the pine nuts over low heat.
- Stirring frequently, toast the nuts in the pan just until they start to become golden, about 3 to 5 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as they will burn easily.
- Once toasted, transfer the pine nuts to a small bowl to cool.
- Open the tins or jars of tuna and drain off all but 3 tablespoons of the packing oil.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the 3 tablespoons packing oil, the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, the quick preserved lemon, 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, and the Calabrian chile paste.
- Add the shaved fennel and onion to the vinaigrette, tossing to coat. Let sit for 5 minutes.
- Add the olives, red bell pepper, parsley, tarragon, black pepper, and toasted pine nuts to the bowl. Toss well to coat.
- Break the tuna into large flakes and add to the salad, gently folding in to preserve the chunks.
- Line a shallow bowl or serving dish with radicchio leaves.
- Spread the tuna salad out over the radicchio leaves. Garnish with crispy capers, fennel fronds, and a spoonful of Calabrian chile paste, if desired. Arrange the tomato slices around the salad and serve.
Nutrition
| Calories per Serving | 392 |
| Total Fat | 27.7 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3.9 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.0 g |
| Cholesterol | 35.7 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 16.1 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 5.0 g |
| Total Sugars | 5.8 g |
| Sodium | 780.3 mg |
| Protein | 24.1 g |
What is Calabrian chile paste, and what are some other ways to use it?
Calabrian chiles are small, vibrant peppers that hail from Italy's Southern Calabria region. They have a bit of a kick to them (I equate them with a lively jalapeño), but they have a wonderful fruitiness that comes from the sun-drenched growing region, which balances out the heat in the best way. They are typically imported into the United States in jars, found whole, sliced, or crushed into a paste, and can be packed in a brine or oil. The chiles add a wonderfully spicy, fruity, subtly smoky undertone to the vinaigrette in this recipe, but there are plenty of other ways to put the peppers to good use in the kitchen.
One of my favorite ways to enjoy Calabrian chiles is in eggs, whether it be a basic scramble or a cheesy omelet. Calabrian chiles are also amazing on pizza. They can pair with salty meats, sweet figs or pineapple, and any sort of cheese. Try mixing a spoonful into pasta sauce for a vibrant, spicy kick, or liven up an otherwise ho-hum potato salad. They also work well as a spicy surprise tucked into sandwiches (especially grilled cheese), or as a condiment on a charcuterie board.
What other types of tuna could I use in this Italian-style tuna salad recipe?
There seems to be an entire sea of canned, tinned, or jarred tuna on the market these days, so choosing the best one for your culinary purposes can feel a bit daunting. The biggest difference to notice is oil versus water-packed fish. Many people prefer the lighter taste of water-packed tuna, as well as the reduction of calories. Water-packed varieties are also blank slates for combining with any sorts of ingredients you intend for your tuna-focused recipe. Personally, however, I find that canned tuna desperately needs an infusion of fat to combat dryness, so I tend to lean towards those oil-packed varieties (as I do in this recipe). But you need to be aware of exactly what your tuna is packed in. Look for varieties that come bathed in olive oil as opposed to soybean, cottonseed, or simply vegetable oil. The oil can always be drained off, but since the tuna has soaked up plenty of the oil in the can, one that was submerged in olive oil will taste much better in this recipe.
The variety and quality of the tuna in the tin or jar also makes a tremendous difference. I use Ortiz brand white tuna in olive oil for this recipe, and it's considered to be one of the best store-bought canned tunas out there. Ortiz specifically uses Bonito Del Norte, which is a high-quality tuna type renowned for its wonderful flavor and texture. Yellowfin or slipjack tuna varieties are also a safe bet, as they also have a rich yet mild flavor.