Spicy Mayo-Free Tuna Salad Recipe

Meal prep is an important Sunday ritual in my house. It all starts with a plan for what we’re eating every day, which turns into a grocery list. I’ve found that the best way to make sure all of those healthy plans turn into action is to do as much of the prep up-front as possible.

When it comes to meal prep, I like to make things that have what I like to call “meal economy” or are “mix-and-match foods.” This saves time on Sunday and throughout the week. Mix-and-match foods can be anything from grilled chicken to a large batch of quinoa to a giant vat of sautéed vegetables that you’re planning to put in everything from eggs to salads to quinoa. When mix-and-match food work, it’s magic.

One food with meal economy is this mayo-free tuna salad recipe. I snuck some spice and some greens into my version of tuna salad and used Greek yogurt instead of mayo. That’s a couple of big, healthy swaps.

For one batch, which will make about two meals, here’s what you need:

  • 1 can of tuna packed in water (don’t buy the salt-free stuff unless you’re watching your sodium, it’s truly terrible).
  • 6 oz. of 0% fat Greek yogurt
  • 1/4 cup spicy mustard
  • 1 large handful of kale
  • 1/4 cup slivered, toasted almonds
  • 4 green onions
  • 1 jalapeño
  • The juice of 1/2 lemon

If you’re planning to eat this every day, increase the recipe accordingly.

Directions: Making this is easy and will take way less than 30 minutes. Here’s what you need to do!

Step one: Chop green onions and rough chop kale. Place both in a bowl with the almonds.

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Step two: Remove seeds and dice jalapeño. Place in bowl.

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Step three: Add drained tuna, Greek Yogurt, mustard and lemon juice to the bowl.

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Step four: Mix it all together. Taste the mix and adjust for flavor. Want more acidity? Grab the other half of the lemon. Want more spice? Add a few shakes of your favorite hot sauce or half of a jalapeño.

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Enjoy this tuna salad the following ways:

  • On top of a bed of kale with half of an avocado sliced into it. Add 1 TBS olive oil and 1 TBS balsamic vinegar if you’re craving dressing.
  • In a protein-packed sandwich or wrap. Pick up some Ezekiel bread or some corn tortillas and put a healthy serving of tuna salad in your sandwich-y vessel.
  • In a lettuce wrap. Grab Iceberg lettuce and peel away the layers until you find the perfect lettuce cups within. Wash, dry and pack separately from your tuna salad
  • On cucumber slices. Slice and pack slices in a separate bag or container. Dip, eat and repeat.
  • By itself. You. This tuna salad. A spoon. Sweet deliciousness.
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About Jeana Anderson Cohen

Jeana Anderson Cohen is the founder and CEO of asweatlife.com a premiere wellness media destination that creates content and community to help womxn live better lives and achieve their goals. Before founding health-focused companies Jeana earned a degree in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison - and fresh out of college she worked on the '08 Obama campaign in Michigan. From there, she created and executed social media strategies for brands. aSweatLife fuses her experience in building community and her passion for wellness. You can find Jeana leading the team at aSweatLife, trying to join a book club, and walking her dog Maverick.