Best tuna fish salad

Gramps

New member
Me personally I wouldn't eat it 9 months past the Best By date but that is just me. You could simply open a can and smell it or take a small taste. If good then no problem but as I said earlier canned tuna rarely lasts a week around here.
Thanks Joe. I finally decided that all six cans had to go. :sad: It broke my heart, and the tuna was probably still perfectly good to eat, but better safe than sorry. I vow that in the future I will never let this waste of good food and money happen again.

Meanwhile, I picked up all the ingredients that have been recommended here that I didn't already have. My experimentation begins anew this lunchtime. :thumb: And again, I thank everyone for the wonderful welcome and all of your secret and not-so-secret family recipes!

One last set of questions for today. I notice that pouches of tuna cost as much as 2 to 3 times as much per ounce as cans of tuna. It says right on the pouches that this tuna will taste "fresher than canned"! Some of you have mentioned the taste advantage. Is this the way to go for the very best taste? Or should I stick with canned? That is quite a premium price to pay... but some obviously feel it is worth it or it wouldn't be selling.

Why does pouched tuna cost so much more than canned tuna? And would I be better off with pouched tuna? Or with that "Prime Fillet" tuna in cans that Bumble Bee sells? Your thoughts please?

Take care,
Tom
 

Mama

Queen of Cornbread
Site Supporter
Hi Gramps! and welcome! I was just reading this thread and thought I'd chime in here if it's not too late. First, I would have gotten rid of the tuna too. 9 months past the "Best By" date is a bit too long for me. Second, I had a thought about your tuna salad that I may try in a little while. I really enjoy tuna packed in water that has been drained and mixed in with my macaroni salad. I'll bet the dressing that I use for my macaroni salad would make a really good dressing for the tuna...of course it would need to be scaled down but I bet it would be good. Here's my recipe: Macaroni Salad. I would put in the onions and add some celery in place of the green pepper. Just a thought.
 

lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
Hi Gramps! and welcome! I was just reading this thread and thought I'd chime in here if it's not too late. First, I would have gotten rid of the tuna too. 9 months past the "Best By" date is a bit too long for me. Second, I had a thought about your tuna salad that I may try in a little while. I really enjoy tuna packed in water that has been drained and mixed in with my macaroni salad. I'll bet the dressing that I use for my macaroni salad would make a really good dressing for the tuna...of course it would need to be scaled down but I bet it would be good. Here's my recipe: Macaroni Salad. I would put in the onions and add some celery in place of the green pepper. Just a thought.
i also put tuna in my mac salad!! LOL such a good combo!

click here
 

QSis

Grill Master
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
+1

My tuna salad contains: Tuna packed in water(thoroughly drained), mayo(about 1 1/2 T per can of tuna), minced celery, red onion & pickle, salt, pepper & capers. I usually enjoy it on melba toast.

Wait a second. A thin person who voluntarily eats melba toast????

Man, I've had enough of that stuff with all the diets I've been on all my life to never want to see it again!

My favorite way is to have tuna salad on potato bread. But, then, that's why I'm always having to diet!

Lee

P.S. I love the caper idea, Cheese!

Lee
 

Gramps

New member
Just a final note... Despite all the amazing help you folks have given me, I've still not managed to pinpoint the missing ingredients and/or technique used by the deli whose tuna fish salad I was originally trying to "reverse engineer" and duplicate. I believe that I've certainly improved on what I was doing before, but I'm still not quite there. Whatever it is that I'm missing, it is truly a very successful *secret* ingredient! :smile:

Anyway, I am quite satisfied for now that I gave it my best shot and it's time to move on to a different food topic. One last time - Thanks to all who contributed for your outstanding help! :wave:

Take care,
Tom
 

buckytom

Grill Master
ok, gramps, i know that this is gonna sound weird, but is it a sweetness that's missing?
i've had tuna salad with a little pineapple juice added. weird but good.
 

Gramps

New member
ok, gramps, i know that this is gonna sound weird, but is it a sweetness that's missing?
i've had tuna salad with a little pineapple juice added. weird but good.
I'm sure it is something like that... very possibly a liquid... and yes, there is a sort of pleasant sweetness (but not pickle relish sweetness - I've tried that).

Some folks have suggested that they are adding some sort of salad dressing... perhaps even thousand island dressing?... but which one I don't know. I've wondered if it is a hint of ketchup... but that seems doubtful. Same for dijon mustard and horseradish.

Don't laugh... but I have personally used blue cheese dressing from time to time... but never within the tuna fish salad. Always on top of that big slice of tomato I use.

Take care,
Tom
 
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High Cheese

Saucier
Wait a second. A thin person who voluntarily eats melba toast????

Man, I've had enough of that stuff with all the diets I've been on all my life to never want to see it again!

My favorite way is to have tuna salad on potato bread. But, then, that's why I'm always having to diet!

Lee

P.S. I love the caper idea, Cheese!

Lee

LOL..just cuz it's good for ya doesn't mean it tastes bad. I have made little wraps using Boston Bibb leaves and tuner salad.

LOL "potato bread" :lol:
 

CharlieD

New member
I don't know the recipe, but I have to say Subway makes the best tuna salad period, love it.

Speaking of dates, I just found a stack of canned tuna, that I bough maybe 5-6 years ago, I know becaus ethis was a special brand I got then, never bought it before or after. I didn't find date on the cans, well, I probably did not look. Opened up, smelled tasted, loved it. been making sandwiches with it for my daughter, she loves tuna.

Open and smell. The other day I opened can of fruits with no dates (this time for real no date) and it was weird tasting, in gabage it went. I wouldn't take chnaces.
 
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lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
Just a final note... Despite all the amazing help you folks have given me, I've still not managed to pinpoint the missing ingredients and/or technique used by the deli whose tuna fish salad I was originally trying to "reverse engineer" and duplicate. I believe that I've certainly improved on what I was doing before, but I'm still not quite there. Whatever it is that I'm missing, it is truly a very successful *secret* ingredient! :smile:

Anyway, I am quite satisfied for now that I gave it my best shot and it's time to move on to a different food topic. One last time - Thanks to all who contributed for your outstanding help! :wave:

Take care,
Tom
that secret could be something as simple as white vinegar, dry colemans mustard and a pinch of sugar thats what we added at the deli i worked at and we ran the squeezed out tuna through a commercial shredder also which for some reason made the tuna absorb the flavors better.
 

Gramps

New member
that secret could be something as simple as white vinegar, dry colemans mustard and a pinch of sugar thats what we added at the deli i worked at and we ran the squeezed out tuna through a commercial shredder also which for some reason made the tuna absorb the flavors better.
There are so very many subtle ingredient possibilities... I may never get it. Brown sugar also came up as another possible ingredient the other day. I haven't tried it yet.

Lacking success to date, I think I am going to turn to another tactic. There is always a possibility that this is a third party prepared product or perhaps a third-party prepared product with a few alterations. I'm going to pursue that possibility for a while before I give up entirely.

Take care,
Tom
 

Doc

Administrator
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
I don't know the recipe, but I have to say Subway makes the best tuna salad period, love it.

Yep, I'd have to agree. My wife loves Subway's tuna. I was hoping one of the recipes here might be close to Subway's. Guess not. :bonk:
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
ok, gramps, i know that this is gonna sound weird, but is it a sweetness that's missing?
i've had tuna salad with a little pineapple juice added. weird but good.
I've never tried tuna with pineapple, but that's how I make chicken salad - with toasted almonds and crushed pineapple (ala Jason's Deli). It's delicious!
 

buckytom

Grill Master
this was made with just the juice, f-mom. i've seen it added to cole slaw for the same reason. sort of a hidden sweetness.
 

Doc

Administrator
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
I just found this tidbit which was verified by folks who work for subway. A very simple tuna salad recipe that lots of folks like.

chunk light tuna in water
hellman's mayo

drain the tuna in a colander for 5 minutes then hand squeeze til dry before adding to the mixing bowl and adding mayo to your liking. the "master" plan is to keep it relatively dry, just enough mayo to hold it together...
 

Doc

Administrator
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Thanks HC. We were on the same trail. :D
Maybe we even helped Gramps in his quest. Sometimes simple is the best.
 

lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
I just found this tidbit which was verified by folks who work for subway. A very simple tuna salad recipe that lots of folks like.

chunk light tuna in water
hellman's mayo

drain the tuna in a colander for 5 minutes then hand squeeze til dry before adding to the mixing bowl and adding mayo to your liking. the "master" plan is to keep it relatively dry, just enough mayo to hold it together...
at the deli we hand squeezed put through shredder than hand squeeze again. it came out very dry.
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
My grand daughter worked for Subway over the last few years. They use Chicken of the Sea wild tuna in the bags with water. All they do is add Heilman's Mayonaise and no salt and pepper.
 

Gramps

New member
There ya go Gramps, K.I.S.S.
Wow!!! I guess so!!! Thanks HC! That information on the link you posted really opened my eyes. Could it really be that simple? Sounds like I have been doing almost everything wrong... maybe!

Looks like I know where I am getting my lunch tomorrow. ;)

Take care,
Tom
 

Gramps

New member
My lady friend and I finally got to a Subway sub shop yesterday and tried the tuna that so many folks here seem to like. First let me say that we made a serious mistake by getting our sandwiches with "the works" and probably masking the flavor of the very small amount of tuna in the subs (four micro-scoops per 12" sub). It was more like the tuna salad was a condiment added to a veggie sub. Yes, we blew it and we will need to try again - next time with "double meat" and nothing extra to mask the flavor.

That said, the tuna was "interesting" but nothing particularly great in our joint opinions. It clearly was made from chunk light tuna (not solid white) and there was obviously no celery or pickle relish in the tuna salad mix (probably due to the availability of so many add-ons). What we did like was the distinctly stronger flavor of the tuna itself... and we started to wonder aloud whether it might have been oil-packed rather than water-packed. What my lady friend noticed and didn't like was the saltier taste, although that might have come from all the veggies that we added. This week, I will do some additional experimenting with "chunk light" tuna and try to tell if that is one of the missing "secret" ingredients I've been searching for.

I'm also going to try a very different tactic since I had a little success last week in this regard. I'm going to buy small quantities of a few different already prepared tuna salads at the local super market delis, etc. and try to alter them in an attempt to duplicate the taste I've been after. The bottom line is that if I can alter a known recipe (assuming I can get it, of course) and duplicate the taste I've been after, I can achieve my goal.

Take care,
Tom
 

Gramps

New member
As this little tuna salad experimentation adventure of mine comes to an end, I must say that I have learned a lot. While I never did quite duplicate the tuna salad I set out to duplicate, I came awfully darn close with your help and with the additional (and unexpected) help of a former professional chef acquaintance of ours. The fact is that I believe I've come up with some even better flavors than the one I originally set out to duplicate. Either that or my tastes in tuna salad have begun to change back in some ways to a more traditional (stronger tasting, slightly less sweet) product.

Here is a brief summary of what I learned:

Tuna - The very best tuna (best overall flavor, color and prepared texture) for tuna salad turned out to be a mix of solid white albacore in water and chunk light tuna in water. This "mix" idea was suggested to me by the former pro chef. It didn't matter whether it was canned or pouched, but the canned stuff had to be pressed and drained far better than I had been doing... and then "washed" and re-pressed/re-drained. He told me this same technique should always be applied to packed-in-oil tuna as well.

Mayonnaise - As much as I love and live for my Miracle Whip, the fact is that I wasted a lot of time seeking the flavor I wanted by incorrectly assuming that the target recipe had to have used Miracle Whip (or similar). Turns out I was dead wrong. I came closest to the target recipe with plain old Hellman's Mayonnaise. It doesn't mean I am giving up on Miracle Whip in tuna salad... hardly!!!... but the target recipe clearly did not use it.

Fresh Minced Celery - A critical ingredient for that fresh crunch, look and texture... but not all that critical to flavor if one plans to use sweet relish for a more tart flavor anyway.

Lemon Juice - One of the key critical ingredients that I had long overlooked. This made a huge difference once it was pointed out to me.

Sweet Relish - Cains in my case - Absolutely critical to achieving the tart, sweet flavor I was seeking.

Minced Red Onion - An excellent addition, but not in the target recipe.

Hard Boiled Egg - Not in the target recipe and did nothing for me.

Sweet Mustard - Definitely one of the key missing ingredients. Congratulations and thanks to the folks who identified mustard as one of the key ingredients in the target recipe. The only difficulty I had was finding the correct mustard. With the pro chef's help, and absent the skill to make my own blend, I ended up with Raye's Sweet & Spicy Mustard (the best match I could find locally). Interestingly, Cain's Hot Dog Relish is sweet and already contains mustard. It was a pretty darn good substitute for using separate sweet relish and sweet mustard.

Ketchup/Cocktail Sauce/Chili Sauce? - We are still firmly convinced that ketchup (or something very similar) was a small, subtle part of the target recipe... but the more we experimented with it, the less we thought it absolutely necessary. It can easily overpower.

Refrig Breathing Time - Absolutely critical... and so confirmed by our pro chef acquaintance. Even an hour or two makes a big difference.

Store-Bought Tuna Salad - I will never buy it again as long as I live. I came upon some of the worst tasting tuna salad ever trying different store deli offerings.

Eaten By Itself vs. Sandwiches - I found that how I eat my tuna salad greatly affects how I prefer it to taste and how I will now make it. I also found that my habit of always eating my tuna sandwiches with a big slice of tomato is not always the best idea. If the tuna salad already has plenty of flavor, lettuce alone can make for a better tasting (and far less messy!) sandwich. :wink:

Those are my conclusions. One last time - Thanks to all who helped me! :chef:

Take care,
Tom
 
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