• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to footer navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Yellow Bliss Road

Easy, approachable and family friendly recipes for any home cook.

  • About Me
    • Meet the Team
    • My Favorite Tools
  • Contact
    • FAQs
    • Disclosure
    • Sharing Policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility
  • Collaborate
  • Signup >
Display Search Bar
  • Recipes
    • View ALL Recipes
    • Appetizers and Snacks
    • Asian
    • Beverages
    • Bread
    • Breakfast Recipes
      • Casseroles
      • Egg Recipes
      • Muffins
      • Pancakes
    • Desserts
      • Brownies and Bars
      • Cake and Cupcakes
      • Cookies
      • Fruit Desserts
      • No Bake Desserts
    • Dinner
      • Casseroles
      • Easy Weeknight Dinners
      • One Pot Meals
      • Pasta
      • Pork
      • Chicken
      • Beef
      • Seafood
    • Lunch
      • Easy Weekday Lunches
      • School Lunches
    • Cooking Method
      • Air Fryer
      • On the Grill
      • Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker
      • Slow Cooker
    • Dips and Sauces
    • Mexican
    • Sandwiches
    • Salads
    • Side Dishes
      • Vegetables
    • Slow Cooker
    • Soups and Stews
  • Holiday Recipes
    • Valentine’s Day
    • Halloween
    • St. Patrick’s Day
    • Fourth of July
    • Seasonal Recipes
    • Easter
    • Thanksgiving
    • Christmas
    • Seasonal Recipes
      • Fall
      • Spring
      • Summer
  • Free Printables
    • Christmas
    • Thanksgiving
    • Halloween
    • Easter
    • Valentine’s Day
    • Fourth of July
    • School
    • Birthdays
  • Home/Crafts/DIY
    • Crafts and DIY
    • Gift Ideas
    • Home Decor
    • Photography Tips
  • Family
    • Adoption
      • My Adoption Story
    • Birthdays
    • Travel
Follow me on Facebook! Follow me on Pinterest! Follow me on Instagram!

Home » Recipes » Tuna Pasta Salad

Tuna Pasta Salad

Published on May 20, 2019, Updated December 17, 2020 by Kristin Maxwell | 41 Comments

22105shares
  • 79
  • 21932
  • 94
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Tuna Pasta Salad is the perfect picnic lunch or anytime meal. With tender pasta, a creamy dressing and healthy tuna, this salad is tasty, filling and a definite family favorite.

Here is another great shareable salad that’s perfect for summer parties. It fits right in with other crowd-pleasing favorites like my Best Ever Classic Macaroni Salad and Mexican Street Corn Salad.

Tuna Pasta Salad in a bowl with a slice of lemon and a fork

If you’re looking for an easy recipe to bring to your next backyard barbecue, picnic or potluck, look no further than my super easy, delicious and flavorful Tuna Pasta Salad!

Tuna has heart healthy benefits

  • Omega-3 fatty acids, which help to reduce cholesterol.
  • Potassium, which aids in lowering blood pressure.
  • Immune system building anti-oxidants, which help fight disease.
  • Protein and nutrients, while being low in fat.

Tuna is not only tasty, but it’s actually good for you!

If you’re not quite ready to jump on the tuna bandwagon, this Tuna Pasta Salad is just the right starter for to get you in the Tuna camp.

Tuna Pasta Salad: perfect for picnics or potluck, lunch or dinner | Healthy meal idea | Side Dish | Weeknight dinner

What’s in Tuna Pasta Salad?

  • Small pasta, like shells or macaroni
  • Packaged tuna – even fresh will work if you have some.
  • Diced celery, for crunch
  • Pickle relish, crunchy and tangy
  • Diced red onion

Tuna Salad Dressing

  • Mayonnaise , for the creamiest dressing. You could swap out plain Greek yogurt for half or all of the mayo for a lighter dressing.
  • Mustard – just a little for tanginess.
  • Lemon juice – more tang, and it pairs really well with fish.
  • Garlic powder – just a little.
  • Fresh dill – you can use dried if you like, but fresh really adds a ton of flavor.
  • Salt and pepper – to taste

Ingredients for Tuna Pasta Salad

How to Make Tuna Pasta Salad

  1. Cook the pasta. To make this easy pasta salad, start by boiling some salted water and cooking your pasta. A nice, small pasta is best; I chose the shells because they reminded me of the ocean (ha!) but Rotini, Farfalle or even macaroni are great alternatives.
  2. Rinse and Cool. Once the pasta is cooled, rinse it with cold water. Cold pasta salads are the only time I recommend rinsing your pasta! This stops the cooking process and cools the pasta quickly so you can assemble your pasta salad without much wait time. Don’t worry if it sticks together, when you add the dressing it will separate just fine.
  3. Make the dressing. It’s fairly simple, with a mayonnaise base, a little mustard, lemon juice, dill, garlic, salt and pepper. Set this aside because dressing the Tuna Pasta Salad is the last thing you’ll do.
  4. Assemble the pasta salad. I like to use water-packed Albacore Tuna (aff) because it has less fat and I prefer the taste. Drain the water from the can and place the tuna into a large bowl, breaking it up with a fork. Stir this together with the dressing, then add the pasta, diced onion, celery and pickle relish. You could also use regular pickles (diced), peas or even hard boiled eggs.
  5. Garnish and serve. Once these ingredients are mixed together, fold in the dressing until the pasta salad is well coated. Garnish with some fresh minced parsley, lemon zest or freshly cracked black pepper.

This Tuna Pasta Salad makes a lot, so it’s great for feeding a crowd. I enjoy it as a lunch – it will last me several days in the fridge – or it will serve our entire family for dinner, and still have a lunch ready for the next day.

Tuna Pasta Salad being mixed in a bowl

Can I make this salad in advance?

If you want to make this recipe more than a couple of hours in advance, I recommend preparing the salad separate from the dressing, and just adding the dressing right before serving. Otherwise the pasta will soak up the dressing and you won’t get that creamy texture you really want.

If you must prep it up all ahead of time, you may need to add extra mayo when you’re ready to serve. The salad will keep for a few days in the fridge, tightly covered.

What to do with leftovers

Your cold tuna pasta salad will keep well in the fridge for a 3-4 days as long as it’s properly stored in an airtight container. You can add a little mayo to moisten it if it gets a little dry as the pasta will soak up some of the dressing. However, I do recommend eating this salad within 24 hours for maximum flavor and freshness.

Close up overhead shot of Tuna Pasta Salad

For other delicious pasta salads, check these out:

  • Turkey, Cranberry and Walnut Pasta Salad
  • Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad
  • Easy Vegetable Pasta Salad

And here are more delicious tuna and salmon recipes to try:

  • Tuna Salad Lettuce Wraps with Lemon, Dill & Black Pepper Mayo
  • Easy Baked Salmon with Honey Garlic Butter
  • The Best Tuna Casserole Recipe

Tuna Pasta Salad

Kristin
My Tuna Pasta Salad is the perfect picnic lunch or anytime meal. With tender pasta, a creamy dressing and healthy tuna, it's the perfect meal for any time.
4.5 from 4 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 10 mins
Total Time 25 mins
Course Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings
Calories 498 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 16 ounces uncooked small pasta like shells or farfalle
  • 17- ounces canned white albacore tuna packed in water, drained** (see notes)
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon fresh dill
  • ½ cup diced celery
  • ½ cup diced red onion
  • ½ cup pickle relish
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions
 

  • Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add salt and the pasta. Cook to al dente (according to package instructions. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
  • In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, mustard, garlic powder, lemon juice and fresh dill.
  • Combine all ingredients together in a large bowl. Season to your liking with salt and pepper.
  • Serve at immediately or chilled. Store in an air-tight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

Notes

17-ounces of tuna is approximate, depending on the size of the cans you purchase. I used one 5-ounce can and one 12-ounce can. Mix and match as much as you like.

Nutrition

Calories: 498kcalCarbohydrates: 47gProtein: 22gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 37mgSodium: 587mgPotassium: 318mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 84IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 27mgIron: 2mg
Keyword tuna pasta salad
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Tuna Pasta Salad in a bowl with a slice of lemon and text title

Previous Post
Next Post

About Kristin Maxwell

Kristin Maxwell is the creator and main recipe developer, writer, and photographer of Yellow Bliss Road. A self-taught cook and self-appointed foodie, she specializes in easy, flavorful and approachable recipes for any home cook. Read more about Kristin HERE.

5 Secrets to Dinnertime Sanity

free email bonus
Tested, Tasted & Terrific!

Reader Interactions

Join the Conversation

    Leave a Comment Cancel reply

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Ruth says

    July 15, 2020 at 5:51 pm

    Just wondering if you could use chicken instead of tuna ?

    Reply
    • Kristin Maxwell says

      July 18, 2020 at 3:57 pm

      Sure!

      Reply
« Older Comments

Primary Sidebar

Hi, I’m KRISTIN!

I'm a busy wife and mom who loves to cook, bake and create. All of the recipes and tips you will find here are created with your busy family (and mine!) in mind.

Read More »
Follow me on Facebook! Follow me on Pinterest! Follow me on Twitter! Follow me on Instagram! Email me!

5 Secrets to Dinnertime Sanity

free email bonus
Tested, Tasted & Terrific!

Trending Today

  • Healthy Ground Turkey Teriyaki Rice Bowl
  • Oven Baked Chicken Breasts
  • Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
  • Ground Beef Enchiladas
  • Tortellini Soup with Italian Sausage & Spinach
  • Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
  • One Pot Cheesy Smoked Sausage Pasta Skillet
  • Egg Fried Rice

All-Time Favorites

  • Oven Baked Chicken Breasts
  • Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes (Au Gratin)
  • How to Make Authentic Mexican Rice
  • Cheesecake Cookies
  • All-Natural Mattress Cleaner – How to Clean Odors and Stains from Your Mattress
  • Healthy Ground Turkey Teriyaki Rice Bowl
  • Crispy Baked Chicken Wings
  • How to Cook a Thanksgiving Turkey

Yellow Bliss Road, Inc. is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Browse Around

  • Chicken
  • On the Grill
  • Pasta
  • Dinner
  • Soups
  • Sides
  • Salads
  • Desserts
Follow me on Facebook! Follow me on Pinterest! Follow me on Instagram!
  • About Me
  • Contact
  • Collaborate
  • Privacy & Copyright
  • Recipes by Category
Copyright © 2021 Yellow Bliss RoadTheme by Once Coupled