Food & Cooking Recipes Ingredients Seafood Recipes Tuna Macaroni Salad 3.7 (6) Creamy, tangy, and full of flavor, this hybrid side dish is a winner. Close Credit: Grant Webster Prep Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 10 mins Total Time: 55 mins Servings: 6 Jump to recipe Our recipe for tuna macaroni salad combines two deli favorites—tuna salad and macaroni salad—into one flavor-packed side. Chopped red onion, celery, and jalapeño are mixed in for crunch while a creamy dressing of mayonnaise, buttermilk, relish, and mustard adds plenty of tangy goodness. You’ll only need one can of tuna for this recipe, so we recommend using a good quality solid-white option for the best flavor and texture. Soaking the red onion in cold water mellows it out and keeps it from overpowering the other ingredients—a great tip to use for other salad recipes as well. As an added bonus, this salad tastes better the longer it chills, making it an ideal recipe to make ahead for cookouts and picnics. 30 Easy Potluck Recipes That Will Wow Party-Goers Ingredients for Tuna Macaroni Salad Elbow macaroni: We prefer elbow macaroni, the classic macaroni salad shape, for this recipe. Its hollow center helps to capture the mayo-based dressing while its small shape blends beautifully with the flaked tuna and chopped onion and celery. Tuna: Use solid white tuna, not light or chunk light, here. It has the most mild taste and flakes into bite size pieces that hold their shape and won't get lost among the other ingredients. If you're watching your sodium, look for no-salt added options or thoroughly rinse the tuna to remove some of the salt. Red onion: Finely chopped red onion adds crunch and bite to this salad. Soaking it in cold water for 10 minutes helps to temper some of its intensity so the onion flavor won't overpower the other components. Celery: Crunchy celery is a non-negotiable part of both macaroni salad and tuna salad, so it's no wonder it made it into this recipe. We also add bright and slightly bitter-tasting celery leaves to the dish for another layer of flavor. Jalapeño: For a subtle kick, add finely chopped jalapeño to the mix. Take out the seeds for less heat, or leave them in for more bite. Mayonnaise: Creamy, tangy mayo forms the base of the dressing, which is thinned with equally tangy buttermilk. We prefer the taste of Hellman's brand here, but you can use whichever kind you prefer (however, we don't recommend swapping in a mayo-like dressing such as Miracle Whip). Dill relish: Bright, acidic dill relish adds a vinegary note to the dressing without the need to finely chop up pickles. Save the rest of the jar for hot dogs, hamburgers, and homemade tartar sauce. Buttermilk SubstituteInstead of buying buttermilk specifically for this recipe, you can make your own by combining one-quarter cup of milk with three-quarter teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar. Stir and let sit for 5 minutes (liquid should just be beginning to curdle) before combining it with the other dressing ingredients. Make Ahead Pasta Salad This macaroni salad can be prepared up to eight hours before you plan to serve it. Directions Credit: Grant Webster Cook pasta; soak onion and add to pasta with vegetables and pasta: In a pot of boiling, salted water, cook pasta until al dente, 7 to 8 minutes. Drain and transfer to large bowl to cool slightly. While pasta cools, soak onion in cold water. Drain onion, then stir into pasta along with celery, celery leaves, jalapeño, and tuna. Combine dressing ingredients: Whisk together mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice, relish, and mustard. Credit: Grant Webster Toss with pasta; chill before serving: Toss with pasta mixture and season to taste. Refrigerate until cold, at least 30 minutes and up to 8 hours. Credit: Grant Webster Credit: Grant Webster Because this salad contains dairy and eggs (from the mayonnaise), it's important that it not be left out at room temperature for longer than two hours or, if the air is warmer than 90°F, one hour. Move it back to the refrigerator as soon as possible to reduce the risk of food-borne illness. How to Store Leftovers Leftover tuna macaroni salad can be refrigerated for up to four days in an airtight container. Variations In place of the elbow macaroni, you can swap in another short pasta shape like small shells, fusilli, rotini, or even orzo. Try tossing in a handful or two of thawed frozen peas.Up the lemon flavor by adding the zest of one lemon along with the lemon juice. Five More Pasta Salad Recipes to Try: Pasta Salad With Peas and Summer Beans Orecchiette, Celery, and Olive Salad With Ricotta Salata Pasta Salad With Roasted Broccoli Marinated-Artichoke and Green-Bean Pasta Salad Pasta Salad With Tomatoes, Mozzarella, and Chickpeas Updated by Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds Esther Reynolds is an experienced recipe developer, recipe tester, food editor, and writer with over a decade of experience in the food and media industries.