Tuna White Bean Salad
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This tuna white bean salad comes together in 5 minutes with canned tuna, white beans, cherry tomatoes, olives and fresh herbs. For the dressing, all you need is some olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
If you are looking for desk lunch recipes, this is a great choice. Pair it with creamy carrot soup in winter or Spanish gazpacho in summer. Or, anything you like!
With tuna, white beans, tomatoes, olives and olive oil, this is a simple Mediterranean-style salad.
How to make canned tuna and white bean salad
Ingredients:
- Cherry tomatoes: If you are using tiny cherry tomatoes, you don’t have to cut them at all.
- Cooked white beans: Cannellini or butter beans.
- Black olives: Preferably pitted.
- Red onion
- Canned tuna
- Fresh parsley
- Salt
- Black pepper: Optional.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
The preparation
All the ingredients are combined together and dressed with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Notes:
Half a small onion should be plenty but feel free to adjust the amount to your liking.
To make the dressing, combine extra virgin olive oil with balsamic vinegar. You will notice the oil and vinegar do not really combine and that’s fine. Give them a quick stir and pour over the salad right away, then toss well.
This bean salad recipe uses ready-cooked beans from a jar/can. Rinse and drain them well before adding. If you prefer cooking them yourself, then go ahead and do so.
Possible substitutions
- Cherry tomatoes: Use any fresh tomatoes you like or have on hand. If you don’t like them, try using avocado instead!
- Black olives: Omit or use green olives.
- Onion: Yellow or white onion, shallot or spring onion can be used instead.
- Herbs: I used a combo of fresh flat-leaf parsley and basil. You can use only one of those or try with dill instead. I recommend adding a few basil leaves if you have them.
More Mediterranean recipes
- Stuffed Zucchini Boats: Delicious appetizer or main with chicken and quinoa!
- Grilled Chicken Kabobs: Easy, tasty and go well with all kinds of sides.
- Greek Salad: Make this salad and you will feel like you are in Greece!
- Tossed Salad with Tuna: A 5-minute salad with mixed leaves, cherry tomatoes, onion and canned tuna, tossed with olive oil.
- Oven Baked Sea Bass: Whole sea bass baked with garlic, parsley, olive oil and lemon, ready in about 20 minutes.
Tuna White Bean Salad
Ingredients
Salad:
- 1½ cups cherry tomatoes cut in halves, see note 1
- 1 cup white beans cooked, see note 2
- ½ cup black olives (pitted), see note 3
- 1 cup canned tuna drained, see note 4
- ½ small red onion see note 5
- fresh parsley to taste, see note 6
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Balsamic dressing:
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil see note 7
Instructions
- If using canned or jarred beans, rinse and drain them well. In a large bowl combine cherry tomatoes, white beans, olives, drained tuna, onion and finely chopped herbs.
- Add olive oil and balsamic vinegar to a glass and stir. Pour this over the salad.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Enjoy right away or chill in the fridge first.
Video
Notes
- Make sure the tomatoes are ripe. Tiny cherry tomatoes can be left whole, larger ones cut into chunks or diced.
- Use cannellini or butter beans.
- Use any kind of olives you like.
- Light or skipjack tuna are good options.
- No red onion? Yellow or white onion, shallot or spring onion can be used instead.
- I use a generous amount, about ¼ cup finely chopped. Use fresh basil, flat-leaf parsley or dill, or a combination.
- Extra virgin olive oil can be substituted with regular olive oil. Don’t substitute with other oils.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and may vary based on ingredient brands, substitutions, and portion sizes.
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This is the perfect summer meal! Light and healthy – love it!
Thanks, Allison! It’s a great salad indeed! :)
This looks so good! I love how it’s packed with protein and so simple to make. Thank you for sharing!
Yes! It can’t get any simpler than this.:)
This salad looks so fresh and inviting. I am a big fan of tuna and olives!
Hope you’ll give it a go, Jill!
I was just debating what to make tonight w/o going to the grocery store. Think this is just it.
:) Enjoy so! :)
Mediterranean food is all I want to eat. Thanks for the great Tuna salad recipe. I will definitely try it :)
You are welcome! :)