Deli Style Tuna Salad Recipe (2024)

Make this deli-style tuna salad to add to bread, a salad, or eat alone. It contains the perfect blend of chopped veggies, seasonings and mayo.

Recipe updated 10/28/2020

Since we are also in back to school season, I wanted to share a super quick and easy recipe for Deli Style Tuna Salad. For years, I worked in a popular deli and tuna salad was our top seller. Our customers would literally wait for us to whip up new batches because it was such a hit. 14 years ago our selling price was $6.99 per pound!

The beauty of making the best tuna salad is that everyone’s “best” is varied and different. Some people prefer to enjoy their tuna without mayo or dressing like Miracle Whip and others love to drown their tuna until it is creamy.

Over the years, I have mixed things up a great deal and will share two tuna salad variations that you might enjoy! Check them out below and be sure to print our recipe card.

Deli-Style Tuna Salad Ingredients

• Canned tuna fish (we prefer albacore in water)
• Mayonnaise (I love Hellman’s brand)
• Miracle Whip
• red onion
• celery
• onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and black ground pepper

How to Make the Best Tuna Salad

If you love a chunky, but creamy tuna salad, this recipe is perfect for you! I love my tuna salad slightly sweet and that is exactly what the blend of both mayonnaise and Miracle Whip offers. You get a sweet tang from the Miracle Whip which is really delicious!

Open your tuna fish cans, and carefully drain the water, or excess oil out. I do like my chunk light tuna in oil because it offers more flavor to a blander, “fishier fish”.

However, for your drain’s sake I suggest draining the cans into a plastic shopping bag and discarding it in the trash. You should never pour oil down the drain because it ruins your pipes and can affect sewage and septic systems.

Once the tuna fish is drained add it to a medium glass bowl (we use glass to prevent odors from seeping in plastic absorbs strong food scents). Add mayonnaise and Miracle Whip on top of the tuna. Next, add in chopped veggies, and spices.

Using a large spoon or gloved hands, mix the tuna with the ingredients until it is fully incorporated.

Store tuna in an airtight (preferably glass) container. This will stay good for up to 4 days in the fridge when stored properly.

Ways to Eat Tuna Salad

We love enjoying our tuna salad on traditional white bread with some fancy lettuce. However, there are many ways to enjoy it! Check out some of my favorites below!

On top of a Greek or Garden Salad. This tuna salad pairs so well with feta cheese–yum! You might want to try this Cucumber Greek Salad.

Stuffed Peppers-Slice open sweet peppers, and fill with tuna salad. Add cheese over the top and bake for 5 minutes until cheese is melty. You can also make these Cucumber Cups.

Tuna melts with your favorite bread and cheese are also mighty tasty with this recipe. To make them, line toasted bread with tuna, tomato and your favorite cheese. Heat them on a buttered griddle or toast them for 3-5 minutes in a warm oven until cheese is melted.

Enjoy alone with a fork! This is so good by itself and fits into a low-carb diet.

Tuna Salad Recipes

Looking for more ways to enjoy canned tuna fish? We have some easy recipes you might want to try today!

Amazing Avocado Tuna Salad

Tuna Cesar Salad

Zucchini Tuna Nachos

Tuna fish Rangoons