Southwest Tuna Salad

Engrossed's Note:

I just LOVE tuna! It's so fun to open a can and make a recipe up. This one turned out so flavorful and yummy... just popping with flavors. I also love a versatile recipe. You can enjoy this atop a bed of lettuce, rolled in lettuce leaves, in a wrap, in a sandwich or my favorite as a melt! I spread some of this on some whole grain sourdough and sprinkled some lowfat cheddar on it...stuck it in the broiler for a few minutes and WOW! The tangy sourdough went really well with it. I can also imagine this with pasta added for a cold pasta salad or as a hot tuna casserole...YUM! I think I'll be making it every which way I can think of because the flavor is soooo DELISH! If you prefer a non-creamy salad just cut the mayo and sour cream and you might increase the lime juice and perhaps add a little bit of oil. If you want more heat add a jalapeno or two. Enjoy yourself and make it how you'll like it.

• Total Time: 15 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

Salad

• 2 (6 ounce) cans tuna, drained
• 1 (2 1/2 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained and rinsed
• 1 (4 ounce) can diced mild green chilies, drained
• 1/4 cup green bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 cup red bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 cup white onions, diced or 3 green onions, sliced
• 2 tablespoons cilantro, minced (optional)
• diced fresh tomatoes (optional) or grape tomatoes, to taste (optional)

Dressing

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise (optional)
• 2 tablespoons sour cream (optional)
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Tabasco sauce, to taste (this really enhances it)

Topping

• shredded monterey jack cheese (optional) or cheddar cheese, for a melt (optional)

Directions:

1. Mix salad ingredients together.
2. Mix dressing ingredients together.
3. Stir dressing into salad, mix well.
4. This is great right away but if you let it sit in the refrigerator it will develop even more flavor.
5. Enjoy this how you'll like it (see description).

Reviews

[Lucky in Bayview]

Super good! Really fresh tasting. Next time I'll leave out the olives, personal preference.Used it as a sandwich filling on a sandwich thin with sprouts and the next day I used it as a dip with tortilla chips. Delicious both ways. Thanks for posting.

[BakinBaby]

Lovely! DH won't eat black olives, so alas, made without them. We're in the RV and I had no garlic (can you belive that??, this is SAD!) Delish... served with a green salad. No wonder this is a zaar star. Oh.. wait, guess it's a FoodStar!!

[breezermom]

I made this tonight for tomorrows lunch,but couldn't resist tasting....delicious! I only have 5 oz cans of tuna here, and halved the recipe. I used 0 Fat Greek yogurt instead of the sour cream, and no fat mayo for the mayo. This is absolutely wonderful!!!! Thanks for sharing.....running off now to add some diced fresh jalapenos....think that will just put this recipe over the top! Thanks for sharing!