Tuna Tomato Salad

This Tuna Tomato Salad is a favorite lunch idea, and this is a salad that I’d happily devour most any time of year. And personally I would never skip the sunflower seeds in this tasty salad combination!

PIN Tuna and Tomato Salad to try it later!

I’m happy to have new photos today to update this  to update this Tuna Tomato Salad, which is a salad I’d enjoy for lunch any time of year. Of course if it was summer I would love this salad with garden fresh tomatoes, but even with the flavorful cherry tomatoes I used, this was so tasty!

As I made this I thought about the name of the salad, realizing that when it comes out of a can I used to call it “tuna fish” but now I call it “canned tuna.”  For this salad I use my favorite tuna packed in olive oil, Cherubs salad tomatoes from Costco, and dry-roasted sunflower seeds, and this is a great idea for a low-carb lunch.

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

• Genova Tuna Packed in Olive Oil (affiliate link), or other canned tuna
• romaine lettuce
• cherry tomatoes
• Capers (affiliate link), chopped
• green onions
• sunflower seeds
• Ranch dressing
• Newman’s Own Olive Oil and Vinegar Dressing (affiliate link), or other low-sugar vinaigrette dressing

What canned tuna do I use?

I’m a huge fan of tuna packed in olive oil, which I think is so much more flavorful than the water-packed tuna. There are wonderful imported Italian tunas if money is no object, but I was thrilled to discover Genova Tuna Packed in Olive Oil (affiliate link) distributed in the U.S. by the same company that makes Chicken of the Sea. This brand is as good as the imported tunas I’ve tried, and I love this this tuna so much that I buy it by the case at Amazon.com!

Tips for making the salad:

(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)

1. No matter what kind of tuna you use, make sure it’s well drained.
2. I use Romaine lettuce, torn apart and washed in a salad spinner (affiliate link).
3. I cut the tomatoes in half, cut them smaller if you prefer.
4. Some chopped capers and thinly sliced green onions are a great addition to the tuna mixture.
5. Mix together Ranch Dressing and your favorite vinaigrette to make the dressing.
6. After the tuna has drained, mix it with 3 T of the dressing, chopped capers, and sliced green onion.
7. Toss the lettuce with enough dressing to moisten it, then toss with the tuna mixture.
8. Put the salad in a serving bowl and top with tomatoes and sunflower seeds.
9. Serve with more sunflower seeds to add at the table if you’re a big sunflower seed fan like me!

More Tasty Recipes with Tuna:

My Favorite Low-Carb Recipes with Tuna from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Spicy Tuna and Avocado Ceviche from The Perfect Pantry
Tuna Salad Lettuce Wraps from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Herbed Tuna Salad with Feta and Pine Nuts from Pinch My Salt
Cucumber Salad with Tuna and Sweet Basil from Kalyn’s Kitchen

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Yield: 4 servings

Tuna Tomato Salad

Prep Time 25 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Tuna Tomato Salad is a favorite salad that I've been making for years and years, and I love this with lots of Sunflower Seeds!

Ingredients

Ingredients

• one 5 oz. can tuna, drained very well (see notes)
• 8 cups romaine lettuce (see notes)
• 1/2 cup cherry tomato halves
• 1 T capers, chopped
• 2 T thinly sliced green onions
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds

Dressing Ingredients

• 1/4 cup your favorite Ranch dressing
• 1/4 cup your favorite Vinaigrette dressing

Instructions

1. Put the tuna in a small strainer and let it drain well while you prep the other ingredients.
2. Tear lettuce, wash well in salad spinner and spin until dry (or dry with paper towels if you don’t have a salad spinner).
3. Cut the tomatoes, chop capers, and thinly slice green onions.
4. Mix ranch and vinaigrette dressing.
5. Put the drained tuna into a small bowl, and mix about 3 tablespoons of the dressing into the tuna, then mix in capers and green onions.
6. Put the washed and dried lettuce into a large salad bowl and toss with enough dressing to moisten the lettuce.  (You may not need all the dressing.)
7. Add tuna mixture and toss with the lettuce.
8. Add tomatoes and sunflower seeds to the top of the salad and serve.

Notes

I would greatly prefer Genova Tuna Packed in Olive Oil (affiliate link) for this salad. You'll need 1-2 heads of Romaine lettuce.

If you’re making this to take for lunches, mix the tuna, dressing, capers, and green onions and keep the mixture in the fridge.  Don’t toss the rest of the salad together until right before you eat it. The tuna mixture will stay good in the fridge for close to a week.

Recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 253Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 19mgSodium: 1435mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 4gSugar: 4gProtein: 13g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This is a good side dish for any low-glycemic or low-carb diet, including any phase of the original South Beach Diet.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Salad Recipes to find more low-carb salad ideas like this one! Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You can also Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This simple salad recipe was first posted in 2005! It was updated with better photos in 2012 and last updated in 2021.

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