What’s In Your Tuna Sandwich?
This week’s poll is actually the slight formalization of an ongoing poll I’ve been conducting sporadically for the past eight years: what do you put in your tuna sandwich (besides tuna, of course)? This poll started my Junior year of college when Aurora and I needed a quick meal and decided to make tuna salad. I reached for the green olives; she reached for the relish; one of her roommates said we were both wrong: tuna salad ought to have apples and walnuts in it. Since then, I’ve occasionally asked people who happen to be around when the subject of tuna sandwiches rarely comes up, what do you put in your tuna sandwich? and I’ve gotten a surprisingly wide range of responses. Today, for the first time, I’m putting the question in print.
So, please register your preference by leaving a comment to this post. I’ll tabulate the results, analyze them for patterns, and report back in one week with my findings.
P.S. I’m not talking about any rare attempts to fancify from your norm, but your run of the mill, every day tuna sandwich.
Keep reading for the results from last week’s poll.
January 30th, 2007 at 2:06 pm
Onions and mayo, plus ground pepper, garlic and paprika, is the quickie. If I have ‘em, I add avocado, hard-boiled eggs (instead of the mayo), cilantro and lime juice, as well as a splash of hot sauce.
January 30th, 2007 at 2:09 pm
I thought I was the only person who put green olives in their tuna salad. I’ve told people this in the past and the typical reaction is “Ewwwww!”. Savages.
January 30th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
Mayo, diced celery, onions, and a little salt. I’m a fan of the tuna melt and tomato slices on top of the sandwich.
January 30th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
Pickles, BBQ sauce and potato chips!
January 30th, 2007 at 2:52 pm
For a quick, delicious, and nutritious meal, it’s gotta be tuna, mayonnaise, and lots of sweet relish.
January 30th, 2007 at 3:26 pm
* Miracle Whip (the only time I advocate its use over mayo)
* Dijon mustard
* Onions
* Sweet relish
If I’m going to be going with a tuna melt, I like to use either Edam or Jarlsberg and add some crumbled bacon.
January 30th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
mayonnaise, dill pickles or relish, tomoatoes, onions
January 30th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
Tuna, cider vinegar, minced onion. Maybe, if the tuna is packed in water (horrors!), I’ll drain it and mix in a little extra virgin olive oil. But I usually buy the olive-oil packed stuff anyway …
January 30th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
Mayo, mustard, onion, sweet relish, black pepper & tarragon.
Apples and walnuts go in CHICKEN salad, not tuna salad!
January 30th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
Green onions (scallions), waterchestnuts and lemon (or lime) juice. My sister and I recently realized that what we assumed to be fairly standard was something unique to our family’s tuna sandwich-making. Oh, and a little mayo, just enough to bind it together. And NEVER a tuna melt. Cooked mayonnaise is perhaps the most vile smell and taste in the food world.
January 30th, 2007 at 4:44 pm
Oh, and I almost forgot about the smidgen of horseradish sauce!
January 30th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Since I’m not a big tuna fan, at a minimum it must contain Aurora’s ingredients. But if I’ve got them on hand, I also add diced celery, onion and in the past 5 years, hard-boiled egg (after I saw a co-worker do it). Occasionally, I’ll add mustard. I’ve also heard of adding diced radish. I might start eating more tuna seeing as this post has a few interesting suggestions that might be worth trying!
January 30th, 2007 at 6:12 pm
I’ve never been a big mayo eater. I do finely minced onion or shallot, also finely minced celery or fennel; the binder is dijon mustard, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Maybe a dollop of sweet relish. Or, if I’m really lazy, Italian dressing from a jar.
January 30th, 2007 at 7:29 pm
for an on-the-go sandwich, it’s a can of water packed tuna, spoonful of mayo, spoonful of creole mustard, couple drips of hot sauce, ground pepper…and potato chips (-in- the sandwich, not next to) if i have any on hand.
if i were to actually prepare tuna salad, with a sandwich option, i’d go with all that i just said (add potato chips later- soggy=unacceptable), plus hard boiled egg, celery, relish, green onion and, since everything i prepare has garlic in it, garlic. water chestnuts sound like a great idea too
January 30th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
the above should specify “a slightly larger spoonful of creole mustard”, relative to mayo. canned tuna is one of the very few foods out there with which i prefer mayo, another notable exception being turkey sandwiches made from leftover thanksgiving turkey. only leftover. and only thanksgiving. because i said so.
January 30th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
-Chunk Light in Water (drained)
-Mayo
-Relish
-Spices (Salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder)
-(maybe a swath of mustard, yellow or brown)
A follow up question: Chunk Light or Albacore? I’ve never been fond of the Albacore despite its far meatier existence.
January 30th, 2007 at 9:24 pm
Tuna
Mayo
Diced Gherkins (or relish in a pinch)
Cheddar Cheese (small chunks)
Diced Apple
January 30th, 2007 at 11:33 pm
diced onion, celery, green olives, mayo, s&p
(my husband likes to add some Penzey’s sandwich sprinkle)
January 30th, 2007 at 11:41 pm
Me again. My upscale tuna sandwich: tuna, cannelini beans, minced garlic, diced plum tomato, olive oil, lemon, capers and parsley on slices of toasted crusty bread.
January 31st, 2007 at 1:02 am
Typically it’s just a smidge of mayo, salt & pepper because I’m hella lazy. If I have 5 extra minutes to spare, I’ll put in a bit of relish and minced onions.
January 31st, 2007 at 2:43 am
Mayo, grated onion. kosher salt, pepper, and LOTS OF DILL!
January 31st, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Mustard, horseradish, and onions. Mmmmmm….
January 31st, 2007 at 6:28 pm
The above should be creole mustard, not the worthless yellow hot dog mustard
January 31st, 2007 at 6:44 pm
Well, I make 2 kinds of tuna salad sandwich.
One I think of as “normal”; tuna, lots of mayo, pickle relish.
The other is “Mama’s”; tuna, chopped cabbage, curry powder, mayo, and raisins
February 4th, 2007 at 1:34 am
I like to mix in a good glug of a simple vinaigrette (dijon, red wine vinegar, olive oil) with my tuna and top it with a few fresh lettuce leaves. Yum!
February 4th, 2007 at 9:35 am
Just surfed by randomly…. My tuna sandwiches are: Brine packed tuna, mixed with mayonnaise, with cucumber mixed in too.
February 5th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
Capers, Chives (or green onions), salt & pepper, mayo, dijon mustard. Sometimes tomatos.
Is tuna packed in oil really superior? I’ve never tried it.
February 5th, 2007 at 6:30 pm
Portugese tuna in olive oil on bread…..heavenly!!
February 7th, 2007 at 1:13 pm
My standard is mayonnaise, lemon or lime juice, green olives, pepper, and perhaps a touch of salt depending on how salty the olives are. I prefer the savory with my tuna as opposed the sweet that comes with using sweet relish. I really like the idea of apples and bacon, though; and though no one actually marked that they use radish, I expect that it’s good and I think I’m going to try it.
February 14th, 2007 at 12:19 am
lol I’m so wack. I’m a poor ass college student. In my sandwiches I use Tuna in oil drained some(because tuna in water is so nasty), miracle whip (mayonnaise is gross), vinegar, seasoning salt, and old bay. Yup. Oh, and on toasted wheat bread. And if I’m lucky and I have some cheese, then I make a tuna melt
February 14th, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Never ate tuna salad growing up, but in my days as a poor student (cuz then you have to eat tuna), I developed my own West coast fusion tuna sandwich (and this really is my standard):
tuna (water packed)
plain yogurt (can stand mayo)
lime juice
soy sauce
sesame oil
scallions
cilantro
cracked black pepper
I eat it on some kind of toasted wholegrain bread with cukes, tomatoes, and sprouts. Yum!
February 25th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
My boyfriend and I have had many disputes about this very subject. The tuna sandwich I grew up eating was StarKist brand tuna with real mayonase and sweet pickle relish this is placed on a piece of cracked wheat bread that’s been mayonaised on the pan side and grilled with a piece of chedder or provilone cheese and another piece of mayonase covered bread, my mouth watters as I write this. This sandwich may be dipped in ketchup and is often quite messey since it is best with a heaping glob of tuna salad in it. My boyfriend argues that a tuna salad should contain mayonaise, pickle relish, celery, green onions and chili powder, this should be on wheat bread and served cold with a good beer. Who is right, the gods may not even know.
October 9th, 2008 at 5:40 pm
Mayo,mustard,spices with a dash of lemon or lime juice. Simple yet orgasmic.
December 23rd, 2008 at 1:54 pm
I use tuna in oil, drained but not totally squished dry and I mix fish and chip/Malt vinegar into it in a bowl, add a dash of pepper.
Then when i put the tuna on the bread i top it all over with around 10 slices of cold cucumber, which i then salt. It tastes like heaven and reminds me of when i was a child.
February 6th, 2009 at 1:46 am
Tuna canned only in water, preferably albacore. The can must be placed in the fridge overnight. Mayo, sweet relish, sweet peas, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, regular or dijon mustard and cilantro. This concoction is usually served on a large slice of potato bread, a tostada shell or just some saltines.
April 27th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
mayo and pickles. then eat it out of a bowl.
June 2nd, 2009 at 4:29 pm
I just finished my tuna sandwich and it was delicious!!!
1 can of tuna…(I’m pretty sure it has water and not oil)
1 tbsp Mayo…(the best foods with the yellow top)
some pepper
a couple squirts of Spicy Brown Mustard
a couple drops of Tapatio hot sauce
some diced onion and pickle
mix it together
this mix is really good!
when i go to subway and more ingredients are available i get…
tuna on wheat
american cheese
onions
lettuce
cucumbers
pickles
avocado
and sometimes i get peperocinis
yumyumyum!!
June 5th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Tuna in water, drained. Diced celery, red onion, tomato. Minced garlic. Paprika. Pepper. Dijonnaise. On whole wheat bread, whole wheat bagel, whole wheat wrap, or whole wheat pita! Simply delicious!
April 19th, 2011 at 5:58 pm
I try to keep it simple. Usually I just add the tuna and drench the sandwich in louisiana hot sauce.
June 3rd, 2012 at 10:26 pm
Tuna, Miracle Whip, diced homemade pickles, diced green onions, & black pepper.