Monday, August 8, 2011

TUNA FISH! Mmmmm

HERE is an article on the best canned tuna brands!   SO, of course, that got me thinking: 
WHAT do you put in your tuna salad for a sandwich?  Do you prefer white meat or darker meat-tuna?  Pickle relish? Lemon?  Both?  No mayo?  With Mayo?  White bread?  Wheat bread? Sourdough?  Crust on/crust off?  Tuna melt?     I'd love to have your input!

thanks!

Z

25 comments:

beakerkin said...

This is not for the meek


Tuna
Miracle whip
B&G pickle relish or Heinz India relish
Part of a texas white onion chopped
some garlic powder

on Potato Bread

Z said...

Beak! You're a CHEF. That sounds delicious. absolutely delicious!

Pris said...

Chicken of the Sea tuna in oil, drained. Sweet pickle relish, a lttle finely diced onion, mixed with Best Foods mayo.

Sometimes Albacore, with hard boiled egg, mixed with mayo.

Sourdough bread.

Lisa said...

that sounds good and interesting beakerkin,yum. I agree Z Beak is a chef.
Beak would that be fresh tuna only?
lol
The only Tuna I eat is Bumble Bee Solid white in water with
Mayo, onion powder or grated onion,chopped celery,fresh ground pepper on whole wheat or Sour dough
But now I am eager to try Beaks' recipe.

Z said...

I prefer Trader Joe's tuna in water but like Starkist or CHicken of the Sea, too...with mayo. I love it with lemon, but do love it with egg and relish, too!
My uncle came to take me to lunch a while back and he was a bigwig Corporate type with a Corporate Chef on staff. SHe cooked them wonderful things but told me my uncle preferred Tuna sandwiches, potato chips and Cokes!

So, he picked me up and said "Where would you like to go?" I said "We're going to the beach!" This is an uncle who could afford to go anywhere we wanted to go ...but I figured he does that enough! SO...we drove to the Santa Monica bluffs and it was a gorgeous day and we sat overlooking the Pacific Ocean and I opened up the hamper and I'd made tuna with lemon juice and tuna with pickle relish...tart and sweet...take your pick! He was thrilled! I had potato chips and Cokes with me and he couldn't stop smiling! We both enjoyed both types of tuna sandwiches! Tuna Heaven! It's a really nice memory for me..and he's mentioned it a couple of times since. :-)

Jan said...

Okay..here's one of my tuna fish sandwich favorites:

I use a couple of packages of StarKist smoked tuna, mixed with Hellman's mayo, and a couple of tablespoons of Country French dressing.

To that, I add chopped water chestnuts, a couple of spoonsful of either sweet pickle relish, or dill picle relish...or neither, depending on what I want at the time.

When I make it with the above ingredients, I always eat it on Pumpernickel bread.

Delicicious, and very filling!

Z said...

Jan, "packages of smoked tuna"? I haven't ever heard of that.
I'm not big on smoked stuff, but I do like things like Smoked White Fish in Delicatessens, etc..is it something like that?
water chestnuts...you like CRUNCH! :-)

Jan said...

Z..it is in heavy foil packages, hanging, in the section of the grocery store where the canned tuna can be found.

You can, also, get Sweet and Spicy, Herbs and Garlic, or just plain tuna.

I like it very much, and yes I do like the crunch of the water chestnuts, but only with the Pumpernickel...not the other breads. :)

Always On Watch said...

White albacore only!

I use a recipe similar to Beak's -- minus the garlic. Garlic upsets my stomach. **sigh**

I don't like Miracle Whip very much and prefer Hellman's mayo.

Sometimes, I use celery and/or green pepper instead of relish.

I also like to add a very small dab of mustard.

Always On Watch said...

And seeded rye bread -- toasted or not, depending on my mood.

Z said...

AOW, I don't like Miracle Whip, either....We have Best Foods here in CA. That's our best,in my opinion.
I have used a dab of French's mustard in the past...I like that, too.
Never thought of green pepper but that sounds very good.

Always On Watch said...

The green pepper needs to be very finely chopped so as not to overwhelm the flavor the tuna.

Lisa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lisa said...

Hey Z we have Best Foods here too on Long Island. They used to be Produce Warehouse yes?
The reason I like Bumble Bee is it's not as mushy as the others and 2 times I found a bone in Chicken of the Sea.
Bumble Bee is Albacore. I never tried Trader Joes' Brand. Maybe I will give it a shot.
I used to only eat Starkist then a friend told me she only eats Bumble Bee so when I tried it I find I do like the consistency of it better.

I must live in a bubble though as I never heard of putting pickle relish in tuna. Now I can't wait for my next Tuna sandwhich. I have my tuna cans in the cabinet(as always) and pickle relish in the frig so maybe for lunch today.
I am not a fan of Miracle Whip either. Only Hellman's is allowed in my house. Strict orders,lol!!!

Ticker said...

White Tuna in water. Mix it with some mayo, pickle relish,touch of mustard, chopped boiled egg, finely chopped celery, grapes,red and white seedless, split. Eat it as a salad with more celery sticks, carrot sticks and some cheese on top. Place on a bed of lettuce and add some tomato wedges Serve with Wheat Crackers or as a slamwich, put it on Wheat bread ( I like mine toasted) with a slice of American Cheese, lettuce and sliced maters. For a bit of extra during the summer season add some cucumber slices to the slamwich or the salad depending on your desire at the time.

I have been known to grill the slamwich in a hot skillet with melted butter on the bread. Makes it toasty and delicious. Yumm.

Z said...

AOW..finely chopped and not too much, I'd have thought...just enough.

Lisa...I haven't heard of Produce Warehouse or their being related at all. I've eaten Best Foods all my life, I know that.
Trader Joe's is very firm meat and very good; it rated high in some canned tuna ratings, too.

Tucker, tuna melts are fabulous. Thanks for the recipe!

Z said...

ANOTHER Z RECIPE: I forgot to post this and it is DEEELICIOUS:

Slice a Pita Bread in half, open a side of it up and put in your tuna salad but make it fairly simple; maybe just mayo (and I do like some black pepper in it, it's a perfectly marriage)....then I put in Swiss Cheese and Avocado, and IS THAT GOOD!
I think that would be tasty with AOW's green pepper idea, too, or very finely chopped onion but I wouldn't put lemon or relish in because you want to taste the combo of tuna/Swiss cheese/Avocado....really nice.

cube said...

Albacore white tuna, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Simple. Mr. Cube likes chopped celery added to the mix. We fight about it ;-)

Z said...

Cube, I forgot, I was raised with chopped celery in my tuna, too....maybe it's an Armenian thing? :-) I rarely do it now because I prefer it without and I rarely buy celery, but it does bring back the 'good old days' when I have celery and throw it in.

Brooke said...

Well, store brand does it for me... But it must be packed in water, NOT oil.

I drain it and add enough mayo to make it not dry, then toast sandwich bread and add a slice of sharp cheddar to the warm bread so it gets kind of melty ( I know, exact terms here, heh) and then add tuna/mayo mix.

I know it's not fancy, but my kids like it. :)

Brooke said...

A lot of really good recipes are going around here. I just might have to hit the Kroger and pick up some tuna today!

It actually has been a while since our family has had any tuna!

Z said...

Brooke, so you put the cheese UNDER the tuna/mayo.........instead of melting it on top. why not!? I love tuna melts, too!

Nothing makes me happier (well, okay, SOME THINGS DO :-)) than hearing you inspired to get to the store and make some of the recipes! Great! Bon Appetit!!

I'm a "Packed in water" person, too...the mayo's enough for me to make it moist. And you bring up a very good point; how MUCH mayo? I've had it served very wet but I'm with you, I tend to like it a little less than more.....

That Swiss and Tuna and Avocado is REALLY good! :-)

cube said...

Z,I don't know if it's an Armenian thing, but Mr. Cube likes horse-choking sized pieces of celery in his tuna. I don't know, perhaps it's just the crunch that he likes. We have argued about it for over 30 years.

I buy the water-based tuna, but I do remember Julia Child and Jacques Pepin talking up the oil-based tuna over the water. Frankly, I prefer the taste with the oil, but I'm just trying to save some calories whenever possible and the water-based is tasty too.

Z said...

Cube! I'd throw celery sticks at him and tell him to SCOOP THE TUNA WITH IT and LEAVE MY SANDWICH ALONE :-)
Odd that two ARmenians (Mom and Mr. Cube) like Celery and lemon (which I love too) But, coincidence, of course.

I prefer the water-packed; the oily is too oily for me now, particularly if you're putting mayo in, anyway!

Rob said...

Rather than a sandwich per se, I'm a big fan of wraps, especially the 2Dolphins Tuna Wraps.

I'm pretty open to tuna additives EXCEPT for eggs.