I was looking for some dish to be able to unload a can of celery hearts and a bottle of hearts of palm in. It's kind of funny, but this is a great recipe. The quality of this dish ultimately depends on the quality of the tuna: it's not your everyday tuna salad.

For a wine, you could choose a Vinho Verde, I think, like the 2002 Aveleda Trajadura (I looked it up). It cuts through the saltiness of the olives and the capers and matches the refreshing lemon flavor.

ingredients:
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons fruity extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Two 6-ounce cans olive oil—packed tuna, drained and broken into large chunks
(I used 2 10oz filets of beautiful sashimi bluefin; I wiped them down w/ evoo, rubbed them w/ ground 5-pepper blend, splashed on a little lemon then broiled each side until the fillet was warm all through [3-4 minutes each side])
One 19-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (about 1 1/2 cups)
24 pitted Calamata olives, coarsely chopped
2 cups thickly sliced celery hearts and leaves
(I had 1 24oz can)
* 1 20oz bottle of hearts of palm (My addition to this recipe.)
2 tablespoons capers, drained, or if packed in salt, rinsed
2 heaping tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley (I had some cilantro too.)
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (I used 3 lemons, I like zest.)
1 teaspoon minced garlic (2 cloves, crushed)
Freshly ground pepper (lots)
2 roasted red peppers from a jar or 4 piquillo peppers from a jar
(I won't use any "jar" stuff; I roasted 3 peppers, 1 each red, yellow and orange.)
Kosher salt
4 lemon slices, for garnish (I cut up the 3 lemons.)

directions:
Pour the lemon juice into a large bowl and slowly whisk in 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the tuna, cannellini beans, olives, sliced celery, capers, parsley, lemon zest and garlic and toss gently. Season with pepper, cover and set aside. I gently cut up the broiled fillets and mixed everything else up on the side.

Slice the roasted red peppers lengthwise and arrange on plates, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Spoon the tuna salad over the peppers and drizzle with more olive oil. Garnish with the lemon slices and serve.

Serve with crusty bread.

##

If anyone thinks I'm going overboard w/ the recipes, just remember what you had when there was a "MTH" board.

I will keep this recipe to try with my tuna. Every year I "can" my own albacore in 8 oz glass jars. I catch, clean, pack and cook my own fish. There is NEVER any water involved in the cleaning. Tuna are like sponges with water, which really degrades the meat. I pack the raw albacore all by itself in the jars. No salt, water, oil, etc. Then steam in a large canner at 10 lbs for 110 minutes.

The result is the best "canned" tuna you have ever had! Last year I canned over 30 cases! My family, including Mom, sisters, brother and kids never have to buy a can from the store.

quote:

Originally posted by Francis S:
I was looking for some dish to be able to unload a can of celery hearts and a bottle of hearts of palm in....... The quality of this dish ultimately depends on the quality of the tuna: it's not your everyday tuna salad.

The quality of this or any other tuna salad depends on quality of all ingridients, but especially those that come from a can. Hearts of palm? Canned celery? Where do you shop, Francis, a survivalist boutique?

Tuna Salad

Can good tuna in water - drained
Mayo (I use Hellmans from a jar! Use Dukes if you can find it!!)
Chopped Red Onion
Lemon Juice
Sweet Pickle Relish to taste
Salt & Pepper

Mix well. Done in 5 minutes. Eat!

PH

quote:

If anyone thinks I'm going overboard w/ the recipes, just remember what you had when there was a "MTH" board.

Francis, keep posting your recepies. They sound great, as a mater of fact I am going to use this recepie in a few weeks when guests come over.

Francis,

I agree.

PH

Francis, I am going to put this together this week and see how it turns out. Will let you know. My cooking skills are somewhere between yours and Bella's, so no telling how this will turn out.

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
Tuna Salad

Can good tuna in water - drained

NEVER! Must be oil packed, or freshly seared or nothing.
This whole recipe Francis is pushing on you is just bizarre. Canned palm hearts? Who buys those...and then proceeds to eat them???

Here is how to enjoy tuna on a warm summer day:

ceci beans, a pinch of red pepper flakes (two if you're eating at my house), red onions, finely sliced celery, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil, salt. Mix all and let macerate for 10-15 minutes. Once the guests have seated their behinds, add arugula (pick the yellow leaves out, FCOL), adjust seasoning, plate and THEN add your tuna on top. Fluffed by a fork, if canned, or sliced if using fresh seared one. Drizzle with both lemon juice and oilve oil.

quote:

NEVER! Must be oil packed, or freshly seared or nothing.

I'm with you on freshly seared, but why oil packed?

PH

Matt's Tuna Salad
2 cans water packed tuna (I don't like the "oiliness" of oil packed)
handful extra finely shredded carrot
handful finely chopped celery
handful finely chopped red pepper
half handful finely diced red onion (can substitute sweet onion)
Hellmann’s mayo

Mix all ingredients, add mayo until desired consistency is reached.

To get extra fine carrot, I use the second smallest hole size on a grater.

Has anyone else noticed the tuna just isn't as good now that it's "dolphin safe"?

Give me back my chunks of squeeking mammal in my starkist.

"Tuna" in a can is awful. If you must buy it, at least buy the canned albacore. Most "tuna" in a can is skipjack, the most hurting fish in the ocean.

Strangely, I had tuna last night. Two fresh steaks from the fishmonger with mushroom risotto and, asparagus, tomatoes and rocket quick-fried in olive oil, finished off with a squeeze and twist of lime.

Can't remember the last time I had canned tuna.

Greek Tuna Salad. A little simpler than Frances' recipe. I think credit goes to Gourmet magazine from several years ago.

1 can tuna in olive oil
1/2 cup Calamata olives, chopped
1/2 cup Feta cheese, cut in small cubes
1/4 cup Onion, diced
1/2 cup Cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
1/2 cup Cucumber, seeded and diced (or use seedless English cucumber)
Garlic pepper

Mix all together. Don't drain tuna (include olive oil). Proportions can be changed to your liking for each ingredient.

Serve in pita bread pockets.

quote:

(I don't like the "oiliness" of oil packed)

I agree with mwagner

PH

PH,

Speaking of tuna fish...

If you can dig up your recipe for Maryland Crab Cakes, Terra and I would be much appreciative!!!

~M~

Does every post have to be "Terra and I?" Sure, it's cool to be newlyweds but this is getting on my nerves.

I can't stand water packed tuna. It has this dryness to it that makes it very difficult to eat.

mwagner7700,

As much as I like Bella, don't listen to her. Being a newlywed is cool enjoy it while you can because in ten years it will no longer be "Terra and I" it will be "The Bitch and I"

It's OK... That was actually my "front."

Bella and I are having an affair, and I thought it would be nice to make the crap cakes, and eat them off her n@ked body... before we went into the champagne-filled hot tub.

Right, Bella???

You said that, not me.

mwagner7700,

Incoming....

PH

quote:

I can't stand water packed tuna. It has this dryness to it that makes it very difficult to eat.

One of the reasons God made mayonnaise!

PH

Dijon mustard is a small but significant ingredient in my tuna salad - otherwise, my recipe is similar to PH's, except that (and this is CRUCIAL ) I use Best Foods mayo, not Hellman's.

Does anyone know why Hellman's is "known as Best Foods Mayonnaise west of the Rockies"? This is the only example I know of where differences in nomenclature are determined specifically by the Continental Divide.

Besides a certain japanese mayo, that comes in a funny soft plastic bottle, and an argentinian Mayoliva, made with olive oil, I make my own for special dishes. The wife and her Mom, on the other hand, are all into industrial strength mayo.

I don't know, how do you guys eat this water packed tree bark? Who said it's too "oily"? Maybe it is, at least it's not watery and dry at the same time.

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:

quote:

I can't stand water packed tuna. It has this dryness to it that makes it very difficult to eat.

One of the reasons God made mayonnaise!

PH

It still has that dryness to it that irritates my mouth.

I made tuna salad for lunch today. Yippee!

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:

quote:

I can't stand water packed tuna. It has this dryness to it that makes it very difficult to eat.

One of the reasons God made mayonnaise!

PH

It was either Princes or John West who thought that it was a good idea to put the mayo in the can for you. It lasted about two months as an idea before they pulled it.