(Sorry in advance for the lack of proper tags, I’m not sure how to add them on mobile)
So I tend to eat a can of tuna once or twice a week, usually with just a little salt, pepper and a dab of kewpie mayo and stuffed into onigiri. Are there any spices or sauces I can add to make it more interesting? Or any other easy tuna recipes I can make for one, preferably with rice? I really enjoy spicy foods and fermented/pickled things, but I’m not sure the best ways to combine that with something like tuna.
try adding dill and capers, maybe a dash of lemon juice or Worcestershire sauce.
I keep seeing capers, what are they like? Are they similar to olives? I’ve never had anything with capers before, but I like dill, pickles, olives of all kinds so it seems like it’s up my alley
They’re like tiny extra-salty olives. I use them in homemade tartar sauce.
Yeah you’d probably like them if youre into pickles and olives. They are a pickled bud of a plant, cant really describe what they taste like other than “like capers.” They’re bitter and kinda floral I guess? Anyway, a good paring with fish.
Use Cajun seasoning powder (Tony chacheres is my go to), and lemon pepper, a large spritz of lemon, and mix Frank’s red hot in with your mayo (I’ve not tried Kewpie Mayo, maybe you don’t want to pollute it). Some red chili flakes and Italian seasoning, maybe some garlic or onion powder, is my tuna mixture for tuna melts.
(I am in no way a chef, but this is what I make when it’s my turn to cook)
As a person who’s grown up in Cajun country, Slap yo mama is better, it has less salt and more seasoning, and jrs available on Amazon
I want to get this just to have in my kitchen counter for a chuckle
For something totally different: tuna patties
- 2 cans of tuna, drained
- 1 egg
- 1 sleeve of saltine crackers, crushed and divided
- Worcestershire sauce, optional
- Favorite frying oil
Crush crackers into crumbs. Set aside approximately 1/3-1/4 to bread patties. Put remainder into a bowl. Add egg and drained tuna. Add a few dashes of Worcestershire sauce if desired. Mix together and form patties. (I usually get 2 to 4 patties per can.) Coat outside with cracker crumbs, fry in oil until outer crackers are golden brown. Serve and eat.
Can also be made with canned salmon. My kids like eating them with ketchup or steak sauce. This is actually what I’ll be making for supper tomorrow night. You could totally eat this up with spicy ketchup.
I make the same with dijon mustard and lemon juice in place of the sauce. Always a hit.
My go-to can-of-tuna meal is two 5-oz cans (or one 12-oz can), a heavy dollop of mayo, and a spoonful of sweet relish. Stir it all up, serve in a bowl.
This used to be my standard recipe for tuna fish sandwiches, but then I figured, why add bread? That’s just extra calories. I’d rather have a bit more mayo than two slices of dry bread.
EDIT: I prefer two 5-oz cans because I squeeze out all the water from the cans (open with can opener, use lid to compress and squeeze out water) and it’s harder to squeeze out most of the water from the large 12-oz can. Two smaller cans works better. I don’t like my tuna watery. My wife does, though; she says it adds a stronger tuna-y flavor to the dish.
Sweet relish sounds very strange in a good way. I’ll have to try that!
Soy sauce, chili sauce, chili crisps, rice vinegar, curry powder, or any combination of them. Adding scallions or grapes is also good (maybe not both, never tried it).
Lemon juice, pepper, and parmesan is also good.
Both of the above assume some mayo is used as a base binder.
Basically fat, acid, salt, and heat (in this case spice, but you can also add bread crumbs and egg to make tuna cakes)
Chili crisps! I hadn’t thought of that with tuna, I like to add them to my eggs. Do you have a go to brand? I like the laoganma, but I think it would be too chunky for tuna?
Lao gan ma is my favorite. I like to toast my bread, so the crunchy parts don’t bother me.
Lee kum kee is also good, or doubanjiang (sometimes spelled tobanjan) is also nice. Doubanjiang might be the generic name for Lee kum kee.
Or make your own. It’s not hard, easy to make a big batch, but it’s not as good as Lao Gan ma.
Take a look at the flavored pouches of tuna. They’re comparable price to the cans, but they don’t need to be drained.
Maybe add some sliced grapes or chopped walnuts? Or if you want something fermented/pickled maybe add some chopped up kimchi? I bet some radish kimchi would give it a nice crunch
Another fruit/nut combo to try are craisins and slivered almonds. I’m not a fan of raisins unless they’re in cinnamon bread or bagels, but I love substituting craisins in salads and other savory dishes that call for raisins.
Garlic salt.
Fermented and spicy - how about some gochujang? It’s like miso, but a Korean version with chili. Mix it with some good sesame oil and a splash of rice vinegar to lighten it up. Then put it with the tuna in your onigiri like you would the mayo. It’s already salty, so no need to add salt.
If any readers have a Korean grocery near them, the Korean domestic brands not only look and taste 10x better, they have all kinds of fun flavors.
This being one of them!
I do, but the labels all being in Korean is very overwhelming. Do you have any advice for navigating? I’m pretty adventurous so if need be I can just grab a few and roll the dice. I just hate to be wasteful
I feel so dumb lol how could I have forgotten about gochujang, I use it like four times a week. Thanks!
Grew up in the southern US where we pretty much treated canned tuna as a conduit for mayonnaise & an excuse to eat ritz crackers for dinner.
Given that, I took to just adding diced tomatoes to the mix, which at least gave the meal a hint of nutritional value.
Not sure how well that combo works with onigiri, but thought I’d put it out there.
I used to eat a pasta sauce with canned tuna that also had onion, yoghurt (or cream) and capers. Depending on the amount of effort you want to put in, maybe just adding some capers might work :)
My mom used to make hot potato and tuna salad. It was one of my favorites growing up. It was boiled potatoes, relish, tuna, mayo, salt and pepper, served warm. Really tasty.
Tuna casserole is another tasty option.
If you want to go an Asian route, you can do tuna served on rice with some chili crisp and sliced cucumber.
This was my college-era budget-stretcher:
Mix into 1 can of tuna (in water), drained …
- Equal parts Hellmann’s Organic Mayonnaise* and Inglehoffer Original Stone Ground Mustard*.
- 1-2 diced Claussen Hearty Garlic Pickles*.
- Sliced pepperoncini.
- Salt, pepper, cayenne to taste.
… and serve with toast or crackers.
*These are my brands. Just use whatever you got.
Do you drain the water before mixing?
Yes.
If you’re already putting it into onigiri, try adding pickled plum or pickled ginger
BBQ sauce. Tastes like pulled pork.
