Tuna With Capers, Olives and Lemon Recipe (2024)

By Melissa Clark

Tuna With Capers, Olives and Lemon Recipe (1)

Total Time
10 minutes
Rating
4(1,136)
Notes
Read community notes

This is not your mother's mayonnaise-laden tuna salad, but it's just as easy to prepare. Here's what you do: stir together some canned tuna, garlic, lemon juice, red onion, black olives, capers and fresh parsley, then spread it on buttered toast. Top it off with a round of ripe tomato or slivers of avocado and another slice of toast. That's it. If you want to make it into a dip, toss the mixture into a food processor with a few tablespoons of softened butter and a bit more olive oil. Purée until smooth and creamy and serve with carrots, fennel, bell pepper and seeded crackers. If you have a tin of sardines taunting you from inside your cabinet, we bet this recipe would work equally well with those.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 sandwiches or 8 appetizer servings

  • 1garlic clove, finely minced
  • Juice of half a lemon, plus more to taste
  • 5tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus 4 more tablespoons if serving as dip
  • 20ounces canned tuna, preferably packed in olive oil, drained
  • ¼cup chopped red onion
  • ¼cup chopped black olives
  • 2tablespoons capers
  • 2tablespoons minced parsley or basil
  • Salt to taste
  • Buttered toast, if serving as sandwiches
  • 10tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, if serving as dip

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

273 calories; 25 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 13 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 12 grams protein; 229 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Tuna With Capers, Olives and Lemon Recipe (2)

Preparation

  1. Step

    1

    In a large bowl, mash garlic with the back of a spoon. Whisk in the lemon juice and 5 tablespoons of olive oil. Combine with the tuna, onion, olives, capers, herbs and salt to taste.

  2. Serve on buttered toast for sandwiches, or make into a dip: Pulse the tuna salad and butter in a food processor until it is creamy. With the motor of the processor running, slowly add the additional 4 tablespoons oil. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice if needed. Serve with cut vegetables (fennel and bell peppers are nice) and crackers.

Ratings

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1,136

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Barbara

A similar but slightly easier version of this tuna salad includes canned tuna with store bought olive tapenade. I really like Trader Joe's. Then add whatever else you like -- lemon, olive oil, onion, red pepper, tomato, and maybe some sliced hard boiled eggs. Serve it on lettuce or wrapped up in a pita. But just the tuna and tapenade is great by itself too.

Sam

I like to slice some apple, put it on buttered toast and then put the tuna mix on the top. It adds a nice crunch and a sweet and refreshing counter-point to the salty tuna.

Hannah211

Decided to make this tonight as part of a "light" meal - decided to throw kalamata olives in stead of the usual black. Threw this on a bed of spinach and called it a meal. Delicious!

Ellen

Made this as a dip for Thanksgiving lunch, minus the butter. It was very good with corn chips and the perfect thing to eat while still working on the feast.
Next time I'd add a little hot sauce or some red pepper flakes.

Deborah

I substituted avocado for the butter and had the best avocado toast imaginable.

ron shapley

So, why drain the Tuna ?? There's the Olive Oil you need in the recipe...

Peter

So I grew up on Bumblebee..Miracle Whip and Wonder bread, washed down with some Hawaiin Punch. Loved it. And still love mayo based tuna..But this recipe takes it to new a level. Its outstanding and the key is quality tuna. Spend the $$$..get the caught in USA, free range, pole caught fish because it matters..its all about the tuna...oh...and Kalamatas instead of bland black olives..

Regina P

add some zest from that lemon!

Hannah

For a wheat-free option, I wrap this in scoops of romaine lettuce or radicchio cups.

William Knospe

Oh, and instead of raw pounded garlic, simmered 2 fat cloves cut in half, then pressed and added. Also, per the avclub version, I also added in some good anchovies (2 - 3). Great addition that creates more depth. No butter needed with the 9 tbsp. olive oil.

jane

this is the version she made for avclub, which is where I first saw it, and it includes mayo. Just made that version and it's awesome.: http://www.avclub.com/video/learn-make-next-level-tuna-spread-new-york-t...

Bri

Great sandwich. Add drained rinsed beans (and or chickpeas), pickled jalapeño and preserved lemon to amp protein and flavour, and you can feed the gang with a can of tuna. Excellent with chunks of apple and nuts too. Yummy (and I am not a huge canned tuna fan)

Bob Kravis

I made this as a dip, put it in the food processor without butter and added hot sauce as suggested by Ellen. My wife took it to a party and it got rave reviews!

MJ

How long does this keep?

Jim

Does tuna come in 20 ounce cans?

TL

I made the dip version and it was grainy. Not a fan.

Courtney

I used a shallot and Kalamata olives and it was delightful.

Deb L

Liked this a lot. It was super easy to make, too. It is very fishy smelling, so, maybe avoid taking it to work as a sandwich :-)

Jennifer

Delicious.

Darren Stephens

I was inspired by this last night to make a tuna salad that was very close to what I used to get from an Italian deli here in Chicago... What really put it over the top for me was adding two mashed anchovies! Oh, maaaaan.... I will be making it again and again...

janisani

delicious! with avocado on top or summer tomatoes

Northerner

I used smoked salmon in place of tuna and it was wonderful. The capers add a valuable briny note. Good recipe for adjusting to your tastes. This one stays in the Saved box!

Aenneken

Very easy to make and very delicious!

MilC

This is a lovely recipe for an easy dinner during warm summer days. We used Spanish white tuna packed in olive oil. Added a few more items to customize - chopped kalamata & green olives, two tablespoons of mayo, pinch of dried oregano, pinch of red pepper flakes, pinch of black pepper and one roasted piquillo pepper diced to the olive mix. No additional salt needed. Delicious with sour dough baguette layered with more piqullo peppers and sweet onions lightly marinated in red wine vinegar.

DolceSanDiego

Modifications needed for a chunky paste. Canned tuna is typically 7-ounces and I used one. In food processor, pulse 3 garlic cloves with lemon juice and oil from tuna plus more to taste. Add tuna plus 2-3 ounces mascarpone. By hand, mix in chopped capers, red onions, kalamata or Castelvetrano olives, and herbs. Serve on toasted crostini topped with capers. Delicious.

David B

Lovely as written with good tuna, kalamata, basil, but I couldn't help myself and added a little mayo and toasted almond slices, on sprouted wheat toast spread with avocado instead of butter. Fantastic!

Meme Sweets Runyon

Great recipe. I made this for lunch today then took last half and added 1/2 the amount of unsalted butter and the olive oil for a dip. It seemed a bit tasteless for a dip so I added 2 t. more chopped red onion, 1. T more black olives and 1 T. more capers. It made ALL the difference. My guests devoured it!! Served on slices of toasted toasted baguette.

Jessica

Made for Xmas. Easy to make and was good on toast. Don’t see what I would make this for though. Don’t really see making it for a party.Was good though. Used tuna in oil

Echo Rabbit

Add 2 lemons for the juice and we eat it with a mix of arugula and fresh greens. We love this for lunch and it is a do over monthly.

Paula

Meh. Not for me. Used tuna packed in water, since that is what I had on hand. Bland.

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Tuna With Capers, Olives and Lemon Recipe (2024)
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