Umami Tuna Pasta Salad
Yesterday, the weather was 26°C. As I went home from work, I knew I was going to whip up my go-to : tuna pasta salad ! When I feel lazy, I cook my pasta, add cherry tomatoes, pour a tuna can, add olive oil and that's it. Makes my day everytime.
Now, I know what you're thinking. Tuna pasta salad ? Booring ! And we all know how to make one.
I still think this recipe is worth posting. Ever since I started cooking, I kept improving, little by little, my understanding of how you build a dish. Here are 5 tips to make this dish significantly better than what I'd get from my local bakery :
- For boosted umami, anchovies in oil and olives are great choices, and pair well with the base tuna protein here.
- You need to add acidity and bitterness to create flavour depth, here through celery and lemon.
- You can bump the overall flavour though simple choices : not forgetting about fresh herbs -basil and wild garlic here- and investing in a quality olive oil.
- Textures matter. Pasta salads can be on the softer side ; by adding sugar snap peas, not only do you round the flavour with its sweetness, but also bring forward a much needed crunch.
- Finally, don't forget to add enough salt ! For 2 people's worth of salad, you need a LARGE pinch of salt.
Umami Tuna Pasta Salad - Recipe
Ingredients - Where to find them
You might need to visit an Italian store to find quality anchovies in oil. For all the other items, no issues should arise in finding them !
Ingredients - Advice & key points
Not much to say here ; it's a straight-forward salad!
- Don't buy low-quality olives ! My personal favourites are the Kalamata or Taggiasche kind.
- Feel free to switch herbs ! Wild garlic in particular is skippable ; and basil could be replaced with chives, for example, even though the taste would be less intense.
- I like my sugar snap peas raw here. Taste them as is, and if you don't enjoy it raw, blanch them 2 minutes in salted water !
- If you cannot find sugar snap peas, replace them with green beans.
All set ? Let's make this Umami Tuna Pasta Salad!
A balanced, indulging pasta salad, with bitterness from celery and lemon, sweetness from sugar snap peas, savouriness from the tuna, and a major anchovies' and olives' umami boost.
- 260 grams pasta
- 2 medium tuna cans
- 150 grams snap peas
- 1/2 red onion
- 1 large celery stalk
- 20 black olives (Kalamata work well here)
- 3 anchovies in oil
- 8 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 lemon
- 1 large pinch of salt
- Launch your pasta !
Start by cooking your pasta (remember : 10g salt / 1L water / 100g pasta !).
- Meanwhile, cut your veggies
Halve your snap peas with a knife.
Thinly slice your red onion.
Using a shredder or grater, grate your celery stalk lengthwise.
Halve or quarter your olives depending on their size.
Mince your anchovies, adding a little anchovy oil along with it.
Finally, chop up your herbs.
- Mix it all!
When the pasta's ready, either let it cool 30mn or cool it instantly with fresh tap water, then drain.
Add all the prepped ingredients from earlier.
Finish with lemon juice, salt and olive oil. Give it a good mix.
Et voilà !! You're done !
Use a paper towel to finish drying your pasta if needed ; soggy, watery pasta won't do.
Thank you for trying out this recipe ! Do not hesitate to leave some feedback. I hope it brightened your day.