Monique’s Tuna Pasta Salad
Thursday, April 5th, 2007Yesterday, Monique, my partner in crime, came over to make dinner. She brought a great bag of goodies to make tuna pasta salad which is one of my favorites. I’ve included the recipe below with some notes for adjustments (some people like pickles, some don’t, for example…).
This pasta salad is great for barbecues, picnics or for a quick lunch. It tastes best after being refridgerated for at least one hour, but you can also attack it with zeal right away if the pasta is cooled and then all the other ingredients are kept at a cool temperature. Enjoy!
Monique’s Pasta Salad
Ingredients:
1/2 medium-size red onion, diced into small pieces
1/2 can of olives, sliced (or just buy a small can of the pre-sliced olives to save time!)
2 medium-size dill pickles, diced into medium pieces
3 cans of tuna in water
1 bag of pasta (try rotelli or large macaroni or any “twist” type pasta)
1 cup of mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
Drain the tuna and pat dry with paper towels. Cook the pasta according to the package directions (you should cook about 3 cups of dry pasta in total). Add a few generous pinches of salt to the boiling water before adding the pasta. Drain the pasta and cool at room temperature for about 30 minutes. In a large bowl, mix the tuna, mayonnaise and salt and pepper to taste. Then add the cooled pasta, olive slices and pickles. Mix all ingredients together and refridgerate for at least an hour.
**Cooking notes**: This salad is versatile and you can always add extra ingredients including: frozen peas blanched in salted water and drained, fresh herbs including basil, thyme, cilantro or chives, vinaigrette instead of mayonnaise (try Italian vinaigrette or balsamic), or sprinkle the salad with grated, fresh cheese such as parmesan or hard cheeses such as cheddar or gouda.
