Give Tuna Salad A Creamier Texture With Just One Ingredient

Tuna salad, whether on a plate or in a sandwich, is a convenient, delicious, and even economical option for lunch. But even the most avid tuna lovers must admit that eating the same old thing day can get a little tiresome after a while. Sure, you can mix it up with a little red onion or celery chopped in, but to completely change the texture and flavor of tuna salad, why not replace some of the mayonnaise with a little bit of avocado? To get the scoop, Food Republic asked Marissa Stevens, recipe developer and food blogger at Pinch and Swirl.

"Avocado makes tuna salad creamier and silkier, with a mellow richness that plays well against briny or sharp ingredients," Stevens told us, suggesting a switch of half the mayo you'd ordinarily use in making tuna salad to mashed avocado. "You get a fresher feel without losing that satisfying texture."

Better still, avocado can also boost the nutritional value of tuna salad. Avocados are nutrient-dense, providing nearly 20 vitamins, minerals, and plant nutrients per serving (about one-third of a medium avocado). The fruit is a good source of dietary fiber and contains 6 grams of heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat. A tablespoon of traditional mayonnaise, on the other hand, contains almost twice as much total fat and 1.5 grams of saturated fat –- one of the fats the Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests you limit.

There are a couple of things to consider when using avocados. If you don't plan on using the avocado immediately upon bringing it home, you can slow down the ripening by keeping it refrigerated. If you're making the salad for the next day, you may also need to worry about the avocado browning. Some of the plant enzymes found in avocados may be beneficial for our health, but they tend to turn brown when exposed to oxygen for too long.

Marissa Stevens suggested stirring in a generous squeeze of lemon juice into the mashed avocado before mixing it in with the tuna and mayo, and then wrapping the container with parchment paper or plastic wrap before placing the cover on. "It won't hold off browning forever," she cautioned, "but it keeps things fresh for next-day lunch." Lemon juice can also add to the flavor of the salad. Often, one big mistake people make with tuna salad is not adding an acidic ingredient, like lemon juice, to balance the flavors. Of course, the best way to make a delicious tuna salad is by starting with a great can of tuna and selecting from Food Republic's picks for the top brands.