Back to School Lunch Ideas: Tuna Salad Lunch Box
Updated March 4, 2020
How did the first day of school go?
I hope your little one had a great time and is ready for Day #2! But first, what are you going to pack for lunch?
Lunch Box Idea #2
For Lunch Box Idea #2, I am sharing my family’s favorite Tuna Salad recipe. It is very easy to make and my 6 year-old daughter loves it!
I actually started making this tuna salad for my husband. He would ask for a snack on Sunday afternoons and I came up with this tuna salad when I didn’t have many groceries in the house. Of course, as soon as the kids see you eat something, they have to have a bite too! So the kids started eating the tuna salad too and when I asked my daughter what she wanted in her lunch box, she said “Tuna Salad please!”
What's so good about Tuna Salad?
This tuna salad has a couple of secret ingredients. First, the savory tuna salad is perfectly contrasted with the addition of plump sweet grapes. Second, I add some crunch with lightly salted almonds. This really gives a great contrast of textures to make the tuna salad super interesting to eat!To pair with the tuna salad, my daughter and I added some fluffy white bread (of course, I would have liked some wholewheat bread but I’m letting my daughter have a more active role in preparing her lunch as I mentioned before), crunchy cucumbers, sweet ripe mango, crisp gala apples, and one of her faves, cherry tomatoes. As with most of her lunches, I throw an ice pack into her lunch bag to keep everything cold. What also helps is the type of mayo I use in the tuna salad. I actually use a vegan mayo from Hellman’s! There are no eggs in this mayo so you don’t have to worry about it spoiling if the tuna salad gets warm. This really isn’t an ad for Hellman’s. I just really like the idea of not worrying about my kid eating tuna salad at lunch time!If you’re not a fan of tuna, you could absolutely swap the tuna for another protein of choice, like cooked and cooled chicken or turkey. I’ve seen a lot of recipes that use chickpeas in place of animal protein, so one day I think I am going to try this swap too.
The Key to Making Tuna Salad
The ultimate key to making tuna salad is… don’t use too much dressing! I find that when there is too much dressing, it overpowers the salad and makes it too creamy. So I use just enough dressing to coat the tuna, grapes and almonds, without overdoing it. This tuna salad recipe is so easy! My daughter and I made this last week in only 10 minutes. Now that is pretty good! You can also store any leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container.I hope you give this recipe a try! It really is a family favorite so I hope that your family will love it too. If you give it a try, take a photo and tag me on Instagram at @nourish_with_renata and #nourishwithrenata on Instagram! I would love to see what you make!
Essential Kitchen Tools
Here are a few of my recommended kitchen tools that you'll need to make this recipe.
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And here is Olivia's lunchbox, the Yumbox! It is such a great lunchbox and I highly recommend it. It keeps the food separated which I think helps the food look more aesthetic for the kiddos and they eat more of their lunch because of it. Check out the Yumbox here!
Tuna Salad
A super easy tuna salad recipe made with a couple of unexpected ingredients.
Ingredients:
- 2 Five oz cans of tuna in water
- ⅓ cup mayo (such as Hellman’s Vegan Mayo)
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ cup grapes (quartered)
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ¼ cup lightly salted almonds (roughly chopped)
Instructions:
- Drain all the water from the tuna cans and set tuna aside.
- In a small bowl, mix the mayo, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
- In a medium sized bowl, add the tuna and about ¾ of the dressing.
- Add in the grapes and almonds. Gently mix together till all the ingredients are coated with the dressing. Add more dressing as needed.
- Serve as a sandwich, or as a dip for some veggies or crackers.