What to Serve with Tuna Salad: How to Complete This Lunchtime Favorite

Who doesn’t love a lunch or even light dinner with tuna salad? You can eat it stuffed between two slices of your favorite bread, make it a sub sandwich, put it in a wrap, or even sail it into your salivating mouth on crackers or leaves of lettuce.

But what do you serve with it? You can’t just invite guests for lunch, make your best tuna salad recipe, and leave it at that.

Whether you relish putting relish in your tuna salad or you keep it strictly savory with pungent chopped onions and crisp bits of celery, you can find plenty of sides to serve with tuna salad.

Pack it up for a picnic, bring it out to your backyard, or simply gather around the table indoors with good company and these undeniably delicious side dishes!

Sides to Go with Tuna Salad

Don’t go hungry! Give your dish the perfect partners to help round out your meal with these 12 tasty sides that go with classic, healthy lunch!

1. Crispy Crunchy Simple Green Salad

Because tuna has a creamy texture for the most part with some crispy bits here and there, it’s great to tap into a side that gives you more crunch.

A salad with simple ingredients that take you there is a great choice, especially with a dressing that isn’t creamy itself to overwhelm your taste buds.

Mixed greens, red onions, crispy bacon bits, crunchy sunflower seeds, and a homemade Dijon-based dressing are all you need.

We love Tiffany’s salad recipe over at Crème De La Crumb. 

2. Heavenly Herbed Potato Salad

One of the best sides to join your tuna salad on the table is potato salad. But again, all that mayo can weigh heavily on your plate.

And your waistline! Instead, make your potato salad with plenty of fresh parsley, chopped garlic, lemon juice, and Dijon mustard to perk up your palate without feeling heavy. 

3. Cajun Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Tarragon Dill Yogurt Dip

Moving right along on our potato-theme, sweet potato fries are a great match for your tuna salad. They offer a bit of sweet contrast to your savory tuna.

Baking them keeps them healthy while taking a few minutes to whip up a yogurt-based dip with tarragon, dill, and a pop of lemon juice will make for a side that vanishes moments after you put it on the table.

4. Out-Of-This-World Onion Rings

Did we have you at “onion rings?” Thought so. The secret to your best onion rings is adding cornstarch to your flour mixture.

This makes them so extra crispy, making them a blissful match for your salad. Want to really make lunch pop? Throw a few of these babies onto your sandwich too.

Serve them with your favorite barbecue or honey mustard sauce, or simply enjoy them as-is.

5. Chunky and Hearty Corn Chowder

Sometimes, soup and salad is just what you need for a meal. Corn chowder is wonderful with tuna salad.

The cheerful color, bits of sweet corn, hunks of potatoes, and the star of any recipe – bacon – all come together in a bowl. It’s so simple to make too.

Amanda from The Chunky Chef shows you how you can prep this delicious chowder in just 15 minutes. 

6. Crispy Crudites Tray

Sometimes, it’s the simplest things that make the biggest impression. That’s certainly the case with a crispy crudites tray. Loaded with fresh raw veggies and dips, everyone can crunch and munch as they see fit.

Include some hummus, pickles, olives, nuts, and anything else that contrasts crunch for a delightful and interactive side dish to accompany your dish.

7. Simply Sensational Homemade Potato Chips

When you go out to eat and order this salad, chances are, you’re given potato chips to go with it. That’s a grand idea and a classic pairing, but you can do better than that.

You can make your own potato chips with just potatoes, olive oil, and seasonings. Simply peel your potatoes and slice them into thin circles.

Spray them with olive oil and season them to your liking with garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Or go nuts with Cajun or any other flavor!

Bake at 400F for about 25 minutes or until crispy and voila! You’ve just made your own small batch of homemade chips!

8. Krispy Kale Chips

How about something that won’t kick you out of ketosis, if that’s your thing. Kale chips are perhaps the best way to make everyone eat their veggies.

Just like potato chips, you’ll coat them with olive oil and seasonings, then bake until crisp. Since they’re thinner, it will take about 15 minutes instead.

Make sure they’re in a single layer or else you’ll wind up with soggy pieces.

9. Savory Stuffed Mushrooms

When company is coming for lunch, savory stuffed mushrooms are simple, elegant, and easy. Simply hollow out the insides and chop them up to use with the rest of the filling.

Italian sausage is a common ingredient but you can keep it fully vegetarian with chopped tomatoes, spinach, garlic, and onions. Mix in some breadcrumbs and cheese, bake it up, and let everyone swoon over your creation.

10. Easy Breezy Tomato Soup

Even if you’re dining alone, dress up your tuna salad meal with tomato soup. But put that can away. In just 20 minutes, you can make it fresh and it will taste even better than the canned stuff.

What’s even in that can anyway? It’s probably better you don’t ponder that point and gather your ingredients for tomato soup.

Karen at The Food Charlatan has an amazing recipe you should try!

11. Classic Tangy Bean Salad

When you have lots of friends coming over, perhaps for a picnic or barbecue, you’ll definitely want more sides. Give them something that’s both delicious and nutritious to pair with that tuna salad.

Bonus: you can make any vegetarian happy with this option too. We adore bean salads for their textural and visual appeal. With a tangy dressing to unite beans, onions, cucumbers, parsley, and capers, this will be a favorite you’ll always serve.

Thanks to Adam and Joanne at Inspired Taste for this simple and wonderful recipe!

12. Creamy Broccoli Soup

Everyone loves broccoli and cheese soup, but it can be a bit much with tuna salad. Plus, the cheesiness can clash between flavors. But a soup with broccoli and cream is a great idea.

It has a brilliant green hue, creamy texture, and plenty of bright springtime flavors for you and your guests to enjoy. Make it ahead and warm it up when you’re ready!

Now that you know what goes with tuna salad, you can mix and match to make your table a bounty of delights.

Whether you’re serving guests in your backyard or feeding your hungry family, everyone will be full and happy!