Creamy Tuna Pasta Salad is packed with flaky tuna, crunchy veggies, fresh parsley, and the best dill-dijon dressing! It’s the perfect make-ahead salad for potlucks, parties, and all other summertime gatherings.
Tuna Pasta Salad
This is the kind of pasta salad recipe you’ll find yourself making more than once this summer. It travels well and is great for making ahead because it actually gets better the longer it chills. Also, this isn’t your grandma’s tuna pasta salad recipe (unless your grandma really loved bold flavors)! With ingredients like cajun seasoning, dill pickle relish, and dijon mustard in the mix, this pasta salad is anything but bland. The tuna makes it filling enough for lunch, but it still shines as a side dish for a cookout. It’s easy, familiar, and always a hit!
Enjoy more of the very best pasta salad recipes like taco ranch pasta salad, buttermilk pesto pasta salad, and antipasto pasta salad!
Why do I have to rinse the pasta?
Rinsing the macaroni with cold water stops the cooking process and cools it down quickly. It also helps keep the pasta from sticking together once the creamy dressing is added!
How to Make Tuna Pasta Salad
- Cook the pasta. Cook the macaroni according to package directions until al dente, then drain and rinse with cold water.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, dill pickle relish, dill pickle juice, garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper until smooth.
- Mix the salad ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the cooked macaroni, tuna, celery, red onion, green pepper, and parsley.
- Toss it all together. Pour the dressing over the pasta and stir until everything is evenly coated.
- Chill before serving. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving with more green onions and a sprinkle of paprika for garnish if desired.
Storing and Make Ahead
Store your leftover tuna pasta salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Stir it well before serving because the dressing can settle.
To make it ahead for a party, prep the full salad up to 24 hours in advance and keep it covered in the fridge. While you can serve it within 4 days, it’s best within that first day of making it so the veggies are still crisp and the noodles haven’t absorbed most of the dressing.
Ingredient Notes
- Elbow Macaroni – Small shells, ditalini, rotini, or mini bowties can be used instead of elbow macaroni. Just be sure to use a short pasta that holds the creamy dressing well!
- Mayonnaise and Sour Cream – You can certainly use low-fat versions of both of these ingredients, but the dressing won’t be as thick.
- Dill Pickle Relish – Swap the dill relish for sweet relish if desired.
- Dijon Mustard – Do NOT swap this for plain yellow mustard.
- Dill Pickle Juice – For a spicy kick, consider using pickle juice from a jar of spicy pickles.
- Seasonings – A simple blend of garlic powder, onion powder, no-salt cajun seasoning, salt, and pepper does the trick. If your cajun seasoning blend has salt, omit the additional salt.
- Tuna – Make sure to drain it very well before using! Extra liquid will thin out the dressing and make the entire pasta salad watery.
- Celery – Always give your celery a quick rinse of cold water before chopping.
- Red Onion – I don’t recommend swapping this with any other color of onion.
- Bell Pepper – Green bell peppers are my go-to for this pasta salad. However, you can use any color that you like best.
- Fresh Parsley – If you’d like, you can also add some fresh chopped dill along with the parsley for an even more pronounced pickle flavor.
Enjoy!
~Nichole
Tuna Pasta Salad
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Elbow macaroni noodles uncooked
- 1 1/2 Cups Mayonnaise
- 1/2 Cup Sour cream
- 1/3 Cup Dill pickle relish
- 1/4 Cup Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbsp Dill pickle juice
- 2 tsp Garlic powder
- 2 tsp Onion powder
- 1 tsp No-salt Cajun seasoning
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Black pepper
- 4 5-ounce Cans Tuna, drained
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 1 Cup Celery chopped
- 1 Cup Red Onion diced
- 1 Cup Green Bell Pepper chopped
- 1/2 Cup Fresh Parsley chopped
Instructions
- Cook the macaroni according to package instructions until al dente. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, dill pickle relish, dill pickle juice, garlic powder, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, salt, and black pepper until well combined.
- In a large bowl, add the cooked macaroni, drained tuna, chopped celery, red onion, bell pepper, and fresh parsley to the bowl and mix, breaking up the big pieces of tuna. Add the dressing. Stir until everything is evenly coated with the dressing.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate the salad for at least 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to meld together.
- Before serving, give the salad a quick stir and add additional salt and black pepper to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Love this recipe. So easy and delicious. Thumbs up.
LOVE this recipe! And so did the rest of the family. Will definitely make again but will add cubed cheese and frozen peas to make it even better!