Tuna Melt Sandwich - Recipe

I don't make gooey, cheesy, Tuna Melts nearly enough. Maybe it's just too much of a good thing. 

A Tuna Melt is basically Grilled Cheese with Tuna Salad. My Tuna Melt recipe uses a simple Tuna Salad of drained canned tuna, mayo, pickle relish, and chopped onion. I have a great Loaded Tuna Salad a click away here (it has the addition of a chopped boiled egg and olives.) 

Tuna Salad ingredients are still cheap to get at my 99c only Store and Dollar Tree. Even regular grocery stores sell cans of tuna and pickle relish at bargain prices. Mayo is more expensive these days, but I often find small jars at my Dollar Tree.

I add American Cheese to my grilling Tuna Salad Sandwich. You can use any favorite slices of cheese. 

Experiment with any favorite bread for toasting. I get mine from the bakery bargain bin at Ralphs Grocery store. 

 

I toast the bread with a small pat of butter. You can use a butter substitute or no butter at all.

Making a Tuna Melt is simply delicious when you do it the 99 Cent Chef way.

                                                  Tuna Melt - VIDEO                               Play it here, video runs 3 minutes and 3 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here. 

Ingredients (about 2 sandwiches)

• 1 can tuna - a 5-ounce can "chunk." Drain the tuna of liquid. I press down the tuna with the can lid to squeeze out water - be careful as the can lid can be sharp. 
• American Cheese - 1 slice per sandwich. Okay to use any favorite including cheddar, Swiss, mozzarella, or pepper Jack.
• Onion - 1 tablespoon chopped. Purple, white, green, or yellow onion.
• Sweet Pickle Relish - 1 tablespoon. okay to use chopped pickle.
• Mayonnaise - 1 Tablespoon. Add more or less to suit your taste.
• Pepper to taste - about half a teaspoon. I find canned tuna salty enough, so I leave out the salt.

*For a can of "Solid" tuna double the amounts of onion, relish, and mayonnaise.

Directions

Fine-chop onion. It's okay to leave out the onion if you don't like it.

Drain one can of tuna. "Chunk" tuna which is loosely packed. If you use "Solid" tuna you will get twice as much in a can so you should almost double the amounts of chopped onion, pickle relish, and mayo. 

To a bowl add drained tuna and chopped onion.

Add one tablespoon of mayo. Okay to add a teaspoon at a time to reach desired creaminess. Mix all ingredients and taste. 

Add more mayonnaise if needed. I like to add black pepper but no salt, as I find canned tuna is salty enough.

Store Tuna Salad in the refrigerator until ready to use in a Tuna Melt. 

Grilling a Tuna Melt

To complete the recipe build and grill the Tuna Melt. I start with a pat of butter in a frying pan or stovetop grill over medium heat. It's okay to just toast bread without butter or oil.

When the butter is melted drag the bread slices through the butter. Now assemble the Tuna Melt.

With the buttered side down, I like to add a slice of cheese to the bread first. Next, I pile on some Tuna Salad. Finally, top it all with another lightly buttered slice of bread. 

Having the cheese on the bottom nearest the flame gets it to start melting-- that's what makes a Tuna Melt so special.

It only takes a few minutes to toast the bread, so peek under it as it cooks so you don't burn the sandwich. 

You may find Tuna Salad breaking down a little bit during toasting as it warms, so be careful when turning the sandwich during toasting as some Tuna Salad may spill out.

Loaded Tuna Salad - Video Recipe

I'm called "The Tuna Mouse" at home because of how quickly a Loaded Tuna Salad just seems to vanish!

The extra briny olives give color and the salty taste goes well with sweet bread and butter pickles. Mixed into canned tuna, for a rich flavor, are chopped eggs and mayo.

It's one delicious concoction that fits snuggly into pita bread or bread roll, fills a pitted half slice of ripe avocado, or scooped on a green salad. I find all the ingredients easily at 99c only Stores and the Dollar Tree!

Click on any photo to see larger.

The addition of green olives makes this Loaded Tuna Salad extra unique. It's quite easy to find them at my local 99c only Store and Dollar Tree markets. You can use the plain type or ones with pimentoes.

Eggs are still cheap these days, I get an eight-count container at my local Dollar Tree. I use one whole-boiled egg, chopped. This ingredient is optional and okay to leave out.

You can use a little chopped pickle, or just go with pickle relish, which I always have a half-used jar left over from hot dogs, way back on a refrigerator shelf.

I also add finely chopped onion to my Loaded Tuna Salad but leave it out if you don't care for the taste of raw onion.

Mustard and Mayo are cheap if you have a Dollar Tree or 99c only Store in the 'hood. Hey, even Grey Poupon shows up on my 99c only Store shelves every once in a while. Okay to use any favorite mayo, including Miracle Whip or vegan mayo.

The main ingredient, canned tuna, is a cheap$kate staple in my kitchen pantry. I usually get "Chunk Light" tuna in water. I use two small cans for this recipe. "Solid" canned tuna is more expensive because it is a solid hunk of tuna and almost twice as much the amount as "Chunk."

Make sure not to mistakenly get tuna in oil, unless you like it that way. Also, drain the tuna of water, so Tuna Salad doesn't get all soggy and mushy.

The basic recipe is good for other canned fish like salmon, or chicken, too. So get out the can opener and twist off a few condiment jar lids and mix up my tasty and Loaded Tuna Salad.

Loaded Tuna Salad - VIDEO

Play here, video runs 1 minute 36 seconds

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• 1 can of solid Tuna in Water - about 6 ounces drained, or 2 cans of "chunk" tuna, drained.
• 1 boiled Egg - peeled and chopped.
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped Onion.
• 1 tablespoon Green Olives chopped or sliced - with or without pimento.
• 1 tablespoon Sweet Pickle Relish - okay to use chopped pickle.
• 3 tablespoons Mayonnaise - add more or less to your taste.
• 1 teaspoon regular Yellow Mustard or Dijon Mustard
• Salt and Pepper to taste - I find canned tuna salty enough, so I usually leave out the salt.

Directions
Boil an egg for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool then peel it.

 Fine-chop onion. Roughly chop green olives and a pickle (if you don't have pickle relish.

To a bowl add drained tuna, along with peeled and chopped boiled egg, chopped pickle (relish,) green olives, and onion.

Add one tablespoon of mayo at a time to reach the desired creaminess. Mix all the ingredients and taste. 

I like a little black pepper to season my Loaded Tuna Salad. I find there is enough salt in canned tuna. 

Serve in a pita or regular bread. Delicious as an appetizer with crackers or add a scoop to an avocado half, or fave salad.

How about a Loaded Tuna Melt? Just add a slice of cheese to the Tuna Sandwich, and brown it with melted butter in a stovetop pan, just like you would a regular Grilled Cheese Sandwich.

It's okay to leave out some Loaded Tuna Salad ingredients. The main ones are tuna, mayo, black pepper, and pickle relish.

A lazy bones shortcut.

Amy's Tuna Salad with Green Olives

The addition of green olives makes this Tuna Salad unique. I'm called "The Tuna Mouse" at home because of how quickly my wife's Olive Tuna Salad seems to just vanish!

The extra briny olives give color and the taste goes well with chopped sweet bread-and-butter pickles mixed into canned tuna -- and made richer with chopped eggs and mayo.

This is one delicious concoction that fits snugly into pita bread, makes a great tuna melt, fills a pitted half slice of ripe avocado, or tops a salad with a couple of scoops.

Canned tuna is one budget item I always keep stocked. Everyone has a favorite Tuna Salad recipe and this is The 99 Cent Chef's!

 Ingredients
2 tablespoons onion - fine chopped.
2 tablespoons green olives - chopped or sliced.
1/4 cup bread and butter pickles - chopped, or sweet relish.
1 6oz. can of "solid" tuna in water - may need to reduce other ingredients if you use "chunk" tuna (which is a smaller amount.)
4 tablespoons mayonnaise - okay to adjust amount to suit your taste.
2 boiled eggs - chopped.
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard - or regular Dijon mustard.
Celery salt and pepper to taste.

 

 Directions
Boil 2 eggs for about 10 minutes. Remove eggs from water and set aside to cool. 

Fine-chop onion. Roughly chop green olives and pickles. 

Peel and chop boiled eggs.

Drain tuna and add, along with chopped pickles, olives and onion, all ingredients in a large bowl. Season with celery salt and pepper, mixing well. 

Finally add one teaspoon of mayo at a time to desired creaminess. 

Serve in pita or regular bread.

Or  how about a Tuna Melt? Just slather Tuna Salad onto bread and top with a slice of cheese. Brown the sandwich with a pat of melted butter in a frying pan.

The Best Turkey Salad Recipe - Video

I love Turkey Salad as much as Chicken or Tuna Salad. It has a milder taste compared to tuna, and the crunchy veggies and mayo/mustard come forward in flavor. My Turkey Salad recipe video will have you coming back for seconds and thirds.

The ingredient list is small. I like a little fine chopped onion and celery for crunch. And those veggies are about the least expensive ones you can find at any grocery store.

I also include a tablespoon of sweet pickle relish. I found it at my local Dollar Tree. You can add more or less veggies and relish to suit your taste. Leave out the veggies for a meatier salad.

I add a little mustard with a lot of mayo for extra creamy Turkey Salad. Again, you can adjust the balance to please yourself and the family. If you don't like mustard, then leave it out.

I use leftover roasted turkey meat from the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. 

Roast Turkey Recipe, click here.

Canned turkey or chicken is fine to use, too - just drain it like you would with canned tuna.

You can often find uncooked turkey legs and breast in the meat department of larger grocery stores. 

Turkey Salad is a versatile recipe that's delish between 2 slices of bread, or as an appetizer, and spread on any favorite cracker. Put a big scoop on your favorite green garden salad for extra flavor and heft.

So next holiday, reserve some Roasted Turkey (recipe) and mix up my latest video recipe of a Turkey Salad. 

And, if you can't wait for the holidays, I have a recipe for Roasted Turkey Breast, just click here. You can roast a Turkey Leg the same way. 

                                                 Turkey Salad - Video                               Play it here. Video runs 1 minute, 52 seconds.

To view or embed from YouTube, click here.

Ingredients

• Roast Turkey - cooked and cubed or shredded. About 2 cups. Okay to use dark or white meat, or both. Okay to substitute Roast Chicken.
• 1/4 cup chopped Onion - okay to add more or less to taste. I finely chopped 1/4 of a brown onion. You can use any type of onion, including red and green onions.
• 1/2 cup chopped Celery - okay to add more or less to taste. I used one celery rib.
• 1 tablespoon Pickle Relish - optional.
• 1 teaspoon Mustard - or Dijon mustard. I've made this salad without mustard.
• 3 tablespoons Mayonnaise - any favorite light or whole mayo. Again, add a tablespoon at a time to reach your preferred creaminess.
• Salt and Pepper to taste.

Directions

I always have leftover Roasted Turkey over the holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. You can use dark or white meat or both. Slice or cube cooked Turkey into bite-sized pieces.

Chop celery and onion. I like onions in salads (Tuna, Chicken, and Egg Salad), finely chopped. For celery, I like pieces a little larger. Okay to chop veggies any way you like.

Now time to bring it all together. Add chopped turkey and veggies to a bowl.

Mix in a tablespoon of pickle relish. Stir in a tablespoon of mayo at a time to reach your desired creaminess. I mixed in about 3 tablespoons total.

Add a teaspoon of mustard. Okay to add or subtract amounts of mayo and mustard to suit your tastes.

Finally, salt and pepper to taste. Store Turkey Salad in the refrigerator. If you wait a couple of hours before serving, all the ingredients will have time to meld and become more intense.

I like to scoop my Turkey Salad onto a toasted onion bagel. You can serve Turkey Salad with crackers as an appetizer. Add a scoop of Turkey Salad to your favorite salad.