Cranberry Tuna Salad

When I created this cranberry salad recipe, I had no idea that I was making a copycat of something that Whole Foods sells. All I know is I was trying to bring together two things I loved — my grandmother’s tuna fish salad recipe that she made with Miracle Whip and a sweet-and-savory profile.

Making Cranberry Tuna Salad

My grandmother is no longer alive so I can’t ask her to taste this recipe and see if she thinks it tastes authentic to the one she used to make, minus the cranberries. Her go to additional was celery — which I use, too — and chopped onions. But Miracle Whip was definitely one of her favorite ingredients. It has a starring role in her deviled eggs recipe, too. She probably chose Miracle Whip because it is kosher.

For as long as I’ve been married to my husband, and we’re talking decades, he has disliked two things consistently. One of them was mayonnaise and the other was tuna fish. In the past when I would make this dish, he would literally leave the room. Thanks, Bill!

However, here’s how I know I succeeded in making something overall delicious. Recently, he stayed in the room and looked at the sandwich I was eating and asked for a taste. I nearly fell on the floor. And like Mikey in that old Life cereal commercial, he liked it. In fact, he has now dubbed it Tasty Tuna and asks for it regularly.

We’re both trying to eat fewer carbs so when I serve this now, I don’t serve it as a traditional sandwich on bread. Instead, we’ll make lettuce wraps filled with the cranberry tuna salad. It’s delicious and refreshing, and a great lunch or dinner that we enjoy, regardless of the season. I suppose we could try to make sandwiches with lower carb bread substitutes, such as chaffles — aka cheese waffles — that are popular on low-carb and keto diets.

Ingredients Overview

For my version of cranberry tuna salad, you’ll need the following:

• 16 ounces canned white tuna in water, drained
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 3/4 cup Miracle Whip Light mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Step-by-Step Instructions

Making this tuna cranberry salad recipe is so easy. Everything comes together in one bowl. Start by opening four small cans of solid white tuna in water. Drain and then empty the cans into a medium-sized bowl.

Add the celery and cranberries. Scoop the Miracle Whip on top of the ingredients already added to the bowl. Add the salt and pepper. Mix everything together until the tuna, celery and cranberries are all well coated in the mayonnaise and seasoning.

Notes

I recommend tasting the tuna salad after you’ve added all of the ingredients. This recipe doesn’t call for a big serving of salt and pepper so you may want to add more, depending on your palate.

If the mixed salad tastes too dry, you can always add more Miracle Whip. But keep in mind that the nutritional information provided here is based on the original recipe amount for mayonnaise.

You’re welcome to add other items to this tuna salad recipe, such as walnuts or chopped apples. Again, keep in mind that the nutritional values will change based on additional ingredients.

As I mentioned, we tend to eat this cranberry tuna salad as a lettuce wrap. However, it also works for a tuna melt. I’ll make an open-faced sandwich, then top with slices of cheddar cheese. Then, I’ll pop into the toaster oven until the cheese has melted and is browned. Talk about sweet and savory.