This vegan tuna salad can be made into a vegan tuna melt or use in a tuna salad sandwich. It’s creamy, delicious comfort food without the fish, eggs, or cholesterol!
A tuna sandwich is one of those things that reminds me of my childhood, and for some reason I just feel like my vegan kids need to know what one tastes like as well.
Does this recipe use chickpeas?
No, this is not one of those chickpea tuna recipes. I have seen a lot of recipes floating around for chickpea “tuna” salad sandwiches. They are delicious. I make them as well, however, I craved the taste and texture of that classic tuna sandwich that I ate as a child. I fiddled around with ingredients and proportions until I came up with something pretty darn close to the taste and texture that I remember!
Grill it with a slice of vegan cheese and you have a hot, mouthwatering vegan tuna melt! Put a little vegan butter on the outside sides of the bread and grill it on medium heat until it is golden brown and the cheese is melted!
Put it on toast or a roll with some lettuce and tomato, and you have a delicious vegan tuna salad sandwich!
How do you make vegan tuna salad?
I used TVP (textured vegetable protein) for the “tuna.” It is a dehydrated soy protein that absorbs the flavor of whatever you rehydrate it in. (You can usually find TVP easily at any natural foods store or most major grocery stores). I make a broth out kelp flakes and salt that I rehydrate the TVP in to give it that fishy taste. Then you can use the TVP mixture just as you would a can of tuna.
Add some vegan mayo to the TVP mixture and create a classic tasting tuna salad! You can use any store bought vegan mayo or you can make your own in about 3 minutes. Click here for my homemade vegan mayo recipe.
It is super easy to make and can be stored in an air tight container in the fridge for 3-5 days, but you will probably eat it up before then.
A vegan tuna salad made with TVP and kelp powder for an authentic tuna taste and texture.
- ½ cup boiling water
- 1 tsp kelp flakes
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup TVP crumbles
- ½ cup vegan mayo
- ¼ cup finely chopped celery optional
- 2 tbsp pickle relish optional
- vegan cheese like Tofutti or Daiya shreds or slices optional
- bread of choice
- 1 tsp vegan butter optional (for tuna melt)
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1 Boil water and pour it into a bowl.
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Add the kelp flakes and salt then stir well.
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Add the TVP to the water and kelp mixture and stir.
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Allow it to sit for about 15 minutes until it absorbs all of the water and cools off.
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Add the mayo and mix well.
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Add celery and/or pickle relish if desired.
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Use as you would tuna salad.
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Store unused tuna salad in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
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Put 2-3 tbsp of tuna salad mixture and vegan cheese of choice between 2 slices of bread.
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Spread vegan butter on the outsides of the bread and grill in a skillet on medium low for a few minutes on each side until golden brown and cheese is melted.
- Make sure to allow the TVP mixture to cool before adding vegan mayo.
- To make a tuna salad sandwich, put sliced tomatoes and lettuce and 2-3 tbsp of tuna salad mixture between two slices of bread.
- Vegan tuna salad will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days.
The vegan tuna salad itself it gluten free, so if you put it on gluten free bread, you have a gluten free meal!
Enjoy!
Pin the vegan tuna salad recipe for later:
Want another great sandwich from your childhood?
Check out my Tofu “egg” Salad!
I will only post recipes that I have made personally and perfected. My kids and family will have tested all of the recipes and given them the official thumbs up before posting. I will keep my posts short and sweet so you won't have to scroll through tons of pictures and narratives to find the actual recipe.
It is my mission is to help people transition to a healthier plant based diet without having to give up the great tasting comfort foods that they love. I want to make this process as simple as possible for you!
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~Monica
This is the closest tasting recipe to real tuna salad that I’ve tried!
This is soooooo good