Tuna & Rice Salad
We were in France with my family over Christmas, and the ferry ride over was a difficult one. Our kids happily ran around the deck and played and coloured and ate. Meanwhile, we husband and I had curled ourselves into balls and were trying very hard to find something to focus on that wasn’t spinning. Food was most definitely not something we wanted for those eternally long 4 hours. I’ve never been great on boats, and this didn’t exactly convert me.
As soon as we got back onto dry land, however, my stomach settled and then rapidly reminded me that I hadn’t eaten for over 5 hours. So we stopped at a little French supermarket on the way and I walked in, wondering whether I would be able to find anything I could eat in a country known for gluten-filled bread and milk-loaded cheese and butter.
As it turns out, France has mostly jumped on board providing for those with food intolerances, and their gluten/dairy/sugar free section was surprisingly well-stocked. But I quickly settled on fuelling my body with a delicious looking tuna & rice salad.
I can’t say I’m always particularly impressed with on-the-go salads you pick up in supermarkets. Often there’s a lot of lettuce and not much else, and since the dressings are often sugar-packed I usually end up having it dry and it tastes bland. Not this one. The dressing with a simple oil & vinegar French vinaigrette, and the whole salad was loaded with flavour. It was exactly what I needed in that moment, and kept me going for a while.
After thoroughly enjoying what I was expecting not to, I decided to try to recreate the yummy lunch at home. Simple ingredients and flavours made this easy, so here it is for you all to re-create for yourselves, too! A perfect way to balance out the excess of Christmas and actually still enjoy what you are eating. 😉
A simple but filling and flavoursome lunch, this salad is more than just lettuce and tomatoes - it is satisfying and full of flavour. Healthy, easy and enjoyable. Gluten, dairy and sugar free.
- 3-4 cooked tuna steaks or 2 tins of tuna or salmon*
- (2 cups) cooked rice (I really like wild rice or soaked and cooked long grain brown rice in this, as Basmati tends to be softer and this salad is lovely with a bit of bite)
- 150 g (1 cup) frozen defrosted or tinned drained sweetcorn
- a couple of handfuls of cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
- a couple of handfuls of pitted olives (black or green)
- 2 tablespoons black and/or white sesame seeds
- a handful or two of washed mixed salad leaves
- 4 hard-boiled eggs, optional
- 3 tablespoons sliced jarred red peppers**, optional
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 8 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon Herbes de Provences or dried mixed herbs
- salt & pepper, to taste
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Mix all the salad ingredients together (you can serve the rice hot or cold, it's lovely either way). Add the dressing ingredients to a jar, screw the lid on tight and shake to combine, then pour over the salad (you don't need to use all of it - just add until you are happy with the taste). This salad will keep in the fridge for 3 days, or freeze (undressed and without the eggs, tomatoes and salad) for up to 2 weeks. Defrost overnight and add the eggs, tomatoes, salad and dressing before eating.
*tinned tuna is great and cheap but doesn't count as a portion of oily fish, whereas tuna steaks do. I like to buy frozen ones, which are very affordable, or use tinned salmon if I want it to be an "oily fish" meal. It is recommended that we all have at least 2 portions of fish a week, one of which should be oily fish.
**fancy making your own? This is how I make them when I do.
