A Healthy Tuna Salad Without Mayo Recipe that is super easy to make with greek yogurt. High protein, gluten free and delicious!
If you’re looking for a quick, healthy lunch – this healthy tuna salad recipe is the perfect meal. Done in under 10 minutes, this recipe uses canned tuna, plain greek yogurt, and a few other ingredients.
This healthy tuna salad is lower in calories and fat than classic tuna salad while being higher in protein.
If you’re like me and you hate mayo – you’re going to love this greek yogurt tuna salad. It’s everything you love about regular tuna salad (creamy/crunchy/yummy!) but better for you! Here’s why we like it:
3 great reasons to make tuna salad without mayo
There is a lot to love about this tuna salad recipe:
- Low in fat and calories, and high in protein. Greek yogurt is lighter way to add moisture to your tuna salad.
- Quick to make.
This easy recipe only uses a handful of ingredients, and you only need 5 minutes to whip it up! - Great option for mayo haters.
We often mention our dislike for the taste of mayo on The Clean Eating Couple. If you’re like us, then we think you will love this Greek yogurt tuna salad recipe!
ingredients
To make our tuna salad recipe without mayo, you will need:
- tuna in water, drained – this one is wild caught!
- nonfat greek yogurt – helps to add protein and moistness
- carrot, celery – are both optional, but highly recommended
- onion powder, garlic powder, pepper
We used tuna with no salt added so you may need to add a pinch of salt. Make sure to use plain greek yogurt.
SUBSTITUTIONS
Tuna: We prefer to use canned tuna in water. You can also use tuna in olive oil, but it’s slightly higher in calories (you can drain some of the oil off if you’d like.Make sure your tuna is wild caught. We like this brand. We used canned tuna with no salt added so you may need to add a pinch of salt. I haven’t tried this with canned salmon but I think it would work!
Greek Yogurt: We like to use plain non fat greek yogurt. You can use full fat greek yogurt or regular yogurt. We haven’t tried this with nondairy yogurt but I think it would work.
Carrot/Celery: Feel free to add more or less carrot or celery. Onion would taste great as well. If you aren’t a fan of the crunchy texture, you can omit the vegetables altogether. I haven’t tried it, but I think thinly sliced cucumbers would also be a good addition!
Spices: We kept this recipe simple with pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. You could add other spices like dried or fresh parsley, red pepper flakes or whatever you like.
Buffalo Sauce: This healthy tuna salad is great with a splash of buffalo sauce added.
Keto: You can omit the carrots to reduce the amount of carbs in this recipe
Other Add ins: You can add fresh herbs, lemon juice, chopped dill pickles, dijon mustard, chopped avocado or red onion if you’d like. Feel free to add whatever your favorite mix ins are!
Dairy Free: I have not tried this with dairy free yogurt, but I think it would work. Make sure that your dairy free yogurt is unsweetened, plain yogurt.
Is tuna salad healthy? Typically tuna salad is not healthy. It’s often made with mayo which is high in fat and calories. Tuna is high in healthy fats and has lots of vitamins and minerals so it is a healthy option.
How many calories are in tuna salad? Traditional tuna salad has 500 calories per serving. This healthy tuna salad recipe has under 175 calories for 1.5 cups. It’s high in protein too!
tips for making the best tuna salad
- Drain the tuna well, especially if it’s packed in oil. Draining excess liquid from the can will prevent your tuna salad sandwich from being too soggy.
- Use Greek yogurt for the creamiest consistency and extra health benefits (super high protein!)
- Mince or grate the vegetables on a box grater. If you have great knife skills, you can chop or mince the carrot and celery, but a box grater is quicker. Plus, it ensures the pieces are a similar size.
- Chill the tuna salad for the best flavor. This step is completely optional, but chilled tuna salad without mayo really does taste better than when it’s room temperature.
How to Make
- In a bowl, add all ingredients.
- Mix together and serve!
See? It seriously couldn’t be any easier!
healthy tuna salad recipe variations
Use canned salmon instead of tuna fish. Salmon is lower in mercury than tuna, and is higher in Omega-3 fatty acids.
Buffalo Sauce: This healthy tuna salad is great with a splash of buffalo sauce added.
Keto: You can omit the carrots to reduce the amount of carbs in this recipe
Other add ins: You can add any other ingredients you like. Healthy and delicious options include:
- fresh herbs
- lemon juice
- lemon pepper
- chopped dill pickles or pickle relish
- chopped cucumbers
- dijon mustard or yellow mustard
- chopped avocado
- yellow or red onion
For a healthy sandwich option that doesn’t include tuna, check out our recipe for buffalo chicken salad!
Mayo Substitute for Tuna
Greek yogurt is the perfect mayonnaise substitute for tuna. It’s rich and creamy while being lower in fat!
You can substitute yogurt for mayo in tuna salad with a 1:1 ratio.
Just make sure to use unsweetened, plain yogurt. We prefer Greek yogurt but you can use regular whole milk yogurt too.
Tuna Salad Without Mayo FAQ
Instead of using mayo in tuna salad you can use greek yogurt or regular yogurt. Yogurt mimics the texture of mayo with less fat and more protein.
Yes, you can use yoghurt instead of mayonnaise in most recipes. Yoghurt is a great replacement for mayo in tuna salad.
For the best consistency, homemade tuna salad is best eaten fresh, but it will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge. Just be sure to store it in a covered container.
Yes, you can make this tuna salad without mayo ahead of time. It will last for up to 3 days in the refrigerator, but we recommend making and eating it fresh.
If you won’t be eating it within 2 hours, be sure to refrigerate the salad. For lunch on the go, pack your tuna salad in a covered container with ice cubes or an ice pack.
This is such a great recipe for a quick meal or meal prepping – I think you’re going to love it!
What to serve with Tuna Salad:
Sandwiches: You can never go wrong with a tuna salad sandwich. To cut the carbs, you could use low carb bread, or make a wrap using low carb tortillas.
Lettuce cups: Use a variety with large leaves, like Boston Bibb or Romaine lettuce.
As a salad: Serve the tuna salad without mayo over mixed greens with a healthy dressing.
Tuna salad is a complete meal in itself. Here are some things to serve with tuna salad:
- Spinach Strawberry Salad
- A tuna salad sandwich
- over mixed greens with a healthy dressing
- Traditional Greek Salad
- over lettuce leaves as low carb wraps
How Do You Store Tuna Salad?
Storing: You can keep this tuna salad in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. After that it will lose it’s freshness
Can you freeze tuna salad? We do not recommend freezing this tuna salad. The fish/yogurt will get funny after freezing
Will it be okay out of the fridge in a lunch box/on the go? Because this has tuna in it and dairy, we wouldn’t recommend leaving it out of the fridge for more than 2 hours.
Serving: You can serve this tuna salad however you like! We like it on a sandwich or a salad, but it’s also great on top of apple slices, in lettuce wraps, or even as a healthy ‘dip’.
Other healthy lunch recipes:
Here are some of my favorite healthy lunch recipes!
Healthy Tuna Salad Without Mayo
Ingredients
- 5 oz canned tuna in water drained
- 1/4 cup nonfat greek yogurt
- ¼ cup carrot finely minced
- ¼ cup celery finely minced
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Open and drain tuna.
- Chop all vegetables.
- In a bowl mix together all ingredients. Note: If your tuna is unsalted, you may need to add a pinch of salt to this recipe. Most canned tuna does have added salt so add to taste.
- Serve over a salad or on a sandwich
- Note: We used tuna with no salt added so you may need to add a pinch of salt.
Rachel Roberts says
Super simple but absolutely delicious
High protein too
Definitely try this one!
Julie says
Liz, I love your site and all the healthy recipes you share. I’d like to try this.
The crackers in the photos look amazing. Can you tell us the brand?
Claude L Fry says
Where do you find a 5oz can of tuna these days?
The Clean Eating Couple says
Almost all tuna is in a 5 oz can
John Genova says
Does anyone have a good recipe for Tuna with Hummus?? I hate Mayo and have thought Hummus would be a great substitute but without a good recipe I feel like it might turn out “blah”. Come on give it to meh!!!
The Clean Eating Couple says
This recipe doesn’t have mayo.. it uses greek yogurt. Maybe give this a try before you try the hummus?
Trudi says
Nice idea ! I have not tried ti yet but carrots and yogurtb sound fine as well as celery for calcium
I have not eaten tuna in ages. but I an willing to give this a try
The Clean Eating Couple says
It’s really yummy!
Patricia Habbyshaw says
Great Idea !!! Thank You
Here is another one for you…
My Mother used to make Italian Tuna Salad and I made it for her in her later days…
1 can tuna in water or Oil (like Cento)
onion
diced tomatoes
Red Wine Vinegar
Olive Oil
Mix all together and Chill !
That’s it and SOOO Good !
ENJOY ! :}
Patricia Habbyshaw says
OOPS !
I forgot the Celery which is Optional but good, too !
The Clean Eating Couple says
Yum! That sounds great!!