The request hour, episode VII

Upon urging Dylan to try the Celery Salad with Almonds, Dates, and Parmesan (which I told him is "one of my favorite dishes ever"), I was surprised to discover that Dylan "loves" celery. Dylan told me that he sometimes ups the celery ratio in the mirepoix because he likes the flavor to come through. Dylan also said that he likes celery in tuna salad, which reminded him to put in a request for an easy tuna salad recipe. You know I love a good request!

Coincidentally, I had just discovered Alison Roman's A Newletter through a New Yorker article about Substack ("Is Substack the Media Future We Want?"). The author described Roman's newsletter as containing "recipes and breezy, bossy, self-deprecating anecdotes," which sounded entertaining so I started exploring. It's $5 per month for full access, but many of the issues are available for free, including the first one, which had this recipe for a good-looking tuna salad.

 

Following up on Dylan's request, I picked up some iceberg lettuce and all the fresh dill I could scrounge at Wegmans, which wasn't much but just enough to at least take a run at this salad last night. And it's a winner. Punchy from the big hit of lemon zest and juice and the briny capers (which I used) but well-balanced with the dill, celery, and onion, and not too much mayo (a lot less than many tuna salad recipes). We'll happily make this again, and hopefully it passes muster with Dylan, too.

Tuna Salad Salad

Adapted from Alison Roman from A Newsletter #1 (June 17, 2020) (video)

Time: ~25 minutes

For the tuna salad
¼ cup (~25 grams) minced red onion (about a quarter of a small onion) or shallot (1 medium)
1 lemon
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 celery stalks
3 to 4 tablespoons fresh dill leaves
42 grams (3 tablespoons) good mayonnaise
1 (5- to 7-ounce) can or jar of tuna packed in oil or spring water, drained
washed iceberg or romaine lettuce, leaves torn into large pieces
2 tablespoons capers, coarsely chopped if large (optional)

To serve
2 slices hearty bread, well toasted and cut in half on the diagonal to make toast points
softened butter (or more mayo) for the toast

    1. Place the red onion or shallot in a medium bowl. Zest the whole lemon and juice half of it. Add the zest and juice to the bowl. Season well with salt and pepper. Let sit for 5 minutes (this mellows out the raw onion).
    2. Meanwhile, clean and trim the celery stalks, then cut them into fine dice. Coarsely chop the dill.
    3. Add the celery, half of the dill, and the mayo to the bowl, and mix well. Add the drained tuna, using a dinner fork to flake it to your desired chunkiness. Mix again, then taste.
    4. Line 2 dinner bowls with torn lettuce leaves. Squeeze a few drops of lemon over the lettuce, then season with salt and pepper. Spoon the tuna salad onto the lettuce. Sprinkle with the remaining dill and the capers, if using. Serve with the toast points, spread with your choice of butter or mayo. You can eat this like a salad, lettuce cups, or open-faced toast. (Or you can always just make yourself a sandwich if you prefer.) Serves 2.