No-Cook Tuna and White Bean Salad
Canned tuna, white beans, and a sharp lemon-caper dressing — ten minutes, zero heat, and it packs well for tomorrow's desk lunch.
Nutrition facts, per serving
- Calories
- 410
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 28 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Per serving. Estimated from ingredients as listed.
This is the recipe for the day the stovetop feels like a personal insult. No cooking, no dishes beyond a bowl and a fork, and it’s genuinely good — not “good for something you didn’t cook” good, just good.
Buy tuna in olive oil, not springwater, if the nutrition label leaves any room to choose. The oil isn’t a compromise here, it’s an ingredient — reserved and whisked with lemon and capers, it’s most of your dressing already made.
Keep a couple of tins of white beans and a couple of tins of good tuna in the pantry permanently. This is the recipe that exists specifically for the week you didn’t get to the shops.
Ingredients
Makes 2 servings- 2 x 185 g tins tinned tuna in olive oil — drained, oil reserved
- 1 x 400 g tin cannellini beans — drained and rinsed
- 1/4, finely sliced red onion
- 1/2 cup, roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1, juiced lemon
- 1 tbsp capers
- to taste salt and pepper
Method
Drain the tuna, keeping a tablespoon of the oil — it's already seasoned and does half the dressing's work for you.
Tip the beans, tuna, onion, and parsley into a bowl. Break the tuna up with a fork rather than mashing it — you want chunks, not paste.
Whisk the reserved tuna oil with the lemon juice and capers. Season and pour over.
Toss gently and taste before adding more salt — capers and tinned tuna both already carry a fair amount.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make this ahead?
Yes, it holds well in the fridge for 2 days. Add the parsley just before eating if you're prepping further ahead — it wilts and darkens after a day dressed.
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