Make Tuna Salad Faster by Using a Spoon Instead of a Fork
My preferences for tuna salad are very simple: Bumblebee hard white albacore in water (no Chunk Light, no oil, no Star-Kist), a tablespoon of mayonnaise (Hellmann’s) per can, and that’s it. Sometimes I go crazy and add capers or some anchovy paste for an umami flavor , but definitely not onions or celery. I’m sure your tuna tastes a lot different from mine, and it should be – when you’re dealing with controversial foods like canned fish and mayonnaise, you’ll come across many strong opinions. But one thing that most tuna salad lovers can agree on is the tool with which you mix the ingredients – you use a fork, right? I would like to suggest a faster alternative.
Let’s be clear: Making a tuna salad to begin with is not a particularly time-consuming task. Drain the tuna, mash it with mayonnaise, no fuss. The tuna sandwich, melted sauce and casserole are so loved precisely because they are quick and easy. But, as all seasoned tuna growers (tuners? Tunists?) Know, it takes a little time and effort to get the tuna properly chopped and the tuna and mayonnaise thoroughly blended.
Most people knead tuna with a fork. I used to rub tuna with a fork. However, depending on the size and density of the albacore chunks in the jar, larger chunks may resist easy crushing. You think you want to use a fork because a fork seems like a more destructive tool than a spoon. But the back of a soup spoon has more surface area than the back of the tines of a fork, and in my experience chopping tuna with a spoon can shorten the tuna cooking time by up to 60 seconds – you just get more chopping. for your tension. And if you use the same spoon for mashed potatoes as for mayonnaise, that’s one less dirty dish.
If someone wants to stain two dishes, in theory, a fork could be used as an aid. After the canned tuna pieces are mostly broken up with a spoon, you can use a fork to rake the flakes. However, there is always a risk that the tuna will get stuck in the tines of the fork, removing which could completely negate your time-saving efforts.
Note: Some people cook tuna with a blender or food processor. This will undoubtedly result in a very fast tuna paste, but when you consider the refining and the risk of accidentally turning the tuna into a fish shake, the spoon wins.