Tuna Pesto Pasta Salad
with Olives, Heirloom Grape Tomatoes & Bell Pepper
- Milk
- Wheat
- Eggs
- Fish
This veggie-packed tuna pasta salad is perfect for picnics, potlucks, or just about anytime. You'll combine penne with grape tomatoes, shredded carrot, scallions, and bell pepper. Add the tuna and toss it with our herbaceous pesto plus fresh garlic, mustard, mayo, and lemon. Finish with a shower of scallion greens for a pasta salad to remember.
Ingredients
3 ounce
Carrot
4 tablespoon
Pesto
(Contains: Milk)
4 ounce
Heirloom Grape Tomatoes
1 unit
Lemon
6 ounce
Penne Pasta
(Contains: Wheat)
1 clove
Garlic
2 teaspoon
Red Wine Vinegar
2 tablespoon
Mayonnaise
(Contains: Eggs)
2 unit
Scallions
1 unit
Bell Pepper
1 teaspoon
Dijon Mustard
1 unit
Canned Tuna
(Contains: Fish)
1 unit
Green Olives
Not included in your delivery
1 teaspoon (tsp)
Salt
2 teaspoon (tsp)
Olive Oil
¼ teaspoon (tsp)
Sugar
teaspoon (tsp)
Black Pepper
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
-
Wash and dry produce. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
-
Once boiling, add penne to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly softer than al dente, 11-13 minutes. Drain, then rinse under cold water.
-
Meanwhile, trim and thinly slice scallions, separating whites from greens. Peel and mince or grate garlic. Halve grape tomatoes. Trim, peel, and grate carrot on the largest holes of a box grater. Drain olives, then roughly chop. Core, dessed, and dice bell pepper into ½-inch pieces. Zest and quarter lemon.
-
In a large bowl, combine pesto, mayonnaise, half the mustard, 2 tsp vinegar, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp sugar, and a large drizzle of olive oil (for 4 servings, use all the mustard, 4 tsp vinegar, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp sugar, and 2 large drizzles of olive oil).
-
Add scallion whites, garlic, lemon zest, and juice from half the lemon (juice from whole lemon for 4); stir to combine.
-
Open and drain tuna; add to bowl with dressing. Stir until tuna is mostly broken up and evenly combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
-
Shake excess water from drained penne.
-
To bowl with tuna mixture, add penne, tomatoes, carrot, olives, and bell pepper. Season with a big pinch of salt and pepper; stir to combine.
-
Divide tuna pasta salad between bowls and garnish with scallion greens. Serve.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the fresh, flavorful mix; some found it overpowering or bland. Consider adjusting pesto and seasoning to taste 🌿.
- Ease of prep: Quick and simple to make, though some noted longer prep time for cutting veggies. Pre-shredded carrots could speed things up.
- Suggestions: Try adding extra tuna and olives; some preferred smaller pasta shapes like bow ties or rotini for better texture.
- Portions: Makes plenty, great for leftovers. Some found it too much for two; consider splitting into 3-4 servings.
- Versatility: Perfect cold dish for hot summer days. Works well as a make-ahead meal or picnic option.
Reviews from our home cooks
I loved this. There were so many different taste treats in this dish. There were just two things that could have been better. I thought the dish was a little too dry, it could have benefited from maybe a little more mayonnaise, especially for that much pasta. Also, I am not a big fan of pasta so I felt the penne was too big and too dense for this dish. For my taste a smaller, lighter pasta like a bow tie or cavatappi would be better. That said, I loved the flavors.
Loved it. Very easy and delicious. It's also great to have a cold pasta dish. Please put this on regular rotation. I also saw and prepared a tuna melt. I hope that'll be in regular rotation too. More dishes with tuna would be great overall.
This was a big hit! A new and creative pasta salad that didn't heat up the kitchen on a super hot day plus colorful veggies and an amazing dressing. Loved it!!
A little different, which is good. Hubby liked as is. I thought there was alot going on. Tasted ok, but I would say some items overpowered others. The pesto wasnt needed as it overpowered garlic & other flavors. Olives were not good.
Could use more tuna and olives for 2 servings. And less carrots - the carrots took over a bit. Also, with cutting and shredding veggies, this took longer than 30 min. for me.
This was quite yummy, but I'm used to my tuna salad having some diced sweet onion in it so I think next time I ordered this dish I will customize it with some.
One con: I don't really care for the carrots in this. They just don't mesh well texture-wise. However, I opted to chill this overnight and eat it for dinner the next day and it is amazing. A very refreshing summer meal.
Absolutely FANTASTIC! This was such a flavorful, satisfying, cravable dish. The combination of these ingredients was superb and provided lunch for four days.
This was a hit brough to a family picnic! Very tasty and great that I could make it in advance!
Really enjoyed this meal as I reside in a very warm climate in the summer.
