Mediterranean Tuna Salad

Quick answer: This Mediterranean tuna salad has about 29 grams of protein and 500 calories per serving, and takes about 25 minutes. It’s a composed platter, Niçoise-style — hard-boiled eggs, boiled potatoes, blanched green beans, tomatoes and olives arranged around oil-packed tuna, rather than everything tossed together in a bowl. Serves 4. Sodium runs high, about 680 mg per serving, mostly from the olives.

Where Tuna Salad Recipe Without Mayo mixes everything into one bowl, this one keeps its components separate and arranged — the classic Niçoise format. It’s heartier and more of a full plate than the other Mediterranean-leaning recipes here.

Why This Recipe Has About 29 Grams of Protein

Four sources spread across the plate rather than concentrated in one bowl — tuna and egg carry most of it.

A Note on Sodium

About 680 mg per serving, roughly 30% of the WHO’s 2,300 mg daily limit — Niçoise olives are the main reason, same pattern as the other olive-heavy recipes in this cluster.

• Olives: ~311 mg
• Canned tuna (oil-packed): ~248 mg
• Eggs: ~62 mg
• Everything else: ~59 mg

What helps: using fewer olives, or a milder green olive instead of Niçoise, brings this down meaningfully.

What You Need

Makes 4 servings

• 3 cans (5 oz / 142 g each) tuna in olive oil, drained (about 330 g drained total)
• 4 large eggs
• 400 g baby potatoes
• 300 g green beans, trimmed
• 200 g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 80 g Niçoise olives
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Black pepper, to taste

How to Make It

1. Boil the potatoes until tender, about 15 minutes. Halve once cool enough to handle.
2. Blanch the green beans 3-4 minutes in the same pot toward the end, then plunge into cold water.
3. Boil the eggs 9-10 minutes, cool, peel and quarter.
4. Whisk the dressing: olive oil, vinegar and garlic.
5. Arrange the tuna, potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, olives and eggs on a platter. Drizzle with dressing just before serving.

Tips

Arrange rather than toss. Part of what makes this a Niçoise is the components staying distinct on the plate, not mixed together.

Dress it right before eating, not ahead of time — the vinaigrette on warm potatoes is part of the point, and it doesn’t hold as well pre-dressed.

Substitutions

Tuna in oil: tuna in water works, with a leaner result — use a little extra olive oil in the dressing to compensate.

Olives: any brined green or black olive if Niçoise isn’t available.

Storage

Up to 2 days refrigerated, components stored separately and assembled fresh. Not a make-ahead-and-mix salad.

PFadmin

Mediterranean Tuna Salad

A composed Niçoise-style Mediterranean tuna salad with eggs, potatoes, green beans and olives. About 29g protein per serving.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Salad

Cuisine: French-inspired, Mediterranean

Calories: 500

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 330 g 3 cans, 5 oz each tuna in olive oil, drained
• 4 large eggs
• 400 g baby potatoes
• 300 g green beans trimmed
• 200 g cherry tomatoes halved
• 80 g Niçoise olives
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 garlic clove minced
• Black pepper to taste

Method

 

1. Boil the potatoes until tender, halve once cool.
2. Blanch the green beans, then cool in cold water.
3. Boil the eggs 9-10 minutes, peel and quarter.
4. Whisk olive oil, vinegar and garlic.
5. Arrange everything on a platter and dress just before serving.

Notes

• Fewer olives noticeably lowers the sodium.
• Store components separately; assemble fresh.

Nutrition

Per serving (recipe makes 4):

Preliminary calculation from USDA FoodData Central reference values, not yet verified against a finished Tuna nutrition workbook.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes this “Niçoise-style”?

The composed format — components arranged separately on a platter rather than tossed together — plus the classic combination of tuna, eggs, potatoes, green beans and olives.

Can I make this ahead?

Prep the components ahead, but assemble and dress just before serving for the best texture.

Can I use tuna in water instead of oil?

Yes, though it’s leaner — a little extra olive oil in the dressing makes up for it.

Why is the sodium higher than other Mediterranean tuna salads?

Niçoise olives are concentrated in sodium, and this recipe uses more of them than the chickpea-based Mediterranean salad elsewhere on the site.

More High Protein Tuna Recipes

Part of the 🥗 Tuna Salads collection, alongside Tuna Salad Recipe Without Mayo (the mixed-bowl Mediterranean version).

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