Vegan Tuna Salad

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This Vegan Tuna Salad will have you saying “I can’t believe it’s not tuna!” It’s made with chickpeas and hearts of palm for the perfect texture, full of classic American flavors like celery and pickle relish, and seasoned with nori for a taste of the sea. Ready in 10 minutes and perfect for lunch meal prep.
Prep 5 minutes
Cook 5 minutes
Total 10 minutes
5 from 111 votes

This Vegan Tuna Salad is a game-changer for lunch. It has the same classic American flavors of tuna salad, but is 100% plant-based.

Plus, it’s ridiculously simple to make. Just add a handful of ingredients to your food processor, and lunch is ready in 5 minutes. It’s ideal for meal prep and it can be served in so many different ways.

If you miss tuna salad, this recipe is an excellent way to satisfy those nostalgic cravings in a more wholesome, sustainable way.

Table of Contents
1. Recipe video
2. Why this recipe works
3. Ingredient notes
4. Step-by-step instructions
5. Tips for making this recipe
6. What to serve this with
7. Recipe card

Watch: How to make Vegan Tuna Salad!

Why this recipe works

It tastes so much like tuna salad.

This vegan tuna salad tastes like the real deal through a careful balance of flavors and textures (but no fishies were harmed, it’s more sustainable, and there’s no mercury to worry about).

First, the texture of canned tuna is easily replicated through a mixture of pulsed chickpeas and buttery, nutty hearts of palm. A mixture of vegan mayo and Dijon mustard add the requisite creaminess and classic creamy tang required of a tuna salad.

Next, the combination of celery, celery seeds, and dill pickle relish add those classic American flavors, evoking those nostalgic childhood flavors. Finally, nori adds that characteristic taste of the sea without tasting fishy.

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It’s super simple to make.

All you need is 5 minutes and a food processor to make this vegan tuna salad.

The perfect lunch meal prep.

This salad stays well in an airtight container in the fridge for 5 to 6 days, so you can make a double batch and eat it throughout the week. It’s also versatile, so you can serve it in multiple ways (check out the “How to serve” section below).

two baguette sandwiches stuffed with vegan tuna salad, cucumber, lettuce and tomato on wooden board.

Ingredient notes

labeled ingredients for vegan tuna salad on a light pink cutting board.

Chickpeas: Like many faux tuna salads, the base of this salad includes chickpeas. When you pulse them in the food processor, they break down and help form the hearty, chunky base of this salad. I use canned chickpeas for ease, but if you cook chickpeas from scratch, it’ll make the salad even better.

Hearts of Palm: Hearts of palm make up the other base of this salad. Hearts of palm come from the center of a cabbage palm tree, and are sold in cans. Their tender yet relatively firm texture makes for an excellent alternative in seafood dishes, including this Vegan Ceviche.

If you don’t have access to hearts of palm, use an equal amount of chickpeas.

Nori: This is what makes this tuna salad taste like tuna. Nori is an edible seaweed and most often sold in sheets. It has a salty, ocean-like flavor, which makes it an excellent addition in vegan seafood recipes.

For extra flavor, I like to toast the sheet of nori over a low gas flame for about 10 seconds.

Dill Pickle Relish: Any good tuna salad has just the slightest hint of sweetness to balance, well, the fishiness of tuna. This ingredient brings a little sweetness and crunch to the tuna salad that reminds me of the classic tasting salad sandwiches.

Celery Seeds + Celery: Celery seeds bring a distinctly American flavor to many dishes (e.g., tuna salad sandwich, chicken soup, corn chowder. You can find them in the spices/seasoning section of most grocery stores. They bring a light vegetal flavor that balances the rich creaminess of the vegan mayo. 

Vegan Mayo: Because classic tuna salad needs a creamy tang and a binder. Our go-to brand of vegan mayo is Follow Your Heart Vegenaise, but we also like Sir Kensington’s vegan mayo. 

Nutritional Yeast: To mimic some of the umami found in tuna, I add nutritional yeast, but you could also try a tablespoon of white miso paste. 

Lemon Juice: The creamy texture and notes of umami need some balance from a fresh squeeze of lemon juice. 

Step-by-Step instructions

Add all of the ingredients to the bowl of your food processor: chickpeas, hearts of palm, vegan mayo, mustard, celery, celery seeds, dill pickle relish, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and crumbled nori.

chickpeas, hearts of palm, nutritional yeast, nori, celery and vegan mayo in a food processor bowl.

Pulse the mixture until well incorporated but still a bit chunky. Season to taste with salt and pepper, but stir it in by hand to avoid over-blending.

That’s it!

vegan tuna salad blended in a food processor.

To make a sandwich, scoop a few dollops of the vegan tuna salad onto a slice of bread.

Layer the other half with sandwich fixings, like sliced tomatoes, lettuce leaves, cucumber ribbons. For extra creamy richness, add a thin layer of vegan mayo on this slice of bread before adding the fixings.

Tips for making this recipe

Use the pulse function of your food processor.

If you blend the tuna salad, it will develop a weird pureed texture, almost like pâté. Pulse about 10 times, or until the mixture is well-mixed but still a little chunky so you keep some texture. If needed, pulse just a few more times.

Make a double batch.

This stores well in the fridge in an airtight container for 5 to 6 days, so you can have it for lunch throughout the week (if you want).

Don’t skip the nori.

If you really want to replicate the taste of tuna, the seaweed is necessary. If you don’t care about that taste, though, it’s fine to omit.

Make it your own.

If you love diced red onion in tuna salad, toss some in. Hate celery? Omit it. Want to up the veggie factor? Diced red bell pepper makes a nice addition. Want an extra tangy pop? Add a tablespoon of capers.

How to serve vegan tuna salad

  • Dollop it onto sandwich bread and add your favorite fixings for a quick and easy sandwich. Or spread onto a large tortilla for a wrap.
  • Or, make an open-faced tuna melt. Scoop the tuna salad high onto one slice of toasted bread (for extra richness, spread a thin layer of vegan butter on this slice of bread first). Add one slice of vegan cheese on top. Place underneath your broiler and broil until the cheese has melted (keep a close eye to avoid burning). We like Chao Creamery slices for a neutral taste and easy meltability.
  • Add a few scoops of tuna salad to a big bowl of chopped romaine, and add pickled onions, corn, cherry tomatoes, or any of your favorite salad toppings. Finish with an olive oil based vinaigrette, or for something richer, use my Vegan Ranch Dressing.
  • Scoop the tuna salad into lettuce cups for a low-carb lunch option. Add diced avocado to make it more filling.
  • Serve in a bowl as a party appetizer with crackers, or as a healthy afternoon snack with crudités.
two baguette sandwiches stuffed with vegan tuna salad, cucumber, lettuce and tomato on wooden board.

That’s all you need to know about this Vegan Tuna Salad! If you love it, please rate and review the recipe below, and as always, I love seeing your recreations on Instagram.

Vegan Tuna Salad

5 from 111 votes
This Vegan Tuna Salad will have you saying “I can’t believe it’s not tuna!” It’s made with chickpeas and hearts of palm for the perfect texture, full of classic American flavors like celery and pickle relish, and seasoned with nori for a taste of the sea. Ready in 10 minutes and perfect for lunch meal prep.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: American
Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Serving size: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 (15-ounce/425g) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup canned hearts of palm, drained and rinsed and roughly chopped (165g)*
  • 1/3 cup (75g) vegan mayo**
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (or spicy brown mustard)
  • 2 celery ribs, diced
  • 2 teaspoons celery seeds
  • 2 tablespoons dill pickle relish (or sweet pickle relish)
  • 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • 2 nori sheets, crumbled with your hands into small pieces
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • Freshly cracked black pepper

For serving (sandwich)

  • 8 slices of hearty sandwich bread or sliced baguette
  • Sandwich fixings of choice: romaine or leaf lettuce, sliced or shaved cucumber, sliced tomatoes, fresh dill sprigs, pickles

Instructions

  • In a food processor bowl, combine the chickpeas, hearts of palm, mayo, mustard, celery, celery seeds, relish, nutritional yeast, crumbled nori, lemon juice, salt, and several cracks of pepper.
    Do not blend! Pulse about 10 to 15 times, until incorporated and combined but still chunky.
    Taste, adding more salt and pepper as needed. But stir them in by hand instead of pulsing to avoid over-blending.
  • If making sandwiches, spread the tuna salad onto four slices of bread. Top with your desired sandwich toppings. Top each with another slice of bread (for extra richness, add a thin layer of vegan mayo to this slice of bread). Enjoy!

Notes

*If hearts of palm aren’t available, sub with more chickpeas. 
** We like Follow Your Heart Vegenaise and Sir Kensington’s vegan mayo in the RPL kitchen. 

Calories: 218kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Sodium: 243mg | Potassium: 1186mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 130IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 2mg

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201 comments on Vegan Tuna Salad

  1. Dolores

    5 stars
    I’m about to make this tuna! Sounds divine! But just made your vegan shepherds pie. Oh my goodness! It is exceptional! Absolutely delicious. Everyone-even non vegan meat devoured- loved it! Thank you so much!

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      That is so great to hear, Dolores! Thanks for trying the recipes!

  2. Michaela

    5 stars
    Bloomin gorgeous & first time using hearts of palm.
    The mustard addition – Dijon for us – hits the spot x

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      So glad you enjoyed the vegan tuna salad sandwich, Michaela!

  3. Jerry Lynn Shoemaker

    5 stars
    I just made this as I had never had Hearts of Palms before, and I have to tell you this tastes the most like tuna salad that I’ve ever had. I can only imagine it with nori as I did not have any and used dulse flakes instead. Thank you for this innovative recipe for us plant-based eaters.

    Mrs. Jerry Shoemaker

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      Yum! So happy you enjoyed the recipe Jerry!

  4. Jason Zee

    5 stars
    As a “Vegan curious” person I’ve been trying out lots of recipes – some good, some meh. Nisha’s are almost always in the good column and this tuna salad is awesome! Just tried it today and it will become one of my go to lunches. It tastes even better after being in the fridge for a few hours. For some reason every store I went to including Whole Foods was out of celery seeds. Hopefully next batch will have them. If I have to go back to the office those Bento boxes look like a good idea.

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      Thanks for the lovely feedback, Jason!

  5. Meredith

    5 stars
    Really delicious and satisfying! I forgot the nori sheets the first batch, and it’s good with or without. I’ve made several chickpea salads, and this is far and above the best. The hearts of palm add a creaminess (almost like egg) that brings it all together in a unique way. Thanks, Nisha!

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      So glad you enjoy the recipe, Meredith! Thanks for your comment and for taking the time to review.

  6. Charlene

    5 stars
    Just tried this recipe (substituted jackfruit for the hearts of palm because it’s what I had in the cupboard) and it’s honestly uncanny how much it reminds me of tuna! I think this one is a instant go to recipe! ❤️

    1. Support @ Rainbow Plant Life

      Thanks for sharing, Charlene! So glad you loved this recipe.

  7. Alice

    It is delicious! I made it without a food processor, just mashing with a fork, and it still came out perfectly. Never tried hearts of palm or dulse flakes before so that was fun! I used 1tbsp of the flakes.

  8. Maneesha

    5 stars
    No doubt about it! This is a winner sandwich recipe! I do not have dulse flakes, so I used a sheet of nori that I tore up, and it pulsed very well in the food processor. The flavors in this recipe are perfect! Thanks again, Nisha! This is going to be my new go-to picnic wrap/sandwich!

  9. Jen

    5 stars
    I was traveling this weekend and I still wanted to do some meal prep after eating all that junk food. This was perfect, super quick and hardly any dishes, I just had this with salad and baby carrots for an essentially zero effort lunch that is still delicious.

  10. MeMy

    5 stars
    This is my favorite vegan tuna recipe! Thanks so much for sharing. I never had tried palm of hearts, so it’s such a delight to try something new a tasty!

  11. Rowan Reardon

    5 stars
    Just made this. Its amazing! So tasty and satisfying. perfect texture (be sure to drain canned ingredients well). I’m not vegan, just decided to eat less meat. Heart of palm is new to me. Will definitely use in other dishes.

  12. IMS

    5 stars
    Just made this for meal prep lunches! It was delicious as is (used a jalapeno relish instead of sweet as it was all I had) & my husband wanted a bit of heat so added in some curry powder (1 tea) and it was also delicious! Thanks for yet another awesome recipe!

  13. Ardeth Ellis

    5 stars
    I made this today. OMG! Its so much better than I expected. No pickle relish in the house so I substituted dill weed. This will most certainly be one of my go to recipes, especially for summer.
    I can see how it would be better after it sits overnight. Looking forward to lunch tomorrow. Your instant pot cookbook is well used at my house. It needs a companion though. 😆

  14. Debbie

    Hi Nisha-Love ur recipes as much as I luv ur humor keeping it real girl 👍
    I want to make ur vegan tuna salad but can’t seem to find dulse flakes any recommendations?
    Thx

    1. Nisha

      Hi Debbie, if you can find nori sheets, you can pulse those in a food processor or grinder until ground and use that instead! Thank you for your lovely note!

  15. Julie

    5 stars
    This is a wonderful recipe which I have made do many times. Its always delicious!

  16. Cheryl K

    5 stars
    I was very excited to see this recipe as I miss tuna having gone plant-based diet last year. I had all but the two main ingredients: chick peas and hearts of palm. I added a can of each to my food delivery order and mixed everything together as soon as the delivery was unpacked. I gave my husband a taste and challenged him to guess what the main ingredients were when I suddenly realized that instead of hearts of palm, I had ordered and used a can of artichoke hearts! The concoction was still delicious. So, if you happen to have artichoke hearts instead of hearts of palm, know that they work quite well. Looking forward to trying it again with the correct ingredients. :-)

    1. Nisha

      That’s so great to know that artichoke hearts worked well! Thanks for sharing your feedback, Cheryl!

  17. Rosa

    This is amazing and for some reason totally reminds me of tuna! I used to love tuna and stopped eating it long before I became a vegetarian. Thank you for sharing !

  18. Sam

    Made this recipe this weekend, and I love it! I’m not 100% convinced that it is a great tuna dupe personally, but regardless the flavors are delicious and I will 100% make this again! I addd in some fresh dill and parsley to give it some different flavors and omitted the relish because I just don’t love the taste of it. I served this with your Greek Couscous Salad (which is definitely a new favorite of mine!) for a great lunchtime meal!

    1. Nisha Vora

      Hi Sam, I’m glad you found it to be delicious, tuna-y or not :) I love the addition of fresh dill! And great way to serve it with the greek couscous salad!

  19. Liz

    This is the best vegan recipe ever. I don’t do vegan version of regular meals, but this got my attention. Genius. Thank you!

    1. Nisha Vora

      So happy to hear that, Liz! I am so grateful for your wonderful feedback. Reminds me I need to make this sandwich again soon, it’s been too long!

  20. terri felde

    Made this recipe for the first time yesterday. It was good then, but dare I say even better today?!? Thank you Nisha for making this and all the other recipes you post available to the masses….so very generous of you.I have been working my way through your cookbook, Vegan Instant Pot, and so far you’re batting 100%. I have hundreds of cookbooks, [I know, it’s a problem]. and it’s quite normal to make some that are a hit, and others not so good, I actually wonder with most books if they’ve actually ever made the recipe themselves before publishing, not so with this book, and I’m cooking for vegan and non vegans, and they have all been met with rave reviews!!! Well done Nisha!
    Terri Felde

    1. Nisha Vora

      Hi Terri! Thank you so much for your lovely comment. I love that you think it’s better the next day – I had that same experience too! I am so happy and grateful you are loving my cookbook. Simply the best feedback I could ask for!

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