How To - "Leveling Up" a can of tuna

Yesterday, when I was packing my lunch for today, I discovered that I needed some more protein elements to be sure to fill me up. One of the staples that I keep on hand for use in lunch is tuna (packed in water), since it is both filling and relatively healthy, and because it's incredibly versatile. Best of all? If you're short on time, you can just grab the can, drain it into the sink, and dump the meat into the box. Woo. Protein!

Of course, just because you're short on time doesn't mean that you just have to eat the plain tuna day in and day out. Life has so much more variety! You're already taking the time to open the tuna and drain it, so why not spend an extra 1-2 minutes and level it up!*


One way to do this (that would take extra time if you chop extra components) would be to make tuna salad. Now, tuna salad is good, but mayo, even lighter versions, isn't exactly the lowest fat food. Also, it doesn't always travel well without spoiling.


There are so many other things that you can mix in to tuna to give the flavor a different bend. Soy sauce, a little fat free salad dressing, paprika, garlic powder, ginger, etc... On this occasion I reached for:

Yellow Mustard, Wasabi paste in a tube, and the Bangkok spice blend from Penzeys Spices.

I stuck the tuna fresh from the can into a bowl, squirted/shook in my various additions, and...

*insert fanfare here* mildly spiced tuna!

I only used about half of this mixture for my lunch, since the can I used was quite large (things from Costco come in larger sizes, you say? Nooooooo.), but the remaining half went straight into the fridge for use in a future lunch/dinner/snack.

*Why yes, I am a huge geek. Thank you for asking.