This Tuna & Bacon Coleslaw Salad is absolutely beautiful. It is a great lunch option that will keep you going for hours as it packs in a huge amount of protein – including eggs, tuna and bacon. You definitely won’t be feeling hungry for a while after munching on this. It comes in at just over 300 calories, which is surprising given how taste it greats. Just make sure you are using low fat mayo (or it will creep up in fat and calories pretty significantly). Dijon mustard also helps give it a beautiful rich taste. Additionally, the veg used in this recipe is all served up raw. This gives it a great crunch.
When I worked in the restaurant, I was always told by our Head Chef that the star of any great salad should not be lettuce. The lettuce should be there to complement all the other great flavours and combine everything together. I can categorically say that this salad achieves that more than most. The crunchy veg, tuna and bacon are binded together with the mustard mayonnaise. The lettuce very much takes on a supporting role to add a great backdrop to the dish.
The instructions below for this recipe call to mix in the egg with the tuna. For illustration purposes I placed the whole egg quarters on top of the salad – which you can absolutely do if you prefer.
This is a great meal to prep for two and eat over a couple of days. As it is eaten cold it can easily be taken to work, and will keep for a good 3 days in the fridge.
Tuna & Bacon Coleslaw Salad
Course: LunchCuisine: SaladDifficulty: Easy1
servings20
minutes10
minutes320
kcalThis Creamy Tuna & Bacon Salad is so tasty, you’ll hardly believe it’s less than 350 calories. The smoky bacon and salty tuna blends perfectly with crunchy vegetables and coleslaw – an excellent and filling lunch option.
Ingredients
40g streaky bacon, sliced
40g cabbage, sliced very thinly – use a mandolin if you have one
3 tbsp lighter than light mayo (this is the Hellmans brand but you can use any that has a similar calorie count – 11kcal per tablespoon)
1/2 tin of tuna in brine (half tin = 60g weight)
10g spring onion, sliced thinly on the diagonal (around 1/2 a spring onion)
30g celery, diced small (around 1/2 large stalk)
30g red bell pepper, diced small (around half a small pepper)
1 egg
1 tbsp dijon mustard
small handful lettuce – washed
parsley, for garnish
Directions
- First prepare a coleslaw for the base of the salad. Using some light cooking spray cook the bacon in a non-stick frying pan – you want it to be nice and crispy.
- Mix the bacon with the cabbage and 1 tbsp of mayo.
- Next make the tuna salad. Combine the tuna with 1 tbsp of mayo and the tbsp of mustard. Then mix in the celery, pepper and spring onion.
- Boil the egg and place in a bowl of cold water to cool. Once cool enough to handle peel and using the back of a fork mash the egg a little and mix it into the tuna.
- Wash the lettuce and place on the bottom of a plate. Next pile over the bacon coleslaw mix and then finally top with the tuna salad.
