Macaroni Salad with Tuna
Macaroni Salad with Tuna is a creamy, chilled pasta salad featuring elbow macaroni, canned tuna, and a mayonnaise-based dressing, often mixed with crunchy vegetables like celery and onion. It's a staple of American home cooking and picnics, with roots in the classic tuna salad sandwich, transformed into a more substantial side dish.
🍽️ Nutrition at a glance
This dish is typically high in carbohydrates from the pasta and fat from the mayonnaise, while providing a good source of protein from the tuna. A standard serving can range from 350 to 500 calories, offering key nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids, selenium, and B vitamins from the fish.
Nutrition breakdown
| Calories | 370 kcal |
| Protein | 22 g |
| Carbs | 28 g |
| Fat | 19 g |
| Fiber | 2 g |
| Sugar | 4 g |
| Sodium | 680 mg |
| Potassium | 320 mg |
| Phosphorus | 210 mg |
| Selenium | 45 mcg |
| Vitamin D | 1.5 mcg |
| Niacin (B3) | 8 mg |
| Vitamin B12 | 2.0 mcg |
| Iron | 1.8 mg |
| Zinc | 1.2 mg |
Per 1 cup (240 g) · estimated, varies by recipe
💡 What's interesting
Culturally, it represents a mid-20th century shift toward convenient, pantry-based American cooking, using shelf-stable canned goods. Nutritionally, it's a practical example of combining incomplete proteins (pasta and tuna) to form a more complete amino acid profile.
