This Avocado Tuna Salad with Citrus is a vibrant mix of sweet-tart oranges and grapefruit, creamy avocado, briny olives, and effortless olive oil-packed canned tuna, all tied together with a zesty Dijon dressing. Fresh, flavorful, and balanced; it’s a healthy and colorful meal that comes together in minutes!
Citrus (and people like me) thrive in the climate along the Mediterranean coast of Spain. The long, sunny summers encourage ripe and flavorful oranges, mandarins, grapefruits, and lemons. It’s no surprise that Spain is the world’s largest exporter of citrus fruits.
Spain exports more than half of the citrus grown here, but what stays behind adds zest and color to countless flavorful dishes in home kitchens and restaurants year-round. I especially love the brightness it adds to salads, like orange and fennel salad, citrus salad with honey and vanilla, or orange and pomegranate salad.
This tuna avocado salad with three kinds of citrus has added much-needed zest to my day as a work-from-home lunch or an easy but fresh dinner. With baby lettuce, Kalamata olives, pickled red onions, and a mix of citrus, this salad bursts with color.
The colors aren’t just pretty; they signal the diversity of flavors and nutrients that help fuel the workday. I top the salad with good-quality tuna packed in olive oil to add protein. It makes it more filling, not to mention rich and flavorful.
Table of contents
Ingredients for Avocado Tuna Salad with Citrus
Bright and colorful ingredients are the key to this flavorful and satisfying salad. I like to make the most of the citrus by using both the zest and juice in the vinaigrette. Here’s everything you’ll need:
- Citrus: I like to use a mix of colorful citrus fruits like grapefruit, Navel, Cara Cara, and blood oranges, but you can use your favorites.
- Baby lettuce: My favorites are peppery arugula and mild mâche. I like tender and flavorful baby lettuce like mesclun or spring mix.
- Tuna: Use good-quality canned or jarred tuna packed in olive oil. I used Spanish albacore tuna belly because of its flavor and rich texture.
- Avocado: Creamy avocados are rich in healthy fats. Use a ripe, but firm avocado for the cleanest slices. If you’re worried about the avocado slices turning brown, you can spritz them with some lemon or lime juice.
- Kalamata olives: Salty and fruity Kalamata olives complement the fresh citrus with their briny flavor. If you prefer green olives, try buttery Castelvetrano olives or fruity Negrinha de Freixo olives from Portugal.
- TRY THEM: hard-to-find olives at The Mediterranean Dish Shop.
- Pickled red onions: An easy way to elevate almost any dish, quick pickled red onions add a pop of pink and a tangy flavor. I keep a jar of them in the fridge and use them throughout the week.
- WATCH THE VIDEO: Pickled Red Onions
- Pine nuts: Nutty and buttery pine nuts add a flavorful crunch. If you prefer, you can substitute them with chopped Marcona almonds, pistachios, or walnuts.
- Extra-virgin olive oil: Since it forms the vinaigrette base, use a flavorful, good-quality extra-virgin olive oil. I like the fruity and peppery flavor of hojiblanca for this salad.
- Sherry vinegar: I love the complex caramel flavor of sherry vinegar. However, you could substitute it with another vinegar, such as red wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar.
- Honey: Honey adds a touch of sweetness to balance the citrus and vinegar in the dressing. For the best flavor, use a flavorful citrus honey, like our Italian citrus honey.
- Dijon mustard: Bold and tangy Dijon mustard complements the citrus and helps blend the vinaigrette.
How to Make Avocado Tuna Salad with Citrus
After preparing the citrus, the salad takes minutes to come together, making it a quick and colorful no-cook meal. Here are the steps:
- Prepare the citrus. Use a fine grater to zest 1 grapefruit, 1 orange, and 1 blood orange, aiming for a total of 1 to 2 teaspoons of zest total. Cut the top and bottom off the fruit to expose the flesh. Set it down flat on a cutting board and, following the curve of the fruit, cut the skin off from top to bottom. Make sure to slice off both the peel and pith, but try not to take off too much of the flesh. Slice each fruit into rounds or segments. Collect the juices on the cutting board to use in the dressing. If you don’t quite have enough to yield 2 tablespoons, you can squeeze the tops and bottoms sliced off for more juice.
- Make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the citrus juice and zest, 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard, and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt until emulsified. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
- Mix, dress, and serve. In a large serving dish or bowl, layer 4 cups (about 3 ounces) baby salad greens, citrus, 1 (6- to 8-ounce) can drained and flaked olive oil-packed tuna, 1 thinly-sliced avocado, 1/2 cup pitted and halved olives, and 1/4 cup drained pickled red onions. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to mix evenly. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons pine nuts over the top, and serve.
How to Supreme Citrus
Peeling oranges by hand isn’t difficult, but for salads, I rely on quick knife work instead. Removing the peel and cutting between the segments is called supreming. It gives you clean slices or wedges that are easy to bite through because you’ve removed the membrane that joins the individual sections of citrus. Before tackling them, I zest each type of citrus I’m using with a fine grater or Microplane.
To supreme citrus, cut the top and bottom off the fruit to expose the flesh. Set it down flat on a cutting board and cut the skin off from top to bottom, following the curve of the fruit. Make sure to slice off both the peel and pith, but try not to take off too much of the flesh.
Slice the fruit thinly crosswise into pinwheels or segment them. To segment, cut into the citrus right next to the membrane all the way to the center. Then, slice the other side of the segment flush with the membrane, cutting the segment into a V-shape. Repeat until all the segments have been cut from the citrus.
This process usually releases a lot of juice onto my cutting board, which I collect to use in the vinaigrette. If you don’t quite have enough to yield 2 tablespoons, you can squeeze the tops and bottoms sliced off for more.
Ways to Make This Recipe Your Own
I’m always making small changes and swaps to this salad based on what I have and what’s in season. Here are some of my favorite variations:
- Change with the seasons: Citrus is in season in the winter months. In the summer, I use colorful heirloom tomatoes instead of citrus. I make this salad in the fall with leftover roasted butternut squash or sweet potato.
- Swap out the canned fish: Try good quality canned sardines or salmon instead of tuna.
- Elevate it with grilled protein: Instead of canned tuna, fire up the grill and add sliced grilled tuna steaks, salmon, chicken, steak, or halloumi.
What to Serve with Avocado Tuna Salad with Citrus
With creamy avocado and protein from the tuna, this salad is filling enough to serve on its own for lunch or a light dinner. Sometimes, I like to serve it with some bread on the side, like this olive bread, and scoop some salad on top or dip it in any extra vinaigrette. You could also use the salad to fill some pita or roll up in lavash.
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Avocado Tuna Salad with Citrus
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 1 grapefruit
- 1 orange
- 1 blood orange
- 4 cups (about 3 ounces) baby salad greens
- 1 can (6- to 8-ounces) olive oil-packed tuna, drained and flaked
- 1 avocado, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives, torn in half
- 1/4 cup pickled red onions, drained from their brine
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
For the Dressing
- 2 tablespoons citrus juice
- 1 to 2 teaspoons citrus zest
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Prepare the citrus. Use a fine grater to zest each type of citrus, aiming for a total of 1 to 2 teaspoons of zest total. Cut the top and bottom off the fruit to expose the flesh. Set it down flat on a cutting board and, following the curve of the fruit, cut the skin off from top to bottom. Make sure to slice off both the peel and pith, but try not to take off too much of the flesh. Slice the citrus into rounds or segments. Collect the juices on the cutting board to use in the dressing. If you don’t quite have enough to yield 2 tablespoons, you can squeeze the tops and bottoms sliced off for more juice.
- Make the dressing. In a small bowl, whisk together the citrus juice and zest, olive oil, sherry vinegar, honey, Dijon mustard, and salt until emulsified. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking.
- Mix, dress, and serve. In a large serving dish or bowl, layer the baby greens, citrus, tuna, avocado, olives, and red onions. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to mix evenly. Sprinkle the pine nuts over the top, and serve.
Notes
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop to browse quality Mediterranean ingredients including the olives, olive oil, and honey used in this recipe.
- To toast pine nuts: In a small skillet set over medium heat, add a drizzle of olive oil (about 1 teaspoon). Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the pine nuts and stir constantly until they’ve turned a light golden brown. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- How to use the tuna oil: If you’re using tuna packed in olive oil, you can save the oil and use it as the base for your salad dressing, adding additional extra virgin olive oil as needed to reach the fill 1/4 cup. Doing so will add even more flavor to the dressing.
Nutrition
Try our Authentic Greek Kalamata Olives!
These Kalamata olives add the perfect fruity boldness to any dish.
