Tuna Melt Sandwich - Easy Comfort Food

Recipe: Tuna Melt Recipe »

This classic tuna melt is made with creamy tuna, melted cheese and buttery, golden bread with crisp edges. Made with tuna, mayonnaise and pickled mixed right into the filling and celery for crunch it is pan toasted for a perfect melting, hot sandwich. Great for an easy lunch or dinner.

About This Tuna Melt

Are you looking for a tuna melt ever since seeing one on Heated Rivalry? I've got you!

What is a tuna melt? A tuna melt is a classic American hot toasted sandwich that is made with a creamy tuna filling with mayonnaise, onion and celery combined with melted cheese and sometimes tomato slices. Each bite is the creamy filling in a buttery toasted crunchy exterior. Tuna melts are often served with kettle chips and a dill pickle on the side.

The filling is similar to a cold but even more simple. In my version of a tuna melt we add the pickles inside the filling so that you get some of the delicious pickle in every bite.

Is the tuna in a tuna melt supposed to be hot? Yes tuna melts are either cooked in a frying pan like a toasted cheese or under a grill so the tuna will be hot.

Video How To Make Tuna Melt

Video: How to Make the best Tuna Melt!

Ingredients For Making a Tuna Melt

Tuna - Use tinned tuna in oil as the flavour is better and it is more moist. I used Sirena tuna. You can use tuna in water but you may need more mayonnaise to keep it moist.

Mayonnaise - Use your favourite mayonnaise for a creamy tuna melt filling. If you don't like mayo try my tuna filling made with cream cheese.

Pickles - Instead of serving pickles on the side, I add them into the tuna melt filling so that you get some in every bite. I love pickles so if you don't like them as much as I do (my nickname at home is "pickles") then you can add less. I love using spicy Chipotle Cucumbers that come as chips as the extra chilli adds a lot to the tuna melt.

Celery - If you love celery feel free to add more but I am not a big celery lover so I use just enough for crunch.

Pickle brine - This is the liquid the pickles come in. This adds flavour and moisture to the tuna filling.

Red onion - I use red onion as it is the best onion to eat raw. You can also sub with golden eschallots.

Capers - Use baby capers or capers for this to add a burst of flavour to your tuna filling.

Parsley - We use fresh Continental or flat leaf parsley.

Chilli - I use a korean red pepper powder but you can also use chilli powder. Use the chilli powder according to your taste (they also tend to really vary in mildness).

Cheese - Cheese adds flavour and richness in our tuna melt filling. Use any cheese you like from mozzarella, cheddar, tasty or gouda.

Lemon juice - Fresh or bottled lemon juice adds a nice tang to your tuna melt filling.

Bread - I've made tuna melts with all sorts of breads as it really depends on what I have at the time. But my favourite tuna melt is made with a white sourdough bread loaf. You can also use grain bread, pullman or supermarket square bread. A light rye is also nice for a tuna melt.

Cheese - American or Swiss cheese is often used in a tuna melt. I had so much American cheese leftover from my smash burger recipe so I used that.

Tips For Making Tuna Melts

1- Chop up the ingredients up finely so that they disperse well in the tuna filling.

2 - This filling can be made up to 3-4 days ahead of time and stored in an airtight container in the fridge so you're never far away from an easy tuna melt.

3 - If you use a sourdough bread this will make 4 sandwiches. If you are using a supermarket square loaf or pullman loaf this will make 6 sandwiches as the slices are smaller.

4 - If you prefer an open face sandwich and less bread, then take one slice of bread buttered on both sides. Toast one side of the bread and then top the untoasted side with the tuna filling and cheese and place sandwich under a grill to melt the cheese.

5 - After cooking the tuna melt you can also add 2 slice of tomato or some mashed avocado!

Tuna Melt Recipe

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Recipe Overview

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 7 minutes per tuna melt

Makes: 4 - 6 toasties (depending on bread size)

Ingredients Needed

Tuna Melt Filling

• 425g/15oz tinned tuna in oil, drained well to end make 320g/11.3ozs tuna
• 160g/5.6ozs mayonnaise
• 130g/4.6ozs chipotle cucumber pickle chips, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons/30g/1oz finely diced celery
• 2 teaspoons pickle brine from above
• 2 tablespoons red onion, finely chopped
• 3 teaspoons baby capers, roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons finely chopped parsley
• 1-2 teaspoons red pepper or chilli powder (to taste)
• 60g/2ozs grated cheese (mozzarella, cheddar, tasty or gouda)
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice optional
• salt and pepper

For Sandwiches

• 8 slices white sourdough bread, each slice buttered on both sides
• 8 slices American cheese (or your favourite melting cheese)
• 4 teaspoons oil

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1 MIX - Make sure that the tuna is well drained of the oil. Place it in a medium sized bowl along with the mayonnaise, chopped pickles, celery, pickle brine, onion, capers, parsley, chilli powder, grated cheese and lemon juice. Use a large fork to break up the tuna chunks and to mix it all together to form a cohesive mixture. Season with salt and pepper.

Step 2 TOAST - Place 1/4 of the mixture on one side of the buttered bread and place 2 slices of cheese on top. Place other buttered bread slice on top. Heat a frying pan or skillet on medium heat and drizzle 1 teaspoon of oil in the pan. Place the sandwich starting with the cheese side closest to the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes until golden and the cheese starts to melt. Press down with a turner to compact the sandwich. Gently flip over the sandwich and toast on the other side for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Ensure that the cheese has melted completely. Cut in half and serve with chips.

Personal Note

I was inspired to make this tuna melt via a show I recently watched. It's called Heated Rivalry and it's a show that everyone seems to be obsessed with. It's a wonderful love story between two ice hockey players (one Canadian and one Russian) and the acting and the dialogue are so unique and special.

Heated Rivalry is an adaption of a book by Canadian author Rachel Reid by Canadian writer and director Jacob Tierney and stars Hudson Williams as Shane and Connor Storrie as Ilya. And I discovered there's a big genre of MM (male/male) sports romance fiction!

In one scene Ilya (the Russian hockey captain) makes Shane (the Canadian captain) a tuna melt. Now tuna melts aren't the most romantic food, they are comforting and tasty but they do smell a bit but tinned tuna is probably what athletes eat a lot of. It set off a craving in me of tuna melts!

Usually I don't watch shows over again and there are probably only five shows that I've ever watched twice. But after I devoured the six episodes, I watched the whole series a second and then a third time and a fourth time it's that good. And sometimes I'd watch the episodes while eating a tuna melt too!

So tell me Dear Reader, have you watched Heated Rivalry? Do you like tuna melts? And do you like making food from shows or movies to eat while watching them?