Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad : A Family Recipe

This pasta salad hss been a staple comfort food in my family for years.  I remember my mom making it in droves. While I wasn’t really sure what to call it, my family calls it Tuna Macaroni Salad.  It really is a pasta salad that’s “a little of this, a little of that.” Rarely do we measure anything, so nailing down the right proportions was a bit perplezing.

Therefore, I called my grandmother and asked how she makes it. One summer, after my freshman year in college, I lived with her. We made this all the time. So after much discussion, Grandma Millie and I finally settled on the Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad recipe I’m sharing with you today.

Best Gluten Free Pasta for Cold Pasta Salads

I use Barilla pasta for just about all of my pasta dishes, hot or cold. From lasagna noodles to fusilli to elbow macaroni, it’s the pasta I recommend most. If you want to use it in a pasta salad, here’s my best tip. Once you cook the pasta and drain it, rinse it in very cold water to stop any residual cooking. Once it’s fully cooled and rinsed, place it in the fridge until you’re ready to make your pasta salad.

Looking for other gluten free pasta salad recipes? Try my Roasted Vegetable Pasta Salad. The feta in this recipe gives the salad a rich flavor. Looking for something with meat and a bit of zip? Try Iowa Girl Eats’ Best Pasta Salad. This BLT Ranch Pasta Salad from Evolving Table, sounds like a great summer time salad, too!

Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad Recipe

Print

Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad

Ingredients

• 8 oz gluten free pasta I used Barilla
• Half of one sweet onion chopped and soaked (1 cup)
• 1 16 oz bag of frozen peas
• 1 large can of tuna
• 2 stalks celery chopped (optional)
• 15 oz container of mayonnaise I used Hellman’s
• 3 large eggs boiled and chopped
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions

• Fill large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add gluten free pasta, and cook 6-7 minutes, until al dente. Remove from stove immediately, drain, and rinse under cold water to stop cooking process. Leave in colander to continue draining.
• Chop onion and place onions in a small bowl. Soak them in cold water for 5-7 minutes. This helps to remove any of the “bite” of the onion that may lead to heartburn. After soaking, drain off water.
• Fill a small pot with cold water. Add to it 3 large eggs. Put the pot on the stove, slowly bring to a boil, then turn off and remove from heat. Let eggs sit in hot water for 10 minutes. Then, drain and run eggs under cold water to stop cooking process. 
• In a large bowl, add gluten free pasta, soaked onions, frozen peas, large can of tuna, celery if using, and mayonnaise. Stir all ingredients together until throughly combined. 
• Lastly, peel and chop eggs. Add to salad, and gently stir. Add salt and pepper to taste. (I believe I added 1 tsp salt and a 1/2 tsp pepper.)
• This pasta salad is best served after it has chilled for a few hours. 

**This post contains affiliate links. Purchases made through those links help support this blog with no extra expense to you. Thank you for your continued support!**

The post Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad appeared first on MI Gluten Free Gal.

How to Cut and Roast Vegetables

I first stumbled across this idea for a gluten free roasted vegetable pasta salad at AllRecipes.com. If you’re unfamiliar with the site, only recipes are printed there. No blog posts, JUST the recipe. (Comments are allowed, and people do give tips on how they’re altered a dish.) They utilize a great ingredient search engine, allowing you to exclude ingredients you’re allergic to.

However, sometimes I need back story. Trial and error. That’s why I like sites like The Kitchn. They write many “how to” posts, that explain the ins and outs of cooking. I really like their tutorial on how to roast any vegetable. It influenced greatly how I cut and roasted my vegetables for this gluten free roasted vegetable salad. Long story short, high heat, in chunks, with lots of room on the pan so the water can escape.

Favorite Gluten Free Pasta and Cooking Tips

Over and over in Facebook groups people ask, “what’s your favorite….” If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know I’m not a fan of that question. Why? Because we all have different taste and texture preferences, and sometimes you need to just experiment with trial and error. When it comes to YOUR favorite, there’s no wrong answer.

If I may put my two cents in, I recommend Barilla. Are there better gluten free pastas? Probably. However, Barilla doesn’t fall apart, is readily available in most grocery stores, and is economical. While I used rotint for this post, I’d recommend using elbow pasta instead, because it’s sturdier. 

When it comes to cooking gluten free pasta, take care to not overcook it. Especially if using in a pasta salad. I recommend slightly undercooking it. In addition, IMMEDIATELY rinse the cooked pasta in cold water. This stops the cooking process. I’ve been successful in cooking gluten free pasta ahead of time in this manner, and using it later in a dish. All while not disintegrating. (It worked great in my Gluten Free Tuna Macaroni Salad.)

An alternate way to boil pasta – Boil the pasta for only 3-5 minutes and let it soak for 15 minutes. Perfect every time!

Best Served With….

Recently, I made this gluten free roasted vegetable pasta salad to share with friends. We paired it with a beef roast that my husband smoked overnight on our charcoal grill. It makes for the most amazing tasting meat. I recommend trying it yourself. Weber Grill wrote a great post on how to smoke on a charcoal grill. (For a visual tutorial, visit this video by “Break It Yourself.”)

Of course, you can pair this with any grilled meal. Pair it with simple chicken breast or even fish. Or make my favorite Grilled Pizza, for another great shareable meal. Looking for more ideas? These 25 Gluten Free Grilled Main Dishes from My Gluten-Free Kitchen are a great start. Just remember to use a clean grill or use foil to to prevent cross contact from gluten.

Side note- I LOVE to use Isola Imports Cream of Balsalmic on roasted meats and vegetables!

More Zucchini Recipes

One reason I love making this gluten free roasted vegetable pasta salad is because it uses zucchini. If you plant your own garden, you know that zucchini proliferates quickly! If you have eggplant, I highly recommend making this Oven Roasted Ratatouille from Budget Bytes. Don’t want to turn on your oven?

Of course, zucchini works great in sweet treats as well. I love making my Gluten Free Blueberry Zucchini Bread, especially with fresh blueberries i pick at Montrose Orchards. Looking for something egg and dairy free? Try these Allergy Friendly Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins from Allergy Awesomeness

Dietary Restrictions and Substitutions

As written, this gluten free roasted vegetable pasta salad is vegetarian, egg free, nut free, and soy free, depending on the salad dressing and pasta that you use. Should you need it to be grain free, I recommend Banza pasta as a replacement. However, I have NOT tried it in a pasta salad.

The recipe does call for feta cheese, which contains dairy. You can sub with a shredded dairy free cheese, such as Daiya or Follow Your Heart. Miyoko’s Kitchen Garlic Herb Cheese Wheel, crumbled, might work well in this recipe. Should you want to be creative, try Go Dairy Free’s recipe for homemade dairy free almond feta cheese.

Print

Gluten Free Roasted Vegetable Pasta Salad

Equipment

• https://www.amazon.com/King-Arthur-Flour-Measure-Gluten/dp/B01JJ9H1Q8?crid=374QDJVFLU9WZ&keywords=king+arthur+measure+for+measure&qid=1707139755&sprefix=king+arthur+measure+for+measu%2Caps%2C405&sr=8-1&linkCode=ll1&tag=miglutenfreeg-20&linkId=517b46530bf240721d01f3782e97ee97&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_tl

Ingredients

• 1 zucchini cubed
• 1 yellow squash cubed
• 1 onion cut into chunks
• 2 bell peppers chopped – 1 yellow, 1 red
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 8 oz. gluten free pasta – I used Barilla try elbow pasta
• 2 tomatoes chopped (or cherry tomatoes, halved)
• 5 oz. feta cheese feel free to use more if you like!
• 1/2 c. balsamic dressing

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• Combine vegetables (minus tomatoes) in a roasting pan. Top with olive oil and and bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
• Meanwhile bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil . Cook pasta according to package directions.
• Combine vegetable mixture, cooked pasta, tomatoes and feta cubes. Add salad dressing to taste and toss until well mixed. Chill for a few hours to mingle flavors. Enjoy cold!

**This post contain affiliate links. Purchases made through those links help support this blog with no extra expense to you. Thank you for your continued support!**

The post Gluten Free Roasted Vegetable Pasta Salad appeared first on MI Gluten Free Gal.