Tasty and super easy this Tuna Melt Recipe has flavorful ingredients that are amped up to make it a delicious sandwich. Perfect for lunch or dinner, this one is a keeper!
I’ve had a long standing love with Tuna Melts! I have been making them since I was a kid and over the years they have evolved into more adult like sandwiches for me.
Lunch or dinner this is a great recipe for any of those meals. They are light enough to have for lunch but also filling enough to have for dinner, so it is a win-win whenever you want to eat them.
Full of fun flavors, they are super customizable to fit your flavor profile. Topped with melty cheese and tomatoes, I feel like it is a great combination that we just can’t get enough of.
I am super lucky that my kids also love tuna, so these sandwiches go over really well with them, obviously with some modification but most people modify recipes to their tastes all the time.
I worked on making my favorite over the years and this had become the overall winner of it. Everything, all the flavors just work together in unison and tastes just great.
It really is hard to stop at one, but as my motto goes – everything in moderation! But if you want a delicious sandwich for one of your meals this Tuna Melt Recipe is the one you need.
Some of my other favorite sandwich recipes we have on our site include: Cuban Sandwich, Instant Pot Chicken Caesar Sandwiches and The Best Grilled Cheese Sandwich.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- Done in 20 minutes it is quick and easy.
- You can double this recipe to serve more people.
- Modify the flavors to your liking!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE AT BOTTOM):
Tuna
Mayonnaise
Red onion
Lemon juice
Salt
Pepper
Celery
Green onion
Cheddar cheese
Tomato
Bread
Salted butter
HOW TO MAKE A TUNA MELT RECIPE, STEP BY STEP:
- After draining the tuna thoroughly, place it into a medium bowl. Use a fork to break it up well.
- Mix mayonnaise, onion, lemon juice, salt, pepper, celery, green onion, and green onion with the tuna.
- Heat a skillet to medium-low heat.
- Spread butter on one slice of bread. Place this piece of bread, butter side down, into the skillet. Add about ½ cup of the tuna mixture and spread it to the edges of the bread.
- Add slices of tomato and a slice of cheese.
- Butter on one side of another piece of bread. Place this piece of bread (butter side up) on top of the cheese. (The butter goes on the outside of the sandwich so that it will toast nicely.) Then carefully flip the sandwich with a spatula to grill both sides.
- Cook the sandwich in the skillet at medium-low heat until the cheese is melted, and the bread is toasted.
CAN I MAKE THIS OPEN-FACED?
I know that a lot of people love open-faced Tuna Melts, and I would make them like that for the longest time as well. So the answer is yes, you can.
Just don’t add the top slice of bread. And be careful to keep the heat low enough so that the filling melts before the bread gets too dark.
WHAT IS THE BEST TEMPERATURE TO HEAT MY SKILLET TO?
We all know that perfect ratio that we want, nice browned bread but melted cheese, sometimes we end up with burnt bread and no melted cheese or it simply takes too long.
You want the skillet to be at about a medium low heat. If you have the heat too high, the outside will burn before the cheese melts.
And is the temperature if too low, then you won’t get a nice crisp on the bread. You may have to turn the heat higher or lower, depending on what is happening to the sandwich.
Cook until there is a golden toast to the bread and the cheese is melty. And keep in mind that different kinds of bread may cook faster or slower. It often depends on the amount of sugar in the bread.
WHAT IS THE BEST BREAD TO USE?
I like this sandwich with a sturdy bread like rye or sourdough, but it is also delicious with multigrain, whole wheat, or plain white bread. You can adjust the bread to your own taste.
CAN I USE A DIFFERENT TYPE OF CHEESE?
While cheddar is my personal preference, not everyone always agrees on the same thing. Some delicious alternatives would be havarti, provolone, colby jack, swiss, or even processed cheese if you prefer.
HOW TO STORE:
Store unused tuna mixture in an airtight container where it will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 5 days. Or you may store it in the freezer for up to a week.
If you are storing the Tuna Melt Recipe, it may be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator where it will keep for up to 2 days.
To reheat it, place sandwiches in the oven at 350 degrees F to heat through. This will take about 5 minutes.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- You can leave out the celery if you like, otherwise another great alternative we like to add is chopped pickles or pickle relish.
- You can use any kind of bread, a sturdier one works best, see my suggestions above.
- The tuna mixture can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- Double this recipe to serve more people.
- Your cheese’s can be switched out, we like cheddar but you can use any of your favorites.
- This can be made open-faced, see above on how to do that.
If love you a good sandwich for lunch or dinner then you have come to the right place! This Tuna Melt Recipe is always a hit in our house so hopefully it will be in your.
If you like this recipe you might also like:
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Tuna Melt Recipe
Ingredients
- 10 ounces canned tuna drained (2 5 ounce cans)
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup of red onion diced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of pepper
- 1 rib of celery diced
- 1 green onion finely sliced
- 4 slices of cheddar cheese
- 8 slices of tomato
- 8 slices bread
- 2 Tablespoons salted butter softened
Instructions
- After draining the tuna thoroughly, place it into a medium bowl. Use a fork to break it up well.
- Mix mayonnaise, onion, lemon juice, salt, pepper, celery, green onion, and green onion with the tuna.
- Heat a skillet to medium-low heat.
- Spread butter on one slice of bread. Place this piece of bread, butter side down, into the skillet. Add about ½ cup of the tuna mixture and spread it to the edges of the bread.
- Add slices of tomato and a slice of cheese.
- Butter on one side of another piece of bread. Place this piece of bread (butter side up) on top of the cheese. (The butter goes on the outside of the sandwich so that it will toast nicely.) Then carefully flip the sandwich with a spatula to grill both sides.
- Cook the sandwich in the skillet at medium-low heat until the cheese is melted, and the bread is toasted.
Notes
- Nutritional values are calculated using sourdough bread.
- You can leave out the celery if you like, otherwise another great alternative we like to add is chopped pickles or pickle relish.
- You can use any kind of bread, a sturdier one works best, see my suggestions above.
- The tuna mixture can be frozen, see above on how to do that.
- Double this recipe to serve more people.
- Your cheese's can be switched out, we like cheddar but you can use any of your favorites.
- This can be made open-faced, see above on how to do that.
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