with fresh basil, avocado & cherry tomatoes. This lovely crunchy salad is summertime simplicity at it’s finest! If you’ve got fresh zucchini and leftover corn on the cob, this cool, refreshing salad comes together in a snap and makes the perfect light dinner or easy lunch option, especially if you’re the kind that keeps tuna salad on hand in the fridge at all times.
Spiralize the zoodles ahead of time and store them in a bag in the fridge for quick, healthy meals. You can also freeze the zucchini noodles for future use, but for this salad, I recommend fresh (un-frozen) zoodles.
And yes, currently in my house, we DO keep tuna salad on hand in the fridge at all times. I also try to have a ripe avocado on hand at all times … avocados are so creamy and delicious in so many ways, plus they are super heart healthy, great for lowering cholesterol, full of fiber and SO good for the digestive system. Seriously, if you’ve got any gut issues, try adding some avocado into your diet.
This salad is like a big bowl of cold noodles with all kinds of creamy yumminess stirred in, except the “noodles” here have a satisfying crunch that contrasts so well with the creamy mayo and salty tuna, the sweet chewiness of the corn and the ripe, sweet, juicy tomatoes. Fresh basil leaves and avocado are the little bit that takes it to over-the-top delicious! This salad is a delight that will find you twirling your fork and stabbing a tomato chunk and some avocado with every bite. I was reveling in every bite of it! Say goodbye to boring salads … and hello to actually ENJOYING your salad.
How did this salad come to be?
I tossed this salad together one day when I was STARVING and didn’t want to spend much time making lunch. I happened to have made some zoodles ahead of time and stored them in a bag in the fridge. I had fresh sweet corn too, that my neighbor had brought over as a “thank you” for sharing some of my zucchini. Fresh, crunchy zucchini noodles (a.k.a., zoodles) are essential for this salad. I tried making it with cucumber chunks and was sadly disappointed. It’s the noodle-icious factor that makes this salad so dang much fun.
The inspiration from this salad is from my friend Ann at the Fountain Avenue Kitchen … I made her cucumber corn salad with basil & chives years ago and it is still one of the most popular posts on my blog to this day! Something in the back of my mind told me that tuna and avocado would be wonderful additions, especially with zoodles.
I have always cooked my zoodles before … this is the first time I’ve eaten them raw as a salad and I was seriously asking myself WHY? Why did you wait so long? I’ve been making zoodles for years, and I’ve never tried them in a salad before?
I hope you love this fresh crunchy and EASY zoodle salad as much as I did!
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Tuna & Corn Zoodle Salad
Description
Fresh, simple and fun! This easy zoodle salad will become a new summertime favorite you’ll want to make over and over again.
Ingredients
Per serving:
- 1 1/2 – 2 cups zucchini noodles (zoodles)
- About 1/4 cup tuna salad (canned tuna, flaked and mixed with mayo and a bit of mustard — or however you like to make it)
- 2 – 4 Tablespoons of chopped, sweet onion (optional)
- about 1/2 cup sweet corn, gently cooked until tender and cut off the cob (leftover corn works great … or use frozen, thawed)
- several sweet, ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
- a few slices of fresh, ripe avocado (about 1/4 of an avocado)
- 4 – 6 large fresh basil leaves, sliced into thin ribbons (chiffonade style)
- Lemon pepper
Instructions
- Put the zoodles and onion in your salad bowl and roughly toss with the tuna salad to coat the zoodles. It’s okay if there are occasional pockets of tuna salad amongst the zoodles.
- Strew the corn over and toss gently, then add bright bursts of red cherry tomatoes and a fan of avocado slices (or sprinkle with avocado chunks).
- Roll up the basil leaves together and slice into thin ribbons. Sprinkle over the salad. Top with lemon pepper and garnish with more fresh basil, if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
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