tuna & macaroni salad - egg or no egg?

[salinqmind]

I can't believe I forgot how to make tuna and macaroni salad! I cooked pasta, I have tuna and mayonnaise, celery onion shredded carrot - should I put in hard boiled egg, too? What do you do?

[Dolores Reborn]

I'd say yes. Even though I never make tuna with pasta salad.

I make tuna salad with chopped egg, and pasta salad without egg.

I'll have to try yours!

[DCnDC]

I say yes. Cold pasta/potato/tuna/chicken/etc. salads are always better with egg. It's like the peanuts in Cracker Jack.

[Athena]

I've never put eggs in mine. I do tuna, elbow macaroni, Italian dressing, mayo, cheddar cheese, red or orange bell peppers, celery, red onion, maybe some parsley.

Maybe if I left the cheese out, I'd put eggs, but it's honestly never occurred to me!

Potato salad, on the other hand, ALWAYS gets eggs.

[kayaker]

I use eggs. Then again, we have chickens and are always trying to find ways to use eggs.

[salinqmind]

I use eggs in potato salad, of course, but drew a blank at mac & tuna. My mom said you don't need two proteins in a pasta salad, but you can toss in any number of veggies.

I left out the eggs and just mixed it all up with carrot, onion, tuna, mayo, and a little Italian dressing. I have some cucumber and a yellow pepper and might dice that fine to put in. Ya know....it's ALL good, its gonna be gone by tomorrow!

[RealityChuck]

It doesn't matter. Some like egg, some wouldn't think to add it. I'm in the latter camp.

[Thudlow Boink]

I don't think of egg as a standard ingredient in tuna or macaroni salad, but it might be better that way.

If you're making egg salad, on the other hand, the egg is a necessity.

[pulykamell]

I grew up with no eggs in potato salad; yes in tuna salad. You can go either way. It's all good. I'm surprised at how many people had eggs in their potato salad. I can honestly say I've ever had eggs in mine, whether American style or German style potato salad.

[EmilyG]

I'd say no, because hard-boiled eggs stink, but that's just me. :P

[silenus]

Originally Posted by pulykamell

I grew up with no eggs in potato salad; yes in tuna salad. You can go either way. It's all good. I'm surprised at how many people had eggs in their potato salad. I can honestly say I've ever had eggs in mine, whether American style or German style potato salad.

I'm the exact opposite. Eggs belong in potato salad and nowhere near tuna salad.

It truly is a wonderful world.

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by silenus

I'm the exact opposite. Eggs belong in potato salad and nowhere near tuna salad.

It truly is a wonderful world.

My favorite tuna salad, though, has neither eggs nor mayonnaise. Just olive oil, capers, lemon juice, and a couple other things.

[Purd Werfect]

Originally Posted by pulykamell

My favorite tuna salad, though, has neither eggs nor mayonnaise. Just olive oil, capers, lemon juice, and a couple other things.

About those couple of other things - got a recipe?

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by Purd Werfect

About those couple of other things - got a recipe?

I just do it to taste. I get some good tuna packed in oil and mix i with: very finely chopped red onion, finely chopped celery, lemon juice (or balsamic vinger), EVOO, capers, olives (if I'm feeling like it; pitted, left whole or sliced), and freshly cracked pepper. I like to finish with parsely or minced green onion. Sometimes I add a finely chopped anchovy filet or two.

Looking online with some of my ingredients as search terms, this is close to what I make, though I don't use garlic in mine and add a bit of celery for crunch.

[stpauler]

No regular eggs in mine please and thanks. Mine is simple four ingredients:
Water based tuna (the oil stuff is nasty)
Mayo
Macaroni
Cubed apple chunks.

I had that for lunch all last week. Yum.

[the_diego]

Just the tuna and mac. Egg doesn't improve the taste. To make it yummy, just like with potato salad, you carefully add chopped celery, a little finely chopped onion, and fresh-ground pepper.

[ceilidh]

I've never heard of putting egg into tuna and macaroni salad before. I have heard of putting egg in potato salad though.

[kaylasdad99]

I generally put one diced potato in my macaroni-tuna salad (along with, of course, celery and onions). It's all I can do to get Kayla to eat the salad at all, and she refuses to taste eggs, so no eggs unless I'm making it while she's at summer camp.

[LawMonkey]

Odd; I've never had "tuna & macaroni" salad. I've had tuna (eggs please) and macaroni (not my favorite, but no eggs), but never the twain have met.

[BigT]

I personally only use egg if there aren't any noodles. But it works either way. Though, if you plan on heating up leftovers for a hot salad (which I do a lot), it won't be as good, in my opinion.

[Zsofia]

Is this one of those Midwestern things?

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by LawMonkey

Odd; I've never had "tuna & macaroni" salad. I've had tuna (eggs please) and macaroni (not my favorite, but no eggs), but never the twain have met.

Actually, I completely glossed over the "macaroni" part of this question. I've never had tuna salad with macaroni. Hot tuna mac & cheese, yes. Tuna mac salad? No. My eggs-in-tuna-salad refers to regular tuna salad, without pasta.

[pulykamell]

Originally Posted by Zsofia

Is this one of those Midwestern things?

Puttings eggs in it, or the whole tuna mac salad thing? Looking online, a number of websites seem to suggest it to be a Southern dish, too. But, yeah, it looks pretty Midwestern to me, overall.

[Zsofia]

Tuna macaroni salad. No, it is not a Southern thing. Good lord, that would be thrown out of any church supper I've ever been to. "What's that?" "Macaroni salad?" "Why the hell does it seem to have tuna in it?"

Now, tuna mac and cheese, yes - that's what you feed the kids when they won't eat anything that isn't orange.

[pulykamell]

To be honest, though, growing up in the Midwest (Chicago), I've never encountered tuna macaroni salad, either. I think it depends on where you grew up. There's Dixie cookbooks I've found online that have tuna macaroni salad. The South is a big place. So is the Midwest. This may just be one of those pan-USA things.

[Rhiannon8404]

I don't like eggs in mine.

[Floater]

Yesterdays dinner: A salad consisting of cold fusilli, tuna, chopped up tomato, ditto onion, ditto bell pepper, ditto garlic (loads of it), cold hard boiled eggs, squeezed lime fruit and a vinaigrette made from white wine vinegar and lemon flavoured olive oil.

Yummy.

[Bass Chick]

Originally Posted by Zsofia

Tuna macaroni salad. No, it is not a Southern thing. Good lord, that would be thrown out of any church supper I've ever been to. "What's that?" "Macaroni salad?" "Why the hell does it seem to have tuna in it?"

Now, tuna mac and cheese, yes - that's what you feed the kids when they won't eat anything that isn't orange.

Yep.