This easy tuna melt recipe is chock-full of melty cheese and flavorful tuna salad that’s sandwiched between buttery multigrain bread and toasted to a delicious golden brown.

Why this recipe works

A tuna melt is a cross between gooey grilled cheese and tuna salad. These two come together to create a sandwich to please the tuna lovers’ senses! It’s a groundbreaking classic sandwich that proves that in some cases, fish can pair well with cheese.

With tons of flavorful components like minced shallots, capers, dill, and pickle, this particular tuna melt sandwich is brimming with savory, mouth-watering ingredients in each bite.

Ingredients you will need

Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.

Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions

BREAD – Multigrain is sturdier than regular white bread, plus it packs in more nutrients. If you’re looking for a substitution, try sourdough, whole wheat, or rye bread.

TUNA – The tuna salad is made with canned tuna in water, minced shallots, capers, mayonnaise, dried dill, lemon juice, pickles, and horseradish mayo. If you aren’t big on capers, feel free to omit them. Likewise with the horseradish mayo, you can simply substitute with additional mayonnaise.

CHEESE – We’re using shredded cheddar cheese. I always recommend you shred cheese yourself as prepackaged shredded cheeses contain an anti-caking agent that prevents the cheese from melting as well as sometimes causing your dishes to become grainy. You can use your favorite cheese for this tuna melt. Pepper jack, Swiss, Havarti, and cheddar are all great options.

How to Make Tuna Melt

These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.

Butter one side of each slice of bread.
Mix together tuna, shallots, capers, mayonnaise, dill, lemon juice, pickles and horseradish mayo.
For each sandwich, use a piece of aluminum foil a little larger than one of your bread slices to create a shallow bowl. Place foil bowl in skillet, On the foil place half of the tuna salad. Put the other half on a second foil bowl.
Layer on top of tuna, 2 slices tomato and half of the cheddar cheese. Repeat for second foil bowl.
Place skillet on stove over medium heat. As tuna begins to bubble a little, add a small amount of water to the pan (about 1/4 cup), being careful not to add water to the foil bowl and tuna.
Place cover on skillet. The water will create steam which will quickly melt the cheese.
Once cheese is melted, turn off heat and use a fish turner spatula to remove the foil bowl from the skillet.
Add a little butter to the skillet to keep bread from sticking.
Place a slice of buttered bread (butter side down) in the skillet. Quickly invert foil bowl on top of bread and peel foil off. Some of the tuna may stick to the foil. Cover with second slice of bread, butter side up.
Repeat for the second sandwich.
Allow to cook for 1-2 minutes to grill the bread and flip over to cook the other side. Repeat for second sandwich.
Remove from pan.
To cut a tuna melt, simply wrap it in parchment paper then slice with a knife. This will keep the filling from seeping out the sides.

Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips

Can I prepare it in advance?

You can certainly prepare the tuna salad a day or two in advance if stored in an air-tight container kept in the refrigerator. Assemble with cheese, tomato, and bread right before cooking in a skillet. Allowing the ingredients to mingle overnight in the refrigerator will yield even more flavorful results.

What can I add to a tuna melt?

Feel free to add lettuce or pickled onions with the tomato when assembling the sandwich, or switch up the tuna salad fillings with the addition of peas or red onion. The capers can be substituted or omitted if you aren’t keen to their briny flavor, but they add a nice salty touch to the finished sandwich.

Tuna Melt wrapped in newsprint parchment

Serving Suggestions

Serve your tuna melt sandwich with potato chips, french fries, sweet potato fries, or pickle spears on the side. Tuna melts are best served right away, enjoy!

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