Spicy Tuna Salad Lettuce Wraps
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Spicy, delicious, and oh so easy to make, this tuna lettuce wraps recipe is perfect for healthy meal prep or a low carb and keto friendly lunch. Finally, a lettuce wraps recipe you’ll actually enjoy!
2025 Update: This recipe is still a family favorite and has been updated to simplify the recipe instructions and add helpful tips for our readers. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Spicy Tuna Salad Recipe
Tuna salad is a meal prep 101 dish, and this one is anything but boring! Made with habanero peppers, it has a spicy kick of heat that will tickle your taste buds without setting them on fire.
Serving it in lettuce wraps topped with sugar-free pickled red onions, this is a far cry from the bland dish you may have grown up with.
Like my Pesto Chicken Salad and Tuna Salad Cucumber Cups, this keto-friendly lunch is easy to make and super delicious. It also fits perfectly into Paleo, pescatarian, and gluten-free eating plans!
Reasons to Love This Recipe
- Super simple meal prep dish. I like to make a double batch, so I can use it for lunches throughout the week.
- High in protein. It’s perfect for a mid-morning or afternoon high protein snack.
- Easy to adapt. If you aren’t a fan of super spicy tuna salad, it’s easy to adjust the amount and/or type of peppers you use.
If you prefer a little less spicy heat, try my Mexican Tuna Salad recipe. It’s full of veggies and flavored with taco seasoning.
Tuna Salad Ingredients
You might be skeptical, thinking this is some boring, simple canned tuna recipe with lettuce. But canned tuna is a great protein because it’s lean and really versatile.
- tuna fish: I typically use canned albacore tuna (white tuna fish) from Costco or Kroger. Always check for sneaky, unwanted ingredients, like sugars or vegetable broth with soy. For a different flavor, you can substitute canned salmon for the tuna.
- spicy chiles: I love the distinct flavor of habanero peppers, and a little goes a long way! But if you find jalapeños are easier to find, or you just want a little less spice, that’s an easy 1:1 substitution. Another option is to skip the chili peppers entirely and use sriracha or hot sauce instead.
- mayo: Use full-fat, homemade mayonnaise or use one of the paleo-compliant mayo brands. If you don’t care for mayo, substitute it with full-fat plain Greek yogurt.
- celery: For a little extra crunch, add some shredded carrots, red onion, and/or minced bell peppers if you want.
- cilantro: If you aren’t a fan of the flavor of cilantro, you can use flat leaf parsley or even some green onion (scallions) instead.
- salt
For the Lettuce Wraps
- onions: Use my sugar-free pickled red onions recipe. You can skip this, of course, but I think the acid works nicely with the heat, plus it adds a little more crunchy texture.
- lettuce leaves: I like romaine lettuce leaves, but feel free to whatever you like or have on hand. Butter lettuce, Bibb lettuce, and red leaf lettuce all work great! You can even swap the lettuce for other healthy greens, like collard, kale, or cabbage.
Making the Spicy Tuna Salad
Aside from finely dicing your veggies, there really isn’t much to this simple meal prep recipe! Just add all of your ingredients to a bowl, and stir everything together to combine.
Recipe Variations
There are quite a few ways to adapt this spicy tuna salad to add a different flavor profile. Get creative and think outside of the box! Here is just one idea:
Asian tuna lettuce wraps: Use your favorite Asian seasonings, like furikake, soy sauce (or coconut aminos), Kewpie mayo (Japanese mayonnaise), and/or some grated ginger. Instead of making tuna lettuce wraps, you can make spicy tuna rolls, by wrapping the mixture in nori or rice paper wrappers, along with some black or white sesame seeds.
For a milder heat in your tuna salad, sauté the diced peppers for a few minutes, until softened, before adding them to the tuna. Cooking the pepper mellows out some of the spicy heat, and the lettuce helps dilute the heat, too. Me? I’m a fan of the spicier the better, but I realize not everybody loves that level of heat! You do you, friends.
Tuna sushi: For a fantastic and healthy Asian meal, swap the tuna fish for some sushi-grade tuna!
Tips for Success
Slow your scroll! Here are a few tips you’ll want to know before you start making this recipe:
- Finely dice the celery and habanero. You want to get a little crunch and a little heat in every bite.
- Wear kitchen gloves when you dice the habaneros and remove the seeds. This is advice I always give to others, yet hardly ever follow myself. Every time I cut chiles, I somehow think I can get away with it, but that always ends up biting me in the behind. I’ve accidentally touched my eyes and burned them far too many times, so please, learn from my mistakes! For the love of hot peppers, WEAR GLOVES!
Serving and Storing
To prepare the lettuce wraps, spoon the spicy tuna salad into the lettuce leaves just before eating.
I like to add sliced cucumbers or bell peppers, some avocado slices, and pickled onions to my tuna lettuce wraps.
Be sure keep the mixture sealed in an airtight container, and store it in the fridge. Try to use it up within 5 days.
Tuna Lettuce Wraps FAQ
If you’re looking to jazz up the flavor of tuna, you can’t go wrong with adding some spicy heat. Red chili flakes, sriracha sauce, hot chili sauce, or even chili crisp would taste amazing. You could also add a splash of citrus, like lemon juice or lime juice.
Depending on what filling is in your lettuce wraps, they can be quite healthy! This tuna lettuce wraps recipe is high in protein and healthy fats and low in carbs.
For this recipe, one 3-ounce serving of spicy tuna salad and 2 lettuce leaves has 315 calories.
Other Healthy Meal Prep Recipes
- Apple Walnut Chicken Salad
- Greek Yogurt Tuna Salad
- Mexican Tuna Salad
- Easy Collard Wraps
- Butter Chicken Meal Prep
I’d love to hear about your experience making this recipe! Please leave a comment and rating below!
Spicy Tuna Salad Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
- 6 ounces tuna fish packed in oil or water
- 2 ribs celery
- 1 habanero pepper or 2 teaspoons diced jalapeno
- ¼ cup mayo use more or less, as desired
- 1½ tablespoons cilantro
- ½ teaspoon salt use more or less, as desired
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper use more or less, as desired
Serve with
- 4-6 lettuce leaves
- pickled red onions optional
Video
Instructions
- While wearing kitchen gloves, use a sharp knife to finely mince the habanero pepper, removing the seeds. Finely chop the celery and cilantro. Drain the oil/water from the tuna.
- Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir well to combine. Taste, then season with additional salt and black pepper if desired.
- Spoon the tuna salad into lettuce wraps and top with a little extra cilantro and pickled onions.
