Caesar Tuna Salad Sandwich aka “The Poseidon”

A picture of a bowl of Tuna Salad

Ingredients

  • Two slices of bread or, failing that, some kind of roll
  • 1 can tuna in water (solid white albacore for best results)
  • 1 jar Mayonnaise
  • 1 bottle Caesar dressing
  • 1 baby dill pickle
  • Salt and pepper

Utensils Needed

  • Fork
  • Bowl
  • Plate
  • Can Opener (if the tuna isn’t in a pull-tab can)

Steps

  1. Gather your ingredients and utensils.
  2. Open the can of tuna and, using the can top, drain the excess water into the sink.
  3. Add the tuna to the bowl.
  4. Use the fork to scoop the mayo out of the jar into the bowl. The ratio should be a little more tuna than mayo.
  5. Add the Caesar dressing until the ratio is a little more of the combined mayo and dressing than tuna.
  6. Place the pickle on the plate and cut it into small sections with the side of the fork, then add them to the bowl.
  7. Stir the contents of the bowl until it is a uniform, semi-solid paste. If it appears too dry, add more mayonnaise.
  8. Salt and pepper to taste.
  9. Place the bread on the plate and scoop the contents of the bowl onto one of the slices, placing the other slice on top of it.
  10. Enjoy!

Recipe Selection Justification

How is this recipe appropriate for college students? This is a very simple recipe with clear steps, the order of which doesn’t matter a great deal. It only requires a plate, a bowl, and a fork and I’d bet that you could even manage without the plate. It also eschews exact measurements in favor of eyeballing since there’s no guarantee they have any way of actually measuring. Recent studies [1] have shown that many students learn their culinary skills through observation, either at home or in campus dining halls, as opposed to formal training in a classroom setting. This means that things like exact measurements or technical terms might be more of a barrier than a benefit. This was my dinner as a middle school latchkey kid, so if that little idiot can figure it out, so can college students. In addition, all of the ingredients are shelf-stable items that could easily be found in a food pantry and are at least marginally healthier than other things one might be able to acquire on a limited budget. Research indicates that many students who are experiencing food insecurity are not getting their daily recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables [2], so adding pickles to the recipe was a quick way to include additional nutrition through something that, being shelf stable, should be commonly available at food pantries. A lack of fruits and vegetables in food insecure people’s diets during the Covid-19 pandemic was found to be an issue among a significant number of study participants [3], so this is clearly an issue that needs to be addressed.

Bibliography

[1]T. Watson, H. Malan, D. Glik, and S. Martinez, “College students identify university support for basic needs and life skills as key ingredient in addressing food insecurity on campus,” Gale Academic Onefile, Sep. 2017. https://go-gale-com.ezproxy.uwgb.edu/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T002&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&retrievalId=4d78196c-fa92-45fa-a6fa-ba6ef76e77dd&hitCount=13&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=2&docId=GALE%7CA530962959&docType=Report&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZONE-MOD1&prodId=AONE&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CA530962959&searchId=R1&userGroupName=greenbay&inPS=true (accessed Nov. 02, 2024).

 

[2]G. Chodur, S. Signh, E. Esaryk, S. Kalaydjian, and S. Martinez, “RESEARCH Research Brief Campus Food Pantry Use May Improve Daily Frequency of Fruit and Vegetable Intake Among California University Students Experiencing Food Insecurity,” Clinicalkey, Feb. 01, 2024. https://www-clinicalkey-com.ezproxy.uwgb.edu/service/content/pdf/watermarked/1-s2.0-S2212267223015629.pdf?locale=en_US&searchIndex= (accessed Nov. 02, 2024).

 

[3]F. Bertmann, C. Rogomentich, E. Belarmino, and M. Niles, “The Food Bank and Food Pantries Help Food Insecure Participants Maintain Fruit and Vegetable Intake during COVID-19,” frontiersin.org, Aug. 06, 2021. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.673158/full (accessed Nov. 02, 2024).