Yam Tuna or Thai style Tuna Salad

Last two to three weeks I was in Costa Rica with my family for a vacation, during we were there I missed my Thai food. I am just like the most of Thai people who are used to eating hot and spicy food. Spiciness in chilli peppers helps your appetite, in Thailand we will say “Sab” or Yummy when we see spicy and sour food because it makes your mount water, in some cultures people believe that eating a spicy food can stimulate a person’s sexual appetite.

This Yam Tuna dish is very simple and easy to make – no cooking required. You can find the ingredients pretty much every part of the world. The main ingredient is Tuna from a can, I prefer the Tuna in oil one so that the tuna will not be too dry and I remove some extra oil which is floating on the top in a can, and the rest of ingredients are lime juice, chilli pepper, onion or shallots and one of these herbs - mint, dill, coriander and culantro. I used culantro when I made this dish in Costa Rica as it is available and native herb to Mexico through South America. It is interesting we use this herb a lots in Thai food. And for chilli peppers, the only kind of chilli pepper I had in Costa Rica was jalapeño peppers. I simply roasted a jalapeno pepper on the element of a stove to remove a strong flavour in jalapeno peppers and created a little smoky flavour and was incredible to become a good Thai-Latino Tuna salad.

After I had this Yam Tuna in Costa Rica and thought of people, who love Thai food or spicy food, live in any part of the world will have a chance to enjoy a (simple) taste of Thai and would like to share with. It is healthy food and really good for people who don’t have a lots of time on cooking.

• The tuna in oil, I got in Costa Rica had lot of oil but the tuna in oil from Ottawa was pretty dry so I didn’t have to remove the extra oil. I think it depends on the manufacturers and also the level of sodium too – each brand has different level of sodium.
• For some people may find that shallot has a strong flavour, then red onion is a good solution.

10 minutes for a whole process.

Ingredients

1 can                    Tuna in oil, 130g.

½ cup                   Shallots or red onion, slice thin.

2 - 2½ tbsp           Lime juice

7 leaves                Mints

1 Fresh Thai chilli pepper, chopped very fine or 1 roasted jalapeno pepper. (The spiciness is adjustable, depend on your favour or the level of spiciness of chillies)

Pinch of salt

Fish sauce            Optional; it depends on the level of sodium in tuna.

3                           Grape tomatoes, cut into half.

Instruction

1. Open tuna can. Remove some extra oil that floating on the top. Transfer tuna to a bowl. (Break to be smaller pieces if you use solid tuna).
2. Sprinkle salt on shallot or red onion slices and mix well.
3. Mix all together tuna, shallot or onion slices, lime juice, chilli pepper and mints. And garnish with grape tomatoes.
4. Serve with steamed rice or eat as salad, or wrapped each bite with lettuce leaves, and or for sandwiches.