This summer marks my fourth year since I started experimenting with vegan recipe development. In what feels like the blink of an eye, I’ve shared over 400 recipes (and many more photos) with you on this blog. When I started out I didn’t know how to cook a simple potato or chop an onion. Seriously. Thankfully, the wondrous internet reassured me that I was not the only person to ever type such a question into a search engine. Whew. Aside from cooking, I’d never shot a picture of food in my life, nor did it ever cross my mind to do so. Now, a day doesn’t go by when I don’t pick up my camera or chef’s knife.
Eric, who claims he does not like cooking (but loves eating), mentioned how he hates when recipes say “season to taste”. [I don’t know what it’s supposed to taste like if I’ve never made it before!] I can’t help but smile when he says this because I used to be in his shoes, scared to make a simple ingredient decision for fear of ruining the entire thing. It gets easier though. My biggest mistake starting out was probably under-seasoning my food or avoiding salt all together. Now I know that adding salt to taste is something you get a sense for with experience. When the flavours pop, I know I’ve hit the sweet spot.
So while I don’t quite believe the saying that practice makes perfect, I do think that practice builds experience and confidence. This is true for so many things in life. The more I work at it, the more fun it becomes. Now when I cook for pleasure, it’s fun to throw things into a bowl and trust my instincts.
Another surprise for me on this journey has been about the food itself. I’m in awe of the recipes that I can make using simple plant-based ingredients. Each week brings about new inspiration and new discoveries. I feel like I’ve only touched the tip of the iceberg as to what I can create. It’s exciting to look down and see a plate of food that looks as vibrant as I feel on the inside. Being able to share this passion with you, is really what I enjoy the most.
The base of this salad is made with plump soaked almonds. As I mentioned in my last post, soaking almonds in water for several hours allows the nutrients in the almonds to be absorbed better in the body. After soaking and rinsing, I processed the almonds into a flaked texture as the base for my salad. It worked perfectly and the salad has such a great, chewy texture.
To bulk up the flaked almonds, I added celery, garlic, and green onion for more flavour and crunch. Finally some oil-based mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and lemon juice brought everything together. The end result is creamy, crunchy, a bit tangy, and seriously, seriously hard to resist. I couldn’t stop eating it straight from the bowl! It got to the point where I was worried that I wouldn’t have enough salad left to photograph. hah. This happens to me a lot actually. I’d be horrible on a cooking show because I’d just want to stuff my face the entire time while trying to pretend like I’m a civilized human being.
If you’re looking for a fun summer finger food, you can serve it on top of cucumber slices for a refreshing, light appetizer. I used a metal teaspoon to carefully scoop a well into each slice. We enjoyed this for lunch and it was so refreshing! The only thing I would change next time is to peel the cucumber first. The skin was a bit hard to chew through.
You can also serve this mixture on top of a salad (love), stuffed into a pita or wrap (also love), or as a hearty dip for crackers (such as during a 10pm fridge raid).
Rather than using tuna fish to create this salad, my plant-based version uses raw almonds which are soaked until plump and then processed until flaked in texture. Once the flaked almonds are mixed with some vegan mayo, Dijon, celery, green onion, lemon, garlic, salt, and pepper, it turns into a creamy, fresh, and crunchy topping for a salad, crackers, sandwich, or wrap. 
Flaked Almond "Tuna" Salad
Yield
Serves 4Soak time
3 to 9 hoursPrep time
Cook time
0 minutesTotal time
Ingredients
Directions
Tip:
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
The 2013 VegNews Veggie Awards are going down once again! I’m delighted to be nominated in the Favorite Blog category for the second year in a row. Once again, there are all kinds of incredible prizes up for grabs such as a week long, all expenses paid Caribbean Cruise (!), Breville juicer, weekly cookie deliveries, and more just by filling out the survey. If you think Oh She Glows is worthy of such an award, I would be so grateful for your vote of support (Favorite Blog category is found on page 5 of the survey, by the way). You can find the 2013 Vegnews survey here and it’s open until the end of August. While you’re at it, check out all the amazing vegan products/businesses/people/restaurants up for awards and nominate your own favs if they aren’t listed.
I know this posting is from several months ago and you probably don’t even have time to read comments – especially from older posts, but I just HAD to write to you tonight after making this salad for about the millionth time since August. I LOVE it and could eat it EVERY day! I served it earlier this week over just simple avocado slices to some girlfriends for lunch (many of them not vegan) and they loved it too. I just can’t get enough of it! The fact of the matter is…. I love every recipe of yours that I’ve tried. And I’ve tried a lot of them. The almond butter cups are to die for…. so yummy! I am sooooo anxious for your cookbook to come out and am very intrigued as to why there is a Canadian version and a US version. And I was wishing it was coming out before Christmas as it would help me cross a whole bunch of friends off my list easily! Thank you so much for your fabulous recipes. I enjoy your blog very, very much. Keep up the good work! Hugs, Barb in Texas
Seriously the best thing ever <3 thank you!
Made this for lunch today, it was delicious!
WOW! Just made this – and I am amazed at the flavor! It is sooo delish! I made double batch, and made a mistake of processing all the ingredients in the food processor but it came out fine. I tasted the Vegenaise by itself (the kind with grape seed oil) and it was “meh”. But used in this recipe with the lemon juice, Dijon and garlic – it tastes like the REAL thing! I love it! Thanks!
Just made this salad for a swim meet snack buffet – decided to nix the garlic and mustard, add a few drops of stevia and serve it on thick slices of apple with a dried cranberry on top. They were all gobbled up within minutes! Tasted like Chicken Waldorf salad and no one realized they were eating a vegan dish.
My vegetarian daughter comes home from college for the holidays, and I’m already making another batch to keep in the fridge for her snacks/lunches.
Thanks for posting this great recipe!
We made this last night and it is SO good!!! I did two batches.. the first one I followed the recipe but my mayo is a lemon flavored mayo and I didn’t realize it, so with that and the added lemon juice it was really tart! The next batch I skipped the lemon and added a little more dijon, it is so yummy!! Thanks for sharing this, we love your blog and your recipes :) Good luck on the veggie awards, we voted for you!
Hey Angela! I just wanted to let you know that this particular recipe was my first ever vegan meal… and I literally lived off of it for 2 full weeks until I could convince my husband to go vegan with me!! haha It’s now been 4 months and we have tried SEVERAL of your recipes, none of which were disappointing. We wouldn’t know what to do without you! Never stop that creative mind of yours :)
Thank you Aimee! So happy to hear that :)
Made this a few moments ago (actually munching on it now in a wrap with a slice of vegan cheese) – CAN YOU SAY DELICIOUS!! I added some grapes & a little extra lemon juice. Loving it :) Great job Angela.
I just tried this – mostly because I thought it seemed too good to be true – but OMG this, tasted so good!!! I’ll definitely be trying this again, and maybe trying some different mix ins. YUMMM
Hi Angela! I have all the ingredients to make this but realized I have raw cashews but not raw almonds, they are roasted. Can I use the roasted almonds or will the consistency not be the same? Can’t wait to try it!!!
I made this last night to take to work for lunch today. Im surprised I have some left for lunch, I kept eating it from the bowl!
I am so trying this almond-tuna salad…its making me hungry!
This was AMAZING!!! Everything I’ve made from your blog has been de-lish. Thanks for all the great recipes!! Can’t wait to get my hands on the new cookbook in March!! :))
I am munching on it as I type. Yummy! I predict this will be a favorite of mine. Your the best and I just adore Sketchie.
Just made this for the second time. SOoooooo good! I wanted to say thank you for always posting such delicious, original, and nutritious recipes! i really enjoy your blog. Thank you!
I’ve tried (and loved) so many of your recipes, but I just made this one last night and I have to say that it is my absolute favorite! I’ve never used almonds in this way before. So very thankful for all the great recipes and info in your blog — best wishes for 2014!
This was absolutely delicious! A definite hit in our family. Loved the cucumber idea!!
I made this last night and am absolutely loving it! It’s really difficult to resist eating the whole batch in one sitting. I did add a jalapeno, an apple, and some dill. Also, I kept tasting it and ended up adding quite a bit more lemon juice than called for. I think I like this even better than the “traditional” chickpea-style vegan tuna salad.
Haha, I know what you guys mean about the “season to taste” thing, it can be hard when you’re starting out cooking! Totally agree! : p
This is amazing !!!! So addicting! Thank you so much for the share! My son and I sit eating the whole bowl !! Love all your recipes ! Thanks
Hi Angela,
Do you think a finely chopped bellpepper would go with this salad too? It’s a great recipe and I’ll definitely try it :) Maybe I’ll break it with greek yoghurt instead of vegan mayonnaise, since I’m not actually vegan, but I hope it’ll be still good :)
For sure I think bell pepper would be great! It’s quite versatile :)
Can this be made with cashews or walnuts instead of almonds?
Thank you for sharing your talents with us! You have a great website with an abundance of delicious recipes. I think this almond salad might be my favorite:)
OH. MY. GOD. This is so freaking good. Especially on your power crackers. I have been struggling to find good lunch options and then I found your site! Thank you so much! So far this is my favorite lunch. I’m soaking almonds now to make another batch!
I made this the other day for my work lunch. One of my favourite things pre-vegan were tuna salad sandwiches! I very gleefully vegenaised two slices of sprouted bread, put some spinach on each slice, and then generously loaded the sandwich up with this ‘tuna’ salad! :D It was so awesomely delicious, and it kept me full and energized for the rest of my shift.
Cruelty-free food tastes so much better :)
I made this for lunch today. Quite tasty. I added some curry powder the second time I ate it. That was also a nice addition. Thanks!
Made it. Love it!
This is such a great, crunchy salad! I’ve played around with it a bit and added some chopped walnuts, finely chopped cherry tomatoes and soya yogurt instead of the mayo (mainly because i didn’t have any!). It was lush. I’m slowly making my way into a vegan way of life, and have just bought your book – the recipes are delicious, and so is your photography!
found your blog recently and I have been testing some of your recipes and I must say as a former quite passionate celery hater you have made me seen the light and I have finally tasted some food where celery is actually delicious! Thank you!
This is so delicious! I don’t really like mayo, vegan or otherwise. So, I used an avocado! So delicious! :)
Just made this and it is great! Left out the mayo. I do not like mayo of any kind and it was still great. Thanks.
Hi Angela, this recipe sounds terrific. I have just cooked the spaghetti squash topped with a soy bolognese sauce and your vegan parmesan and my husband said it was excellent, great, the best pasta he ever had…and we are italians! Your blog is really inspirational and I will try as many recipes as I can. Since we became vegan it seems like a whole new world has opened up in front of us! When I say we are vegan and gluten free, people ask What do you eat then?….i am actually amazed myself at the variety of nutritious food I have discovered on my journey! Good luck with everything, you certainly are an amazing person.
This was such a delicious meal. I had it saved to make, and I am only sorry that I waited a couple of weeks to finally get to it. My husband, who isn’t much of an adventurous eater, just loved this. I made open faced toasted sandwhiches and then we just ate what was left over with a spoon. More than yummy !!! Thanks for sharing !
I was searching for some raw recipes this week and found the salad that you recently posted that contained this link. I made it tonight (with a couple of variations, since I didn’t have green onions, and used garlic powder instead of a garlic clove) and IT IS AMAZING!! I also added a diced cultured pickle. WOW, wow, wow! Very tasty stuff. :)
I just made this last night and had it for lunch today. It is absolutely delicious! I love it even more than the chickpea mock tuna! I ate it over a salad and added cucumber as well. It was a bit too salty for my taste so i’ll go a little lighter next time, but it was excellent! thank you so much!
YUM :) I don’t miss tuna salad one bit since I’ve found this recipe. I really have to have some restraint when making it though so I do not eat it all before serving!! I have put it on sprouted whole wheat toast and even eaten it straight out of the bowl… Can’t get enough!
Hi Angela,
I made this recipe to bring to a girls’ night at a friend’s house. I made the mixture and prepared the cucumber slices ahead of time and then assembled them when I arrived and when we were ready to eat. I had to tell you that they were a huge hit! One of my friends actually stopped talking mid story to say ‘Wow! That was a flavour explosion in my mouth!’ after she tried one. What a compliment! Thank you so much for the recipe. I’m making it again today to put on my sandwich for lunch.
I’ve made this several times, just as written, and always loved it. I have a vegan son home from college, and I just served him a Flaked Almond Salad sandwich, with spinach, red onion, and avocado on sprouted wheat bread. He is in veg heaven! Thank you for this and all your great recipes!!!
5/5 stars– Again!! Love this as does my husband. I never tire of trying out your creations.
I realize this post is pretty old but I just wanted to say that I was looking for an easy lunch (salad) recipe the ther day and cam across this. I made it into sandwiches for my kids and husband and they LOVED it. So much that I have made it everyday for the past four days and my younger daughter has asked for it for breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday. haha. I will be making this a lot. Thanks for the fabulous recipes, and congrats on the new addition to your family.
Just made this and it is amazing!!
Add one tsp of white wine vinegar to really make the tastes pop!
JUST made this. In November. In Boston. Fantastic. Guy just came home from a weekend in New York, and while he was telling me about his trip I put this in front of him along with some GF crackers from the store, and he just kept talking and eating.
When there was no more left, he looked up and said “Got any more? This is great.” Only then did I tell him what it was.
I highly recommend making your own vegan mayonnaise (I used the easy and simple recipe from “The 30-minute Vegan’s Taste of Europe”). I made mine in my Nutribullet in like 3 minutes. It tasted good, even though I made it with Vanilla soy milk instead of regular!
I am very interested in trying this version of tuna salad. So far I’ve had some tasty chickpea “tuna salads” that mimic the taste and texture pretty well! Almonds would be a nice change and something fun to try.
Just made this for lunch and was amazing! Gonna make again for sure!
This is fabulous! I made it as a filling for a sourdough bread sandwich and it was delicious. I’m trying to figure out what to add to a sandwich to make it super fabulous. Spinach? Pickle? More mustard? Thanks for this recipe!!!
I made this, and it was GREAT- of course -but the salad barely made enough for an entrée for one. Especially surprising, since I added some baked flounder in place of the almonds (we’re not vegans). So it kinda threw me off, because I had this planned for dinner one night last week, and after I made the salad, had to triple the recipe to feed two more people. Maybe it’s just our American appetites, but it’s mostly only vegetables, and I don’t see how this recipe could feed six. Now that I know, however, I will keep it on rotation and just triple the recipe, as is.
I do not like the mayo can you recommend any thing to use in its place?
How many calories in a 1/2 cup of this salad please. Thanks!
Great recipe! I enjoyed this in a wrap and got three lunches out of it – I don’t tend to have any sides with my lunch that’s why it didn’t make 6 servings for me. I am definitely going to be using this recipe again.