The Ultimate Tuna Melt

A good, warm, toasty, cheesy tuna melt ranks high on my list of favorite sandwiches. There’s just something so idyllic and comforting about a creamy tuna mixture stuffed between two slices of crisp fried bread.

In my book, a good tuna melt must meet a few criteria. First, the cheese must be fully melted and oozy. Starting the tuna melt on the cheese side ensures melty goodness. Use your favorite well-melting yellow cheese; mine is American, but feel free to use cheddar if that’s more your speed (we can save that debate for another day). Second, there must be an abundance of red onion and celery for crunch in every bite. I like to use equal amounts of both; a small red onion and one rib of celery usually evens out to about a heaping ⅓ cup or a scant ½ cup of each. Third, a pickle-y, briny element is necessary for both acidity and salt; I usually opt for capers or pickled jalapeño. There’s no added salt called for in this recipe; instead, we rely on the seasoned pickle brine and savory Kewpie mayo. Last but not least, there must be kettle chips alongside—ideally a dill pickle spear, too, but chips at the bare minimum. Dousing them with Frank’s hot sauce is the way to go, just trust me on it. Enjoy for lunch, dinner, or, my preference, as a midnight snack.

This recipe is part of Zaynab’s Sehri menu for Ramadan. Find more of her pre-sunrise meal ideas (tandoori wings! PB&J oatmeal! coffee-smoothie combo!) right this way →