Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (2024)

Do you miss keto tuna salad melts?? Then be prepare, these keto tuna melt are gonna blow your mind!!

This low carb recipes so satisfying, super quick, and packed with good for you tuna… Heck, it may be one of my best low carb lunch ideas yet!

We’re taking some cues from the tuna melt sandwich, but ditching the carby bread for flavorful onions instead. Melted cheddar cheese on both sides is the savory icing on top. Trust me when I tell you, these guys are hea-ven-ly.

You have to taste it to believe it, and once you do, you’ll have a new kitchen staple… Let’s get cookin’!

Looking for more keto lunch ideas? Check out my keto tuna salad, avocado tuna salad, or my Chinese chicken salad.

Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (1)

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What I Love About This Keto Tuna Melt Recipe

It has all the best parts of a tuna melt, minus those unnecessary carbs! Plus:

  • 10 minutes of prep! Kick those feet up and let your oven do the work.
  • Customize them how you want – add different veggies, avocado, or low carb buns!
  • Tastes like comfort food at it’s very best! But LOW CARB, ya baby!

Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (2)

Recipe Notes

This healthy recipe tastes very NOT good for you, but is packed with nutrients and is SO easy!
Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (3)

Ingredient Notes

Tuna – Drain and flake your canned tuna to make sure there is no extra moisture getting into your salad.

Onions – You’ll need a large onion to get 9 sets of onion rings. Be sure to remove the papery outer edge before stuffing the rings.

Mayonnaise – This is a classic condiment in tuna recipes, and adds a wonderful creaminess and flavor. If you want, you can swap it for low carb greek yogurt instead. (Psst — Greek yogurt will add some carbs to this dish)

Dill Pickles – Tuna salad often has relish, but there is a lot of added sugar in those. So we’ll mimic relish with diced dill pickles instead — just be sure to grab a product with no added sugar.

Tools To Make

Just 1 or 2 simple tools to get these tuna salad stuffed onions on the table:

  • Baking sheet – this recipe makes 9 stuffed onions, so you’ll want a large enough baking pan to accommodate that.
  • Parchment paper – this silicone coated paper will help keep our keto tuna melt from sticking to the pan, especially when we flip it part way through cooking.

Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (4)

Storing Tips

Store leftovers in the fridge in airtight containers, keeping components separate until you’re ready to bake them fresh.

Can You Freeze them?

You would not want to freeze these tuna melt stuffed onions, for a few reasons. One: mayonnaise gets weird in the freezer. There is a high likelihood your tuna salad would “break” when it thaws and you’d have extra unpleasant moisture.

Also, we are crisping up the cheese to make a nice little “bun” and we would lose all of that in the freezer.

These really are best served fresh, but luckily, they are super quick and easy to make!
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Serving Recommendations

These tuna melt stuffed onions are best served straight from the oven.The onions combine with the cheese to make a “top and bottom” to the tuna salad, but there are other ways to serve these…

Try stuffing the whole cheesy thing into keto sandwich bread or between keto hamburger buns for an unforgettable lunch. Serve with turnip fries for a perfect side dish.

And however you eat it, serve it with keto ketchup I can’t stress this enough – it’s SO good!

Recipe Variations

Want to mix things up a bit? Here are a few ideas for you:

  • Take the creaminess to the next level by adding avocados to your tuna mix. Check out the details in my avocado tuna salad recipe.
  • You can make stuffed peppers (instead of using the onion slices) if you’d rather. Try making low carb stuffed peppers like in my salsa verde stuffed peppers without rice.
  • Feel free to add other chopped keto vegetables to your tuna salad. Diced bell pepper, cucumbers, or tomatoes are great options.
  • If you don’t want to use cheddar, you can swap it out with any other kind of keto cheese. Or mix it up and blend a few!

More Keto Lunch Recipes

Who doesn’t need more salad recipes? Branch out from old stand-bys and try some of these new versions I dreamed up!

  • Keto Egg Salad
  • Avocado Egg Salad
  • Keto Taco Salad
  • Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
  • Avocado Chicken Salad

Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (6)

Keto Tuna Melt

Print RecipePin Recipe

Servings :9 Stuffed Onions

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Ingredients

  • 1 Large Yellow Onion
  • 7 1/2 Ounces Tuna* drained and flaked
  • 6 Tablespoons Mayonnaise
  • 2 Tablespoons Parmesan grated
  • 1/4 Cup Celery large, finely chopped
  • 6 Tablespoons Dill Pickles finely chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Curry Powder
  • 1 1/2 Teaspoon Dill chopped
  • 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • 3 Cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese shredded

Serving Recommendations:

  • Keto Ketchup may sound weird, but it's great!

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

  • Peel and slice large yellow onion (1) into 3/4" rings.

  • Grab 2 outer onion rings at a time, and place them on the prepared baking sheet -- you should be able to get at least 9 sets of rings before they start to get too small.

  • Combine tuna (7 1/2 Ounces), mayonnaise (6 tablespoons), grated parmesan (2 tablespoons), finely chopped celery (1/4 cup), finely chopped pickles (6 tablespoons), lemon juice (1 tablespoon), curry powder (1/2 tablespoon), chopped dill (1 1/2 teaspoon), and garlic powder (1 teaspoon) together in a large bowl.

  • Scoop the tuna salad into the center of each onion ring and press down to flatten out the tops.

  • Evenly distribute half the cheese over the onion rings.

  • Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.

  • Remove baked melts from the oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes. Then flip them over, and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Return to the oven for another 10-12 minutes. You'll know they're done once the tops are golden brown.

  • Allow them to cool slightly on the baking sheet (this will give the cheese time to harden). Enjoy!

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Lindsey's Tips

  • Pickles - Many pickles contain added sugar, check the labels before purchasing a product. We love Vlasic.
  • Nutritional information is for 1 stuffed onion if you make 9 using this recipe:

Nutrition

Calories: 247kcalTotal Carbohydrates: 2gProtein: 15gFat: 20gSodium: 458mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gNet Carbs: 1g

©Little Pine Low Carb. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media/website/blog is strictly prohibited.

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Keto Tuna Melt (1g Net Carb!) - Little Pine Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

What kind of tuna can you eat on keto? ›

Yellowfin Tuna Pouch, StarKist E.V.O.O. Wild-caught Pink Salmon Pouch, StarKist E.V.O.O. Yellowfin Tuna with Sun-dried Tomato Pouch and StarKist E.V.O.O. Sardines in Extra Virgin Olive Oil are all great choices to incorporate into easy, keto-friendly recipes.

How many carbs are in a tuna melt? ›

Tuna melt sandwich (1 sandwich) contains 31.8g total carbs, 29.7g net carbs, 26.8g fat, 22.1g protein, and 456 calories.

Will tuna break ketosis? ›

High in protein and low in calories and carbohydrates, tuna makes for a great fish option when planning your keto diet dinners.

Is canned tuna carb free? ›

Per the USDA, tuna lands at 0 on the fiber spectrum, so needless to say, it is not a good source of the carb. However, with 24 grams of protein and 0 grams of carbohydrates or sugar in just 3 ounces, plus Omega-3 fatty acids (per StarKist), it's pretty perfect for the keto diet.

Can I eat mayonnaise with keto? ›

Yes — assuming you avoid mayonnaise that's high in sugar or other carbs. Since ketosis is about restricting carbs to low levels and initiating your body's consumption of fats over sugars, mayo's high-fat, low-sugar profile makes it very keto-friendly.

What canned fish is best for keto diet? ›

Sardines, Mackerel, Anchovies, and other Canned Fish

It lasts for years and is packed with keto-friendly nutrition, mostly in the form of complete protein and omega-3 fatty acids.

Does canned tuna in water have carbs? ›

Here's what's in a serving of canned tuna packed in water:

Total fat: 0.5g. Saturated fat: 0g. Sodium: 140mg. Total Carb: 0g.

How many net carbs are in tuna? ›

Tuna, canned, light, water pack, drained, not rinsed (3 ounce) contains 0g total carbs, 0g net carbs, 0.8g fat, 16.5g protein, and 73 calories.

How many carbs are in tuna mayonnaise? ›

Tuna Mayonnaise
Per 100gPer Portion
Carbohydrate (g)22.950.6
Total Sugars (g)1.53.2
Protein (g)12.627.9
Salt (g)1.12.3
4 more rows

What cancels ketosis? ›

Most ketogenic diet guidelines recommend limiting your total carbohydrate intake to 15-30 grams or 5%-10% of your total calorie intake a day. Eating more than 50 grams of carbs may disrupt ketosis.

What's the fastest you can go into ketosis? ›

Getting into ketosis takes about two to four days, on average, because that's how long it takes for glycogen reserves to be depleted after someone starts eating a keto diet with under 50 grams of carbs per day. Fasting, limiting carbs, and MCT oil supplements can speed up the ketosis timeline. EH Project.

How many net carbs can you have a day on keto diet? ›

Q: How Many Net Carbs a Day on Keto? A: The amount of net carbs you should take on a keto diet will depend on your age, weight, gender, and physical activity. However, a general guideline for most keto diets limits daily net carb intake to 20-50 grams.

Can I eat a whole can of tuna on keto? ›

Like most fish, tuna is very low in carbohydrates, containing almost no sugar or fiber, making it the perfect keto-friendly dish. However, the low amount of fiber found in tuna makes it less likely to fill you up so enhancing your tuna dish with some nutritious greens such as kale or spinach is always encouraged.

What is the best fish for keto? ›

Cod – Cod makes the cut on our keto list because it's low in carbohydrates – just 2% of your recommended daily value. Mackerel – Its oily, dark flesh makes it a keto diet necessity because of its high fat content. Tuna – Think beyond the can and try wild fresh tuna in your favorite keto fish recipes.

What tuna is keto friendly? ›

Each food has a link to its own page with a more detailed recommendation and a net carb calculator.
  • Sure Keto! StarKist. EVOO Solid Yellowfin Tuna w/ Roasted Garlic. per 113 g: 17g. 28g. ...
  • Keto-Friendly. Sea Fare Pacific. Sea Salt Albacore Tuna. per 56 g: 6g. 16g. ...
  • Keto-Friendly. Genova. Yellowfin Tuna in Olive Oil. per 113 g: 29g. 210.

Is Starkist tuna creation keto-friendly? ›

With 80 calories and 17g of protein, this nutrient-dense tuna pouch is the perfect fit for today's active lifestyle. It also works well with Keto, Mediterranean and Weight Watchers diet plans – just tear, eat and go!

Is chunk light tuna keto-friendly? ›

With 90 calories and 20g of protein per can, this nutrient dense tuna can works well with Mediterranean, Weight Watchers, Keto, and Paleo diet plans. The look of the packaging design may vary. Related Products: Chunk Light Tuna in Water 25% Less Sodium (Can)

Is canned tuna in olive oil keto-friendly? ›

Opt for tuna packed in water or olive oil for a keto-friendly option.

What fish is best for keto? ›

Best Seafood to Eat on a Keto Diet
  • Salmon. Salmon not only has a rich flavor, but it's also rich in omega-3 fatty acids (approx. ...
  • Mackerel. Mackerel is salmon's underrated cousin. ...
  • Herring. Herring is a medium-sized fish with a mild flavor that's full of nutrients. ...
  • Oysters. ...
  • Tuna. ...
  • Mahi-Mahi. ...
  • Shrimp & Bay Scallops.

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