Chili Pesto Tuna Pasta Salad

To be honest I’m normally always eating the leftovers for lunch. Occasionally I’m blessed with a day where there’s no meal from the night before. On these days I normally make a pasta salad. I decided I wanted to make my salad a little more spicy and zesty. Therefore I used my chili pesto which has a perfect blend of spice and it’s fresh and satisfying too. Which means it’s a brilliant lunch or quick evening meal as well.

Do you love spice and what’s your favourite spicy meal? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like and follow me.

Ingredients

• Pecans x 80g
• Coriander x 1 handful
• Rocket x 1 handful
• Lime x 1 juice
• Mild or hot chili powder x 1 tsp
• Ground ginger x 1 tsp
• Smoked paprika x 1 tsp
• Ground sweet cinnamon x 1 tsp
• Olive oil x enough to make pesto
• Cheese x 80g or nutritional yeast x 4 tbsp
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Tuna x 4 tins
• Pasta x 300g
• Tomatoes x 20 cherry
• Cucumber x 1/2
• Rocket

Method

• Put the pecans, coriander, rocket, mild or hot chili powder, ground ginger, ground sweet cinnamon and smoked paprika into the mortar.
• Slice the lime in half and squeeze the juice into the mortar.
• Add a little olive oil and mash with the pestle.
• Keep adding a little bit of olive oil until it’s at a think and smooth ish consistency. 
  • Or at a consistency you like.
• Add salt and pepper to taste and mix into the pesto. 
  • Grate and stir in cheese or nutritional yeast at this point but it’s optional.
• Boil the pasta as per the packet instructions.
• Slice the tomatoes in half.
• Cut the cucumber lengthways in half and then lengthways again into quarters.
• Lay the quarters next to each other and slice thinly widthways.
• Place the rocket into a large bowl and add in the tomato and cucumber.
• Open the tinned tuna and drain the excess water from them .
• Put the tuna into the large bowl.
• Add in the chili pesto, as much as you like, then toss these ingredients together.
• Then serve and enjoy. 

Chili Pesto Tuna Pasta Salad was a yummy lunch. It was easy to prepare and cook. Plus it added a kick of flavour to my pasta salad. The pesto could be made and frozen for another occasion. It would make a tasty evening meal too. However you decide to eat this dish, as always, please enjoy. Thank you xxx