Tuna and brown rice salad recipe

A brilliant, speedy and healthy lunch - perfect for packing in lunchboxes.

This tuna and brown rice salad was created by former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies. It's brilliantly healthy, but also filling and will keep your energy levels up for the whole afternoon. A portion works out at under 400 calories but it also contains plenty of protein from the tuna and kidney beans. It's also a great way of using up leftover rice if you have cooked too much for last night's dinner. In fact, it's worth cooking too much for exactly this reason.

This recipe is part of our cheap family meals collection – under £1 a head

Ingredients

• 150g cooked brown basmati rice (or 65g raw brown basmati cooked until tender)
• 3 tbsp fresh salsa dip
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 50g black olives
• 50g red kidney beans
• 50g canned sweetcorn
• 50g bottled peppers, drained and sliced
• 1 (80g) can tuna steak in brine, drained and flaked
• Salad leaves to serve

Method

1. Mix the rice with the salsa, onions, beans and peppers. Season to taste.
2. Gently fold in the tuna.
3. Place a handful of leaves at the base of your lunch box or serving bowl, then heap the rice salad on top. If you like, top with a bit of extra salsa to taste.

Top tip for making tuna and brown rice salad:

Swapping white rice for healthier brown rice, as well as eating a healthy diet and doing regular exercise, could cut your chance of developing type 2 diabetes.