Capers Are The Umami-Packed Heroes That Rescue Bland Tuna Salad

The shelf with the "I-forgot-when-I-bought-these" olives and crusted-over mustard exists on far too many of our refrigerator doors, and sometimes, the most unassuming ingredients can do intense heavy lifting. Probably sitting idly alongside those olives and mustard are some capers, an unsung ingredient that can bring a burst of brine with every bite.

Bland tuna salad is a crime many home cooks commit, and there are many ways to salvage a boring tuna salad — but a spoonful of capers is your get out of jail free card. Capers are brined or salt-cured buds of a caper bush. Because of their compact size and bulbous shape, biting down on a caper releases its vegetal juices mixed with a salt and vinegar brine, creating a sharp umami flavor. Capers' punchy zing balances out the fatty, heavy components of a tuna salad while rounding it all out with their earthy savoriness. Fish sauce (which can elevate your tuna sandwich game) is another ingredient that adds an umami dimension to a tuna salad, but capers can add both that same dimension and a bright lift.

They're small but mighty — and that works in their favor. Capers are a simple solution to bring a bright pop to any dish, as they pack rich flavor in small pearls. Often tucked in a refrigerator corner, opened capers can last for about a year, so dust off that forgotten shelf and try using them as your go-to flavor enhancer.

They stand out in typical Italian dishes, as their sharp zing matches a sweet tomato sauce and their saltiness enhances the taste of garlic. Incorporating capers can completely revamp a lazy night's pantry pasta. Whether it's a fifteen-minute aglio e olio or a quick tomato, tuna, and olive sauce, adding capers makes easy pasta recipes feel like restaurant quality and gives the dishes more structure.

Capers can also add an interesting punch to your next brunch — top a bagel with cream cheese, lox, fresh dill, and some capers. Their flavor will marry with the salmon's umami qualities, and their tang, coupled with the fresh and herbaceous notes from dill, will brighten up and complement the cream cheese.