Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake

Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake – a classic meal that everyone loves – made with mostly store-cupboard ingredients!

There’s something about a pasta bake that just seems to make everyone so happy. Possibly the implied promise of a luxuriously filling meal, topped with cheese and oozing with some kind of sauce.

Let’s take a closer look at a couple of scenarios:

Scenario 1

My kids:
‘What’re we having for dinner mummy?’
Me:
‘Baked cod’ / ‘ceasar salad’ / ‘parmesan & asparagus risotto’
Kids:
‘Blurgh! do we get pudding if we eat it?’

Scenario 2

Kids:
‘What’re we having for dinner mummy?’
Me:
‘Creamy Tuna pasta bake’ / ‘Chicken pasta bake’ / ‘Tomato and bacon pasta bake’
Kids:
‘Yesssss!’ (with added fist pump)

No requests for pudding as a reward for eating it. Dinner is a reward in itself. They’ll even eat the salad that goes with it – no cajoling necessary.

This creamy tuna pasta bake is a store cupboard saviour. Pasta, sweetcorn, tuna fish – all make up the bulk of the meal. Frozen peas are a great addition too – but you can use canned or fresh if you like.

Apart from that, we’re really just talking milk, cheese and a bit of butter from the fridge.

I serve it with a big plate of salad leaves (usually romaine and pea shoots or spinach) to add some fresh crunchiness.

If you can get hold of albacore tuna, it’s definitely worth paying a bit more for it. We don’t see it very much in the UK (in fact I’d never had it until we went to the US a couple of years ago and I had the best tuna-cheese toasty I’ve ever experienced!). If you’re in the UK, they sell it in tins in Sainsburys.

Don’t worry if you can’t get hold of it though, any regular good-quality tinned tuna will do.

If Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake is not your thing and you are after some other one pot or pasta bakes why not try one of these;

Big Batch Beef Ragu with pasta

Or

Cheesy Pasta Bake with Chicken and Bacon

The Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe:

Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake

Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake - a classic meal that everyone loves - made with mostly store-cupboard ingredients!

5 from 11 votes

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Prep Time: 10 mins

Cook Time: 45 mins

Total Time: 55 mins

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: British, Italian

Keyword: Any Time Of the year, Family Meal, homemade

Servings: 6 servings

Author: Nicky Corbishley

Ingredients

• 400 g rigatoni pasta
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1 onion peeled and chopped finely
• 50 g plain/all purpose flour
• 600 ml milk
• 250 g strong cheddar, grated
• Salt and pepper
• 320 g canned tuna (albacore tuna if possible) drained and flaked
• 330 g canned sweetcorn drained
• 150 g frozen petit pois
• large handful chopped parsley

UK (metric) - **Convert to US Measures**

Instructions

• Heat oven to 180C/350f.
• Boil a large pan of water, add the pasta and cook for 10 minutes.
• Whilst the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a saucepan, add in the onion and cook on low for 6-8 minutes until the onions are very soft. Turn up the heat to medium and stir in the flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Slowly add the milk, using a whisk to stir (just stir, don’t whisk) it in. Once all the milk is incorporated, continue to heat whilst stirring until the sauce thickens. Then stir in 2/3 of the cheese until melted. Season with black pepper and a little salt if required (the cheese is quite salty though).
• Drain the pasta and pour into a 20x30cm baking dish. Pour over the white sauce, then add the tuna, sweetcorn, petit pois and all but 1 tbsp of parsley. Mix together, then sprinkle on the remaining cheese.
• Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins until the cheese is golden brown. Top with the reserved parsley before serving.

Recipe Notes

Nutrition info is for one serving of this recipe.

Nutritional Information

Nutrition Facts

Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 690 Calories from Fat 252

% Daily Value*

Fat 28g43%

Saturated Fat 15g75%

Cholesterol 78mg26%

Sodium 547mg23%

Potassium 528mg15%

Carbohydrates 66g22%

Fiber 3g12%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 40g80%

Vitamin A 990IU20%

Vitamin C 11.4mg14%

Calcium 447mg45%

Iron 2.7mg15%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Equipment:

In order to make this Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake you will need:

• • A good Kitchen knife. I have recently bought this Dalstrong one and love it.
  • Chopping Board
  • Rectangular Pyrex Dish
  • A Silicone Whisk
  • Measuring Jug
  • Large Pan
  • Colander
  • Cheese Grater
  • A frying pan/skillet
  • Wooden or Silicon Coated Spoons.  We have just bought these and love them.

  Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links – which means if you buy the product I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you). If you do buy, then thank you! That’s what helps us to keep Kitchen Sanctuary running. The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors. For more information please see our Terms & Conditions.