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
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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:
- 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
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Heat oven to 180C/350f.
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Boil a large pan of water, add the pasta and cook for 10 minutes.
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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).
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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.
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Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins until the cheese is golden brown. Top with the reserved parsley before serving.
Nutrition info is for one serving of this recipe.
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.
Kylie says
Sounds delicious! Have you ever tried it with creamed corn instead of just sweet corn? How do you think it would go?
Chris Corbishley says
Thanks Kylie,
Creamed corn is not something we have cooked with really so cant advise too much. You could give it a try but remember with creamed corn you are adding more liquid so you might need to adjust the amount of milk to ensure the pasta bake isn’t ‘sloppy’.
If you give it a go please let us know how you get on.
Thanks
Chris & Nicky
Donpa'le says
Tried this one tonight. I am not a big fish eater but being Easter thought l would give it a go..
Substituted the corn with celery and carrots.
Included a packet of french onion soup mix into the cheese sauce. Sprinkled some breadcrumbs over the top before baking..
It was totally demolished. 2nds for everybody including me…
lorraine carruthers says
love this dish…i double the quantities for my hungry crew.. i use 4 tins of tuna extra cheese in the sauce including a good handful of parmesan no peas or corn some dried breadcrumbs on top and small diced bacon pieces for crunch i serve with garden salad with just a small amount of dressing and homemade garlic bread….just the best meal i love it
Kathryn Clayton says
Love pasta bakes, so easy to make them gluten free and no one seems to notice the pasta has been replaced for GF Pasta.
Tatjana says
Thank you very much for this recipe, I make it once a fortnight and there is never any of the dish left uneaten =)
Nicky Corbishley says
That’s so lovely Tatjana, I’m so glad you and your family like it. I’ve not made it for a while, I must make it again soon!!
Geraldine Pellekooren says
tuna bake was one of the few things that my mother excelled in (dad was a picky eater!) but she put a layer of cornflakes on top with some butter curls and then in the oven for a crispy top, it was delish, i still make it for my kids (all grown up now) would love to hear if you try it 🙂
Najiii says
I just made this and it turned out absolutely delicious!
Thanks for the recipe 😛
Nicky Corbishley says
Awesome! Thanks Najiii 🙂
Meridith says
What is “petit pois?” I’ve never heard of this.
Renata says
It’s French for peas 🙂
pattysaurrus says
It’s in the oven right now ! This was the easiest pasta bake I have ever made, and the least amount of cleaning up 😀 I’m loving the smell that emanating from the oven. Man I hope i did good. First time, wish me luck 😀 Thanks for this recipe Nicky. Greetings from Australia <3
Fiona. says
I would like to thank you so much for this recipe,Nicky! Originally from Scotland, we moved to the Middle East about 15 years ago. Iused to shop at ASDA, and I often prepared a funa pasta bake recipe which was on the back of the penne pasta pack. I lost the recipe ages ago and have tried to recreate it from memory. Your pasta bake is almost exactly the same. Stumbled upon your blog and I am so glad I did.
Thank you so much,
Fiona.
Tara Illingworth says
Looks amazing! Can’t wait to add this to my weekly food plan!
Nicky Corbishley says
Yay thanks Tara 🙂
Diane says
Made this last night and it was super delicious. Can I freeze the leftovers?
Nicky Corbishley says
Arghhh sorry for the late reply Diane. The leftovers can be cooled, covered and frozen for this. The defrosted version will be a little drier, as the pasta will absorb more of the sauce, so if you know you’re going to freeze some next time, I think it’s worth making a little extra sauce too.
Charlie @ The Kitchen Shed says
Hahahaha! My kids are ‘pasta bake’ fist pumpers too! They literally think I am the best person in the world if I make pasta bake from leftover bolognese. I know they would love this recipe too, looks delicious!
Nicky Corbishley says
Thanks Charlie 🙂 I tend to make bolognese type bakes more often, but this one’s definitely a winner!
Karly Campbell says
Yes, please! I’m already fist pumping just thinking about this!
Nicky Corbishley says
Ha ha glad you like it Karly!
Mary Mackenzie says
I was thinking about this yesterday. Now you have made it really easy with the recipe. Thanks. Mary
Nicky Corbishley says
Excellent, hope you enjoy it Mary 🙂