Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake - tuna with pasta, peas and sweetcorn in a a lovely creamy, cheesy sauce. It's an easy 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 promise of a luxuriously filling meal, topped with cheese and oozing with some kind of sauce 😍.
📋 What do we need?
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.
📺 Watch how to make it
Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.
👩🍳PRO TIP Use albacore tuna if you can - it has a lovely creamy-meaty taste. If you haven't got it, don't worry, regular tuna works great too.
I would always suggest using tuna fish in oil (drain it before adding to the dish) as it has more flavour and a richer texture. However, you can use tuna in water or brine if you prefer.
🍽️ What to serve it with
- Parmesan Carrot Fries or Oven-Baked Potato Fries
- Homemade Garlic Bread
- A nice crisp salad
🍲 More fantastic Pasta Bakes
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Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 400 g (14 oz) rigatoni pasta
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 onion - peeled and chopped finely
- 40 g (⅓ cup) plain/all purpose flour
- 600 ml (2.5 cups) milk
- 250 g (2.5 packed cups) strong cheddar, grated
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 320 g (11 oz) canned tuna (albacore tuna if possible) - drained and flaked
- 330 g (11.5 oz) canned sweetcorn - , drained
- 150 g (1 cup) frozen petit pois
- chopped parsley to serve
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 ⅔ of the cheese until melted. Season with the salt and pepper.
- Drain the pasta and pour into a 20x30cm baking dish. Pour over the white sauce, then add the tuna, sweetcorn and petit pois.
- Mix together, then sprinkle on the remaining cheese.
- Bake in the oven for 15-20 mins until the cheese is golden brown. Top with a sprinkling of parsley before serving.
Video
✎ Notes
Nutrition
This post was first published in Feb 2016. Updated in May 2021 with new photos, video and FAQs.
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TERRI says
SO EASY TO MAKE AND FILLING THE KIDS LOVE IT BETTER THEN MAC AND CHEESE
Brendon Harvey says
So easy to make. Fantastic taste
Greg Divine says
This was very tasty! Easy to make and delicious , you can’t beat that . Tuna , pasta and cheese is right up my ally and the family loved it . Definitely will be making it again . Thanks for sharing the recipe with us .
[email protected] says
This is a great and an easy recipe, however my version of it didn't hold together as expected, probably wrong cheese or not enough of it. Thanks anyway!
Alex Morgan says
Delicious and so easy; got me hooked on cooking (much to wife’s delight!!)
janice meldrum says
Really tasty dish and easy to prepare in advance. Served with garlic bread.
Andi Depiero says
This was very delicious and flavourful! Big hit with my whole family...thank you!
Charne Bezuidenhout says
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It was absolutely devine. It is also the easiest way for making the cheese sauce, definitely mu new favourite.
Isra says
I made this today and it was great but I was out of tuna so I boiled some chicken thighs in pressure cooker instead and it turned out so yummy thank you
Marcia Tennant says
Brilliant. Really tasty. Thank you.