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 my Big Batch Beef Ragu with pasta Ā or Spaghetti Bolognese.
More Pasta Bakes
Still hungry for more pasta recipes??Ā Why not take a look at some of these:
- Cheesy Pasta Bake with Chicken and Bacon < A reader favourite!
- Chicken Alfredo Pasta Bake
- Tomato Tuna Pasta Bake < A tomatoey version of this one which we are loving at the moment!
- Cajun Chicken One Pot
- 30 Minute One Pot Chicken Pasta
- Lasagne
We have LOADS more pasta recipes in the pasta section so be sure to check it out.
TheĀ Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe:
Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 14 oz (400g) rigatoni pasta
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 onion - peeled and chopped finely
- ⅓ cup (40g) plain/all purpose flour
- 2 ½ cups (600ml) milk
- 2 ½ packed cups (250g) strong cheddar, grated
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 11 oz (320g) canned tuna (albacore tuna if possible) - drained and flaked
- 11 ½ oz (330g) canned sweetcorn drained
- 1 cup (150g) frozen petit pois
- large handful chopped parsley
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, donāt 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, 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.
ā Notes
Nutrition
Equipment:
In order to make this Creamy Tuna Pasta BakeĀ you will need:
-
- A good Kitchen knife. I have recently bought this Dalstrong one and love it.
- Chopping Board
- Rectangular Pyrex Dish
- AĀ Silicone Whisk
- Measuring Jug
- Large Pan
- Colander
- Cheese Grater
- A frying pan/skillet
- Wooden or Silicon Coated Spoons.Ā We have just bought these and love them.
Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links ā 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! Thatās 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.
Colin says
Well we.tryed ur version and we'll its the best one yet
Alison says
This is the best recipe ever and I canāt wait to have it again. From my 8 year old boy.
Kapua says
Can you pre-make the dish, put it in the fridge and cook it later on in the evening? I have time to prepare it, then just pop it in the oven when I get home to feed the kids
Ming says
I tried this recipe for the first time, wasn't sure my family of 4 could finish it. To my amazement they ate it all, with my son asking for more! They love it! Thank you for sharing your recipe, it's easy to make and delicious!
Joyce says
Excellent we have really e enjoyed this.
Louise says
I just made this for our dinner tonight. I have a fussy 3 year old and she loves pasta with cheesy sauce so I thought Iād try this for something different but with the same elements that she knows. Well, success! She loved it!! Thank you thank you thank you for another meal I can add to the short list of things sheāll eat!!! Lol
I didnāt have enough pasta so I used egg noodles which still tasted good! Other than that I followed the recipe to a T. The white sauce was lovely and thick and smooth, and super cheesy (yum)
Thanks again and Iāll definitely be checking out your other recipes!
Sincerely,
A happy mum, Ontario, Canada šØš¦
N smith says
Wow Iāve just read the review below. How can some people be so rude! I adore your recipes. Some people are unbelievable and only say it as theyāre hidden behind their keyboards.
N smith says
Can I be frozen please
Doug Cogdale says
My wife does most of the cooking because she is a picky eater, I offered to make dinner tonight and made this, it was awesome, easy and definitely worth the effort and we had most of the ingredients in the house.
Thanks for this great recipe
Mrs Karen Harvey says
Love this it is so easy to make and tastes delicious.
Dawn says
You have to have butter in mostly equal parts to flour to make a roux in order to make the home made cheese sauce. No need to be insulting.
Donna says
I enjoyed this as a family meal I added some garlic and capsicum. Thanks for the recipe I might have made a bit extra but leftovers always great just put it in a bigger dish!!
Julian says
Why oh why do we have 'tablespoons' of butter?? Positively obtuse.
This recipe was OK - it did taste good, with a few tweaks, but I found the volumes in general were way out. Using the ingredients as directed (including the preposterous 'tablespoons' of butter...) this actually filled up TWO 20cm by 30cm dishes.
Nicky Corbishley says
Sorry to be so 'obtuse'.
I have a lot of US readers, and I'm told they often measure volumetrically rather than by weight. I figured 3 tbsp was easier for people to figure out whether they had scales or not.
Just trying to be helpful when providing my free recipes.
N smith says
How rude!!
Ami says
I made this for dinner and my husband loved it!! Though I sauted the onions with garlic and green pepper . My best tuna bake to date! Thank you for the recipe.
Nicky Corbishley says
Great idea with the onions, garlic and green pepper - I'll have to try that š