Cheesy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe {Classic Comfort Food}
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This creamy, cheesy tuna pasta bake recipe will satisfy any comfort food craving you have. With its silky texture, and deliciously oven browned cheese on top, this is sure to become a weeknight favorite.
Table of Contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Cheesy: This tuna pasta bake is by far the cheesiest I have tried due to two types of cheese!
- Comforting: Ooey, gooey, cheesy pasta comforts me every time!
- Affordable: At just £0.82 per serving, you can’t beat the price on this affordable meal!
- Protein packed: The combination of cheese and tuna in this creamy tuna pasta bake lend plenty of protein for a hearty dinner.
- Crowd favorite: This can easily feed a crowd or you can save the leftovers for later in the week.
Try these other pasta bake recipes; Healthy Baked Ziti Inspired Pasta Bake, Aubergine Parmigiana Pasta Bake, Easy Tomato Tuna Pasta Bake
What is a Tuna Pasta Bake?
A tuna pasta bake is a casserole made with cheese, pasta, vegetables, and canned tuna.
This dish is very similar to tuna noodle casserole since it contains noodles, tuna, and veggies. However tuna noodle casserole normally uses canned soup for the sauce and has a buttery breadcrumb topping.
And if we are getting really specific, this is a tuna sweetcorn pasta bake. . . because the ultimate duo is always tuna and sweetcorn.
Ingredients
The main ingredients that make this Tuna Pasta Bake recipe fantastic are the following:
Tuna
I used tuna stored in brine in this recipe, which reduces the calories in comparison to oil packed tuna. It’s also more flavourful than tuna in water, in my opinion.
Cheddar
Mild cheddar adds a perfect richness to the creamy sauce and provides thickness and body to the sauce once melted. It also obviously crisps up amazingly to form the most flavourful golden cheese layer on top of the pasta bake.
Low Fat Cream Cheese
With most creamy tuna pasta bakes, you’ll find that many people use a roux (flour, butter and milk) to form the base of the cheese sauce. I wanted to keep this recipe super simple by using cream cheese, cheddar and pasta water to create the cheesy sauce. This reduces the prep time before the oven for the pasta bake.
Sweetcorn
The best veggie pairing for tuna when served cold so we shouldn’t mess with perfection when whipping up this warm pasta dish. I used a tin of sweetcorn, but frozen corn can also work in this recipe.
Rigatoni
Feel free to substitute your favourite pasta shape in this tuna bake recipe. Spiralini would work amazingly, macaroni would be great.
Consider making these other delightfully creamy dishes during the week; Creamy Philadelphia Chicken Pasta, Steak Pasta with Creamy Sauce, Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Pasta
How to make this tuna pasta bake
Start by preheat oven to 180°C – Grill
- Next, add the onions and olive oil to the pan on a low/medium heat (Image 1).
- Gently fry for around 5 minutes until softened (not caramelised). Add the garlic in for a couple minutes to fry once softened (Image 2).
3. Add the rigatoni to salted boiling water, set the timer, follow the packet instruction time minus 2 minutes (Image 3).
4. In the same pan, add the drained tuna, cream cheese, grated cheddar and two ladles of pasta water. Stir until the cheese melts and a creamy sauce is achieved. Add extra pasta water as necessary (Image 4).
5. Add extra pasta water as necessary. Add the lemon juice and dijon mustard and stir into the sauce. Then season with salt and lots of pepper (Image 5).
6. To a large baking dish, add the drained rigatoni, sweetcorn and cheesy tuna pasta sauce (Image 6).
7. Stir to incorporate everything and top with the remaining cheddar (Image 7).
8. Pop the cheesy tuna pasta bake under the grill for 10 minutes, or until the cheese is crispy and golden brown on top. Top with fresh parsley and season with salt and lots of black pepper (Image 8).
If you have leftover tuna consider making one of these yummy recipes; Healthy Tuna Pasta Salad, Spicy Tuna with Crispy Rice (Budget Recipe), Tuna-Mayo Courgette Salad
Tips and Tricks
- Choose a pasta shape that can hold the creamy sauce, such as rigatoni, penne or fusilli.
- Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package instructions.
- To reduce calories use canned tuna packed in brine.
- Use a mix of cream cheese and cheddar for that cheesy sauce!. Reserve some cheese for the topping.
- Add your favourite seasonings like garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and pepper. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
- Add extra veggies for flavour and texture such as chopped red peppers, frozen peas and green beans for some colour and added nutrients.
How to meal prep
To meal-prep, cook the whole batch as described in the recipe. Allow it to cool and then divide it into 6 meal prep containers. Store the parsley separately. When it’s time to eat, remove from the fridge/freezer and place in an oven safe dish. Cook for 10 minutes or under the grill until crispy and golden. Season with salt and lots of black pepper and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
Since this tuna and pasta bake is so cheesy and comforting, I like to lighten up my side dish by having a Healthy Caesar Salad Dressing without Anchovies (Low Calorie!) or Crispy Smashed Broccoli with Parmesan.
However, if I’m feeling like I need a little extra comfort, I will make Frozen Garlic Bread in Air Fryer!
Leftover Storage and Reheat Instructions
Refrigerator: You can refrigerate this dish covered or in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freezer: I’d cook the whole batch in one baking dish and then divide into individual portions and freeze once cooled.
Reheat: You can either reheat the tuna pasta bake in the microwave or oven. If you pop your heat proof meal prep dish under the grill for a couple of minutes you’ll get a better crispy cheese layer, but the microwave works just fine in a rush.
Try some sweet recipes after the tuna pasta; Chocolate Tiffin Recipes, Lemon Drizzle Cake Recipe, Simple & Easy Brownies
FAQs
Yes you can, just bare in mind the fats/calories will increase.
I recommend cooking the pasta to al dente before adding it to the casserole just because it creates a softer, more luxurious texture after baked.
I actually use tuna in brine. It provides more flavor than water, and less fat than oil.
Try some other pasta recipes: Creamy Chicken & Bacon Pasta, Creamy Tomato Tortellini Pasta Soup and Creamy Gochujang Pasta
Explore More Recipes
If you tried this Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake recipe, it would be mean so much to me if you could leave a review & a star rating to let me know how you found it! I love hearing about your experiences – it motivates me to keep creating more and more recipes for you guys 💛 Let’s get cooking! – Mimi x
Cheesy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe
Ingredients
- 400 g rigatoni (£0.65)
- 1 onion, finely diced (£0.09)
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (£0.69)
- 3 tins tuna, drained (£0.59x3)=(£1.77)
- 100 g (60g+ 40g cheddar) (£1.74/2)=(£0.87)
- 200 g cream cheese (£0.79)
- ¼ lemon, juiced (£0.69/4)=(£0.17)
- 260 g (1 large tin) sweetcorn (£0.35)
Cupboard Essentials
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- Salt & Pepper
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°C (grill setting)
- Add the rigatoni to salted boiling water, setting the timer to 2 minutes less than the packet's recommended cooking time.
- Heat the olive oil in a pan over low/medium heat. Add the diced onion and gently fry for around 5 minutes until softened (not caramelised). Add the garlic and fry for an additional couple of minutes once the onions have softened.
- Add the drained tuna, cream cheese, cheddar, and two ladles of pasta water to the pan. Stir until the cheese melts and a creamy sauce forms. Add extra pasta water as necessary to achieve the desired consistency.
- Stir the lemon juice and dijon mustard into the sauce, then season with salt and lots of pepper.
- Pour the rigatoni, sweetcorn and creamy tuna sauce into a baking dish (around 12 inch x 10 inch). Stir to incorporate everything and top with the remaining cheddar. Pop under the grill for 10 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown and crispy.
- Top with fresh parsley to serve.
Notes
- Choose a pasta shape like rigatoni, penne, or fusilli that can hold creamy sauce and cook until al dente.
- Reduce calories by using canned tuna packed in brine.
- Create a cheesy sauce using a combination of cream cheese and cheddar, and feel free to add your favorite seasonings and vegetables for extra flavor and texture.
Nutrition
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