Creamy Tuna Pasta Bake
Creamy Tuna Pasta Casserole is luscious, filling and made with basic ingredients you already have on hand. A cheesy homemade bechamel sauce is combined with sweet peas, corn and tuna in a flavorful and simple tuna and noodles casserole that’s easy to prepare and perfect for freezing. This cheesy tuna bake is comforting but not heavy and only takes minutes to prepare.
Servings: 4 Servings
Ingredients
- 8 oz rigatoni pasta
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 teaspoon ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ¾ cup grated white cheddar cheese divided
- ½ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 10 oz canned albacore tuna drained
- ½ cup frozen peas
- ½ cup frozen corn
- Chopped parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a rectangular baking dish and keep it aside.
- Cook the pasta according to the package instruction minus 1 minute and keep it aside.
- In a large dutch oven, add butter; once the butter is melted, sprinkle the flour and garlic. Cook for a minute.
- Slowly whisk in the milk and cook until the sauce is smooth without any lumps and starts to thicken.
- Season the sauce with ground mustard, salt, and pepper.
- Add the cheeses; cheddar cheese (save ¼ cup for later use) and parmesan cheese and continue to cook until the cheese is melted.
- To the creamy sauce, add the cooked pasta, canned tuna, peas, and frozen corn. Mix until the sauce is evenly coated.
- Transfer them to the prepared baking dish and top the pasta with the remaining ¼ cup of cheese.
- Bake them for 15-20 minutes until the cheeses are melted.
- Once done, garnish the dish with fresh parsley.
- Transfer the pasta to a bowl and serve while it is still warm.
Notes
- The pasta will continue to cook as the tuna and noodle casserole bakes so cook it to al dente so it doesn’t become mushy.
- If you don’t want to use rigatoni, stick with sturdier pasta such as penne, fusilli or farfalle.
- There is no need to thaw the corn or the peas ahead of time!
- Bring your milk to room temperature before making the bechamel sauce.
- If your creamy white sauce is too thick, you can thin it with a bit of milk.
- Swap out the peas and corn for any of your favorite veggies. For larger vegetables, cut them into bite sized pieces.
Nutrition
Calories: 648kcal | Carbohydrates: 62g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 99mg | Sodium: 1259mg | Potassium: 640mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 936IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 445mg | Iron: 2mg