Tuna Noodle Casserole – a fuss-free budget-friendly casserole dish with flaky tuna, pasta, peas and cheese then topped with buttery breadcrumbs for a wonderful texture. Truly a family-favorite meal meant for busy weeknights!
There’s something really comforting about a casserole dish. It’s hearty, belly-warming and filling and it can be served on regular or special days. And let’s not forget how most of them can go from prep to presentation in no time at all.
This tuna noodle casserole here is no different. It’s right there on top of our favorite casserole dish along with Scalloped Potatoes and Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole. But it gets better than that – it’s budget-friendly!
How do you make tuna noodle casserole?
With all the casserole dishes I’ve done for this blog, this Tuna Noodle Casserole is perhaps the best money-saver recipe you could hope for. Most of its ingredients are pantry staple and easy-to-find in the grocery, if ever you need a quick trip to the store before making this.
And most of all, it’s a fuss-free weeknight dinner or potluck entree. It starts with boiling the noodle as per directions. For this recipe, I tried it with elbow macaroni and egg noodle pasta and both turned out great. You can actually use any kind of pasta to your liking. Make sure though that you cook the pasta “al dente” as it continues to cook in the oven.
I simply use celery, peas, thyme and my trusted homemade Creole Seasoning to boost the flavor in this casserole dish. Let’s not also forget, that we’re making here a creamy sauce from scratch which is waaaay better than your store-bought cream of soup using all-purpose flour, butter, chicken broth and evaporated milk. And no, evaporated milk is different with the widely used condensed milk.
If you forgot to add evaporated milk to your grocery list, you can substitute it with fresh milk (twice as the amount of evaporated milk simmered until half) or water + powdered milk (SEE NOTES)
After you make the creamy sauce, you toss in the cooked pasta and the tuna and stir evenly to fully incorporate all the flavors before transferring it in a casserole. Top it then with cheese and with the buttery breadcrumbs for added texture and presentation. Bake it in the oven at 375 degrees F for 20 minutes or until bubbly.
How to freeze tuna casserole?
Aside from being budget-friendly, tuna noodle casserole is also a freezer-friendly dish. You can freeze it before or after it’s cooked! Remember though that you need to fully thaw a frozen casserole before you pop it in the oven to avoid overcooking or undercooking on some areas. Just leave it overnight in the fridge to safely thaw.
If you’re freezing a fully baked casserole, make sure to let it cool completely before wrapping and freezing it. It could frozen for up to 6 months.
What side dish goes with tuna noodle casserole?
Tuna Noodle Casserole is best served immediately, paired with this homemade buttermilk biscuits, Hawaiian sweet rolls, .or this green beans and bacon. Green salad works great with this dish, too.
You can absolutely enjoy this Tuna Noodle Casserole here with or without the sides. Watch how it flies off the table quickly.
Enjoy!
Tips and Notes:
- For 1 cup of evaporated milk, you can substitute it by simmering 2 1/4 cups of regular milk (any fat level would do) until it becomes 1 cup OR replace it with 3/4 cup whole milk and 1/4 cup half-and-half (blend of equal parts whole milk and light cream).
- Or you can substitute evaporated milk with water and powdered milk. For 1 cup (8 oz / 250 ml) evaporated milk, substitute 1 cup (8 oz / 250 ml) water plus 1 dry cup (4.5 oz / 125g) of powdered milk.
- You need to fully thaw a frozen casserole before you pop it in the oven to avoid overcooking or undercooking on some areas. Just leave it overnight in the fridge to safely thaw.
- If you’re freezing a fully baked casserole, make sure to let it cool completely before wrapping and freezing it. It could frozen for up to 6 months.
Tuna Noodle Casserole
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Ingredients
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 2 stalk celery , diced
- 1 medium onion , diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic , minced
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme , minced
- 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 12 ounce evaporated milk
- 1 1/2 cup chicken broth
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese , grated
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese , shredded
- 8 ounce uncooked noodle , pasta
- 2 (6-ounce) cans tuna , drained
- 1 cup frozen peas
- extra parsley for garnish , optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Topping
- 2-3 tablespoons butter
- 2/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Start by boiling noodle or pasta in a large pot according to box instructions. Drain and set aside.
- Heat butter or oil in a skillet or pot over medium heat. Then add onions, celery, garlic, thyme and Creole seasoning. Cook and stir for about about 3-4 minutes, until onions has wilted.
- Stir in flour until flour has been fully incorporated, stirring for about a minute. Gradually stir in evaporated milk and broth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; about 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbles.
- Stir in the cheeses, and continue stirring until everything’s melted and evenly combined and smooth. Salt & pepper to taste.
- Then add the noodle, tuna and peas to the skillet, stir to evenly incorporate.
- Transfer the tuna noodle mixture into a pan or into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish; top with remaining cheese. If you want a crumbly top, saute panko breadcrumbs with butter and then add in on top of the noodle mixture.
- Bake at 350 Degrees F° for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
Nutrition Information:
How to Make Tuna Noodle Casserole
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Start by boiling noodle or pasta in a large pot according to box instructions. Drain and set aside.Heat butter or oil in a skillet or pot over medium heat. Then add onions,garlic, thyme and Creole seasoning. Cook and stir for about about 3-4 minutes, until onions has wilted. Stir in flour.
Mix well until flour has been fully incorporated, stirring for about a minute.
Gradually stir in evaporated milk and broth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly; about 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbles.
Stir in the cheeses, and continue stirring until everything’s melted and evenly combined and smooth. Salt & pepper to taste.
Then add the noodle, tuna and peas to the skillet.
Stir to evenly incorporate.
Transfer the tuna noodle mixture into a pan or into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish;
Top with remaining cheese. If you want a crumbly top, saute panko breadcrumbs with butter and then add in on top of the noodle mixture. Bake at 375 Degrees F° for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly
teachermrw says
I have prepared this casserole at least two times; it is yummy! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Imma says
My pleasure! Glad you love it!
teachermrw says
This looks delicious, and I look forward to making it soon. A question: Approximately how many cups is 8 ounces of dry noodles?
Imma says
Please let me know how it goes.:)
8 ounces of noodles is approximately 2 cups. But that depends on the size of the noodle, which is why I prefer using weight measurement.
Taylor M says
I’ve been trying to find a tuna casserole recipe that isn’t as my husband says, “a great penitential meal” and I’ve finally found it! This was delicious, I do think I’ll add even more creole seasoning next time.
Imma says
Oh great to hear that. Thank you so much!
KaththeeT says
This was really good. Overall I was very true to the recipe and even weighed my ingredients to be sure. I wanted someone to blame in case I didn’t like it! 😉 I will admit I used more butter but, I am ashamed to admit how much more. I also added browned mushrooms because I had them on hand. Browning the mushrooms takes a lot of time (can’t crowd them or they will just steam) and so overall the recipe was very labor intensive. Even without the mushrooms, I think it is still labor intensive but then again, it was really quite good; so it was worth it. Thank you for sharing it.
Imma says
Hmm yeah if you want something so good, then some effort needs to be placed my dear:). I am glad your efforts pay you well, explore the blog to have more instant food recipes, they have less effort but are great in taste.
SR says
This recipe is a real winner! Most other tuna noodle recipes turn out so bland, but this recipe packs a flavour punch. I increased the veggies by adding carrots and mushrooms along with the onion and celery; as well I added a cup of corn along with the peas. You can also amp up the flavour by playing with the amount of creole seasoning you add – I used 1 tbsp and really enjoyed the added spice!
imma africanbites says
You got me hungry at one point. 🙂 Thank you though for trying it out. I’m glad that it all turned out great for you.
Kayleigh says
Thank you for the recipe! How much cheese should I set aside for topping? Should it be mostly parm?
I made this once and it was super tasty, but I think I messed that cheese ratio up.
ImmaculateBites says
You can use as much as you wish. Enough to create a crumbly top 🙂
Siobhann says
At what part do we add celery? I see it in the ingredients but not in the directions. Thanks!
ImmaculateBites says
It’s added together with the onions and garlic . Thanks
Jeanne says
Hi Imma! I made this casserole for dinner last night and it was delicious! We’ve tried several other recipes with the same bland, flavorless results but this one was a winner and a definite keeper! Only change we made was adding more of your creole seasoning which has such great flavor! Thank you for a wonderful recipe…loved it!
imma africanbites says
Awesome! Thank you for the glowing feedback, Jeanne. Glad it turned out great for you. 🙂