Tuna Pasta Bake
Recipe video above. When the cupboards are bare, and all you have is canned tuna, pasta and canned tomato, you can still make a wickedly delicious dinner! Customise to your hearts content - add vegetables, fresh herbs, chilli flakes, stir through cheese, olives, capers, sun dried tomatoes - get creative! See note 9 for a lower cal version, and Tuna Mornay for a CREAMY version!
- Prep time
- 10 min
- Cook time
- 30 min
- Yield
- 5 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves (, minced)
- 1 small onion (, finely diced)
- 800g / 28 oz crushed tomato ((Note 1))
- 1 tbsp tomato paste (optional, thickens sauce slightly)
- 3/4 cup (185ml) water ((Note 2))
- 1 tbsp Italian mixed herbs (, or other dried herbs of choice)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 425g / 15 oz can chunk tuna ((preferably in oil), drained (Note 3))
- 200g / 7 oz spiral pasta ((or other pasta of choice))
- 1 1/2 cups (150g) shredded mozzarella cheese ((Note 4))
- Olive Oil (, for drizzling)
Instructions
- 1
Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- 2
Cook pasta per packet directions, minus 1 minute. Drain, rinse under tap water to stop it sticking together, set aside.
- 3
Meanwhile, make the sauce. Heat an ovenproof skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 3 minutes until golden.
- 4
Add tomato, water, herbs, salt and pepper and tomato paste if using. Stir, bring to simmer, lower heat to medium and simmer energetically for 5 minutes (stir every now and then) until it thickens.
- 5
Adjust salt to taste. Also add a touch of sugar if it tastes a bit sour (depends on quality of tomato).
- 6
Turn the stove off, add pasta, stir in.
- 7
Add tuna and GENTLY stir it in - don't break up the tuna so it disintegrates into mush. Leave some chunks on the surface (nice when it is golden).
- 8
Drizzle with oil, top with cheese then bake for 20 minutes until golden and you get those nice crusty bits you see in the photos.
- 9
Stand for 3 minutes then serve!