Homemade Lightened-Up Tuna Casserole
- Yield 3
- Prep 15 minutes
- Cook 25 minutes
- Total 40 minutes
Homemade Lightened-Up Tuna Casserole is a casseroles recipe on Avoteb. The yield on the card is 3. Plan on 40 minutes from start to plate. The amounts and the method are both on this page.
Ingredients
Yield: 3 servings
- 1/4 cup toasted Panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 1 medium white onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- 1 1/2 cups plain milk
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, homemade or store-bought
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 8 ounces wide egg noodles
- 3 (5-ounce) cans tuna, drained
- 1 cup (4 ounces) grated sharp white cheddar cheese
- optional garnishes: chopped fresh parsley or fresh thyme, lemon slices
Method
Warm water for noodles. Raise a large stockpot of salted water to a boil.
Toast the breadcrumbs.* Heat the breadcrumbs in a large sauté pan over medium-a hot burner. Once the bottom layer of the breadcrumbs begin to turn golden, give the pan a good stir (or a good shake) to toss. Continue cooking for 1-2 more minutes, tossing regularly, until the breadcrumbs are more or less evenly golden. Move the breadcrumbs to a clean bowl and keep nearby. Wipe down the pan with a clean cloth and return it to the heat.
Sauté veggies. Tip in butter and cook until melted. Tip in mushrooms, carrots, onions and sauté for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and the mushrooms are browned. Tip in garlic and sauté for 1 minute, stirring frequently. Tip in flour and sauté for 1 minute, stirring frequently so that it is well combined.
Make the sauce. Tip in the stock and stir to combine. Tip in the milk, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, peas and stir to combine. Continue cooking until the sauce nearly reaches a let it bubble gently, then reduce heat to low. While that cooks…
Leave the noodles. Around the same time that you add the stock to the sauce, add the noodles to the boiling water and cook until just barely al dente. Take a spider strainer to pour off and move the noodles directly to the mushroom sauce. (Or if your sauté pan is not large enough to hold everything, you can pour off the noodles completely and then combine the noodles and sauce in the stockpot that you used to cook the noodles.)
Stir the casserole. Tip in the veggie sauce mixture to the noodles, along with the tuna and cheddar cheese. Turn gently until combined and the cheese has melted.
Plate Plate the pasta warm, sprinkled with toasted breadcrumbs, a pinch of herbs, and garnished with a lemon wedge for squeezing. Enjoy!
