Tuna Casserole – A Beautiful Mess

At our house growing up, tuna casserole was also sometimes called “tuna noodle casserole” or even “tuna surprise.” It was a dinner my dad would make, as he was also the tuna salad sandwich king at our house.

This tuna casserole recipe is pure comfort—an easy to make and filling, cheesy casserole with all familiar ingredients is very much what my Midwest sensibilities think of as comfort food. Pair this tuna casserole with a salad or vegetable side and you’ve got a pretty balanced, delicious meal going!

Related: Love casseroles as much as me? Next up, try tater tot casserole, biscuits and gravy casserole, broccoli casserole, or chicken and rice casserole.

Ingredients

• Egg noodles
• Tuna – solid white in water is what I typically use
• Garlic
• Peas – frozen
• Cream of mushroom soup
• Milk
• Cheddar cheese
• Cayenne
• Salt and pepper
• Bread – any kind, I usually have sourdough
• Butter

You will also want aluminum foil to cover the casserole during the first half of baking.

Directions

Cook the egg noodles to al dente or just undercooked, then drain. They will cook a little more during baking, so you don’t want to over boil them.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the drained tuna, minced garlic, peas, condensed soup, milk, grated cheese, cayenne and a little salt and pepper. Then stir in the cooked noodles. Spread in a greased 8×8 square baking dish.

Toast the bread in the toaster or toaster oven. Finely chop or pulse in a food processor. Stir in the melted butter. Spread the breadcrumbs over the casserole.

Bake at 400°F (204°C) for 18-20 minutes. Cover with aluminum foil for the first half of baking so the breadcrumbs don’t over toast or burn.

Tips & Substitutions

• While I usually use canned tuna “solid white in water,” you can use other kinds like chunk light in water or tuna stored in oil. It won’t change the recipe much, just the final fat content of the dish.
• I usually use cheddar cheese but other kinds would work well too, like pepper jack would add some heat.
• You can absolutely add more herbs or spices to this recipe like onion powder, garlic salt, chives, etc. We always made this fairly straightforward in my house growing up, so that’s what this recipe reflects, but feel free to make it your own.
• If you don’t want to make your own breadcrumbs from two slices of bread, you could substitute 2/3 cup Panko breadcrumbs instead. I like the texture of making my own, plus it’s an easy way to use up leftover bread.

Serving Suggestions

This tuna casserole has a good amount of carbs, protein and fat, but not a lot of variety in the nutrients it offers, so a salad or vegetable side dish is a great option.