How to Make Tuna Casserole
Standing by my mom’s side when she prepared this was a treat. I was one of those kids that LOVED tuna salad and would beg for it often. But her measurements were always “a little of this” and “a little of that”. She was taught by her mom and my grandma is one of those amazing ladies that made do with that she had. She could open her refrigerator, assess the contents, and somehow produce a wonderful dinner for 8. Every night. Needless to say, I have had many, many version of this recipe growing up!

White Sauce Tuna Casserole
Instead of using cream soups for the base (which there is nothing wrong with!) I opted to make my own white sauce base. It is creamy, you know every ingredient and tastes great. Hint: If you happen to want to add some heat to your white sauce, feel free! Add jalapeno powder, cayenne pepper, even some hot paprika.

Here is what you need to make a perfectly smooth and creamy white sauce:

• salted butter
• flour
• oregano
• basil
• thyme
• salt
• whole milk

If you don’t have whole milk I would substitute with heavy cream, not a 2% or skim milk. The oregano, basil, and thyme are optional (so to speak) but I do recommend trying this recipe as-is at least once.

Tuna Casserole with Noodles
If there was any controversy around Tuna Casserole it is whether or not to include noodles. I am on #teamnoodles all the way, as I find tuna casserole without noodles to be flavored mush.

One trick for making sure your noodles are a perfect consistency is to cook them al dente. What is al dente? It refers to the ideal consistency for pasta and usually involves a brief cooking time, and those times can vary. Molto al dente is the culinary term for slightly undercooked pasta. Undercooking pasta is utilized in recipes that have two rounds of cooking, such as casseroles.

I can’t think of anything worse than a soggy mushy mess of a casserole, so I make sure I cook my noodles the same way, every time.

Select a pot that holds all the water you need and still has room for the noodles. As noodles expand when cooking, you want them to have room to move and grow.

After the water is boiling, season it with salt. (Mario Batali says “salty like the sea” and I love that) Add your pasta and cook for 3-5 minutes or until one piece of pasta, when broken, still has a firm white center.

Ingredients

• 7 ounces dried egg noodles
• 1 cup (150 g) frozen peas,
• 2 cans (5 oz each) tuna packed in water, drained and flaked
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

WHITE SAUCE

• 1/4 cup salted butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon basil
• dash of thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 1/2 cups whole milk

TOPPING

• 1/3 cup bread crumbs
• 2 tablespoons butter melted

Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350° F.
2. In a small bowl combine melted butter and bread crumbs, set aside.
3. In a large pot of boiling salted water cook the egg noodles al dente and drain, set aside. (3-5 minutes)
4. In a small pot of boiling water cook the peas until tender.
5. In a medium pot over medium heat melt butter, whisk in flour, basil, oregano, thyme and salt and whisk constantly for one minute.
6. Slowly whisk in the milk and stir constantly.
7. When sauce starts to boil, lower the heat to simmer and whisk constantly until thickened.
8. Remove from heat and add the parmesan cheese stir to combine.
9. Fold in the drained noodles, peas and tuna.
10. Pour into the skillet or 10×8 baking dish and sprinkle with topping. Bake 20 minutes, let sit 5 minutes and serve.