Easy Tuna Casserole
Tender Pasta and shredded tuna mixed with cheddar cheese in a creamy white sauce to make the best tuna casserole ever. Make ahead and freeze for nights when you need an easy, crowd-pleasing dinner and 1-dish cleanup.
Servings: 6
Calories: 674kcal
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 can shredded tuna (5 oz)
- 16 oz box of elbow noodles
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese
- dash onion salt
- dash celery salt
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Make a simple white sauce by melting butter in a pan over medium heat. Don’t let it burn while you’re checking your phone! Sprinkle in flour over melted butter and whisk constantly for 3-4 minutes over medium heat. Then add in chicken broth and whisk quickly together. Cook over heat until it’s thickened. Set white sauce aside.
- Cook pasta until al dente. Drain and rinse with cool water.
- In a large bowl mix drained pasta, white sauce, tuna, mayonnaise, 1 cup cheese, and seasonings.
- Put into a 9 x 13 baking pan and add remaining 1 cup of cheese to the top. Bake for 30-45 minutes.
Freezer Meal Directions
- Skip the baking. Instead, cover the baking dish tightly, label, and freeze the casserole. You can also cover with foil and slide it into a jumbo size freezer bag. When ready to eat, let thaw completely, remove foil/Saran Wrap, and bake at 350 degrees (F) for 30-45 minutes.
Notes
Freeze it before you cook it. Otherwise you have to bake it twice, which can degrade your food.
Disposable aluminum foil casserole pans are a great way to store it. Bake, serve, and toss when you’re done!
Cut out carboard rectangles slightly larger than the top of your casserole dish, and you can stack 2-3 casseroles on top of each other in the freezer with a piece of carboard between each one.
If your family just doesn’t like the flavor of tuna or you’re concerned about the mercury content in fish, you can make this exact same recipe using canned chicken.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 674kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 78mg | Sodium: 878mg | Potassium: 319mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 642IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 299mg | Iron: 2mg