Tuna Casserole is right up there with meatloaf and scalloped potatoes when it comes to comfort food. It’s been a family favorite for generations!
Flaky tuna is tossed with egg noodles, peas, celery, and mushroom soup. We top this with a buttery breadcrumb topping and bake it until it’s bubbly. Serve this easy recipe with some quick Homemade Buttermilk Biscuits and a side salad for the perfect meal!
We love belly warming casserole recipes. From Cheesy Chicken Casserole to Beef Taco Casserole, there is something so comforting about a bubbly warm meal from the oven.
It’s no surprise that this tuna noodle casserole has held its place at the top of so many family favorite recipes. It is easy to make, but it’s affordable, tasty, and versatile. Nearly any leftovers or any kind of veggies can be tossed right in! Be creative with this tuna fish casserole recipe!
It can go from prep to presentation in no time at all! Need a quick potluck entrée for work or a neighborhood event? This is hands down the best tuna noodle casserole recipe out there!
How to Make Tuna Noodle Casserole
The best part of this tuna casserole recipe is that it takes minimal effort to put together and once it’s in the oven, toss a simple caesar salad to round out the entire meal. Simply combine the ingredients while the noodles are cooking and mix everything together. Sprinkle on the crumb topping and pop into the oven!
Be sure to cook the noodles ‘al dente’ since they will continue to cook in the oven and you want to avoid mushy noodles! I make this tuna casserole with egg noodles, but you can use any kind of pasta you’d like. We use simple vegetables including onion, celery, and peas. This recipe is great with any veggies including leftover Green Beans, roasted carrots or steamed broccoli.
This tuna casserole recipe can be made ahead of time as well so it’s great to prep now and bake later. The creamy, cheesy, mushroom sauce that will satisfy even the pickiest of palates!
How to Freeze Tuna Casserole
It is super easy to freeze a casserole, before or after it’s cooked! It is important to fully thaw a frozen casserole before putting it in the oven to avoid overcooking some areas and undercooking others, especially if the casserole was uncooked to begin with. Just leave it overnight in the fridge to allow it to thaw safely and then bake until it reaches 165°F.
If the casserole is fully baked, let it cool completely before wrapping it and freezing it. Another great tip is to line assemble the casserole in a foil lined pan and freeze after it’s been fully wrapped and sealed. Save that casserole pan for another use! Properly wrapped and sealed casseroles can be frozen for up to 6 months without damaging flavor or texture.
Easy Tuna Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups egg noodles
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 stalks celery diced
- ⅔ cup frozen peas defrosted
- 1 can tuna 5-6 ounces, drained
- 10 ½ ounces condensed mushroom soup
- ⅓ cup milk
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 1 tablespoon parsley
Crumb Topping
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
- ½ cup cheddar
- 1 tablespoon parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Combine topping ingredients and set aside.
- Boil noodles al dente according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water.
- Cook onion and celery in butter until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
- In a large bowl combine noodles, onion mixture, peas, soup, milk, cheese, tuna and parsley. Mix well.
- Spread into a 2qt casserole dish and top with crumb topping.
- Bake 18-20 minutes or until bubbly.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Dinner
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I modified this recipe a bit based upon supplies on hand and to suit my own taste. I added salt, pepper, and paprika. I didn’t have parsley, so I substituted chives. I also added a blob of Mexican sour cream. Instead of just cheddar, I used a mix of various cheeses. For the crumb topping, I used crushed tortilla chips and a little bit of crumbled crispy fried onions. Oh, I also used 2 cans of premium albacore tuna. It was so tasty! It’s been quite some time since I’ve had tuna casserole, but I definitely will make it again soon.
Oh yum! That sounds delicious, Shirley. Glad you enjoyed it.
Very very good recipe. It was tasty and easy. I doubled it and I added a extra can of tuna and a can of mushrooms. When I was a kid this was my least favorite thing my Mom would cook but I will cook this again. This is guest worthy.
If you don’t have mushroom soup. Can you use a mixture of mayonnaise and sour cream
You can replace it with another condensed soup or try making your own homemade condensed mushroom soup. I have never tried using a mixture of mayonnaise and sour cream but I would love to hear how it turns out for you!
I found it to be bland. Next time I’ll use Italian crumbs and add mushrooms and hot sauce.
As a beginner in the kitchen, this recipe helped me become more confident in my cooking skills. The food came out great! Thanks.
Excellent.
The cooked butter and celery distinguish this recipe from others I’ve tried.
I made this casserole last minute, so some substitutions were made. I added an extra can of tuna because we were feeding more people and made the recipe a little larger. I added 3/4 of a cup of sour cream, because I only had one can of mushroom soup. I didn’t have enough egg noodles, so I substituted with orecchiette, which facilitates the casserole very nicely.
Everyone loved it. No leftovers.
Those substitutions sound great, Carol. Glad to hear everyone loved it!!
It has been YEARS since I’ve had tuna casserole and I’ve never made one. I tried this recipe tonight and it is awesome!! I want it every night for dinner now lol! I didn’t have panko so I crushed up some seasoned croutons instead and it was perfect. Delicious
So good! This is the second time I have made your recipe. I follow it exactly and it is wonderful. Instant comfort food, and SO quick and easy to make. Thank you!
Great foundational recipe. I added two cans of cream of mushroom, double milk, salt, and pepper. Perfection!! (My husband prefers a lot of gravy and when I made this the first time it was too dry)
I did a 3 quarter casserole so I used 3 5 oz cans tuna in water, 2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup. I used 2 shallots, 1 stalk of celery. When I cooked the shallots and celery it was in butter and I added 1 can of condensed milk and about a can of water…put in the milk…and pepper/salt….then put that in bowl…gave it a big stir…doubled the bread crumb mixture…and cheese and pretty much a pantry staple…thanks for the foundation of this recipe…tweak it how you like tests what cooking is all about :)
So happy you enjoyed it, Ariana! Thanks for sharing your tweaks with us.
I was looing for a recipe similar to what my mother made for us growing up –this was very close! The only change that I made was that I used a cheese blend that included Monterey Jack cheese, and added a dash of Red Hot pepper sauce. Thank you for the recipe; this was delicious and a new household favorite!
I used cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soups, sprinkled cheese over top and added crushed Ruffle’s Queso chips on top! Mui Bueno!
I made this casserole today. I used a can of cream celery soup along with the cream mushroom plus I shredded a cup carrots,.I used crushed potato chips instead of panko because my daughter doesn’t like it.
The family loved it!
I gave it a 5.
I made this casserole today. I used a can of cream celery soup along with the cream mushroom plus I shredded a cup carrots,.I used crushed potato chips instead of panko because my daughter doesn’t like it.
I gave it a 5.
I never had tuna casserole before. I always thot I wouldnt like the taste. I was curious when I saw this recipe. I wished you used the same measurements for store bought i.e. like you did cans, you do for noodles. So most of my stuff was off. I didnt like the taste, tuna-y. Bland as well. Again i dont know how to measure a square or rectangle pan into quarts. My suggestion would be to put more instruction and substitutions in the directions. I wont try this again.
Hi Oliva, 10 ½ ounces is roughly one can of condensed soup. The rest of the ingredients you will want to measure in cups and tablespoons for best results. For the baking dish, a 2 qt dish is an 8×8 baking dish, but we use 2 qt in case your baking dish dimension varies from ours. I hope that helps!
It’s a tuna casserole, it’s going to taste like tuna.
Three cups cooked or raw noodles? Thanks!
We use three cups of raw noodles for this recipe, and cook them in step 2.