Tuna Casserole
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Tuna casserole recipe is what comfort food eats when it’s sad. Creamy pasta with flaky tuna, noodles, and bright peas is the perfect pick-me-up dish!
Tuna Casserole
Tuna Casserole
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Ingredient Notes for Tuna Casserole
- Egg noodles – Wide egg noodles.
- Peas – We use frozen, but canned works too. Frozen peas will be firmer and have a brighter green color.
- Tuna – Canned/drained.
- Condensed soup – We like cream of mushroom or cream of celery for this recipe.
- Milk – Preferably whole milk, but low fat or fat free will also work.
- Cheddar cheese – Shredded. Mexican or fiesta blend is good too.
- Bread crumbs – Panko. Traditional or Italian seasoned are also yummy.
- Butter – Salted/melted.
- Salt & pepper – To taste.
How to prepare the best tuna casserole
Can you make tuna casserole ahead of time?
Yes! I love to prep this a day or two in advance and then pop it in the oven when we’re ready to eat it. This is a perfect meal planning dish.
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Do I have to cook the noodles before baking?
In this recipe the noodles should be boiled first. You can do them al dente (slightly firm) because they will continue to cook in the casserole, but you do not want to add them dry.
What kind of condensed soup for tuna noodle casserole recipe?
We typically use cream of mushroom or cream of celery, but any of the “cream of” soups will work.
Storing your leftovers
How long does tuna casserole with noodles last?
Leftovers will keep in the refrigerator for 3 – 4 days or in the freezer for several weeks.
Can you freeze tuna noodle casserole?
Yes, you can freeze it before or after baking. When freezing before baking it’s best to use a disposable pan (so your baking dish isn’t stuck in the freezer for months!).
Cover tightly with at least two layers of foil. If freezing for an especially long time it helps to also wrap the entire dish in saran wrap. Freeze for up to 6 months.
Can you cook tuna casserole from frozen?
Yes, to cook the casserole from frozen add 45 – 60 minutes to the baked time. Bake covered with foil for the extra initial cook time, uncover during the last 20 minutes.
Tuna casserole tips
🧅 Try topping the casserole with crunchy onions like we do in our green bean casserole recipe.
🔥 Add some heat by stirring in a tablespoon or two of sriracha or Frank’s Red Hot sauce.
🥶 Make your future self happy by whipping up a double batch and freezing one pan for later.
🥕 Try it with mixed vegetables instead of peas, or canned chicken instead of tuna!
More noodle casserole recipes to enjoy
- Baked spaghetti casserole recipe
- Meatball noodle casserole recipe
- Taco noodle casserole recipe
- Pizza casserole recipe
- See all our easy casserole recipes
Other tuna recipes you’ll love
- Tuna pasta salad recipe
- Tuna patties recipe
- Tuna stuffed tomatoes recipe
- See all our recipes with seafood
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How to Make Tuna Casserole
Tuna Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 ounces wide egg noodles
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 10 ounces canned tuna drained (2 small cans)
- 2 cans condensed cream of mushroom soup* 10.5 ounces, each
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil egg noodles according to package directions, drain and return to pot.
- To the noodles, add the peas, tuna, soup, milk, and shredded cheddar. Stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Press noodles into a 9×13 inch buttered casserole dish.
- Mix together the panko crumbs and melted butter and sprinkle over the noodle mixture.
- Bake at 375F for 15 to 20 minutes, until bubbling and browned on top.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Tuna Casserole
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Tools we love
- Glass casserole dish with lid – I love this dish, it can go from freezer to oven!
- Metal spatula – We like a metal spatula for getting heavy piles of noodles out easily.
Originally published: 1/11/2021, Updated: 5/15/2025
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I used Stephanie’s suggestion above of sautéing some onion with garlic. Since I was using cream of mushroom soup, I added some sliced mushrooms I had in the refrigerator. Turned out very nicely. I cut the recipe in half for my first attempt. That worked well too.
Pam Phillips , Madison
I used crackers crumbs did not have bread crumbs on hand worked nicely 😊👍
Excellent recipe, easy to read/follow, and simple to do. I had to substitute chicken soup for the mushroom and Ritz crackers for the bread, but otherwise it was to the recipe. It was enjoyed by all and there were no leftovers! Thank you!
Just fixed for dinner using one can of cream of mushroom and one can of cream of chicken soup. I also added the panko bread crumbs along with the Frenches fried onions on top. So easy to fix and really delicious.
Made tonight for dinner. Was delicious!! I used plain bread crumbs mixed with the butter, when I was growing up my mom always used crushed potato chips.
My mom used potato chips too! It was the perfect lenten meal. Great memories.
Have you or any commenters who read this ever tried gluten-free noodles? This recipe looks good and it’s mainly the noodles I need to sub and the cream soup. I’m asking about gluten-free egg noodles or regular gluten free rotini or similar
I haven’t tested it with gluten free pasta, sorry!
I have tried it with gluten free pasta of penne, noodles & also spaghetti noodles. Turned out just fine. I do always undercook my noodles just a tad if baking them.
I replaced the 16 ounces of wide egg noodles with 8 ounces of rotini noodles made from 100% chickpeas. Make sure you rinse the noodles after you boil them and before you combine them with the other ingredients. I’m permanently making this change. It’s so much better!
I’m still looking for a true gluten free alternative to the cream of mushroom soup.
Campbell’s has both cream of mushroom and chicken gluten free soups. Our grocery stores in CO carry them. Before I bought them on Amazon (Amazon is actually cheaper). Walmart has both cream of mushroom and chicken that is their Great Value label that is gluten free. Progresso brand has gf soups . One of which is gf cream of mushroom.
A very good recipe! Easy to prepare and we enjoyed it very much.
Delicious. Used Ritz crackers and butter for topping. Also sprinkled a little cheese on the top.
Very good cupboard cleaner! My wife is allergic to mushroom anything, so we did a can of cream of chicken and then I did 10 oz of Sour Cream. Did frozen corn and peas, added some red onion and Everything but the Bagel seasoning. Skipped the breading on top and added more cheese. Very good!
Made this recipe for dinner tonight, used cream of chicken and Lays Potato Chips. Needless to say I had to helpings lol. Great recipe, easy and quick .
Easy delicious fast the recipe is
Awesome thank you for sharing another
Very awesome recipe five stars two thumbs up
Thanks again
why the heck are there NO AMOUNTS for any of the ingredients??? That’s messed up lol
You had to scroll past the detailed printable recipe card to leave this comment…
Has anyone used unsweetened almond milk before?
This recipe is so easy to make and it’s so delicious! I double the amount of panko/butter because more is better lol. Thank you for this dish 🙂
I use rotisserie chicken for the protein, not a huge fan of tuna and it was delish! Great way to use up your chicken
I used 1 extra can of tuna as the bag of noodles was 18 oz.. I added some heavy cream to the mix. After putting the mix into the casserole I topped it with extra cheese. It was a hit with my guests!