This dish is truly tuna pasta, as it isn't baked, but made on the stove-top. With mushrooms, green onion, red pepper and bowtie pasta, all in a creamy Parmesan sauce.
12ozcanned tuna, packed in water, drained and flaked with a fork (2 cans)
1/2cupParmesan cheese, freshly grated recommended
1/8teaspooncayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Topping:
1/4cupParmesan cheese, freshly grated recommended
2Tablespoonsparsley, chopped (optional)
1/3cuppanko
2Tablespoonsbutter, melted
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Instructions
Tip! This is one of those recipes that benefits from having all the ingredients prepped, measured and ready. Not because it's complicated, but simply because the steps move quickly and if you are trying to prep on the fly, it can get a bit challenging.
Have an oven-safe baking dish ready, about 2 qt. in size.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain well. Return the pasta to the cooking pot. Tip! Make sure the pasta is fully cooked, as this dish isn't going into the oven to cook further.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the red pepper and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, green onion and sprinkling of salt. Cook, stirring regularly, until the mushroom juices evaporate and the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and stir well. Cook, stirring, about 45-seconds. Stir in the milk and broth and bring to a boil, stirring regularly. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 3 minutes (sauce should coat the back of a spoon). Remove from heat and stir in the tuna, 1/2 cup Parmesan and the cayenne. Stir this into the pasta mixture and season with salt and pepper, to taste
Spoon the pasta into an oven-safe dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan and parsley, if using. Melt 2 Tablespoons butter and combine with the bread crumbs. Sprinkle bread crumbs over the top.
Put casserole dish under the broiler in the oven, just until the topping is nicely golden, about 2-3 minutes. Serve.
Notes
This pasta would also be nice if you swap out the tuna for left-over cooked chicken (or chicken from a rotisserie chicken) or left-over cooked turkey. Simply shred the chicken or turkey and stir in at the end of cooking when the tuna is typically added.If you want to skip the oven entirely, you can toast the panko in the butter in a skillet until golden and simply sprinkle on top of the finished pasta.Be sure to read the notes above this Recipe Card, for more tips on making this recipe. You'll also find step-by-step photos and a recipe video that you might find helpful.