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Home Pasta

The most amazing canned tuna pasta

By:Nagi
Published:17 Apr '23Updated:8 Dec '23
151 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

Tuna pasta is such a great dinner to make when you don’t have much in the cupboard. For canned tuna recipe cynics out there – it’s time to take a leap of faith! This is seriously tasty, very economical and super fast – it comes together in 15 minutes flat, from start to finish.

Canned tuna pasta in a bowl read to be eaten

Yes – canned tuna CAN be delicious!

I feel like the words “tasty meal” and “canned tuna” aren’t usually in the same sentence. Bad memories of poor cash strapped university days and crash diets, hastily thrown together tuna and rice, bland tuna salads, mayo-laden tuna sandwiches.

But you can make canned tuna delicious!!! Just a little bit of thought, a bit of imagination, a smidge of effort and a lot of anticipation for a hot, tasty meal as your reward.

Today’s reward in question? Tuna pasta. A spritz of lemon, a sprinkle of capers, and using the oil from the tuna can. You never knew a canned tuna pasta could be so delicious!!!

Canned tuna pasta in a pan ready to be served
Fork picking up Canned tuna pasta

Ingredients in canned tuna pasta

No capers? Chop pickles instead. No lemon? Add a dash of vinegar. No anchovies? Still worth making! We get a really good (free) flavour boost by using the oil from the cans of tuna. Anchovies just makes it that little bit more special!

Garlic missing from the photo – oops! 🙂

Ingredients in Canned tuna pasta
  • Canned tuna – Tuna in oil is the go here! We use the oil from the can of tuna for the sauce to sauté the garlic until golden. No tuna in oil? It’s ok! Just use olive oil instead and tip the liquid from the can of tuna into the sauce.

    TIP – Not all canned tuna is created equal. Premium canned tuna in a good fruity olive oil will set you back more than a generic home brand in tasteless canola oil. But also, premium canned tuna piled on crusty bread with a drizzle of the oil from the can is pure joy. I hope you try it one day. 🙂

  • Anchovies – Anchovies make everything taste better! Finely minced then sautéed in oil so they dissolve and lose the fishiness, just leaving great savouriness into the dish. I always have a jar in the fridge. Always! Anchovy paste – use 1 teaspoon.

  • Capers – For a pop of fresh tang! I like to use baby capers. If you only have large ones, give them a rough chop. No capers? Chop pickles instead!

  • Lemon – Juice for sour and zest for lemon flavour. It really does lift the dish so I hope you have it! Lemon is a staple ingredient I always have on hand. But if you don’t, this dish is still worth making. Add a dash of vinegar instead.

  • Chilli flakes / red pepper flakes – For a hum of warmth. This isn’t a spicy pasta. Substitute with finely chopped fresh chilli or a smidge of chilli paste or sauce (add this at the end). Or leave it out for no spiciness at all.

  • Parsley – For freshness. Not critical.

Pictured below is the tuna I’ve used, a mid-range one sold at supermarkets in Australia. I use 3 x 95g/3.5oz small cans which I feel is the right amount of protein for a pasta which serves 2 people. However, the recipe can take more or less tuna so don’t get too hung up on exact tuna quantity!

Canned tuna for tuna pasta
Canned tuna for tuna pasta

How to make canned tuna pasta

Get the pasta cooking then start preparing the ingredients for the sauce. That’s how you’ll get this on the table in 15 minutes flat, from start to finish!

How to make Canned tuna pasta
  1. Cook the pasta in salted water per packet directions minus 1 minute. The pasta will be slightly under al dente (ie underdone) but that’s ok. The pasta will finish cooking with the sauce, during which time it will absorb the tasty flavours of the sauce!

  2. Reserve pasta cooking water – Just before draining, scoop out 1 cup of cooking water then drain the pasta. Why? Because we will be using this to make the sauce for the pasta. The starch in the pasta cooking water will react with the oil in the sauce to make it thicken so it clings to the pasta strands instead of remaining as a watery sauce at the bottom of the pan.

  3. Tuna oil – Pour the oil from the tuna can(s) into the same pot and heat over medium heat.

  4. Sauté garlic, anchovies and chilli flakes for 1 minute.

How to make Canned tuna pasta
  1. Pasta and water – Add the pasta, capers and 1/3 cup of reserved pasta water. Toss using 2 spatulas for 2 minutes. During this step, the oil and the starchy pasta cooking water will thicken into a sauce that clings to the pasta. Also during this step the pasta will finish cooking from just under al dente to al dente. If the pasta is still too firm for your taste, add more of the pasta cooking water and keep cooking the pasta.

  2. Add tuna – Turn off the heat. Add tuna, parsley, lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper. Toss gently so the tuna stays in chunks and doesn’t crumble into tiny little bits.

    Then serve immediately!

Fork twirling Canned tuna pasta

As with all pastas, this is at its prime freshly made, right off the stove, when the pasta is hot and slippery with sauce! If it’s sitting around for a while and the pasta cools down and dries out, it can be easily rejuvenated with a splash of the reserved pasta cooking water and a toss on the stove for 30 seconds or so, to reheat the pasta and make it slick with sauce again.

To make it a complete meal, don’t hesitate to throw in a couple of handfuls of rocket/arugula or baby spinach at the end. Else, serve it with a simple garden salad or whatever leafy greens / steam vegetables you’ve got tossed with an everyday salad dressing.

Enjoy! – Nagi x


Watch how to make it

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Canned tuna pasta in a bowl ready to be eaten

The most amazing canned tuna pasta!

Author: Nagi
Prep: 10 minutes mins
Cook: 15 minutes mins
Mains
Italian
4.99 from 71 votes
Servings2
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Recipe video above. One of the pantry-pasta greats. I love this recipe because it really showcases what great food you can make using canned tuna! Fabulous flavour beyond just canned tuna thanks to the anchovies, the freshness of lemon and tangy capers.
The oil from the can of tuna is used as the sauce so don't be tempted to use tuna in brine!

Ingredients

  • 200g / 7oz spaghetti , or other thin long pasta
  • 1 tbsp cooking salt , for cooking pasta

Tuna sauce:

  • 285g/ 10 oz (approx) canned tuna in oil , drained, oil reserved (I use 3 x 95g/3.5oz cans, Note 1)
  • 2 clove garlic , finely minced
  • 2 anchovy fillets , minced (Note 2)
  • 1/2 tsp chilli flakes / red pepper flakes (can skip, Note 3)
  • 2 tsp baby capers (or finely chopped pickles)
  • 1 tbsp parsley , finely chopped (ok to skip)
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice (sub 1 tbsp apple cider or sherry vinegar)
  • 1/4 tsp cooking/kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

  • Cook pasta – Bring 3 litres / 3 quarts of water to the boil with the 1 tablespoon of salt. Cook pasta per the packet time minus 1 minute. Just before draining, scoop out ~1 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
  • Sauté aromatics – In the same pot, heat the reserved oil from the tuna cans over medium heat. Add the garlic, anchovies and chilli flakes. Cook and stir for 1 minute.
  • Toss pasta – Add the pasta, capers and 1/3 cup of reserved pasta water. Toss using 2 spatulas for 2 minutes.
  • Add tuna – Turn off the heat. Add tuna, parsley, lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper. Toss gently to mix through – try to keep some tuna chunks.
  • Serve immediately!

Recipe Notes:

1. Tuna – Don’t get too hung up on tuna quantity here, the recipe can take a little more or a little less. I use 3 x 95g/3.5 oz cans, the small “lunch size” cans. You just want enough tuna to serve 2 people.
If you only have tuna in brine, use 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil instead.
2. Anchovies add great flavour here. Substitute with 1 tsp anchovy paste. If you don’t have either, it’s still worth making if you’re using tuna in oil as the oil has good flavour too!
3. Chilli flakes add just a background hum of warmth in this recipe. Feel free to dial it up or down.
4. Leftovers will keep for 2 days in the fridge though pasta never really reheats well, especially these types of pasta that don’t come with loads of tomato or creamy sauce. Microwave reheating is best, with a splash of water (or better yet, keep some pasta cooking water!)

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 637cal (32%)Carbohydrates: 77g (26%)Protein: 41g (82%)Fat: 17g (26%)Saturated Fat: 3g (19%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 53mg (18%)Sodium: 4157mg (181%)Potassium: 531mg (15%)Fiber: 4g (17%)Sugar: 3g (3%)Vitamin A: 257IU (5%)Vitamin C: 9mg (11%)Calcium: 66mg (7%)Iron: 4mg (22%)
Keywords: canned tuna recipe, pantry pasta, tuna pasta
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

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151 Comments

  1. Gail says

    December 10, 2023 at 9:08 am

    5 stars
    Liked the lemony flavor! Used pickles instead of capers, an extra clove of garlic, miso instead of anchovy and doubled the parsley. So easy and so good. Thank you.

    Reply
  2. Di says

    December 6, 2023 at 12:50 pm

    I made this for lunch today. It was delicious. Thanks once again Nagi.

    Reply
  3. Naomi says

    December 6, 2023 at 12:50 pm

    5 stars
    Sooo delicious! Loved the lemony flavour and the touch of heat!

    Reply
  4. Vic says

    December 4, 2023 at 8:52 pm

    I was skeptical that something so cheap and easy could be amazing but it really is!! Done in the time it takes to cook your pasta + a minute. Devoured by the whole fam. Will be on repeat rotation and not just for the “there’s nothing to cook for dinner” days.

    Reply
  5. Rose says

    November 18, 2023 at 9:18 am

    A must! So tasty…good weeknight meal.

    Reply
  6. Katie says

    November 14, 2023 at 2:41 pm

    5 stars
    This was absolutely delish. I devoured it all as did my partner who looked reluctant to try it at first. I used 3 tablespoons of lemon juice instead of 2 and I used 1&1/2 teaspoons of lemon rind as I really wanted that citrus flavour to come through. It was perfect. I never eat all my dinner but I inhaled this. Great recipe. Xx

    Reply
  7. Gord Lancaster says

    November 14, 2023 at 1:42 pm

    4 stars
    Very tasty and will definitely make again only I will reduce the lemon juice by half, otherwise a great new meal for canned tuna.

    Reply
  8. Cari says

    September 24, 2023 at 8:57 am

    5 stars
    Just finished eating a sample… I was a skeptic too, and I agree it’s delicious!! Made it as is, with two RioMare (160g each) tins. Next time I’ll be even more liberal with the other ingredients. Going back for seconds!

    Reply
  9. Elaina says

    September 14, 2023 at 10:46 pm

    5 stars
    I love this so much! So quick and easy, the perfect weeknight dinner 😋

    Reply
  10. Jessie says

    September 11, 2023 at 7:28 am

    5 stars
    I was searching for something to do with cans of tuna that were expiring soon. Tuna has always been boring and kind of gross to me, but this recipe changed the game for me. This was incredible. I meal prepped it for the week and cannot wait to get to lunch everyday. Thank you for the substitution list!

    Reply
  11. Angela Macpherson says

    September 9, 2023 at 7:08 pm

    5 stars
    Forgot to rate in stars! Better than 5 out of 5! Incredible!

    Reply
  12. Heather Kirk says

    September 4, 2023 at 7:00 pm

    5 stars
    Delicious. Didn’t have anchovies so substituted with fish sauce (made from anchovies). Added Parmesan. Loved that it was quick and simple with few ingredients. Will definitely make again.

    Reply
  13. Robyn Ballantine says

    September 2, 2023 at 4:44 pm

    Can you use tuna in spring water? I bought in bulk from Costco, not brilliant flavour in sandwiches

    Reply
    • Chris says

      September 6, 2023 at 9:57 am

      Yup. It says so in the recipe notes. Just add some oil.

      Reply
  14. Pat says

    August 31, 2023 at 11:04 am

    I also wondered, but it sounded so intriguing. Capers with anything sounds great.
    Easy peasy; I made with the anchovy paste. It had a tad more heat than I like these days, will decrease pepper flakes to 1/4 teaspoon and maybe add more capers. I WILL make again.

    Reply
  15. CimmieS says

    August 30, 2023 at 4:45 pm

    5 stars
    Admit I had my doubts. Canned tuna? Canned tuna? Gave recipe a try, as written, that’s some time ago. Now it’s our three weekly ‘must have’ meal. Canned tuna cooked this way, tastes the best.

    Reply
  16. Slavery today says

    August 29, 2023 at 4:41 pm

    wiggy wiggy wah wah

    Reply
  17. Sandra says

    August 28, 2023 at 10:00 am

    5 stars
    This is an excellent recipe! I was skeptical but it turned out even better than I expected. I took the suggestion of another reviewer and added some cut up zucchini to the last couple of minutes of the pasta, which made it a one-pot complete meal. My husband said it definitely should go in the rotation. (I agree with reviewers who said to add more garlic.)

    Reply
  18. Katrina Harris says

    August 28, 2023 at 9:26 am

    5 stars
    This is amazing! We tried it on its own & then ate a little with fresh grated parmesan. So unbelievably good! This will be going into our pasta rotation. Thank you!

    Reply
  19. Jayne Pennington says

    August 10, 2023 at 8:32 pm

    5 stars
    This was super easy and delicious. Most items we had in the pantry already. Added cherry tomatoes, and parmesan and olive oil to garnish. Will def make again!

    Reply
  20. Connie Pritchett says

    August 4, 2023 at 11:15 am

    5 stars
    Excellent! Needed a pantry dinner, this hit all the right notes. Will be doing again. Thanks!

    Reply
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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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