Tuna Mornay is how you elevate canned tuna above a glum pantry staple or worse still, a desperate meal eaten straight from the can! It’s a tuna casserole pasta bake with a creamy sauce, sweet pops of corn and crunchy topping, baked until golden and bubbly.
Simple to make, economical and oh-so-delish!
Tuna Mornay
I moved out of home straight after finishing high school at the tender age of 18, so it will come as no surprise to you that I had my fair share of meals comprising canned tuna in various, completely unappetising forms. Dumped into rice, on pasta, on toast (with melted cheese!) and the worst offender of them all – eaten straight out of a can.
Which, nowadays, is more acceptable with the dizzying array of flavours available – chilli, lemon pepper, Portuguese.
Back then, it was not. 😂
I’m glad I’ve evolved beyond that. Canned tuna can be used in all sorts of delicious ways – and this Tuna Mornay pasta bake tops the list!
What is Tuna Mornay?
Tuna Mornay is the Aussie name for a tuna casserole pasta bake made with canned tuna and pasta in a creamy white sauce. There’s various forms of add ins – often corn, sometimes peas – and it’s topped with something crunchy. A parmesan breadcrumb topping is my favourite, but there are versions “out there” with crushed cornflakes, crispy fried onions and even potato crisps. (Yes, really, google it)
Prefer tomato based pasta bakes?
Try this Tomato Tuna Pasta Bake!
What you need for Tuna Casserole
Here’s what you need:
Just a note on a few of the items:
-
Vegeta stock powder / granulated bouillon / seasoning (same thing!!) is the secret ingredient here that makes the white sauce extra tasty. It’s salt – with flavour. I like using Vegeta, which is a Vegetable stock powder (herbs & spices aisle of everyday grocery stores!). Read more here about Vegeta here (including MSG misconceptions & what else to use it for!)
-
Tuna – tuna in oil is tastier (full stop!) but spring water or brine is fine too; and
-
Corn (and other veggies) – peas and corn can be added uncooked and even frozen straight into the dish. For things like diced carrots (frozen or fresh), I’d recommend cooking them first as they won’t cook in the bake time for this recipe. I just use corn – because it’s the classic add in.
How to make it
The nice thing about Tuna Mornay is that it’s made with everyday pantry staples and it’s pretty quick to make:
-
Melt butter, mix in flour, then whisk in milk – the flour will make the sauce thick and creamy;
-
Add in parmesan and other sauce flavourings (including our secret ingredient, Vegeta);
-
Flake the tuna into large-dish chunks so it doesn’t turn into mush when you mix it through, then mix it all up together;
-
Tip into a baking dish, top with crunchy Panko-parmesan topping and bake until it’s golden on top and bubbling on the edges!
And here’s an up close and personal of what’s under that crunchy golden topping. Love that creamy sauce!
What to serve with Tuna Mornay
Unless you load it up with more extra vegetables (it can take about 2 cups extra AND you can sub some of the pasta for more vegetables), I’d recommend some veggies or a crisp salad on the side – just to complete the meal! Here are a few suggestions:
Veg and salad side suggestions
Otherwise, make up your own garden salad or steamed vegetables and drizzle with a quick Balsamic Dressing, French Dressing or Italian Dressing.
Enjoy! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.
Tuna Mornay (Creamy Tuna Casserole Pasta Bake)
Ingredients
- 350g / 12oz penne pasta (or other short pasta)
- 40g / 3 tbsp butter
- 3 garlic cloves , finely minced
- 4 tbsp (50g) flour , plain/all purpose
- 4 cups (1 litre) milk , any fat %, dairy or non dairy (1 quart)
- 2 tsp Vegeta, or chicken or veg stock powder/granulated bouillon (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (50g) parmesan , finely shredded
- 1/2 tsp each mustard powder, onion and garlic powder (Note 2)
- 425g / 15 oz canned tuna , preferably in oil, drained (sub salmon)
- 400g / 14 oz canned corn , drained (or other veg, Note 3)
Crunchy Topping:
- 25g / 1.5 tbsp butter , melted
- 1/2 cup (60g) panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4g (25g) parmesan , finely grated
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Chives or parsley , optional garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Crunchy Topping - Mix together.
- Cook pasta per packet directions MINUS 1 minute. Drain then allow to cool slightly, then return into pot.
- White Sauce - Melt butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add flour and stir into melted butter. While whisking, gradually pour in about 1/3 of the milk. Once the flour-butter mixture is incorporated into the milk, pour in remaining milk and whisk.
- Add Vegeta, mustard, onion and garlic powder, whisk.
- When the milk starts to heat up, whisk constantly to make sure the white sauce doesn’t catch on the base.
- After 4 - 5 minutes, the sauce should be thick enough that you can draw a path across the back of a spoon (see video). Remove from stove and stir in parmesan.
- Assemble & Bake - Add tuna into pasta and flake into large chunks with fork (not too much, don't want it to turn to mush when stirred). Add corn, pour over sauce, then gently stir.
- Scrape into baking dish, top with Crunchy Topping.
- Bake 25 minutes until top is golden and edges are bubbling. Sprinkle with chives if desired then serve!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Dozer Does Melbourne – An assembly line of dumpling makers got a fright when he jumped up and slammed his heavy footed paws against the glass window!!
Another winning recipe! Easy to make after a long day at work, and it hit all the “comfort food” buttons.
Thanks! N x
“Tuna Noodle Casserole” is on the menu for tonight and I thought I’d see if you had a version. Lo and behold this Tuna Mornay! Sounds so much fancier I will have to adopt the name. 😊
Thank you for the recipe..
It turned out wonderful and was delicious….
Kids loved it..
I had to laugh at your comment about tuna on toast with CHEESE! I used to make this often when my kids were little (cheap). They are grown men now but they still ask for my tuna melts! Trying your tuna mornay tonight….looks delish.
Excellent recipe. The garlic in the white sauce makes a big difference. We all loved it. Thank you very much
Absolutely delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe it’s been a crowd pleaser tonight on a cold winter night. I appreciate your detailed notes and additional information for freezing. I’ll be making a double batch next time!
OMG this is the best tuna mornay ever
I have been cooking a new recipe almost every night
Thanks Nagi
Had to feed the male house mates so whipped this up. Very easy and super tasty! I think next time though, I would add 1T of dijon mustard to the white sauce. Added both peas and corn (must). Maybe even spring onion though it also? Thanks so much Nags <3
Thank you for the recipe! Clever and easy to make, especially handy when juggling work and kids during lockdown. We did a tuna and salmon combo, yum!
Another winning recipe!
Didn’t have bread crumbs so I just used cheddar cheese because why not, I also added some of the tuna juice to the sauce because I like it extra flavoured.
Absolutely delicious!!!
Thank you Nagi, your recipes are always a favourite it my house ❤
Hi Nagi. I love that you have the adjustable number of servings, to scale up/down the ingredients list. I got the default 5-6 selected for this recipe but I’m just not sure what size casserole dish I’d need. (I’m a nervous cook.) Also, does the type of dish matter? i.e. is a high narrow dish(less surface area) better/worse than a shallow broad dish(more surface area)?
Thanks!
Just thought I’d jump in here as I made this dish last night.
The type of dish won’t matter – it should all cook well either way. But I’d choose a big one. I used fairly broad and shallow. High and narrow just means less of the crunchy topping 😉 and personally, I’d go for more!
We only had chilli tuna in the pantry so used that. What a taste sensation! It was fantastic Love this recipe and recipetin.
Hello another beautiful recipe, you are my ‘go to’ now!
One question..when adding the onion, garlic and mustard powders in the video it looks like you are putting something black (like pepper), doesn’t look like any of those powers so can’t quite work out what it is !
Hi Nagi can any part of this recipe be made ahead by 1 day? I also plan to add broccoli 🙂
Love the sound of this🙂 But really don’t like tuna, could I use tinned salmon instead.
Yes you sure can Sharon – enjoy! N x
You’ve done it again! We were at the end of a shopping week and seriously scraping the bottom of the barrel for ingredients. Found this recipe and had every single ingredient sitting at the back of the pantry, perfect! And it was absolutely delicious, my fussy toddler inhaled it as did my husband. Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow and this will be going into regular meal rotation. Thaks for saving dinner tonight!
Made this recipe more times than I can keep track of! So yummy, a family staple that gets the thumbs you from two fussy toddlers. So easy and delicious, my mouth is watering just typing this!
This recipe is absolutely awesome! I’ve made it before but man, did it turn out so good this time. (practice makes perfect) and really good quality parm doesn’t hurt either! But thank you Nagi so much for making delicious recipes anyone can replicate.
I made Tuna Mornay last night. Used Penne pasta and did exactly what recipe said. Turned out dry and sauce all soaked up. Disappointed. Lovely flavour though. Would use a different but smaller pasta next time. What do you think Nagi?
What would Nagi make with tuna from a can? The thought crossed my mind when supper time came around. After all the succesful recipes I’ve tried from your collection, its always a no brainer to visit your site for inspiration! Best tuna casserole I’ve made thus far! I tweaked it a little by sauteeing chopped onions with ginger garlic paste, and adding sundried tomatoes, mixed shredded cheese and red pepper flakes to the mix. It’s a keeper😍😋 So thank you Nagi for this Tuna mornay recipe!