Peas are totally underrated. They’re inexpensive, easy to cook or add to recipes, and packed with both protein and fiber. So they’re an excellent item to keep on hand in your freezer to whip up quick and easy dinners, like this Creamy Tuna Pasta with Peas. You only need a few ingredients, about 20 minutes, and you’ll have this warm, comforting dinner that will be equally as good the next day for lunch!
Want more tuna recipes? Check out my tuna recipe archives!
What Type of Canned Tuna Should I Use?
I’m going to admit that I sprung for the more expensive “solid” canned tuna for this recipe so that I could have some larger chunks of tuna meat throughout. You can use “chunk light” tuna, which tends to be more flaky and shredded, which should bring the cost of this recipe down a bit.
What Type of Parmesan is Best?
For some strange reason I couldn’t find basic grated Parmesan in the store today (seriously, where were they hiding it??) so I hand shredded a wedge of Parmesan that I had bought from Aldi a while back. Wedge Parmesan is more expensive and melts better than grated Parmesan, but grated Parmesan is totally doable in this recipe if that’s what is available to you. It may not melt as smoothly, but it will still be yuuuuumy!
Creamy Tuna Pasta with Peas
Servings 4 about 2 cups eachIngredients
- 8 oz. pasta ($0.67)
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.26)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1 cup frozen peas ($0.38)
- 1 cup half and half* ($0.75)
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan ($0.95)
- 12 oz. can solid Albacore tuna, drained ($2.79)
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Once boiling, add the pasta and continue to boil until the pasta is tender. Drain the pasta in a colander.
- While the pasta is cooking, prepare the rest of the dish. Add the butter and minced garlic to a large skillet. Sauté the garlic over medium heat for about one minute, or just until it is soft and fragrant, but not browned.
- Add the frozen peas and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté for a couple minutes more, or until the peas are heated through.
- Add the half and half to the skillet and allow it to come up to a simmer, stirring frequently to keep a skin from forming on the surface or the bottom from scorching. Let the half and half simmer for about 3-5 minutes, or just until it reduces slightly.
- At this point the pasta should be finished and drained. Add the drained pasta to the skillet and stir to combine. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the pasta and stir to combine again. Allow the heat to melt the Parmesan as you stir. Once melted, turn the heat off. Taste the pasta and add a pinch of salt and pepper, if needed.
- Finally, add the drained tuna and fold it into the pasta. If you are using whole tuna chunks, break them up slightly as you stir. If you are using chunk light tuna that is already in small pieces, fold gently to avoid breaking the tuna up too much. Serve warm!
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Tuna Pasta – Step by Step Photos
Begin cooking 8 oz. of pasta first, because you’ll be able to prepare the rest of the dish in the time it takes to cook the pasta. While your pasta is boiling, add 2 Tbsp butter and 2 cloves of garlic, minced, to a large skillet. Sauté the garlic over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until it is soft and fragrant, but not brown.
Add one cup of frozen peas and a pinch of salt and pepper to the skillet. Continue to sauté over medium for a few minutes, or just until the peas are heated through.
Add 1 cup half and half and allow it to come up to a simmer. Allow the half and half to simmer for a few minutes, stirring frequently, so that it reduces slightly. Make sure to stir as it simmers to prevent a skin from forming on top and to prevent the bottom from scorching.
At this point the pasta should be finished cooking. Once drained, add the cooked pasta to the skillet and stir to combine with the cream and peas.
Add the Parmesan and stir to combine. The heat from the pasta and cream will begin to melt the Parmesan. Keep stirring until it is fairly smooth, then turn the heat off. Give it a taste and add another pinch of salt and pepper, if desired.
Finally, add a drained 12 oz. can of tuna. Stir to combine. If your tuna is in whole pieces like mine, you can break it up a bit as you stir. If you’re using tuna that is closer to a shredded consistency, fold it in gently to make sure it doesn’t disintegrate and disappear into the pasta.
And that’s a wrap! You quick and easy Creamy Tuna Pasta with Peas and Parmesan is ready to eat!
Dinner doesn’t have to be difficult. :)
What could you use to sub half and half (majorly lactose intolerant)
Unfortunately that ingredient is pretty integral to the recipe. I can’t think of a non-dairy product that would work well here.
This was great and I love having backup recipes with only pantry staples in my back pocket for emergencies. I thought the leftovers were even better.
This was SO GOOD! Wow. I’m not a huge fan of tuna, but I decided to try it anwyay and I was really impressed. It didn’t taste fishy or “tuna-ish” at all! I added red chili flakes for some extra kick at the end too.
Not a tuna fan – assume I could swap out cooked (or canned) chicken breast instead?
I suppose that would work! I’ll be honest though, I’ve never had canned chicken breast so I’m not sure what flavor it will bring to the dish and how that would compare to the flavor of the tuna.
I was thinking the same thing, and decided I would probably go with cooked rather than canned chicken, but that’s a personal preference issue, and I do often keep canned chicken on hand just in case.
How funny – I made almost exactly the same thing last week, but all in a skillet for a one-dish cleanup. Basically the same ingredients plus 3 cups of chicken broth or water, although I also added some sliced mushrooms, and a couple of tablespoons of sherry for a more Tetrazzini-type flavor. To make it all in one skillet, saute the garlic (and mushrooms if you use them) in the butter in a large skillet. Then add the broth/water (and sherry if you want). Bring it to a boil, throw in the pasta, cover and lower the heat. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed. Stir in the tuna, half-and-half, and peas. Cook and stir occasionally until sauce has thickened and pasta is done, about another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan.
Love it!
I love adding tuna to pasta and I love peas so this I have to try! My go to is always adding in zucchini and tomatoes, but sometimes you want something a little different, you know? I will definitely be trying this soon. Thanks!
https://bit.ly/2LRlkUE
Just tried this tonight. My family devoured it and it’s sooooo quick to make.
I couldn’t find any half & half (and when I do it’s expensive in NZ), so I bought Carnation Lite Cooking Cream from the tinned/canned food aisle. It’s about 14% fat and lasts a year in the pantry.
I made this for myself for dinner tonight and it is yummy and comforting. I added extra peas because I LOVE PEAS. I will be making this again.
Peas are not considered to be vegetable, they are in the same category as legumes and are high in carbohydrates. Why not add a real vegetable, like broccoli, and make this recipe healthier?
You can certainly do that if you want.
That’s bollocks. This keto trend is a nightmare.
Hi Janine, peas are considered a vegetable and have high nutritional value. What was the point of your comment? What do you have against peas? #peashamer #LOL
Geeky, health focused questions.
I am assuming use olive oil for butter no problem with the sautéing of the garlic?
But can I reasonably substitute plain Greek yogurt for the half and half and hope to have it turn out half decent?
I’ve made a fake “roux” with greek yogurt before, just make sure you add pasta water to it to temper it into a more liquid concentration. I’m planning on trying this with cashew milk too, which I’ve subbed for half and half before no problem.
I sub olive oil for butter in recipes like this all the time, and it works fine. (I’d be less likely to try it if the solid-at-room-temperature quality of butter or the flavor of butter was integral to the recipe.)
As for the plain Greek yogurt, keep in mind that it’s thick and tangy as compared to half and half. If I were to try that substitution, I’d consider mixing it with some milk or some of the pasta cooking water until it’s a similar consistency.
IME full fat greek yogurt can be a decent substitute for half and half in this type of recipe. But non-fat greek yogurt, no. DISCLAMER: I haven’t made this particular recipe.
Any type of fat should work to saute the garlic.
While you can use olive oil in place of the butter, you’ll be missing some of the flavor that the butter provides. While olive oil is pure fat, butter contains cream, which has both sugars and proteins, and therefore has a different flavor. How’s that for a geeky answer? ;) I honestly wouldn’t sub the Greek yogurt for the half and half. It has both a drastically different flavor AND texture, so your end result will be quite different. That being said, sometimes people make substitutions like this and are perfectly happy with the result. Sometimes it just boils down to personal preference. (Also, I like the suggestions that some other people had about adding more liquid to thin it out.)
Two things about this recipe–first, I grew up with tuna casserole, but when I left it a few decades back, I looked for a way to recreate that homey taste without canned cream soup–have been using a white sauce a little less rich than this recipe, but think I’m going to go with the cream. I also like to add some sauteed mushrooms, having grown up with the cream of mushroom soup version. My version has always had peas.
The other thing–unless you have a garden and grow peas, it is nearly impossible to locate high quality fresh peas–delicious beyond understanding if you have never eaten them. I have been trying to find them for more than 50 years. Forget about fresh and buy frozen because they are nearly as good as the real deal and much better than the starchy overage peas you can find in most supermarkets and farmers’ markets both.
Any thoughts on what this might be like with canned chicken? My partner is allergic to fish, and I usually have a couple of cans around in our emergency supplies.
(I usually don’t use canned chicken in anything, so a year before the expiration date on the can, I donate it to the food pantry to avoid waste.)
I have to be honest, I’ve never ha canned chicken so I’m not sure how the flavor will compare. The tuna definitely does flavor the whole dish, so I’m not sure if it will be lacking if you use something less potent, like chicken.
Mmmm, comfort food.
My mum and now me make a version of this but use creme fraiche instead of cream. I tend to use an onion, and either mushroom or a grated courgette (zucchini). I might try using peas next time. Oh and we always flavour it with dijon mustard. Yum!
I LOVE tuna. Can’t wait to make this recipe!!! :-)