Tuna casserole is something every home cook ought to know how to make. Mediterranean Tuna Casserole is one way to do it if you really want it to stand out as something your family of foodie eaters will look forward to.
Mediterranean Tuna Casserole
Course: DinnerCuisine: Mediterranean6
servings15
minutes20
minutes35
minutesThis tuna casserole trades the traditional condensed soup for a quick, from-scratch béchamel, using muffalata and sun-dried tomatoes to add a briny, sophisticated depth.
Ingredients
- For the Filling
3 Tbs muffalata (chopped olive salad)
8 oz rigatoni, penne, or ziti
Coarse salt
¼ cup dry sun-dried tomatoes
¼ cup white wine, or a 50/50 mix of dry vermouth and water
2 Tbs butter
½ large yellow onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbs all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk or half-and-half
½ tsp dry mustard
Black pepper to taste
10 oz canned tuna (in oil, if possible), drained and flaked
½ cup frozen peas
2 Tbs freshly minced parsley
Lemon juice (optional)
- For the topping:
1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
2 Tbs butter, melted
2 tsp lemon zest
Paprika (optional, for color)
Directions
- For the casserole:
- Strain the muffalata, allowing the oil to collect in a small bowl.
- Boil the pasta in salted water 1 minute less than the package’s “al dente” recommendation (it will finish cooking in the oven). Strain, reserving the cooking liquid. Drizzle and toss the pasta with a tiny bit of the strained muffalata oil, in order to keep it from sticking together, and set aside.
- Place the dry tomatoes in a small saucepan with wine. Cover and bring to a simmer, about 4 minutes. Continue to cook, covered, for 2 minutes. Uncover, stir, and cook until the tomatoes are plump and the liquid has reduced to a syrupy glaze, 2 minutes. Strain out the tomatoes and finely chop them. Reserve the liquid.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- In a 10-inch, cast-iron pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add 1 Tbs of the reserved muffalata oil. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for another minute until fragrant.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for 2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Take care not to let it significantly brown.
- Slowly whisk in the milk. Switch to a flexible spatula, and continue to cook and stir until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and resembles the consistency of a heavy cream or crepe batter. Remove from heat. Stir in the reserved tomato cooking liquid, dry mustard, ½-tsp coarse salt, and plenty of black pepper.
- Fold the cooked pasta, drained tuna, chopped tomatoes, reserved muffalata solids, peas, and parsley into the sauce. Taste for salt, but consider adding lemon juice in addition or instead. (I prefer an additional ½-tsp salt, and 1 tsp juice.) The mixture should be quite wet There should be liquid on the bottom of the pan, enough to bubble up through the casserole when it’s ready. Stir in some of the pasta cooking liquid, if necessary.
- For the topping:
- Mix the Panko, melted butter, and lemon zest in a small bowl, then sprinkle evenly over the top of the casserole. (Dust lightly with paprika.)
- Bake until the sauce is bubbling and the breadcrumbs are golden brown, 20-25 minutes.
Notes
- Substitutions: water for the wine or vermouth, fresh baby spinach for the peas
I suppose that no ones gets excited about tuna casserole, but there’s something about it that, for me, feels very homemade in the most comforting way. And this is a really good version of tuna casserole. The tuna isn’t assertive. Instead, it gets along with the other Mediterranean ingredients – especially the olives – in a nicely balanced way. The sweetness of the peas and tomatoes is subtle, yet wonderful. And of course the homemade béchamel means that the casserole tastes like something that you made, not something that Campbell’s made – and it’s a real step up.
Ingredient Notes
Some varieties of muffalata are spicy – sometimes, very spicy – and if that’s the case, your casserole will be spicy, too. The spiciness will diminish as the flavors continue to meld, post-baking, but it won’t go away completely.
Muffalata may not be easy to come by. In the grocery store, you might find it near the olives. Or if there’s an “Italian” aisle, you might find it there. You might not find it at all, unless you go to a store that specializes in Italian foods.
I had assumed that this casserole would need cheese – perhaps in the topping, for instance – but it completely does not.
Would I serve it to friends?
Yes, in a heartbeat, if straight from the oven, I’d be happy to serve it to my friends. Would I serve it to guests? Probably not, but only because I don’t think I’d ever serve tuna casserole for a fancy occasion. It’s a bit too everyday for that.
Leftovers
Leftover, I still loved it, but it’s a step down from fresh. Leftovers are essential in my house. Day-in, day-out, we rely on them. Leftover, the casserole is a bit drier, and it’s hard to add liquid to it, because of the breadcrumbs – which will have lost their crunch but will nonetheless not want liquid poured over them. Still, the flavor is a knockout, and I did not at all mind having this leftover.
Mediterranean Tuna Casserole
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