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This Gluten Free Tuna Pasta Bake is one of my childhood favourites. This nostalgic, gluten free pasta recipe is made with tinned tuna, sweetcorn and a delicious cheesy sauce. It’s so simple to make, a great budget meal and one of my favourite dinners.
A Nostalgic, Budget-Friendly Dinner You’ll LOVE!
- Why choose this recipe? The best thing about this tuna pasta bake recipe is that it’s so cheap to make. One tin of tuna can stretch to feed 4-6 people, so you’ve got a hearty meal at a low cost. Ready in 30 minutes with the BEST cheesy topping!
- Top Tip: Flavour the gluten free cheese sauce with some dried herbs and a little ketchup to give it a nice colour and taste. This was always my mum’s top tip!
- Pasta of Choice: I used the Tesco free from shell pasta in this recipe, but any gluten free pasta works!
- On a Budget? For more budget recipe ideas, this Tuna Pasta Salad makes a great lunch. You can also use up leftover canned tuna in my Tuna Sushi Bowl too.
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Don’t just take my word for it…
Jayne left ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ and said: “OMG, Sarah another awesome winner, love it and so easy, thank you.“
Kirsten also commented: “Oh wow Sarah, you’ve done it again! What a smashing meal and so super yummy! Plates were definitely all clean 😋”
Ingredients and Substitutions
There’s a printable recipe card below for this Tuna Pasta Bake recipe with the full quantities. But here are the main ingredients and ideas for any swaps.
- Gluten Free Pasta: You can use any pasta you like for this recipe, from fusilli or penne to shell pasta, spaghetti or macaroni.
- Butter: Use a vegan margarine for dairy free.
- Plain Gluten Free Flour: I use the FREEE plain gluten free flour blend. Any gluten free all purpose flour or plain flour blend will work.
- Milk: I use full fat milk but you can use skim milk or semi-skimmed if you prefer, or a dairy free milk of choice.
- Tuna: Tinned tuna is a super easy ingredient and makes this a great budget meal.
- Sweetcorn: I use tinned sweetcorn but you can use fresh or frozen, or swap for something like peas instead if you prefer.
- Grated Cheese: I used grated mature Cheddar cheese – a sharp Cheddar will have a cheesier flavour. You could also use a vegan cheese and nutritional yeast for flavour.
- Tomato Ketchup: My secret recipe to add colour and flavour to the sauce. Make sure you use a gluten free ketchup – most are suitable.
- Dried Parsley
- Paprika
- Garlic Powder
- Chilli Flakes
- Crisps: If you want, you can crush some gluten free crisps on top for true nostalgia!
How to Make Tuna Pasta Bake
There’s a printable recipe card below with the method. But here are some step-by-step photos to show you how easy this gluten free tuna pasta bake recipe is to make.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
TO STORE: Any leftovers will also keep in the fridge for a couple of days. You can reheat this thoroughly or enjoy it cold too.
TO FREEZE: Gluten free pasta doesn’t tend to reheat too well without falling apart. Therefore I’d recommend making extra sauce and freezing this. That way you can reheat the sauce and add freshly-cooked pasta when you’re ready.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some FAQs about this easy tuna pasta bake. If you can’t find the answer to your question here or in the post above, please comment and I’ll try answer!
You can make this recipe dairy free with a few simple swaps. Try using a dairy free milk, a vegan butter and dairy free cheese in the sauce to make it dairy free as well as gluten free.
To air fry, simply follow the recipe steps up to the point of baking the pasta. Instead of placing in the oven, I pour the pasta into a silicone air fryer liner tray and air fry at 200C for 10 minutes until the cheese is golden and bubbling on top.
More Gluten Free Pasta Recipes
If you like this then make sure you check out these other gluten free recipes too…
- Cheeseburger Pasta
- Creamy Salmon Pasta
- Spaghetti Bolognese
- Cheesy Meatball Pasta Bake
- Gluten Free Pasta Bake
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Gluten Free Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe
Ingredients
- 300 g gluten free shell pasta, or shape of your choice
- 30 g butter
- 30 g gluten free plain flour
- 0.5 tsp dried parsley
- 0.5 tsp paprika
- 0.5 tsp garlic powder
- 0.5 tsp chilli flakes, optional
- 450 ml full fat milk
- 160 g tin of tuna, drained
- 150 g tinned sweetcorn
- 200 g grated mature Cheddar cheese, Plus a handful extra for topping
- 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
- Crisps, (optional, for topping)
Instructions
- Cook the pasta as per the pack instructions. Preheat the oven to 200’C / Fan 180’C / Gas Mark 6 and set aside an ovenproof dish. While the pasta bubbles away, make the sauce.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a low heat. Once melted, add the flour and mix into a thick paste. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring to ensure it does not stick. Add the dried parsley, paprika, garlic powder and chilli flakes (if using) and stir for another 30 seconds to one minute until all mixed in.
- Add a splash of milk and mix well until it forms into a paste with no lumps. Continue to add the milk around 50-75ml at a time, each time mixing until there are no lumps. Once you’ve added all the milk you should have a smooth, thick sauce.
- Add the drained tuna and sweetcorn to the sauce and stir well. Next add in the 200g of grated cheese and stir until it has melted into the sauce. Add the ketchup, stirring until it is fully mixed together into a smooth sauce. Turn off the heat. You may want to taste it at this point and add some salt and black pepper if you feel it needs some extra seasoning.
- Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add to the sauce. Stir really well until the pasta is coated, and then pour the whole thing into the ovenproof dish, spreading it out evenly. Top with the grated cheese (and crushed crisps if using) and cook for around 20 minutes until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Serve hot.
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Notes
- To Serve: My mum used to always serve this up with a good helping of peas, if you want an extra bit of veg with your dinner! Or add some sliced tomatoes on top before baking. Gluten free garlic bread is also a great side dish to mop up the sauce.
- Storage: This dish is definitely best made fresh. Leftovers can be kept in the fridge or you can batch up the sauce and freeze to add freshly-cooked pasta.
- Step-by-Step Photos: Check out the blog post above for step-by-step photos of this method if you find it easier to follow a visual guide.
- Like this Recipe? It would mean SO much to me if you could leave a 5* rating and a little comment if you make this Tuna Pasta Bake recipe and love it. It really helps support my blog and get the recipe out there to more people! Thank you xx
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OMG, Sarah another awesome winner, love it and so easy, thank you.
I was very disappointed because the sauce all soaked into the noodles.It is dry.i like it with sauce.Taste is ok.
Yummy! A big hit in our house and is a regular meal choice now! Thanks.