Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole—creamy, cheesy, and downright delicious, this casserole is even adored by those who say they hate it.
This Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole is my mom’s recipe and can not be beaten. Every other tuna noodle casserole is dry and bland. When I say that I am making my mom’s Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole, most people state how much they hated this dish growing up, and I tell them to give it a chance.
My Favorite Kitchen Tools To Make This Recipe
From trusty pots and pans to handy gadgets, I’ve curated a list of products I use and love.
Most of us who grew up in the ’70s—’80s have the idea that all casseroles are dry and crumbly noodle dishes. But my mom was the exception. Even her Tater Tot Casserole is extremely creamy.
When I met my husband and told him I love tuna noodle casserole, he thought I was crazy. Then he had this recipe, and his mind forever changed.
Fall is all about comfort food—warm, cheesy dishes full of carbs. LOL!
The tuna noodle casserole and the Oreo dessert are tied in my book as my favorite recipes from my mom. It is about time that I shared this casserole with you.
I did put my spin on it only because my kids love cheddar cheese, and I wanted to add some to it – once I did that, I decided to top it with a few bread crumbs. The crunchy crust with the cheesy casserole underneath made this unbelievably the most amazing casserole I have ever had.
Childhood Dishes
We all have childhood dishes that bring the warmest and most comforting feelings and this Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole is that dish for me. And while I am not a huge Velveeta fan, I don’t mind making this casserole with it because well, my mom did, and some things you just should not change.
Leftovers are great frozen, to either save for later or take to a friend in need. Here are a few tips.
How to Freeze Casseroles
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Best Ever Tuna Noodle Casserole
Ingredients
Casserole
- 12 ounces elbow noodles cooked al dente
- 10 ounces canned tuna in water drained
- 10.5 ounce can cream of chicken
- 10.5 ounce can cream of mushroom
- 1 cup milk
- 16 ounces Velveeta cheese shredded or cut into cubes
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, salt, and pepper each
Topping
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degress F.
- Boil noodles according to package direction, drain and rinse in cold water and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl add all of the remaining casserole ingredients and stir to combine.
- Fold in cooked noodles and pour into a large casserole dish.
- Cover and place in preheated oven and bake for 50 minutes. Uncover for the last 30 minutes.
- Once cooked – top with 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese and then sprinkle on 3 tablespoons of breadcrumbs.
- Turn the oven to low broil and bake for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the top is golden brown. Keep an eye on it as it may brown faster depending on your oven and how high the rack is in the oven.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Thanks Sandi! I love the tweeks you made to the recipe. I’ll have to come over soon to try this new and improved version. Love you.
Hi everyone ! I’m going to start keto ( sort of) i absolutely love this recipe. What can be used in place of the pasta though ? Any suggestions s will be warmly welcomed. Thank you friends !!!
You can use broccoli or cauliflower in place of pasta. You can also find low-carb pastas available at your local grocery.
Palmini noodles! They are by the pasta sauce, they are made with hearts of palm. Super good. They have linguini, angel hair, lasagna, even rice. I am vegetarian keto so using tofu instead of tuna, and keto bread breadcrumbs.
I’m making it keto now. I found some rigatoni shaped shiritaki noodles. It’s in the oven now so we shall see shortly. I do like the suggestion of broccoli or cauliflower but when you want a pasta shiritaki will.do. There is also a brand of noodles made from hearts of palm that are quite good. They are called Palmini.
Love all of these suggestions!
how would this work using canned salmon?
I have not tried this, but I can’t see why it wouldn’t work.
Sandra,
Could I substitute sour cream and a can of mushrooms instead of cream of mushroom soup to the recipe?
Thank you!
Michele
I haven’t tried that, but you should be fine!
Hi! My mother made tuna casserole for us kids and we loved it. I’m not exactly sure what cream soups. Either 2 of celery or 1 celery and I mushroom. I’m confused why you use 1 can of chicken when it’s a tuna casserole. Just curious. I’m certainly no chef!
I wish I had some sort of amazing answer for you that was foodie related, but really, this recipe was passed down to me by my mother and grandmother. 🙂 And family recipes are just the way they are, lol. I am sorry that doesn’t help. I am sure you could switch out and it still would be amazing.
What would you add to this to make it spicy?
I’m not sure I would be a fan of this spicy but you could add some spice to the breadcrumbs – like cayenne pepper.
You could use oepperjacj cheese
Try some chopped jalepeno’s
They also have tuna with jalapeño. This might spice it up.
Love this idea!
Hi Mac. My mom makes this recipe but she also adds canned green chilies or jalapeños. I love it
I added chili powder and a pinch of cayenne to the wetter ingredients one time when I made it. Very good. I have also eaten plain with pickled jalapeños on the side. I bet that new crispy “French’s” jalapeño topper would be good too.
These dishes are very tasty, easy to make and long preserved in the refrigerator. My husband and I like it.
We eat often. I hope you can introduce more on the page for me to learn.
What temperature do I preheat the oven?
350 degrees
So easy to make. Looking forward to dinner. I made up in morning to have for dinner tonight.
I made my own tuna casserole tonight, then I found this when I Googled: why do people hate tuna casserole. I’ve been putting cheese in mine for a long time. What I put in changes a little from one time to the next. Tonight I just used a Mexican blend of cheese and only cream of mushroom and milk. I used fancy white albacore in water which I drained off to give to the cats, then I like to sear the tuna in a hot skillet with olive oil and butter to cook off the excess liquid and brown the tuna just a little. I then added some white and green onions, let that cook a bit, then the canned soup, milk, and later the cheese after it was bubbling. I typically just cook it on the stovetop because I only cook for myself. I like the potato chips so I just crumble some on top of my serving with a few leftover raw green onions.
I love, love this idea! Thanks for sharing, I will be trying this for sure!
I made this last night, with a few adjustments (added sherry, homemade ‘cream of’ soups, penne noodles-what I had on hand) and it was delicious. The kids said it was great, everyone loved it. Thanks!
I have the memories of a dry and boring casserole that I had as a child. It looked nothing like yours! I can’t wait to try that cheesy goodness!
Makes me feel like a kid again!
I use Italian seasoned breadcrumbs with cheese mixed in for the topping very flavorful! I pretty much always use Italian seasoned breadcrumbs-otherwise i feel there’s usually a flavor shortage lol
So, so goood! Very well! Looks tasty! Love the unique flavors in this recipe! YUM!
I love a good tuna casserole!
It looks absolutely AHHHmazing! A new favorite for kids!
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Thank you for following!
This recipe looks delicious but calls for “1/2 tsp garlic salt pepper”…does that mean 1/2 tsp EACH of garlic salt and also pepper, or is there such a spice as “garlic salt pepper”?
Yes. It means of each.
I liked the taste of this casserole, and I generally don’t like tuna dishes. I changed a couple things, though. Omitted chicken soup and substituted cream of celery. Also, I only used maybe 8 ounces of Velveeta..With the cheese on top, I felt that was plenty. Also, my top crust got brown very fast, It was brown in less then 5 minutes. Ovens vary. Will definitely make it again.
I’m so glad you liked it! Cream of celery is definitely a good sub, I’ve done that before in a pinch. We love loads of cheese around here which is totally preference! Thank you for letting us know what you thought!
I made this for dinner tonight and YUM! I unfortunately didn’t have breadcrumbs so used saltine crackers instead. Kids even asked for seconds and that never happens. Thank you for sharing!
I’m so glad you and the kids liked it! The saltines sound like a delicious substitute.
To avoid the plainness of the breadcrumbs I added in some crushed Frenches onions. Man it’s so tasty!
Love this idea!
Great recipe. What do you do with the Velveeta cheese?
Thanks! It should be shredded cut into small cubes and mixed in with the noodles and other ingredients. I’ve corrected the recipe to make it more clear.
This is an amazing recipe. It is like a mac and cheese with tuna. I added some broccoli and some olives because I had them and I had to use onion soup rather than cream of mushroom or chicken soup. And I had cheddar cheese so I used that instead of the Velveeta. But it was still fantastic and I have been eating it all week.
That sounds delicious! I love recipes that work with substitutions, it definitely makes dinner easier!
This Tuna dishes truly amazing so rich and creamy I want more
Thank you!
We love pasta and tuna together, add the cheese and it’s perfection!
It’s definitely delicious! Enjoy!
I am very much looking forward to making this for dinner!
I hope you enjoy it!
This Tuna Noodle Casserole couldn’t look any more perfect!
Thank you!
Your version looks a whole lot better than the dish I remember from long ago. I think I need this casserole another shot!
It definitely lives up to its name! I hope you enjoy this delicious version!
Delicious casserole, loved every bite of it!
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thank you for sharing!