How to Bake Tuna Casserole

Serves: 8

Preparation time: 15 mins

Cooking time: 40 mins

Ingredients needed to make Tuna Casserole:

• 2 cans (5 oz each) chunk light tuna, drained
• 12 oz fusilli pasta
• 1/3 cup minced shallots
• 2 cups cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup kale, shredded
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 3 tbsp capers, drained
• ½ cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
• ¾ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• ½ cup breadcrumbs
• ½ cup sour cream
• 3 ½ cups whole milk
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 3 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1 ½ tsp dried thyme
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, plus more for greasing

Cooking instructions for Tuna Casserole:

• Warm up your oven to 375 degrees F and grease a 3 quart casserole dish with small knob of butter in the meantime.
• Drop the pasta in a large pot with boiling water and cook according to package instructions until al dente; drain them out into a colander and set aside.
• Drizzle oil in a large sauce pan and heat it over moderate flame until it shimmers.
• Toss the shallots as well as mushrooms into it and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring often, until they soften and the shallots turn lucid.
• Stir in the garlic and continue to stir fry for another minute before pouring in a bout of wine.
• Reduce it to a simmer and cook further for 3 more minutes, over moderately low heat, until the liquid reduces to half its original volume.
• Dust the flour into the pan and give them a nice stir to coat the mushrooms evenly.
• Pour the milk into it and bring the sauce to a boil over high heat.
• Bring it down to a simmer and continue to do so for 4 minutes, while stirring constantly, until the sauce turns thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
• Toss the cooked pasta into a large mixing bowl, along with the tuna, kale, capers, cheese, thyme as well as each of seasonings and pour in the sour cream.
• Drizzle the warm sauce over them and toss them all together until they are mixed thoroughly and well coated with the creamy sauce.
• Tip it into the greased dish and keep aside until required.
• Melt butter in a small saucepan over moderate heat and scatter the breadcrumbs into it.
• Toast them for a couple of minutes, stirring often, until they give out a nice nutty aroma and turn crispy.
• Sprinkle it on top of the tuna-pasta mixture and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the topping browns lightly.
• Take the dish out of the oven and scatter the chopped parsley on top to garnish.
• Serve warm.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons