Spare Spoons Kitchen
Aunt Betty’s Comfort Kitchen · Nutritious and Economical
Tuna Mac Casserole
The thrifty weeknight standby: elbow macaroni and canned tuna in a quick cheese sauce, baked under a crushed-potato-chip crust. Pantry to table for not much money.
Effort ●●○○
Time ●●○○ Some Doing
Servingsamounts scale to match
6
Units
Ingredients
Cook the macaroni just shy of done, and add the chips at the end. The pasta keeps cooking in the oven, so drain it a minute early or it goes mushy. Scatter the crushed chips on only for the bake so they stay crisp instead of turning to paste.
Easier, if you like
- Pre-shredded cheese (about 1 cup) saves grating.
- One bowl: stir everything together with the just-cooked macaroni, top, and bake — no separate sauce step needed if you're in a hurry.
Method
Cook's notes
Cheap, fast, filling. This is the classic stretch-the-pantry supper — a couple of cans and a box of pasta feed a table.
Don't fully cook the macaroni before it bakes; just-shy-of-tender keeps it from going soft.
Stretch it further with a handful of frozen peas or some chopped celery stirred in.
No potato chips? Crushed crackers or buttered bread crumbs give the same crisp top.
Easy to make gluten-free
Gluten-free: use gluten-free pasta and a gluten-free condensed soup, and top with crushed corn chips or GF crackers.
No pimiento: a little chopped roasted red pepper, or just leave it out.