Creamy Tuna Pasta

My Creamy Tuna Pasta is easy to make and is packed with flavour. Chunks of tinned tuna are bathed in a flavour-filled creamy garlic sauce, highlighted by the tang of lemon and the slightly anise freshness of dill. Tossed with pasta, it is a family friendly meal using simple ingredients and is so quick to prepare that you can have it on the table in less than 30 minutes. So good!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian, Mediterranean

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings people

Calories 710kcal

Author Alexandra Cook - It's Not Complicated Recipes

Ingredients

340 g (12 oz) dried linguine pasta See Note 1
2 tablespoon unsalted butter See Note 2
3 spring onions/scallions - finely chopped, the whites and greens
2 cloves garlic - finely chopped
3 teaspoon lemon zest
2 ½ tablespoon lemon juice
1 ¼ cups (300 ml) thickened/heavy cream See Note 3
2 tablespoon fresh flat leaf parsley - finely chopped
2 tablespoon fresh dill - finely chopped
370 g (13 oz) tinned tuna in spring water - drained (I use 2x 185 g tins)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper - to taste See Note 4
1 cup pasta water – reserve before draining pasta – you may not need to use it all See Note 5

Instructions

Put a large saucepan of water on the stove and bring to the boil.
Once boiling, salt your water and add your pasta, stirring regularly ensuring it does not stick together.
Cook the pasta until just al dente. Reserve some pasta water prior to draining.
While the pasta is cooking, prepare your sauce. In a large, deep frying pan on medium-high heat, melt the butter and add the spring onions/scallions.
Stir for 3-5 minutes before adding in the garlic and cooking for a further 1-2 minutes, being careful to not let the garlic burn.
Add the cream, lemon juice and zest, and bring to a simmer, cooking for 3-4 minutes.
Add in the tuna, dill and parsley. Break up any large chunks of tuna with a wooden spoon.
Stir well and season with salt and pepper.
Once the tuna has warmed through, add the cooked pasta to the pan and toss through the sauce to combine.Add a little pasta water as needed, until you get the desired consistency.
Check that the seasoning is to your liking, and serve with some additional chopped parsley or dill, if you desire.

Notes

Pasta: I have used linguine for this recipe - any shape of pasta is fine, however, my preference for this sauce is a long pasta.
Tablespoon: we use a standard Australian tablespoon which is 20 ml (4 teaspoons).
Cream: use thickened/heavy cream that has 35% milk fat.
Seasoning: adjust the seasoning to your liking – we recommend using freshly ground black pepper and sea salt flakes for the best flavour. Add more red chilli pepper flakes if you like the heat.
Pasta water: before draining the pasta, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water. The starch in the liquid emulsifies with the creamy sauce, making it silky and luxurious and helping it cling to the pasta.
Storage and reheating: the Creamy Tuna Pasta is best eaten as soon as it is made. However, if you do have leftovers, store in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To reheat, warm gently in a microwave or a pan on the stovetop and add a little cream or milk if necessary. I do not recommend freezing this recipe.

Nutrition