Healthy Tuna Pasta Bake
, Updated Jul 09, 2025
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This Tuna Pasta Bake (a.k.a Tuna Casserole) is made with everyday store-cupboard ingredients and comes together in minutes. A great-tasting and healthy family meal that’s also suitable for those watching their weight!
You will also love One-pot Crab Pasta
We all have a dish to fall back on when a) we don’t feel like cooking and b) the fridge is practically empty. This ridiculously easy tuna pasta bake recipe is my emergency meal whenever I find myself in this situation. Which, ahem, happens more often than you might think!
I started making meals with tinned tuna when I was still in school in Greece. Think tuna rice salads, tuna and corn baked potatoes and sandwiches. And I STILL love these unpretentious easy dishes and none more so than tuna pasta.
This recipe is basically for anyone who says they can’t cook. Because all you need to do is boil some pasta and then mix everything else together. Super easy – a kid can make this tuna casserole.
Tuna Casserole Ingredients
Many tuna casseroles are made with cream or creamy sauces. My healthy Italian tuna pasta bake uses a tomato-based sauce instead – cutting down on the calories. But I still like a little creaminess so I have added some extra light cream cheese into the mix. Let’s take a look at the ingredients, shall we?
- Canned tuna – for a Slimming World pasta bake you must use tuna in brine or spring water. Albacore tuna is a very tasty option but can be more expensive. Whichever type you buy aim for sustainably sourced and line caught tuna. The brand I grew up with was Rio Mare which is Italian and so delicious!
- Pasta – dried penne, fusilli or rigatoni. Or any shapes that allow for the sauce to cling to them! For extra flavor I like to cook my pasta with one vegetable stock cube.
- Passata (strained tomato purée)– preferably passata rustica which is a thicker type of passata. Alternatively you can use a pasta sauce if you have one you like… I find they always have too much salt and other additives so best avoided.
- Tinned chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes. You can also use fresh cherry tomatoes if you prefer.
- Canned corn (sweetcorn) or frozen peas. You can freestyle and add any number of vegetables as long as they either cook quickly or you par boil them first. You can always stick them in with the pasta!
- Extra light cream cheese (such as Philadelphia) which is 1.5 syns per 25g making it .25 syns per serving (I say that’s almost none).
- Grated cheddar and /or mozzarella. Both are allowed as healthy extras and the recipe contains 200g (14oz) which divided by six is within your healthy extra allowance for cheese. You can use reduced fat cheese if you prefer.
- Fresh basil or parsley. I have potted herbs on standby but if you haven’t got any then you can use 1-2 teaspoons Italian Herb Mix.
How to make my healthy Tuna Pasta Bake Recipe
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
- Preheat the oven 10 180C (350F). Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the stock cube and ½ tsp salt and stir to dissolve. Add the pasta and set a timer to cook it for 2 minutes less than the time on the pack. Drain the pasta into a large bowl, reserving 80ml (⅓ cup) of the pasta water.
- Mix the cream cheese with half of the passata until well blended.
- Add the cream cheese mix, remaining passata and tinned tomatoes to the pasta bowl. Give everything a good stir.
- Add the corn, a handful of the grated cheese, drained tuna, chopped basil, salt, sweetener and dried chili flakes and stir to combine.
- Transfer to an ovenproof baking dish (mine measured 20x30cm) and drizzle with the reserved pasta water.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Garnish with more chopped basil and serve!
Tuna Pasta Bake Variations
- Add texture and CRUNCH! Not really suitable for those on a diet but my kids LOVE this. Crumble of a bag of salted crisps and sprinkle over the pasta bake. Alternatively you can use a few tablespoons of Panko breadcrumbs or wholemeal breadcrumbs which are a healthy extra.
- Swap the tuna for lump crab meat. This is more expensive but incredibly tasty. Alternatively you can use raw prawns (shrimp) instead of the tuna.
- Mexican Tuna Pasta Bake add a tin of drained black beans or mixed beans and 2-3 tablespoons sliced green jalapeños (from a jar). Replace the basil with parsley or coriander. Top with some crunched tortilla chips!
- Make it gluten free using good quality gluten free pasta.
- Use wholemeal pasta for added fiber.
Recipe suggestions
I hope this Tuna Pasta Bake becomes a regular in your meal rotation—creamy, comforting, and simple. Tried it? Please leave a review and comment below—I love seeing your tweaks and variations!
📸 Tag me on Instagram @supergolden88 or TikTok @supergoldenbakes when you share it—I can’t wait to see your cheesy creations!
Tuna Pasta Bake | Slimming World Pasta Bake
Video
Ingredients
For the pasta
- 14 oz (400g) dried pasta , such as penne
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- ½ tsp salt
For the pasta bake
- 2 cups (500g) passata or passata rustica
- 2 tbsp cream cheese (reduced fat if preferred)
- 14 oz (400g) chopped tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
- 11 oz (320g) tuna in brine , drained
- 7 oz (200g) canned corn , drained
- 2 tsp sweetener (optional)
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 cup (100g) grated cheddar cheese (reduced fat if preferred)
- 1 cup (100g) shredded mozzarella cheese (reduced fat if preferred)
- ⅓ cup (80ml) pasta water
- 4 tbsp handful fresh basil , chopped plus extra to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F(180°C). Bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the stock cube and ½ tsp salt and stir to dissolve. Add the pasta and set a timer to cook it for 2 minutes less than the time on the pack. Drain the pasta into a large bowl, reserving 80ml (⅓ cup) of the pasta water.14 oz (400g) dried pasta, 1 vegetable stock cube, ½ tsp salt
- Mix the cream cheese with half of the passata until smooth.2 cups (500g) passata , 2 tbsp cream cheese
- Add the cream cheese mix, remaining passata and tinned tomatoes to the pasta bowl. Give everything a good stir.14 oz (400g) chopped tomatoes
- Add the corn, a large handful of the grated cheese, drained tuna, chopped basil, salt, sweetener and red pepper flakes and stir to combine.11 oz (320g) tuna in brine, 7 oz (200g) canned corn, 2 tsp sweetener, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp red pepper flakes, 1 cup (100g) grated cheddar cheese, 1 cup (100g) shredded mozzarella cheese, 4 tbsp handful fresh basil
- Transfer to an ovenproof dish and drizzle with the reserved pasta water.⅓ cup (80ml) pasta water
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the cheese has melted. Garnish with more chopped basil and serve!
Notes
TUNA PASTA BAKE VARIATIONS
- Add texture and CRUNCH! Not really suitable for those on a diet but my kids LOVE this. Crumble of a bag of salted crisps and sprinkle over the pasta bake. Alternatively you can use a few tablespoons of Panko breadcrumbs or wholemeal breadcrumbs which are a healthy extra.
- Swap the tuna for drained lump crab meat. This is more expensive but incredibly tasty. Alternatively you can use raw prawns (shrimp) instead of the tuna, also very yummy.
- Mexican Tuna Pasta Bake add a tin of drained black beans or mixed beans and 2-3 tablespoons sliced green jalapeños (from a jar). Replace the basil with parsley or coriander. Top with some crunched tortilla chips!
- Make it gluten free using good quality gluten free pasta.
- Use wholemeal pasta for added fiber.
This recipe uses some of your healthy extra allowance for cheese. There’s some syns if you use Extra Light Cream Cheese (1.5 syns) – this works out as negligible .25 syns per serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.
can you use canned tomatoes and just drain the juice?
You could but it would be better to blend them until smooth