017 / 75 · Noodles, Grains and Pantry Bakes

Tuna, Pea and Noodle Crunch Bake

One 9×13 in (23×33 cm) dish, at least 3.5 qt/3.3 L; 6 main-dish portions · Active 30 min · Total 1 hr 20 min

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Broad egg noodles carry a creamy tuna-and-pea sauce, while roughly crushed plain potato chips give the top its late-added crunch. The chips spend only the last part of the bake in the oven. Underneath, browned mushrooms and a small amount of sour cream make the filling more interesting than noodles stirred into a thin milky pool.

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Illustrated tuna, pea and egg-noodle bake with irregular crisp potato-chip topping.

Keep the noodles a little firm

Choose broad dried egg noodles and use their dry weight. They should be cooked two minutes short of the packet’s normal time before draining. Wide ribbons can cling together, so fold them into the finished sauce while both are still warm. Do not try to save washing a pan by burying dry noodles in the filling. Their absorption would change the sauce balance and leave a dry center. The oven stage brings the assembled casserole together rather than acting as the noodle boiling stage.

Let the tuna stay in flakes

Drain plain canned tuna in water and inspect it before weighing. Stir the sauce smooth first, then fold in the fish near the end so it does not disappear into tiny fibers. Sour cream goes in off the heat with lemon zest and chopped chives. Mushrooms are browned before the flour stage, which removes their loose water and gives the pale sauce a more savory background. The peas follow their package’s cooking requirement rather than relying on a brief warm-through just because they came frozen.

Crunch is a finishing stage

Put the first covered stage in the oven without the chips. That protects the noodles while the center heats. Add roughly crushed chips for the final uncovered ten minutes, when they can toast lightly without turning dark and bitter. Keep some irregular pieces; powder gives a dusty coating instead of a crisp top. The filling has no added salt because canned tuna, stock and chips vary widely. Serve soon after the rest, and expect the topping to soften if a portion is saved. Reheating can dry it a little, but it will not become a newly opened bag of chips again.

Ingredients

  • 8 oz dried broad egg noodles (225 g)
  • 12 cups water (2.8 L), for noodles
  • 2 tablespoons butter (30 g)
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped (120 g)
  • 8 oz mushrooms, sliced (225 g)
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (25 g)
  • 1 1/2 cups milk (360 ml)
  • 3/4 cup low-sodium vegetable stock (180 ml)
  • 1 cup frozen peas (140 g)
  • 1/2 cup sour cream (120 g)
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest (2 g)
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh chives (6 g)
  • 12 oz plain canned tuna in water, drained and inspected (340 g drained)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 oz plain salted potato chips, roughly crushed (60 g)

Set out

Oven, 9×13 in (23×33 cm) baking dish, at least 3.5 qt/3.3 L, Large pasta saucepan, at least 5 qt/4.7 L, 12-in/30-cm deep skillet, Colander, Whisk, Rimmed baking sheet, Food thermometer, Suitable foil

Allergens

Wheat, Egg, Milk, Fish: tuna; check stock and chip labels. Check labels and substitutions.

Make it

  1. Heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Set the dish on a rimmed sheet. Bring noodle water to a boil.
  2. Melt butter in the skillet over medium heat. Cook onion 5 minutes, then add mushrooms and cook 8–10 minutes over medium-high heat until browned and their loose water has evaporated. Stir in flour for 1 minute.
  3. Gradually whisk in milk and stock. Add peas and simmer 4–5 minutes, or their packet time if longer, stirring until sauce thickens and peas are cooked. Take off the heat and stir in sour cream, zest, chives and pepper. Fold in drained tuna gently.
  4. Meanwhile boil noodles 2 minutes short of their packet time. Drain and fold into the warm sauce. Transfer to the dish, cover with suitable foil and bake 15 minutes.
  5. Uncover, scatter crushed chips and bake 10–15 minutes more until topping is lightly golden and the center and several other places reach 165°F (74°C). Shield the topping loosely if needed while the center finishes. Rest 5 minutes before serving.

Check the serving spoon reaches the bottom

Wide noodles can make the top look fuller than the filling below. Lift through the whole pan so tuna, peas and sauce reach every portion rather than serving mostly noodles from one edge.

A useful detail

The 80-minute total includes preparing the sauce, overlapping noodle cooking and up to 30 minutes baking. The chips are added after the first 15 minutes, not at the start.

Another way

  • Use 60 g roughly crushed plain cornflakes instead of potato chips. Toss with 1 tablespoon/15 ml additional melted butter before the late topping stage, and check cereal labels for wheat or barley malt. This is a separate variation with added butter.

Keep it well

Refrigerate shallow portions within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F (32°C), at 40°F (4°C) or below. Use within 2 days or an earlier opened-fish or dairy deadline. Reheat to 165°F (74°C). The topping softens in storage. Freezing is not preferred because sour cream can separate and noodles soften further.