Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole
It’s comfort food at its finest but with some serious from scratch flair! Our Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole is a nostalgic throwback but made with our cream of mushroom soup from scratch and topped with homemade potato chips making this classic casserole even better!
Everyone loves a throwback, right? Well for these back-to-school fall weeknights, we’re serving up one of our favorites from childhood, a Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole! But of course, we’re kicking it up a notch with our Cream of Mushroom Soup From Scratch and Homemade Potato Chips for all the nostalgia, but none of the extra overprocessed ingredients!
Ingredients Needed
- Noodles – We love egg noodles for this recipe as that’s the most classic casserole noodle, but we’ve also made it orecchiette to switch it up a little!
- Tuna – Obviously a requirement of tuna noodle casserole.
- Peas – While not all classic tuna casseroles have peas, we love the little pop of color and sweetness they add.
- Cream of Mushroom Soup – If you haven’t made your own yet, you don’t know what you’re missing! You can of course use canned (see recipe notes), but trust me, you will never regret making this creamed classic to take your favorite casseroles to the next level (like our Fresh Green Bean Casserole From Scratch!)
- Potato Chips – While you may be more familiar with a breadcrumb topping, in my husband’s family, it was always potato chips. He’s converted us all to this salty crunchy topping – especially when they’re homemade!
- Seasonings – Garlic, onion powder, salt, pepper, and parsley. Just enough to tie it all together.
Easy to Make
Because you can make the mushroom soup and the potato chips in advance, this classic noodle casserole is a breeze to throw together on that busy weeknight. Just add the soup, peas, tuna, and spices all in a bowl and mix while your pasta is cooking.
Assemble it all in your favorite 9X13 baking dish and top it with freshly shredded cheddar cheese.
Now the fun part – crush those beautiful potato chips and sprinkle them on top of it all for the crunchy salty finish!
Bake and done! Our take on the Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole!
It has all of the comforting qualities of a classic casserole that you want: Creamy noodles, peas, just the right amount of cheese, and a crunchy topping. But with ingredients made from scratch!
Recipe Tips
While we don’t suggest assembling the whole casserole and making it in advance, what you can do is make the cream of mushroom soup and potato chips in advance for quick and easy assembly when needed! You can make the cream of mushroom soup 3 days in advance and the potato chips up to a week in advance, although trust us, it’ll be so hard to keep them around that long!
No time to make homemade? No problem, you can use canned cream of mushroom soup, too. We’ve made it with both and have the recipe adjustments in the recipe notes when using canned soup.
The best potato chips to use are going to be your favorite plain salted chips. When we don’t make our own, we prefer to use Kettle brand sea salt chips.
Yes, but before it’s fully assembled and baked. This recipe is best frozen before the cheese and chips are added. See recipe notes for how to defrost and cook from frozen!
For those who don’t like peas or mushrooms, you can of course adjust by omitting the peas or making your cream of mushroom soup as just a creamy soup without the mushrooms. Add in other preferred veggies like corn.
Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole! A plate of delicious nostalgia with a fun crunch on top that’ll get the kids excited about potato chips for dinner!
You Also Might Like
- Fresh Green Bean Casserole From Scratch
- Tuna Pea Pasta
- One Pot Creamy Broccoli Pasta
- Enchilada Skillet Pasta
- American Potato Salad
- Homemade Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
- Homemade Condensed Cream of Celery Soup
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
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Classic Tuna Noodle Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb egg noodles
- 1 can tuna 7 oz
- 4 cups cream of mushroom soup homemade, see recipe notes for canned
- 1 1/2 cup peas 7 oz
- 2 oz potato chips
- 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese shredded, 4 oz
- 1 teaspoon parsley dried
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cook Pasta: Add a large pot of salted water to the stove and heat over high to bring to a boil. Add egg noodles and cook for 6 mins. Drain and add to a 9X13 baking dish.
- Prep Soup and Tuna: While pasta is cooking, add to a large bowl cream of mushroom soup, tuna, peas, parsley, onion and garlic powders, and salt and pepper. Mix well.
- Assemble: Pour the soup and tuna mixture over the pasta in the baking dish and mix well. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over the top in an even layer. Add crushed potato chips over the top in an even layer.
- Bake: Add to the middle rack of the oven and bake for 35 minutes.
- Serve and Enjoy!
