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Skinny Tuna Pasta

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Skinny Tuna Pasta is an easy, weeknight dish made with canned tuna and fresh veggies in a light cream sauce. Use any noodles to make it allergy-friendly. Serve tuna pasta warm or chilled!

tuna pasta in white bowl next to tuna pasta in skillet next to blue cloth napkin

Skinny Tuna Pasta

Tuna pasta been a go-to recipe in our house for many years.

It’s quick, easy, and is a lighter version of a tuna casserole, made with a healthy dose of vegetables and a small amount of dairy.

Once you make it a time or two, you’ll probably feel the same way. It’s so easy, but it tastes like something you worked hard for!

Recipe components

Vegetables

I like to load up vegetables, when possible. For this recipe, I love the flavors and textures of carrots, green onions, portobello mushrooms, and sweet peas.

Pasta

A whole-grain spaghetti noodle works very well for this recipe because it has added fiber and nutrients, and it holds up better during the simmering process.

Sauce

We’re keeping it light with this sauce by using a 1% milk and pasta water, which adds starch to the sauce as a natural thickener.

Tuna

Then, of course, there’s the tuna, which I like to use a water-packed tuna instead of oil-packed. However, either will work great for this recipe.

overhead view of tuna pasta ingredients: portobello mushrooms, shredded carrots, sweet peas, green onions, tuna, cooked pasta noodles

My favorite pasta sauce hack

As I mentioned above, the sauce in this recipe relies on one of my favorite kitchen hacks for cooking pasta.

Basically, we hold back some of the pasta water (after cooking it) to use as an ingredient in the sauce.

This helps knock down the dairy fat calories or oil ingredients found in white pasta sauces and casseroles that rely on heavy cream or cheese.

close up of tuna pasta in white bowl

How to make tuna pasta

Step 1. Boil the pasta noodles to al dente. Then drain, but reserve 1 cup of pasta water to use in the sauce. Set the noodles aside to prepare the dish.

Step 2. Saute the carrots and green onions until tender.

shredded carrots and sliced green onions in skillet

Step 3. Add the portobello mushrooms

shredded carrots, sliced green onions, and sliced portobello mushrooms in skillet

Step 4. Add the milk, pasta water, seasonings, and pasta. Then simmer to heat everything. Your tuna pasta will be ready to devour!

* see full recipe below

tuna pasta in skillet

Tuna pasta ingredients

  • whole-grain spaghetti
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • shredded carrots
  • green onions
  • mushrooms
  • sweet peas
  • tuna
  • 1% milk
  • Kosher salt and pepper

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(top) close up of tuna pasta in white bowl (middle) title text (bottom) overhead view of tuna pasta ingredients

close up of tuna pasta in white bowl
Print REcipe
5 from 15 votes

Skinny Tuna Pasta

Tuna Pasta is an easy, weeknight dish made with canned tuna and fresh veggies in a light cream sauce. Use any noodles to make it allergy-friendly. Serve tuna pasta warm or chilled!
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 1-cup servings
Calories 106kcal
Author Traci Antonovich

Ingredients

  • 4 oz Whole Grain Spaghetti
  • 2 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 cup Carrots shredded
  • 2 Green Onions chopped
  • 1 Portobello Mushroom 1/4" thick slices
  • 1 cup Frozen Peas thawed
  • 1 7 oz can Tuna drained
  • 1/2 cup 1% Milk
  • 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
  • 1/4 tsp Black Pepper

Instructions

  • Cook NOODLES according to package instructions until al dente (slightly undercooked, they’ll finish cooking later). Reserve 1 cup pasta water, divided in half and set aside. Be prepared to transfer cooked pasta to a colander; then cool-water rinse, drain and set aside.
  • Heat OLIVE OIL in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add CARROTS and GREEN ONIONS; sauté until tender, stirring as needed (about 4 min).
  • Add PORTOBELLO MUSHROOMS; sauté until slightly tender, stirring as needed (about 4 min).
  • Gently fold in remaining ingredients: PEAS, TUNA, MILK, 1/2 of the RESERVED PASTA WATER, cooked NOODLES, SALT, and PEPPER.
  • Reduce heat to LOW and simmer until liquids have cooked down into a light, creamy sauce; stirring as needed (about 5 min); add more pasta water, if needed to adjust consistency.

RECIPE NOTES

Yield: 6 cups
Serving size: 1 cup
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy and are estimates based on unbranded ingredients acquired from a nutrition database. For accurate calculations, please refer to brand packaging information and consult your nutritionist.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Skinny Tuna Pasta
Amount Per Serving (1 cup)
Calories 106 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value*
Fat 5g8%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 1mg0%
Sodium 221mg10%
Potassium 227mg6%
Carbohydrates 12g4%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 3827IU77%
Vitamin C 12mg15%
Calcium 43mg4%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Did you make this recipe? Tag me!Mention @thekitchengirl or tag #thekitchengirl

(top) tuna pasta in white bowl next to tuna pasta in skillet next to blue cloth napkin (bottom)

I originally published this recipe to amandascookin.com in Aug 2016.

Traci Antonovich
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Traci Antonovich

Recipe author and food photographer at The Kitchen Girl
I'm on a mission to help you eat healthy AND save money through simple, everyday recipes, product reviews, and budget-friendly kitchen tips.
Traci Antonovich
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Comments

  1. Josi says

    09/03/2019 at 9:47 pm

    5 stars
    I love the way you’ve lightened up this recipe! I also love the addition of mushroom slices!

    Reply

  2. Tisha says

    09/03/2019 at 9:15 pm

    5 stars
    This lighter version of a great classic is perfect when you are trying to watch your caloric intake!

    Reply

  3. Suzy says

    09/03/2019 at 8:34 pm

    5 stars
    I really love the idea of making this a lighter version! I would not feel bad about eating this at all!

    Reply

  4. Jamie says

    09/03/2019 at 7:49 pm

    5 stars
    I love how this is a light cream sauce! So often I find cream sauces too heavy but this is just right!

    Reply

  6. Marlynn | Urban Bliss Life says

    08/19/2019 at 8:17 am

    5 stars
    I’ve never been a fan of heavy tuna casseroles, but this beautiful light tunas pasta I can definitely get behind! So much lighter and yummier!

    Reply

  7. Heidy L. McCallum says

    08/19/2019 at 7:50 am

    5 stars
    I love tuna casserole but ours needs to be lightened up a tad. I can’t wait to try yours out with the family this weekend.

    Reply

  9. Lisa | Garlic & Zest says

    08/19/2019 at 7:35 am

    5 stars
    Tuna casserole is always a favorite of mine, but your tips for lightening it up make it so much healthier and less of a guilty pleasure. Thank you!

    Reply

  10. Heather Johnson says

    08/19/2019 at 7:10 am

    5 stars
    i’m in for any recipe with mushrooms!!! especially with pasta – yum! sounds so tasty!

    Reply

  12. Sara says

    01/15/2018 at 4:00 pm

    5 stars
    This is such a great tasty light version of a classic. I love the pasta water trick, have been using it for a while now, and it is brilliant!

    Reply

  14. Diana says

    01/15/2018 at 3:42 pm

    5 stars
    Nothing beats a good casserole, and I love your version as it doesn’t sound like it’s high in calories or too fatty like the usual casseroles that we have.

    Reply

    • Traci Antonovich says

      01/15/2018 at 6:20 pm

      Thanks Diana…it still has my greatest weakness…pasta LOL. But def not as many calories as the creamy, cheesy kind, which makes it more diet friendly for me. 🙂

  16. Gina says

    01/15/2018 at 10:44 am

    5 stars
    I think I will prefer this version better I think of tuna as a very light healthy dish and sometimes traditional tuna casseroles turns me off because it is so much Dairy I can’t wait to try this!

    Reply

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