Zesty tuna pasta – hot or cold

This zesty tuna pasta has a delicious Mediterranean twist.
Fresh and summery, you can have it on the table in 15 minutes. 

This zesty tuna pasta is a quick dinner that I’ve been making, in one version or another, since my student days. It has a delicious Mediterranean feel to it, and is fresh and summery. It’s a terrific way to stretch a can of tuna into a meal for 3 or 4 people and makes a great, frugal, mid-week dinner or easy lunch.

Speedy tuna pasta

If you’re organised, you can have this zesty tuna pasta on the table in under 15 minutes.

I usually put the pasta on to cook, then sort out the other ingredients while it’s boiling. Then simply drain the cooked pasta, mix everything together, and serve. Ta-da!

Ingredients for zesty tuna pasta

This delicious tuna pasta uses ingredients that you’re likely to have on hand. It combines store cupboard staples like pasta and canned tuna, with commonplace fresh items like cherry tomatoes and green veggies. 

To make this easy tuna pasta recipe you will need the following ingredients.

From the cupboard:

• Short pasta – I used casarecce which are short twists, but fusilli, penne, or any other smallish shape will be fine
• Tinned tuna
• Chilli flakes
• Olive oil

From the fridge:

• Broccoli – or another green vegetable
• Cherry tomatoes
• Lemon
• Olives

Endless variety

You can also vary the ingredients quite a bit and it’s still fabulous. For instance, I often use mange tout, sugar snap peas or other green vegetables instead of the broccoli florets. You can use green olives instead of the Kalamata ones. Or even capers instead of the olives. Or lime instead of the lemon. You can leave out the chilli altogether if you don’t like it or add more for a super-spicy salad. Throw in some fresh herbs – parsley, dill and chives are all good.

I’ve made this tuna pasta many ways, and they’ve all been good. Find the one that works for you!

Hot, cold, or in-between 

My daughter Kipper made a big fuss about how she “doesn’t like tuna” (since when?!) so she picked out all the olives and broccoli and ate them.

And then she ate all the pasta, and a fair bit of the tuna as well.

She’s always been a bit funny about tuna though. Apparently everyone else in the world can mix it with mayonnaise and put it in a sandwich and that’s just fine, but if I do the same then it’s completely inedible and she won’t go near it. Fickle much? Gah.

I try not to take it personally.

Regardless of my daughter’s views on tuna, you can serve this dish hot, as we did, or let it cool down and eat it as a tuna pasta salad instead. It also travels well in a plastic box, so it makes a great packed lunch or picnic dish.

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📖 Recipe

Zesty tuna pasta

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Delicious tuna pasta with a Mediterranean twist. Fresh and summery, and ready in 15 minutes! 

4.78 from 9 votes

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Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine Mediterranean

Servings 2

Calories 613 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 150 g pasta twists or other short pasta
• 200 g broccoli florets
• 160 g tin of tuna in spring water, drained
• 125 g cherry tomatoes
• zest and juice of a lemon
• 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ teaspoon crushed red chilli
• 12 kalamata olives

Instructions

 

• 150 g (1 ½ cups) pasta twists or other short pasta, 200 g (2½-3 cups) broccoli florets
  Cook the pasta according to the directions on the packet. Add the broccoli for the last four minutes of cooking (or cook for four minutes in a separate pan). Drain.
• 160 g (5 ⅔ oz) tin of tuna in spring water, drained, 125 g (⅚ cup) cherry tomatoes, zest and juice of a lemon, 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, ¼ teaspoon crushed red chilli
  Meanwhile, flake the drained tuna into a large bowl. Halve or quarter the tomatoes and add to the tuna. Mix in the zest and juice of a lemon, the olive oil, and the crushed chill, and stir to combine.
• 12 kalamata olives
  Remove the pits from the olives, and slice each olive in half. Add to the tuna mixture.
• Toss the drained pasta and broccoli with the tuna-tomato-olive mixture and combine well.
• Serve and enjoy!

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Zesty tuna pasta

Amount per Serving

Calories

613

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

27

g

42

%

Saturated Fat

 

4

g

25

%

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

3

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

18

g

Cholesterol

 

29

mg

10

%

Sodium

 

616

mg

27

%

Potassium

 

773

mg

22

%

Carbohydrates

 

66

g

22

%

Fiber

 

6

g

25

%

Sugar

 

5

g

6

%

Protein

 

29

g

58

%

Vitamin A

 

1069

IU

21

%

Vitamin C

 

103

mg

125

%

Calcium

 

96

mg

10

%

Iron

 

4

mg

22

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Keyword pasta, tuna

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

The theme for this month’s Family Foodies event, hosted by Eat Your Veg and Bangers & Mash, is fab food fast. On the table in 15 minutes, I’d say this zesty tuna pasta definitely qualifies!