And on to part two of frugal food month, the brainchild of Jenn at Frugal Upstate – tuna!
Probably just about everyone already knows about tuna sandwiches and tuna noodle casserole. We have two less-common tuna dishes around here, though. One of hubby’s favorite dishes is Penne with Tuna. (I have made one or two minor changes, but the original recipe came from the internet somewhere. Unfortunately, I don’t seem to have a note of just where “somewhere” is.) Also, I have recently adapted a soup recipe from The Tightwad Gazette II
Penne with Tuna
Ingredients
- olive oil
- 4 lg. garlic cloves chopped
- 1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. basil
- 1/4 tsp. onion powder
- 3/4 tsp. black pepper
- pinch salt
- small pinch crushed red pepper
- 2 cans tuna Do not drain.
- 1/2 stick butter
- 8 oz. tomato sauce
- 1 lb. penne If you use gluten-free penne, this is GF. We like Tinkyada.
Instructions
- Pour olive oil into a 2-quart saucepan to thickly cover the bottom.
- Add garlic and turn heat on low.
- Add seasonings and stir.
- Add tuna, including the liquid, butter, and tomato sauce; mix well.
- Cook until heated through.
- Meanwhile, cook penne until done. Drain well, then mix with sauce and serve.
Tuna-Cheddar Chowder
Ingredients
- 2 carrots peeled and grated
- 1 clove garlic peeled and minced
- 1/4 c. butter
- 1/4 c. flour If you're GF, use rice flour.
- 2 c. chicken broth
- 2 c. milk
- 1 can tuna drained and flaked
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 c. grated cheddar
Instructions
- In Dutch oven, sauté carrots and garlic in butter until garlic begins to soften.
- Mix in flour.
- Add chicken broth and milk.
- Heat and stir constantly until thick and bubbling.
- Add tuna and salt, and heat through.
- Add cheese and stir until melted.
Thanks so much for linking to this for the “Frugal Food Series: Tuna”.
I meant to try that chowder last winter-I saw the recipe in the tightwad gazette as well! But it seems such a cold weather dish, I probably won’t get to it until fall.
That penne dish on the other hand could be very interesting to use this summer. Thanks again for posting it.
The penne sounds good, but does it taste fishy with the tuna not drained? Hubby doesn’t like cooked tuna, so I always worry he’ll turn his nose up.
Thanks for sharing!
We don’t think it tastes fishy. I asked Michael for his opinion, just in case. (In general, he doesn’t like tuna, either.) But he suggests trying it once to see what you all think. If you DO drain the tuna, you will need to add some more liquid of some kind (a little water would probably work fine, since it’s pretty much water we drain off the tuna, anyway). I drained the tuna once by mistake and, boy, was it dry! lol