If you’re looking for an easy recipe for a healthy, satisfying meal – try this tuna pasta bake. Boasting 70 grams of protein per portion, this recipe is also a good source of fibre, but low in fat. Seasoned generously with fresh parsley, this tuna pasta bake is a great choice for a weekday dinner. You can also modify it to better match your needs – for example, you can replace sweetcorn with green peas or use your favourite cheese instead of reduced fat one. But best of all: it’s delicious!

Ingredients for a high protein tuna pasta bake

For 2 generous servings, you’ll need:

• 220g tuna from brine (weight after draining)
• 120g dry chickpea pasta
• 150g thick fat-free high protein yoghurt, e.g. Skyr
• 150g natural yoghurt
• 120g drained canned sweetcorn
• 60g low-fat cheese – I used Eatlean cheese sold in the UK
• 1 egg
• 15g fresh parsley
• salt, pepper, chili powder (optional)

How to make a tuna pasta bake with parsley and sweetcorn

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.

In a large bowl, mix both yoghurts with an egg. Add drained tuna and sweetcorn.

Finely chop the parsley. Leave a small amount for garnish and place the rest of it in the bowl with the other ingredients. Mix everything well.

Generously season with pepper. Add a little bit of salt, but be careful – canned tuna can already be very salty. If you like a bit of spice, add a pinch of chili powder.

Cook the chickpea pasta following the instructions on the package, then drain. Add it to the bowl with tuna and yoghurt and mix everything well.

Transfer the mixture to an ovenproof dish, then sprinkle the lean cheese on top. The cheese I used has 90% less fat than regular cheese, and it works great for baking. If you can’t find low fat cheese, look for any reduced-fat cheese, or use regular cheddar.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 30 minutes.

Serve garnished with a sprinkle of fresh parsley.

Enjoy!

You can store leftovers in the fridge, they will last a couple of days. Make sure to place them in a sealed container, to avoid getting the rest of your fridge to smell of fish! You can reheat the leftovers in an oven or microwave.

Why is protein important in our diet?

Protein is a vital macronutrient to include in our diet. It’s crucial for building and maintaining muscle mass, which builds our bodies. It’s also the most satiating macronutrient, which means that eating a meal high in protein will keep you full for a long time.

This recipe has over 70 grams of protein per portion – 31 grams coming from the tuna, 11 from yoghurt, 10 from high protein cheese, 13 from chickpea pasta and 7 from the egg and sweetcorn.

Why is fibre important in our diet?

It’s important to include fibre in our diets. It supports digestion and maintaining good bowel health. Fibre is also associated with lowering risk of heart disease. It also keeps us full, which aids weight management. A meal rich in protein and fibre – like this tuna pasta bake – will keep you satiated for a long time.

This recipe has over 12 grams of fibre per serving – 9 grams from the chickpea pasta and 3 grams coming from corn, parsley and other ingredients.

Nutritional value of the high protein tuna pasta bake

Each serving contains 600 kcal, 72g protein, 41g carbs, 12g fat and 12g of fibre.

Is tuna safe to consume?

Some people are reluctant to eat tuna due to its alleged high mercury content. Whilst it’s true that eating tuna every day at multiple meals could see you exceed safe levels of mercury consumption, it’s generally considered safe to eat occasionally. As always, moderation is key. Tuna is a great, affordable source of protein, and there’s no reason to completely eradicate it from your diet.

Ingredient swaps you can make

You can make some ingredient swaps in this recipe. Feel free to use equivalent amount of regular pasta instead of chickpea pasta and regular cheese instead of high protein, low fat cheese. You can also use Greek or natural yoghurt instead of fat-free yoghurt. You can also experiment with the veggies – throw in some chopped up, steamed broccoli, or replace sweetcorn with frozen green peas.

Keep in mind that altering ingredients of this recipe will have an impact on the nutritional value of your finished meal. For example, using regular cheese will make your tuna pasta bake higher in fat and calories, whilst using regular pasta instead of chickpea pasta will make it lower in fibre.

Also see:

• Food
• Savoury