Vegan Tuna Casserole
This vegan tuna casserole is total comfort food! Creamy noodles with mushroom soup, vegan tuna, and green peas, baked with a golden breadcrumb topping! This classic dish is a family favorite and it even gets kids to eat their peas!
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Tuna noodle casserole was a favorite of mine as a child and I would beg my mom for it any time she asked me what I wanted for dinner.
If you love vegan comfort food as much as I do, you should also check out my recipes for vegan beef stroganoff, vegan lasagna, and creamy vegan pesto pasta!
This casserole is essentially vegan cream of mushroom soup and vegan tuna mixed with noodles and peas and baked into a bubbly casserole.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
Vegan cream of mushroom soup
- Mushrooms – Any mushroom that you like will work well – white, button, and portabella mushrooms are all good choices. My favorite ones to use for this recipe are crimini, also known as baby Bellas.
- Oil – any neutral-flavored cooking oil will work well.
- Salt – for flavor. Feel free to decrease for a low sodium option.
- Garlic Powder – for flavor. You can use a clove of fresh garlic instead if you want.
- Paprika – for flavor.
- Black Pepper – for flavor.
- Plant-Based Milk – for creaminess. Any plain flavored vegan milk like oat milk, soy milk, Ripple, or cashew milk will all work well.
- Starch – to thicken the soup. You can use potato starch, corn starch, or even white flour dissolved in water.
Vegan tuna
- TVP (textured vegetable protein) or Butler Soy Curls – this is a dehydrated soy protein that will absorb the flavor of any broth that you rehydrate it in. (If you use soy curls, you will have to break them into smaller pieces.)
- Water – to make the broth.
- Kelp Flakes – to give it the fishy flavor. You can also use crushed-up nori.
- Oil – to give it a little moisture and mouth feel of tuna. Any neutral-flavored oil will work or you can leave it out for an oil-free tuna.
- Salt – to give it the saltiness of tuna.
Other ingredients
- Noodles – any pasta noodles will work. I try to find ones that are close to the shape of ribbon noodles. Check out my post about vegan pasta brands if you want to know how to determine if a brand of pasta is vegan.
- Peas – frozen or fresh peas work best, but you can also use drained and rinsed canned peas.
- Breadcrumbs – panko bread crumbs, or crushed crackers work best. You can also omit this if you want.
- Vegan Butter – you can use any vegan margarine or my homemade vegan butter. You can also omit this completely for a lower-fat dish.
- Garlic Powder – to flavor the breadcrumbs. (optional)
🥄 How to make vegan tuna casserole
Step 1 – Boil your choice of noodles according to package directions, drain, rinse and pour back into a large pot
Make vegan cream of mushroom soup
Step 2 – Start by washing and cutting up mushrooms into small bite-sized pieces.
Step 3 – Add them to a soup pot with some oil and sprinkle them will salt. (The salt flavors the mushroom and helps it to release its juices to flavor the broth).
Step 4 – Saute the mushrooms for about 5 minutes until they release their juices.
Step 5 – Then add the plant milk and spices. Heat until it just begins to boil.
Step 6 – Mix potato (or corn) starch with cold water and pour it into the soup. (This will thicken it quickly).
Step 7 – Stir consistently for about 1 more minute until your soup is thick and creamy.
Make the vegan tuna
Step 8 – Add 1/2 cup of water, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon kelp flakes, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt to a small saucepan.
Step 9 – Heat until it boils, then turn off the heat and add 3/4 cup of TVP. Stir, cover, and let it sit for about 5 minutes until it absorbs all of the water.
Assemble the vegan tuna casserole
Step 10 – Preheat the oven to 400° F.
Step 11 – Add the cream of mushroom soup, vegan tuna, and 2 cups of frozen peas to the noodles and stir well.
Step 12 – Pour the mixture into a large casserole dish. (I use a 9″ x 13 ” lasagna pan)
Step 13 – Melt 3 tablespoons of vegan butter, then add 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder and 1 cup of bread crumbs or crushed crackers to the melted butter.
Step 14 – Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture onto the top of the casserole and bake for 30 minutes until bubbly and golden brown.
👩🏻🍳 Pro tips
- Cook the pasta al dente so it doesn’t get overcooked when you bake it.
- Bake until bubbly and the top is golden brown and a little crispy.
🍞 Can I make vegan tuna casserole gluten-free?
If you want a gluten-free and vegan tuna casserole, simply swap out the noodles for gluten-free ones. Just be sure to cook them al dente, and then rinse them very well before mixing with the other ingredients. They can get mushy or sticky depending on the brand that you use. My favorite brand for this dish is Schar.
🥡 How to store and reheat vegan tuna casserole
Refrigerate: This vegan tuna casserole will keep well in the fridge for 3 – 5 days in a sealed container.
Freeze: Tuna noodle casserole freezes well and can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating: Reheat a serving of the casserole in the microwave for about 3 minutes or add a few tablespoons of water to it, cover it with foil, and bake it at 350° F for about 10 – 15 minutes until warm.
🌟 More vegan comfort food
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📋 Vegan tuna casserole recipe
Vegan Tuna Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 16 oz package pasta noodles
For the mushroom soup
- 8 oz. package of mushrooms, I use cremini
- 1 tablespoon canola oil or other neutral-flavored oil
- 4 cups plain soy milk or other plain milk of choice, (or 2 cups plant milk plus 2 cups water)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup potato starch or corn starch
- 1 cup cold water
- 2 cups frozen peas
For the vegan tuna
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon canola oil or any neutral-flavored oil
- 1 teaspoon kelp flakes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup TVP crumbles, or Butler Soy Curls
Topping
- 3 tablespoons vegan butter, (melted)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
Instructions
COOK THE NOODLES
- Boil your choice of noodles according to package directions, drain, rinse and pour back into a large pot
MAKE VEGAN CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP
- Start by washing and cutting up mushrooms into small bite-sized pieces.
- Add them to a soup pot with some oil and sprinkle them will salt. (The salt flavors the mushroom and helps it to release its juices to flavor the broth).
- Saute the mushrooms for about 5 minutes until they release their juices.
- Then add the plant milk and spices. Heat until it just begins to boil.
- Mix potato (or corn) starch with cold water and pour it into the soup. (This will thicken it quickly).
- Stir consistently for about 1 more minute until your soup is thick and creamy.
MAKE THE VEGAN TUNA
- Add 1/2 cup of water, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 teaspoon kelp flakes, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt to a small saucepan.
- Heat until it boils, then turn off heat and add 3/4 cup of TVP. Stir, cover, and let it sit for about 5 minutes until it absorbs all of the water.
MAKE THE CASSEROLE
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Add the cream of mushroom soup, vegan tuna, and 2 cups of frozen peas to the noodles and stir well.
- Pour the mixture into a large casserole dish. (I use a 9″ x 13 ” lasagna pan)
- Melt 3 tablespoons of vegan butter, then add 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder and 1 cup of bread crumbs or crushed crackers to the melted butter.
- Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture onto the top of the casserole and bake for 30 minutes until bubbly and golden brown
Notes
- Cook the pasta al dente so it doesn’t get overcooked when you bake it.
- Bake until bubbly and the top is golden brown and a little crispy.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!
Delicious and easy to make! This recipe is a keeper. So yummy.
So happy that you liked the recipe, Lindsay.
Great recipe. I made it last night for dinner and will make it again. I did find it to be a bit lacking in flavor for my personal preference but adjusted it so I doubled all the spices and did 1.5 teaspoons of salt instead of 1. I also think I would use veggie broth instead of water next time.
I’m happy that you liked the recipe and adjusted it to your taste. 🙂
This was delicious! Well worth learning what a TVP was and where to find it.
I’m so happy that you liked it, Katie! There are so many things that you can do with TVP!
I am allergic to soy, could I use canned young jackfruit as a sub? Also, I was planning on using the Amy’s vegan mushroom soup to make it a little easier on me. Would that be okay? This looks awesome!
Yes, you can use jackfruit instead of TVP to make a mock tuna, and the Amy’s vegan mushroom soup should work well instead of the homemade soup. Enjoy!
My soup didn’t ever thicken! And I used plain soy milk but it still smelled sweet. Hopeful once it all bakes it comes together! I also did a can of roughly smashed chickpeas with the nori instead bc I couldn’t find the soy stuff or granules. 🤞🏻🤞🏻
It should thicken a lot once you bake it.
This was so good! Brought back childhood memories.
I’m so happy that you liked it, Lucy. 🙂