Recipes › Pasta › Tuna Alfredo Recipe

Tuna Alfredo Recipe

Recipe by Pedro M. A. Neves

This elegant Tuna Alfredo combines creamy Alfredo sauce with flaked tuna and fettuccine for a restaurant-quality Italian dish. The rich butter and Parmesan sauce contrasts beautifully with the delicate tuna, creating a satisfying yet refined main course. Ready in under 30 minutes, it brings authentic Italian flavors to your table on any weeknight.

Ingredients

• 400g fettuccine pasta
• 280g canned tuna in olive oil, drained
• 100g unsalted butter
• 50g all-purpose flour
• 500ml whole milk, warmed
• 120g freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 0.5 teaspoon black pepper
• 0.25 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 30ml dry white wine
• 30g fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• Zest of 1 lemon

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add fettuccine and cook until al dente according to package directions, approximately 9-11 minutes. Reserve 200ml pasta water before draining.

2. While pasta cooks, melt butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant, stirring constantly.

3. Sprinkle flour over the butter and garlic, stirring continuously for 2 minutes to create a light roux, cooking out the raw flour taste without browning.

4. Slowly pour in the warmed milk while whisking constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Continue whisking for 3-4 minutes until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.

5. Remove from heat and stir in grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, white wine, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Mix until the cheese is fully melted and the sauce is smooth and creamy.

6. Add the drained tuna to the sauce, breaking it into bite-sized flakes with a wooden spoon. Fold gently to combine, being careful not to break the tuna into too-small pieces.

7. Add the cooked fettuccine to the sauce, tossing gently with pasta water as needed (start with 60ml) to achieve the desired consistency—the sauce should coat each strand lightly without pooling.

8. Divide among four serving bowls. Garnish each portion with fresh parsley, lemon zest, and additional grated Parmigiano-Reggiano if desired.

Substitutions

• For dairy-free: replace butter with olive oil, flour with cornstarch, milk with unsweetened oat or almond milk, and Parmesan with nutritional yeast
• For gluten-free: substitute fettuccine with gluten-free pasta and use cornstarch instead of all-purpose flour
• For white fish: replace canned tuna with 280g fresh seared halibut, cod, or salmon, flaked after cooking
• For vegetarian: omit tuna and add 200g roasted mushrooms (cremini and shiitake) along with 100g fresh peas

Tips

• Keep milk warm before adding to the roux—cold milk will cause lumps. Warm it gently in a separate saucepan or microwave before starting the sauce.
• Reserve pasta water to adjust sauce consistency at the end; the starch in pasta water helps the sauce cling to the noodles and achieves the correct texture.
• For best flavor, use high-quality canned tuna packed in olive oil rather than water, and grate Parmesan cheese fresh from a block rather than using pre-grated versions which contain anti-caking agents.
• Work quickly once the pasta is cooked—toss it immediately with the sauce to prevent it from becoming sticky or starchy.

While Alfredo sauce is a Roman Roman specialty dating to the 1920s, tuna is a signature ingredient throughout Italian coastal cuisine, particularly in Sicily and Liguria. This combination represents modern Italian cooking that respects traditional techniques while adapting to ingredient availability and contemporary tastes.

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