If I had a dollar for every time someone told me they hated Tuna Noodle Casserole, I would have enough money to move back home tomorrow. It musta been the dried out tasteless glop of our childhoods that we recall when we say we HATE this casserole. Well, I have tweaked this recipe and, over the years, have had folks come begging for the recipe. Literally. So here it is. Four ingredients. Simple. And OH, so tasty, especially for those wet/cold/”why do I have to go to work” days when comfort food is required.
Salmon Noodle Casserole Serves 8
1- 16 oz. package medium dry pasta shells
1- 14.75 oz canned pink salmon (cheapest kind is totally fine)
1- large can or two small cans Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup
3 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese
Small amount of milk or rice milk to thin the soup mixture as needed
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cook the pasta shells in boiling water till done; drain; and pour cold water over the top so they stop cooking and don’t stick to tone another while you are putting the rest of this casserole together. Set aside.
3. Open the cans of soup and dump into a sauce pot. Open the can of salmon and do NOT drain it. Dump the can of salmon directly on TOP of the soup so you can see it, juice from the salmon and all. Make sure your hands are super clean because now you are going to stick them into the soup-fishie mix and break up ALL the bones and the fish meat into bits. I know this sounds weird, but trust me, it works, and you get the added bonus of additional calcium in your diet. Huzzah!
4. Put the soup/salmon mixture on top of a medium flame on the stove and mix in enough milk to make a thick slurry. As the mixture heats, add the cheese until you now have a thick cheesy slurry. When the mix is bubbling, take it off the stove and mix with the cooked seashells in a large baking dish. Sprinkle more cheese on top and cook in the pre-heated oven for 30 minutes while you pull a green veggie out of the freezer to go with this calorie laden but completely delish casserole. Yeah, the green veggie is to assuage your guilt over the cheesy intake of calories. Ha!
Testimony from a previous co-worker: They had recently had a baby and I wanted to help out so I brought a large pan of this over. He next day he RAVED about it an, as it turned out, had eaten half the pan by himself that night! He couldn’t believe that it was basically a switch of salmon for tuna and more (more more!) cheese!