Instant Pot Tuna Casserole

Instant Pot Tuna Casserole is comfort food that fills you up and tastes so creamy and delicious! We love this pressure cooker tuna noodle casserole recipe. It's so much easier and faster to make tuna casserole in the Instant Pot!

Instant Pot Tuna Casserole

I don't know very many people who didn't have a tuna noodle casserole in their family's meal rotation while growing up. We sure did, and it was always one of my favorite meals! Still is.

For this tuna noodle casserole recipe, I have adapted my recipe that I have made for years, and raised my kids on. They all love it. What I found it that it is much better made in the Instant Pot®!

What makes Instant Pot Tuna Casserole better than oven baked?

Here's why I think it's better:
• It cooks much faster than in the oven. Minutes vs an hour!
• No pot of boiling water to deal with. Noodles cook with the sauce.
• One pot! I love a one-pot meal!
• The tuna casserole comes out more saucy and creamy.
• The flavors seems more pronounced.

Can I Add a Crunchy Topping?

Yes you can. See the notes section of the recipe card. But in a nutshell, you can transfer the casserole to a baking dish and add a panko/butter/parmesan topping and broil it.
Or just add crushed potato chips to your serving. Now that's old school!

How Can I avoid the Burn message?

That's always a bummer. The best way to avoid getting the burn message is to follow the recipe carefully.
• Weigh your pasta!: This is the biggest reason people get the burn message when cooking pasta, because the pasta will absorb the liquid. Weighing the pasta is the most accurate way to measure it. You need 1 cup of broth/water to every 4 ounces of dry pasta. You need to be sure that you have enough liquid to create the steam needed to bring the pot to pressure.
• Don't stir the contents before pressure cooking. Layer the ingredients as directed, but don't stir until it is done cooking.
• Layer the Ingredients: By not stirring in the thick cream of mushroom soup, you are keeping the thin liquid on the bottom where it can boil and create the steam needed to build the pressure.

I have only had a tiny bit of scorching with this Instant Pot Tuna Casserole recipe, but not enough to give me a burn warning or affect the taste of the tuna casserole at all.

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If you make this pressure cooker tuna casserole recipe, please leave a comment below with a star rating. I'd love to know how you liked it!

4.91 from 81 votes

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Instant Pot Tuna Casserole

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

12 mins

Pressure Building and Release

10 mins

Total Time

37 mins

 

Instant Pot Tuna Casserole is comfort food that fills you up and tastes so creamy and delicious! We love this pressure cooker tuna noodle casserole recipe. It's so much easier and faster to make tuna casserole in the Instant Pot!

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: pressure cooker tuna casserole recipe

Servings: 6 - 8

Calories: 394 kcal

Author: Sandy Clifton

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
• 1 small Sweet Onion, diced
• 3 cups Chicken Broth, low sodium
• ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
• ½ teaspoon Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• ½ teaspoon Onion Powder
• ½ teaspoon Dill Weed, dried
• 12 oz Wide Egg Noodles, uncooked
• 1 cup Half and Half
• 2 (6 oz) cans Chunk Light Tuna, in water, mostly drained
• 2 (10.5 oz) cans Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (or 1 mushroom / 1 celery)

To Finish

• 2 cups Frozen Peas
• 1-2 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded
• 2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, chopped

Instructions

1. Turn on the Sauté setting. When hot, add the oil, butter and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion starts to turn translucent.

2. Add the broth, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and dill. Stir, using a wooden spoon to scrape up all of the browned bits from the bottom of the pot (deglaze).

3. Let the liquid heat up a little, then turn off/Cancel the Sauté setting.

4. Add the egg noodles. Do not stir, just gently spread them in an even layer.

5. Pour the the half and half over the noodles. Do not stir.

6. Add the tuna, spreading it gently over the noodles. Do not stir.

7. Add the mushroom soup and spread to cover the noodles. Do not stir.

8. Close the lid and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
   

9. Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button or dial, then the +/- button or dial to select 3 minutes for soft noodles (2 minutes for firmer noodles). High Pressure. The pot will take several minutes to come to pressure.
   

10. When the cook cycle has finished, turn the steam release knob to the Venting position to Quick Release the steam/pressure. **If any soup starts to come out of the steam vent, close it and release the pressure in bursts until the pressure has gone down enough to release the pressure fully.

11. When the pin in the lid drops back down, open the lid.
    

12. Carefully take the pot out of the pressure cooker housing using oven mitts, and set on a heat safe surface (this keeps it from cooking more).

To Finish

1. Add the peas and give a gentle stir.

2. Add the cheese and stir. The casserole will thicken as it cools.

3. When the cheese has melted, serve with a sprinkle of parsley as a garnish.

Recipe Notes

It is very important to have the broth-to-noodle ratio right to avoid burning from not having enough liquid. 12 ounces of noodles needs 3 cups of broth. The noodles will absorb it. So be sure to use the correct amounts of both.

 

If You Want a Crunchy Topping
You can transfer the casserole to a baking dish and add a ½ cup Panko / 1 Tbsp melted butter / ½ cup parmesan topping (mix those together and sprinkle on top). Then just broil it for a few minutes.

You can also just add crushed potato chips to your serving.