What sides pair best with tuna casserole? Serve tuna casserole with filling, carb-dense sides like garlic bread, Italian-style breadsticks, and garlic butter rice. Alternatively, opt for a healthier option like braised leeks, garden salad, pickled beets, corn, or green beans. Lastly, bake an apple crumble to satisfy a sweet tooth.
Tuna casserole is a dish with simplistic yet delicious flavors. Take this classic dish up a few notches by pairing it with well-matching sides.
Garlic Bread
Bat the other eye and enjoy a second round of carbs with your tuna casserole. Garlic bread is the perfect side to ensure everyone’s bellies stay full.
You’ll need a crusty baguette loaf, lots of butter, minced garlic, and Italian seasoning.
Liberally brush garlic butter onto thick baguette slices and sprinkle with Italian seasoning. Then, broil the loaf toast in the broiler for 20 minutes.
You can stuff the baguette slices with mozzarella, parmesan cheese, and chilis for an extra kick.
Italian-Style Breadsticks
Twisted Italian-style breadsticks are a delicious and attractive snack. These yummy logs also make the perfect side for a tuna casserole.
Purchase these addictive bites at the store or make your own.
Divide your dough into portions and roll them into long logs. You can braid the dough to create unique twisted breadsticks.
After allowing the bread dough to rise until double the size, bake them for 15 minutes at 400°F. Lastly, brush the breadsticks with butter and Italian herb seasoning.
Garlic Butter Rice
Garlic butter rice is a warm carb-loaded side that will help to balance out the protein in your tuna casserole.
Garlic butter rice goes with absolutely anything -we’ll forgive you for eating spoonfuls straight from the pot.
Fry garlic in melted butter until fragrant. Then, stir the uncooked rice into the mixture until everything is coated.
Add broth, dried herbs, kosher salt, and pepper. Cook the rice for 20 minutes and fluff the rice with a fork.
Finish the rice dish with another spoonful of butter.
Braised Leeks
Braised leeks are a light and delicious side that you’ll love alongside your tuna casserole.
Braise your leeks in wine and stock until soft and golden. Once cooked, top the leeks with parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs and run them through the broiler for a crunchy layer.
Pro tip: Discard the outer layer after boiling the leeks to ensure the papery layer is removed. You’ll have soft leeks that melt away in your mouth.
Garden Salad
A beautiful green garden salad will add a pop of color to your somewhat beige tuna casserole. Although simplistic, we regard a garden salad as a worthy contender for serving guests.
Start with a green leaf base lettuce, watercress, or baby spinach. Then, add vibrant colors of radishes, avocado, tomatoes, and bell peppers.
Finish your garden salad with balsamic vinegar, fresh lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Pickled Beets
Pickled beets are ideal for introducing a pop of color and refreshing, tangy taste to your humble tuna casserole. The beets also allow the taste of the garlic and onion powder in the casserole to truly shine.
First, scrub the beets clean and trim the tops. Then, boil them until tender.
Boil vinegar, sugar, allspice, clove, and salt. Then, after peeling and slicing the boiled beets, pour the mixture over them and pop them in the refrigerator for 1 hour to cool down before serving.
If you prefer the taste of fresh beets, we recommend roasting these bad boys for red, intensely flavored beets.
Corn On The Cob
Corn on the cob always gets our tastebuds dancing, and it’s no different when paired with a tuna casserole. Corn on the cob is never overcomplicated nor tasteless.
Boil your ears of corn in salty water.
Once cooked, generously smear butter on the kernels and dive in!
Parmesan & Panko Green Beans
Green beans are a go-to side for any casserole dish. However, we like to dress up this savory veggie by topping them off with parmesan cheese and panko breadcrumbs for a truly satisfying meal.
Toss your beans in garlic powder, olive oil, parmesan cheese, and panko bread crumbs. Then, spread the green beans on a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes at 400°F.
Note: You can replace the panko bread crumbs with plain bread too. We prefer using the former for an extra crunchy texture.
Apple Crumble
Calling out all the sweet tooths -If you can’t do without a dessert, consider pairing tuna casserole with apple crumble.
Apple crumble dessert lends a sweet, velvety taste that contrasts yet complements the tuna casserole.
Peel, core, and slice your apples into ¼ inch slices. Then, toss them in sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, and flour.
Evenly spread the apple slices in a lightly greased baking dish.
Next, combine nuts, oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a different bowl.
Then, top the apple slices with the mixture and bake for around 45 minutes at 350°F until the apples are bubble and golden brown.
Serve your crumble as is, or add a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Best Wine Pairings For Tuna Casserole
We highly recommend pulling out a Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc wine to pair with a tuna casserole. Otherwise, pair tuna casserole with sparkling cava wine for a fun alternative.
Pinot Grigio has become fashionable throughout the world. It is a richly textured wine that lends a minerality and exotic fruit taste.
Sauvignon Blanc makes a perfect match for tuna casserole. Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp white wine with herbaceous hints and spicy green pepper, nutmeg, and clove notes.
Cava is a light-bodied, dry sparkling wine that will dance on your tastebuds while cleansing your palate for the bite of casserole. Cava offers fun, zesty flavors and a distinct minerality.
Best Sauces For Tuna Casserole
Most tuna casserole recipes call for a can of “cream of soup.” However, we recommend making a homemade version of kicking your casserole up a notch.
Make a white sauce using butter, flour, chicken broth, and milk.
Melt the butter and mix in the flour to form a paste. Then, whisk the chicken broth and milk to make a thick and creamy sauce.
You can add parmesan and herbs for additional flavoring.
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