Since my kids started university, I discovered something I didn’t know: that tuna pasta and pesto pasta are the two most cooked dishes by students.
Well, ‘cooked’… 😃
Yes, according to what my kids told me, the ‘raw’ reality of the typical university students’ tuna pasta would consist of pouring the can of tuna directly onto the pasta or, in more elaborate cases: «put the tuna in the pan with (almost) all its oil, add a few tablespoons of pasta water, toss the pasta in the pan, done.» (quoted because it’s a citation).
Ahhh how things have changed since I was in university! My roommates and I had a cutting board and rolling pin and we made our own flatbreads (well, the pre-cooked ones didn’t exist yet), and I have memories of certain chickpea soups and how much I loved cooking risottos, and now – just now while I’m writing – my friend Milena is telling me on the phone that she remembers the day we cooked eggplant sauce together (my beloved eggplants, even back then!). But neither she nor I have any memory of ever eating a university students’ tuna pasta like the one my kids tell me about.
And so… since our Light and Tasty column today features a lovely topic perfectly fitting for the purpose – that is, recipes of first courses prepared during pasta cooking – yesterday I deliberately and specifically cooked a university students’ tuna pasta (in the presence of my son 😃).
I dared a slightly more elaborate version – but just barely to not scare the son 🤭 – with only three additional easy, easy ingredients.
Will I have succeeded in convincing him that keeping a lemon, garlic, and a jar of herbs at home is not complicated? And that with the addition of just three small ingredients you can improve the result (in the same time and effort as the ‘nothing added’ version he told me about)? I hope so!!
So then at the next step I can try to advocate for tuna sauce, or a baked pesto pasta, or a minimal couscous salad. And who knows, maybe my son will end up getting passionate about cooking! (I doubt it… but never say never! 😄).
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 7 oz pasta (I used penne rigate)
- 4.6 oz canned tuna in oil (2 small cans)
- 1 clove garlic
- Half lemon (juice and zest)
- marjoram (or other preferred herb)
- chili pepper (optional)
Tools
- Pasta Pot
- Pan
- Lemon Zester
Steps
First, bring water to a boil, and when it boils, cook the pasta.
While the pasta cooks, prepare the tuna dressing:
Pour the tuna into a non-stick pan, including the oil.
☝ The oil from both cans might be too much for some people (like me, for example), so you can decide based on your taste if you want to use only the oil from the first can and drain the second one.
Briefly flavor the tuna with a clove of coarsely chopped garlic.
Add chili pepper if desired.
👉 I added the chili at the end during the tossing of the pasta, but it might be better to add it now.
Drizzle the tuna with the juice of half a lemon.
Grate the zest as well.
Let it flavor for a few minutes, then lower the heat to a minimum (or turn it off if the pasta has a very long cooking time) while waiting for the pasta to cook (for our penne rigate, 10 minutes).
Drain the pasta and toss it in the tuna pan, adding a sprinkle of marjoram (or parsley, or oregano) and more grated lemon zest.
As an alternative to chili, sprinkle with pepper during tossing.
Serve hot. But it’s also great as cold pasta.
Certainly, the look is minimalist 😃 but a touch of color can always be added, for example with some green or black olives, or with some capers, or using freshly chopped parsley.
Let me know which variant you like best!
Salt-Free Tips
I recently learned that there is a canned tuna with reduced salt content (up to 80% less). It has been on the market for sure for some time, but unfortunately, it is not available in all supermarkets, so I missed it. For those who have difficulty finding it, it is available online (–> here the Nostromo in 3 cans).
It has a declared salt content on the label of 0.16 g (per 100 g of product), compared to values (both for tuna in oil and natural) that usually range from 1.1 to 1.7 g.
It is likely that students are not very interested in low sodium cooking (but their parents probably are). 😅 But starting to be aware can only be beneficial, so I invite everyone to read my usual piece of advice:
If you are interested in reducing or eliminating salt, always remember to:
▫ Gradually decrease the salt, the palate must gradually get used to it and should not notice the progressive reduction.
▫ Use spices. Chili pepper, pepper, curry, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, cumin…
▫ Use herbs. Basil, parsley, oregano, thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, mint…
▫ Use seeds. Sesame, pine nuts, almonds, nuts…
▫ Use spicy vegetables or fruits. Garlic, onion, lemon, orange…
▫ Use my salt-free vegetable granules and gomasio.
▫ Prefer fresh food.
▫ Avoid cooking in water, prefer cooking methods that do not disperse flavors (griddle, foil, steam, microwave)
▫ Avoid bringing the salt shaker to the table!
▫ Sometimes allow yourself to break the rule. It’s good for your mood and helps you persevere.
If you do not want, or cannot, give up salt:
▫ You can still try my recipes salting according to your habits.
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Light and Tasty:
I say goodbye with the super quick first courses from my colleagues at the Light and Tasty Team:
Carla Emilia: Potato Gnocchi with Tuna Roe
Daniela: Corn Spaghetti with Anchovies and Almond Pesto
Elena: Pasta with Zucchini, Speck, and Ricotta
Milena: Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Lemon Pesto and Pecan Nuts
Serena: Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes and Breadcrumbs
