Tuna Spaghetti

This tuna spaghetti offers a taste of the Mediterranean with bright, green olives and briney capers simmered with garlic, green onion and lemon. This canned tuna pasta is made with simple pantry staples and a few fresh ingredients to create a filling and flavorful dinner that’s ready in no time.

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A plate of tuna spaghetti garnished with green onions and lemon zest.

What we love about this tuna spaghetti

  • If you love seafood pasta, you will love this tuna pasta recipe. The tuna really stands out against the briney olives and capers and that extra pop of lemon flavor adds so much to this simple meal.
  • It’s a weeknight favorite of ours thanks to the minimal effort needed to make this recipe. Plus, it’s made with ingredients you already keep in your cabinets so you can throw it together anytime.
  • It’s filling and satisfying – with added protein from the tuna and a nice serving of carbs. Just serve it with a salad for a perfectly balanced meal.
Hands holding a plate of pasta with capers, tuna, green onions and olives.

Here’s what you’ll need to make it

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Kitchen tools

Close up of spaghetti on a plate with tuna, green onions and olives, capers and lemon zest.

Ingredients you might need to pick up

  • Lemons
  • Spaghetti
  • Green olives – I like to use castelvetrano olives for this, but regular green olives, or even Kalamata olives will work. Just make sure they’re brined and not stored in water like black olives are.
  • Green onions – Chives would be a good substitute for this, but we usually have some green onion in our fridge from other meals. Regular yellowor sweet onion would work in a pinch, too.
  • Capers
  • Fresh parsley – Totally optional, but fresh is always best when it comes to parsley. It’s relatively cheap and makes such a difference.

Making changes to a recipe can result in recipe failure. Any substitutions listed below are simple changes that I believe will work in this recipe, but results are not guaranteed.

Close up of a plate of pasta made with canned tuna, green onions, olive and capers.

How to make this tuna pasta recipe

Cook the pasta. In a large pot of salted water, cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve at least ½ cup of pasta water, drain and set aside.

Make the sauce. Heat olive oil over medium heat, adding garlic when it is hot. Simmer garlic until aromatic then add green onions, green olives, capers, lemon zest and juice. Stir in tuna and allow it to simmer for 2-3 minutes, adding pasta water slowly as needed to create more sauce.

Stir it all together. Return the pasta to the pot and stir until the pasta is well coated with sauce and tuna mixture is distributed throughout. Serve with grated pecorino romano or parmesan cheese and an extra sprinkle of fresh herbs (if you have them).

A couple of plates of pasta next to a bowl of grated pecorino romano cheese, a bowl of sliced green onions and a wine glass.

More spaghetti recipes you will love

Other seafood pasta recipes you should try

A plate of pasta with capers, olives and green onions.

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Tuna Spaghetti

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This tuna spaghetti offers a taste of the Mediterranean with bright, green olives and briney capers simmered with garlic, green onion and lemon. This canned tuna pasta is made with simple pantry staples and a few fresh ingredients to create a filling and flavorful dinner that’s ready in no time.

  • Author: Melissa & Theresa
  • Prep Time: 2 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 12 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Spaghetti
  • Method: Stovetop

Ingredients

Scale
  • 8 ounces spaghetti
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon capers
  • 1/4 cup pitted green olives (castelvetrano), chopped
  • 1 green onion, thinly sliced (maybe 2?)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 8-ounce can tuna
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions for al dente. Before draining, reserve at least ½ cup of pasta water. Drain spaghetti and set aside.
  2. In the same pot, heat olive oil over medium. When hot, add garlic and sauté until fragrant. Next, add green onions, green olives, capers, lemon zest and juice and simmer until tender. Stir in tuna and allow it to simmer for 2-3 minutes, adding pasta water slowly as needed to create a sauce.
  3. Return the cooked pasta to the pot and stir to combine.
  4. Garnish and serve with grated cheese.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size:
  • Calories: 359
  • Sugar: 1.7 g
  • Sodium: 621.7 mg
  • Fat: 10.5 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 44.3 g
  • Fiber: 2.4 g
  • Protein: 21.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 23.8 mg

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