What's the deal with Tuna Helper?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You should make your canned tuna lightly fried and spiced.

Can you dig up a link to this thread?

In all it’s glory:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/547143.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids love tuna, specifically cold tuna pasta salad. I add celery, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, green onions and a dill-lemonade-mayo dressing. They request this every week in summer.
In winter I make a hot version of Tuna Helper from scratch only I actually use canned salmon and call it tuna.
One of my kids also likes sashimi though the other won't eat it. I get it from the grocery store for a treat.
Our pediatrician wants kids to eat seafood at least oce a week.

OP here, that's more or less what my mother made -- just mayo and salt and pepper instead of a dressing. My kids adore pasta, love celery, cucumbers and sometiems peppers, but adamantly refuse to eat salad dressing of any kind. They eat mayo--but only when they don't know it.

They're very difficult, but, in general, the things they eat are very healthy (raw fruits and vegetables, grilled chicken, salmon)... they'll eat salmon, so maybe that's an idea of how to ease them into it. I haven't tried tuna steak, but they like swordfish.

I guess my problem is they're very unpredictable in their pickiness, and I'm just trying to steer them towards somethings that are predictable and easy -- like a can of tuna!

I assumed that Tuna Helper is basically a boxed version of Tuna Casserole, and was thinking maybe they'd be convinced by the Helper logo... if they eat I can maybe work up a tuna casserole and then we'll be on to tuna sandwiches!

Which hamburger helper do they like?

I am someone who remembers liking some kind of cheesy hamburger helper (as in has cheese, not dissing the helper) and who likes tuna pasta salad and tuna melts. I don’t care for tuna casserole in any form.

I am the one who suggested Mac and cheese. For my kids, one emergency dish that got consistently eaten was mac and cheese, with canned tuna and frozen peas and carrots mixed in. I would probably try to figure out something that resembles the hamburger helper they like but has tuna.

They like the cheeseburger one and the stroganoff one. As far as I can tell they're all either one of those two flavors no matter what the box says. Some say double cheeseburger, some say lasagna, I dunno... they like them.

They've objected to lobster mac and were outraged when we tried putting some cauliflower in with mac and cheese, which my wife and I thought was delicious and was just done to change things up.

I'm thinking the cold pasta is probably our best bet, and I might start with the canned salmon.

The flavor profiles are not identical but it's a similar family of flavor. Go ahead and try the Tuna Helper.

Fwiw, I loved my mother's tuna casserole as a child, made with a can of cream of mushroom. Now I make the Bon Appetit tuna casserole with dill and leeks. My kids like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Canned tuna really is not healthy. The mercury levels are off the charts. But, if you are one to feed your children something called Hamburger Helper (shudders) then by all means go right ahead.

+1000

[Anonymous]

I hate tuna but I see what OP is trying for. Sometimes you want a convenient meal and keeping a can of tuna in your pantry is certainly not amiss. Now will her strangely picky kids eat it?

I suggest creamed tuna (similar to chipped beef on toast). You make a quick white sauce, add peas and tuna and serve it with toast or noodles or mashed potatoes.

Your kids will probably like it (unless the peas are a turnoff) and everything can come from the pantry on a stressed night. You can also use canned chicken instead of tuna. Jessica simpson can't tell the difference.