Tuna and Sweetcorn Jacket Melt
Prep time: 5 min / Cooking time: 1 h 30min
Serves 4
Approximate price: £5.20 for full recipe
INGREDIENTS:
4 Baking potatoes
185g tuna, drained & flaked
200g grated cheese
25g butter
100g red onion, finely chopped
100g sweetcorn, drained
METHOD:
1. Wash potatoes thoroughly, pat dry and prick all over with a fork.
2. TO COOK POTATOES IN THE OVEN: Pre heat your oven at 180°C. When hot, place potatoes straight into the oven rack and cook for 1 to 1 ¼ hours. Cooking time will depend on the size of the potatoes. You want them nice and soft in the middle but crispy in the outside.
TO COOK POTATOES IN THE MICROWAVE: Place potatoes on a microwave safe plate and microwave for 12 minutes, turning half way through cooking. If your potatoes are still not tender, continue cooking in 1-2 minutes increments until they are. If you are only cooking one potato at the time, start with 7 min and then follow above instructions.
BE CAREFUL WHEN HANDLING THE COOKED POTATOES AS THEY WILL BE VERY HOT, MAKE SURE TO USE OVEN GLOVES OR A DRY TEATOWEL.
3. When cooked, cut the potatoes in half lengthways. Using a spoon scoop out the soft potato into large a bowl. Keep the potato skins aside,
4. Using a fork, mash the soft potato with the butter and two thirds of the grated cheese until smooth.
5. Add the flaked drained tuna, finely diced red onion and sweetcorn to the bowl with the potato & cheese. Mix until well combined with the fork.
6. Spoon the mixture back into the potato skins, place on an oven tray and sprinkle the rest of the grated cheese on top of the potatoes.
7. Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes until golden.
8. Serve with a side salad.
TIPS:
Choose your favourite cheese for this recipe. You could even use soft cheese to mix with the soft potato. Great recipe to use up bits of cheese that you have in the fridge.
You could add some chopped fresh or dried herbs into the potato mixture for extra flavour, or a little pinch of chilli if you like a bit of heat.
For something different instead of the tuna, use leftover cooked chicken, ham or bacon it will be delicious too.
Alternatively, keep them vegetarian with just the cheese and adding some extra vegetables like finely diced peppers. You could also mixed in some left-over cooked vegetables like peas or broccoli.
Great dish to prepare ahead and keep in the fridge, stop at step 6. Let it cool down and put in the fridge. When ready to eat it just continue at step 7 but add an extra 5 minutes to the cooking time. Make sure that they are piping hot before serving.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION:
Nutrition per serving, based on 4 servings per recipe with no added salt:
Energy 329Kcal
Fat 6.29g
Saturates 3.59g
Carbs 52.68g
Sugars 2.40g
Fibre 4.37g
Protein 18.37g
Salt 0.60g
Serving of 80g side salad (lettuce, cucumber, cherry tomatoes & radishes):
Kcal 9.64
Fat 0.18g
Saturates 0.04g
Carbs 1.51g
Sugars 0g
Fibre 0.56g
Protein 0.53g
Salt 0.01g
Potato – these are a cheap, versatile, and nutritious carbohydrate! Contrary to popular belief potatoes can be enjoyed as part of a healthy and balanced diet. They are high in Resistant Starch which is beneficial for our gut health and blood sugar control. They also contain lots of vitamins and other micronutrients. When cooking potatoes try to be mindful of the way in which they are cooked, deep frying potatoes or cooking them with a lot of butter/ cream may be delicious - but not very healthy!
Red onions: low in calories but high in antioxidants! Onions are rich in an antioxidant known as Quercetin which is thought to fight inflammation and boost our immune system. A versatile flavour to add into many dishes.
Tuna – fish is a great thing to incorporate into a healthy diet! Especially oily fish such as Tuna. It is a great source of protein, and healthy fats (such as Omega-3). Tinned tuna is a great option as it keeps for a long time and is a convenient / cheap way to get nutrients into your diet! Just make sure to check that the Tuna is from a sustainable source!
Cheese is a good source of protein and calcium. Cheese is high in saturated fat and may raise blood cholesterol levels, therefore should be eating as part of a balanced diet.
Sweetcorn owes its yellow colour to carotenoid pigments, an antioxidant that helps protect your eyes. So like carrots eating sweetcorn will help keep your eyes healthy!
