Tuna Madras from Doctor Who

In late 2023, a very dear friend of mine finally convinced me to watch Doctor Who with him. As a Brit, it was a childhood favorite of his, and I knew he and several other friends loved the many adventures of the man (or at one point, woman) in a police box, traveling through time and space. I was vaguely aware of it myself but never saw any episodes, until The Star Beast.

The first of three specials to mark the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who brought back David Tennant, who had played the Tenth Doctor for five years from 2005-2010. This time, he was the Fourteenth Doctor after regenerating from Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth incarnation. He reunited with his companion, Donna Noble, who he’d been forced to abandon for her safety fifteen years prior. She now had a daughter, Rose, and lived with her husband and mother in a townhouse in London.

As she and Rose come home, she finds her mother, Sylvia in the kitchen making her a nice curry, Tuna Madras. A series of events happens, which drives Sylvia to a frantic state, as Shaun comes home. Noticing something peculiar, yet somehow unfazed, he comments on how nice something smells.

Donna Noble: Oh, more trouble?
Sylvia Noble: I've made you a nice curry.
Donna Noble: We've still got that giant sausage roll from Thursday. I don't need my own personal food bank. It is not my fault I lost my job. All right, it is my fault, but still...

Shaun Temple: Hey, hey. Dad's home. [notices everyone] Something smells nice.
Sylvia Noble: Tuna madras.
The Meep: Meep, meep.

Afterwards, I discovered that the official Doctor Who site has an actual recipe for Tuna Madras, and added it to my list to make for Ate Bit Culinarian. I decided to make it with another close friend who really likes Doctor Who, and had also encouraged me to watch it. We agreed to make it at his house, and I did some prep ahead of time at home. I measured all of the ingredients, and a cup of rinsed rice that I could cook alongside the curry. It’s unclear if Sylvia did this, but I felt it necessary.

The recipe is made using onions, garlic, canned tuna, canned diced tomatoes and black olives. I made one modification to this recipe, because I dislike canned diced tomatoes. There's something about the texture, acidic flavor and flecks of skin in them that gives me the ick. Instead, I used fresh grape tomatoes cut in half and vegetable stock, because the diced tomatoes also add liquid to the curry. Using vegetable stock made up for that. I made sure to use cans of tuna that weren’t flaked, so I could start them in large chunks and cook them while trying not to break up the fish too much.

I wasn’t entirely sure about this recipe, but it turned out to be pretty delicious! It’s certainly not picturesque, though when it tastes this good, who cares?

The spices aren’t enough to burn your tongue or make your eyes water, although if you wanted that you could up the quantities. Better to start on the lower side, then add more as you please since you can’t remove spice you put in. I made this for my friends and they really enjoyed it. Well done, Sylvia Noble.

If you want to make this recipe yourself, you can get it on the official website here.