Baked Spaghetti is a favorite casserole around here!
Spaghetti is mixed with a quick zesty meat sauce, topped with cheese and baked in the oven until hot and bubbly for a family favorite meal.
Your Family Will Request This on Repeat Because…
- It’s cozy, comforting, and absolutely delicious.
- Tried and true – the reviews speak for themselves.
- Baked spaghetti is easy to make, and you can add veggies you have on hand.
- It’s an inexpensive way to stretch a pound of meat to feed a crowd.
- This recipe freezes and reheats well.
Ingredients for Baked Spaghetti
- Meat: Use ground beef, Italian sausage, or a combination of the two. For a leaner option, ground turkey or turkey sausage can be used.
- Aromatics: Onion, garlic & green pepper add flavor to the sauce.
- Sauce: Use your favorite brand of pasta sauce or marinara sauce and add in diced tomatoes and Italian Seasoning for extra flavor
- Pasta: Since this is a baked spaghetti recipe, I used spaghetti noodles, but you can swap it for any long pasta or whole wheat spaghetti.
- Cheese: A mix of mozzarella and parmesan add a delicious topping. Pre-shredded cheese works just fine in this recipe.
How to Make Baked Spaghetti
- Brown beef and onions. Add veggies and tomato sauce and simmer.
- Toss the sauce with cooked spaghetti and transfer it to a baking dish.
- Top with cheese and bake.
Holly’s Tips
Baked spaghetti is perfect for lasagna lovers looking for a quicker option.
- Ensure the spaghetti is cooked al dente as the noodles cook a bit more in the oven.
- Add extra veggies to the sauce. Try sliced mushrooms, shredded zucchini or carrots.
- You can adjust this to your liking and add more or less sauce if you’d prefer.
Feeling Fancy? Garnish this recipe with fresh herbs like basil or parsley before serving.
How to Prep Ahead
- Prepare as directed and refrigerate for up to 48 hours. Remove it from the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes or until hot in the center.
- Bake the casserole uncovered so the cheese can form a nice crust. Covering it will also make it steam, which can overcook the spaghetti.
Just like stuffed shells, this easy recipe is perfectly served with garlic bread and a Caesar salad.
More Pasta Casseroles We Love
Did you make this Baked Spaghetti? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Baked Spaghetti
This baked spaghetti casserole is a family favorite and super easy to make!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces spaghetti
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 tablespoons dried
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese about 6oz
- ⅓ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Sauce
- 1 pound lean ground beef or Italian sausage
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 32 ounces pasta sauce or marinara sauce
- 14.5 ounces canned diced tomatoes with juices, 1 can
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking dish.
- In a large pot of salted water, cook the spaghetti al dente according to package directions.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the meat, onion, garlic, seasoning, and green pepper while breaking up the meat. Drain fat if needed.
- Stir in the pasta sauce, Italian seasoning, and tomatoes. Simmer uncovered for 5 to 10 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the cooked spaghetti and parsley.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish, top with cheeses, and bake for 25-30 minutes or until hot and the cheese is browned and bubbly. Cut into squares to serve.
Video
Notes
If preparing ahead of time, increase the baking time
This casserole can be covered with foil and frozen (before baking). Thaw in the fridge overnight and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, adding the cheese after 20 minutes.
Leftovers can be covered with plastic wrap and stored in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the oven or in the microwave until heated through.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 413 | Carbohydrates: 53g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 1054mg | Potassium: 864mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 945IU | Vitamin C: 28mg | Calcium: 216mg | Iron: 4mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Dinner, Entree, Pasta
Cuisine American, Italian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I found this recipe a few years ago. It’s easy and delicious and this will be my 3rd time making it as we’re not superfans of most of the jar pasta sauces because of the acid. A friend told me to add just a pinch of baking soda to the sauce and IT WORKS! I make 1/2 the recipe using a sweet Italian sausage (bulk) and ricotta in a buttered casserole for the 2 of us. It’s very adaptable to whatever you need to substitute if necessary and the Grands love it as well.
This sounds delicious. How long do you cook the pasta before you bake it? Do I just cook it al dented? Is the pasta mushy?
Yes, I cook the pasta al dente. And I do not find it gets mushy! Enjoy Amanda!
I made this last night and it is delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Can’t wait to make this recipe! If giving to a friend who just had a baby – what would the directions be for cooking from frozen? And would you recommend still baking before dropping off?
Hi Liz, I would freeze uncooked then when you’re ready to eat it, just thaw completely and bake in the oven for the same time/temp.
I like the option to add anything. My anything was frozen meatballs (thawed and simmered in sauce) and frozen peas. It was yummy.
Oooo, delicious Lucy!
Lacked flavor.
This is a fine base recipe. However, it needs at least three chopped garlic cloves. Additionally, for more flavor, saute the onions and meat in butter.
Hi! This recipe looks delicious! I am making tomorrow.
How much dry spaghetti in the package do I buy to equal 16oz cooked?
Thank you!
Sorry for the confusion Liz, you will need 16 oz of dry spaghetti and then cook it. Enjoy the recipe!
Thank you so much! I don’t know why that confused me! I went back and read the ingredients again after your reply and was shaking my head at myself! Haha
The dish was wonderful! I love your recipes! Thanks for sharing them with us!
delicious
I doubled this recipe for a group beach trip (left out green pepper just b/c i do not care for it) – made one recipe with ground beef and the other with mild italian sausage – it was an absolute hit! Everyone snarfed it down and many had seconds….HOWEVER, I doubled everything but the pasta noodles – double noodles would have been way too much pasta IMHO.
thank you for the recipe, it’ll be my new go to for baked spaghetti.
Do you need to use eggs to bind the spaghetti?
Hi Julie, yes eggs can be used to help bind the spaghetti but we don’t find that necessary in this recipe. Enjoy!
You mentioned you use the eggs to help bind the spaghetti together, but eggs are not listed in the ingredients or instructions. When am I using the egg/eggs?
Sorry for the confusion Jessica, you can add eggs but we don’t find it necessary in this recipe. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
I plan on making this Tuesday. But doing a triple meat of beef-veal-bison. I am giving this 5 stars now because from exploring my saved Pinterest recipes i have used a lot of your recipe and flavor profiles and know this will be as great as all the others. I am going to make this the day before because spaghetti or chili always taste better the next day . Thank you for your beautiful creations.
Thank you for your kind words Devon, this made my day! I can’t wait for you to try this baked spaghetti recipe!
Am I able to pre cook this all and then stick it in the oven a different night? If I do that what would suggest for the baking time? Thank you!
If you prep it ahead of time and refrigerate, it’ll take a bit longer. Remove it from the fridge about 30 minutes before baking and bake about 35 minutes or until hot in the centre. Enjoy Megan!
Holly, this is great! I noticed someone commented it makes a lot and I agree, even though I made a half recipe but keeping the whole green pepper instead of halving it. It generously filled an 8 x 12 pan. I’m guessing the servings will be generous (it’s in the oven now). I used vegetarian ground beef substitute which doesn’t need pre-cooking and added extra garlic and some fennel that was ground slightly with mortar & pestle. I used to make my own Italian sausage before becoming vegetarian and I’m trying to get a similar flavor with the veg ground beef. I have a digestive condition called gastroparesis, and the veg meat substitutes go over with my stomach better than the fattier real thing.
You have some of the best recipes! I’ve made several of them and they’ve all been easy and delicious. When I search for a type of food, your recipe is almost always the best sounding and closest to what I’m looking for. Thanks for your efforts!
Thank you so much Essie, I’m glad you’ve loved them!
Love this baked spaghetti!! We shared it with friends and they enjoyed it as well. Thank you.
This is my third time making this recipe. Always delicious!! I added pepperoni slices for a little zing!
This was amazing!! I made it as directed. I used 93%lean ground beef. I also added a can of mushrooms as I do in my regular spaghetti. It was so good!!!i cannot wait to make this again!!
It’s nice to have a little change now and then and this was worth trying for sure! I will definitely make this again when our kids come over.
I left out the garlic, onion and green pepper (dietary issues) and substituted 1 small bunch green onions. Also, I used oregano, marjoram, thyme and sprinkling of cinnamon for the “Italian Seasoning”. Lastly, I used mozzarella and for a kick used a blend of parmesan, romano & asiago.
It turned out fabulously! I used some angel hair pasta however, I need to use gluten-free next time, again due to dietary issues.
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
You’re welcome Jo! Thank you for sharing!
Do the diced tomatoes cook down? Don’t want my husband discovering them
You may want to try crushing the tomatoes, the chunks remain in tact in the end. Good luck ;)