Easy Baked Ziti
This easy baked ziti is a huge family favorite. Creamy, cheesy alfredo pasta topped with a beefy spaghetti sauce! Then topped with melted mozzarella cheese!
A DELICIOUSLY EASY ZITI RECIPE
This is one of my favorite comfort food pasta dishes. I literally make this several times a month for dinner because it is so simple to make and leftovers are fantastic for my work lunch the next day! This one along with my Baked Spaghetti (Spasagna) is the ultimate comfort food for me. Serve it with some Garlic Bread and a salad and I am a happy camper!
I’ve made this several times and I freeze them for those busy nights or when I don’t feel like cooking.I’ve brought them to cookouts and gave some in smaller pans for a couple of elderly neighbors. I’m always asked for the recipe. Thank you for sharing. It’s highly requested!
– Annie
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
I usually use penne pasta because it has those little ridges in it. And those little ridges are really good at hanging onto the pasta sauce. But if you prefer the Ziti pasta, then use that instead of the Penne. This recipe is versatile and you can use almost any other pasta noodle you prefer.
When I make this, I usually purchase an extra jar of spaghetti sauce so we can pour extra sauce over the top when serving.
Absolutely! Or you can try using different flavored alfredo sauces – like garlic or basil.
Yes, of course. Whatever you prefer. Ground pork can also be used.
Want an extra kick? Try adding some ground Italian sausage to the mixture!
Yes. Like most pasta baked dishes, you can assemble it all the night before, cover with foil and put into the refrigerator then bake the next day. You will probably have to add a few minutes to the baking time since you are starting everything from a cold state.
Yes! Like most pasta dishes this freezes very well. Just cover properly to protect against freezer burn and it will keep for up to 3 months.
Allow it to cool fully then put it in a covered container and into the refrigerator where it will keep for up to 3 days.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- ground beef – you can use Italian sausage, ground pork or pretty much any ground meat you prefer.
- spaghetti sauce – I really love Rao’s pasta sauce when I can get it on sale. It’s so good! Use a sauce that you enjoy and is in your budget. Or you can make your own Homemade Marinara Sauce.
- alfredo sauce – use your favorite storebosugh alfredo sauce or make your own from scratch. I have a delicious homemade alfredo sauce that I make for my Copycat Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo recipe.
- penne, ziti or rigatoni pasta – you can use any pasta that is of similar size and you’ll want to use the same amount.
- onion – if you also enjoy adding peppers to your sauces, you would add it in at the same time you add the onion.
- shredded mozzarella – shred your own or use store bought pre-shredded cheese
HOW TO MAKE EASY BAKED ZITI:
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. Prepare pasta according to directions. In a medium sauce pan, brown ground beef with onion (if using.) After beef is browned and crumbled, drain excess grease.
Put back in pot and pour in jar of spaghetti sauce. Keep mixture on low until pasta is done. When pasta is finished, drain well. You want the pasta as dry as possible. Put pasta back in large pot (with heat off).
Pour in jar of alfredo sauce. Combine until thoroughly coated. Pour pasta mixture into bottom of 9×13-inch dish.
Cover pasta with spaghetti sauce mixture and spread it out evenly.
Sprinkle top with mozzarella cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. I like to spray the inside of my foil with nonstick spray so the cheese doesn’t stick to it. Or you could use nonstick aluminum foil.
Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Let rest for about 5 minutes after taking out of oven.
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Originally published: May 2011
Updated and republished: July 2025
Easy Baked Ziti
Ingredients
- 1 pound penne pasta (or ziti or rigatoni)
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 24 ounce jar of your favorite pasta sauce (see notes below)
- 16 ounce jar garlic alfredo sauce
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- dried parsley (optional garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Prepare 1 pound penne pasta according to directions until al dente.
- In a medium sauce pan, brown and crumble 1 pound ground beef with ½ yellow onion, diced. Once cooked, drain any excess grease and put back into pan.
- Put back in pot and pour in 24 ounce jar of your favorite pasta sauce. Keep mixture on low heat until pasta is done.
- When pasta is finished, drain well. You want the pasta as dry as possible.
- Put pasta back into the large pot (with heat off) and pour in 16 ounce jar garlic alfredo sauce. Combine until thoroughly coated.
- Pour pasta mixture into bottom of the 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Cover pasta with pasta sauce mixture. Spread evenly.
- Sprinkle top evenly with 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover with nonstick aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes.
- Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Let rest for about 5 minutes after taking out of oven. Optional: sprinkle the top with a little dried parsley.
- Serve portions onto plates, and pour additional pasta sauce on top (optional)
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- If you like your baked ziti extra saucy, pick up an extra jar of pasta sauce. Warm it up and use it to add additional sauce to individual servings.
- Feel free to add one diced green pepper and 2 cloves minced garlic to the ground beef an onion mixture.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
One of my families favorites! I recommend making your own Alfredo sauce. Good eats!!!
This is a staple in our household. We make it a bit healthier by using ground turkey. I’ve also made it with chickpea penne and gluten free penne and it’s equally delicious.
My family loves this recipe! Can you prepare it the night before and store it in the refrigerator?
Wow! This was delicious and pretty easy. I did make the recommended homemade alfredo. Great recipe.
I have made this many times and it’s my husband’s favorite. So yummy. Have you ever assembled it and put it in a crockpot to heat up? I’m thinking about doing that for X-mas Eve. Do you have any suggestions for prepping and putting in crockpot to heat?
Super easy and fast and my family loves it
Thanks so very much Laura! I always appreciate it when someone takes time out of their busy day to come back and comment!
Quadrupled the recipe and taking it frozen for our vacation.
We love this easy recipe!
I’ve made this several times and I freeze them for those busy nights or when I don’t feel like cooking.I’ve brought them to cookouts and gave some in smaller pans for a couple of elderly neighbors. I’m always asked for the recipe. Thank you for sharing. It’s highly requested!
I made this dish for the first time, it was delicious. I like making dishes that can have leftovers for a couple of days as I work full time. I used ground Italian sausage.
I found this recipe a few years ago and it is my most requested dish from my family and friends. It is my go-to when having people over for dinner. Thank you for posting this! It’s been a life saver several times.
i accidentally bought a pound of rotini instead of rigatoni noodles would they still be okay to use or will i get a different result?
Yes that should still work just fine 🙂
Absolutely delicious!!!! We love all Country Cook recipes but this one was a hit with everyone!! Great flavor and easy!!!
This by far one of the best ziti recipes! Love it!
My family absolutely loved this! And my husband usually hates pasta, so that is a big win. Only changes I made were using mild Italian sausage instead or ground beef and I didn’t have any onion so I did a little onion power. So easy and so delicious! Thanks for the great recipe.
Woo hoo – we won the hubby over! Ha! Love hearing that Brandy – thanks SO much!
can you add ricotta cheese?
Sure I don’t see why not!
to make this gluten free I did the following changes. I used tinkyada rice spiraled pasta. cooked the pasta for 5 minutes. drained added the Alfredo sauce per the instructions. I did the meat mixture with one jar of pasta sauce. Topped with the meat mixture added a 2nd jar of pasta sauce. The extra sauce will help cook the pasta since it’s barely done. If you cook the pasta according to the package and it’s tender you will have a pile if glue like substance instead of baked ziti. I increased the baking time to 45 minutes. Pasta was tender and not a pile of mush.
Love this recipe! Have made it several times. The last time I made it I substituted some frozen cheese ravioli (cooked it like you do the pasta before assembling) and it was great! Loved that little bit of extra cheese in the ravioli!
I love hearing that Judy! Thank you so much!!
Love love love this recipe. It’s in my regular rotation!
Love this receipe! Do you have suggestions on how you would freeze this dish to make a freezer meal?
Hi Julie! You sure can! Prepare as directed but don’t bake. Cover well with plastic wrap then cover well with aluminum foil. You can freeze it for up to 3 months. Then when you’re ready to cook, remove the plastic wrap. Put the aluminum foil back on and back. You’ll probably have to add on an additional 10-20 minutes to the cooking time. 🙂
I made this last night and it was so good! I only add Italian seasoning and some garlic salt to it. So easy and delicious! Thank you for the recipe!
This was absolutely delicious and will be my go-to Baked Ziti recipe from now on. My husband loved it and he doesn’t even like Alfredo sauce. LOL There’s just the two of us, so I cut everything in half and baked it in an 8″ x 8″ dish. It didn’t even need any extra sauce. Thanks for the recipe! I wouldn’t have thought to use the two sauces together.
This is a great recipe….easy, tasty and filling. My family of 5 loves it. It be challenging to find something everyone enjoys.
This was excellent and quick to make. Thank you
Fantastic! Rich and satisfying. I feel like a real Italian chef. A crowd pleaser. I have shared the recipe with all my friends! THANK YOU!
I am going to make this tonight and I am so excited. My question is what is a serving considered? Would a serving be 1 cup? Thank you!
Hi Cassie – I would say that is about right. 🙂
Delicious
I read the recipe ingredients and it states only 1 jar of spaghetti sauce, but in the recipe #12 it says to add in a second jar?????
It’s optional. We like a lot of sauce but not everyone does.
Hello!
I made this a while back based on your recipe and love it!! I came back and realized the picture is different now and there is only one spaghetti sauce jar instead of two? Also in the ingredients – but the instructions call for two as well. So I’m just confused and wondering if that has changed or are you just using a bigger jar of sauce? Wanting to make this for a crowd to trying to figure out exact measurements!!!
Thank you!
-Courtney
Hey Courtney,
I updated the photos and didn’t add that second can in there but I still kept it in the recipe because I like extra sauce but I know some people may not want it. So if you have always made it and enjoyed it with the two cans – keep doing that! 🙂
This has replaced my family’s favorite ziti recipe that I’ve used for many years. It is so easy and filling. And the leftovers are even better! Thanks Brandie! Your recipes make up over half of the ones in my collection.
I made this dish and it was great! Next time I’ll add 2 tsp Italian seasoning!