The Best Baked Ziti (+Video)
This easy baked ziti is a huge family favorite. Creamy, cheesy alfredo pasta topped with a beefy spaghetti sauce! Then topped with melted cheese!
A DELICIOUSLY EASY BAKED ZITI RECIPE
This is one of my favorite comfort food pasta dishes. 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!
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 dishes this freezes very well. Just cover properly to protect against freezer burn and it will jeep 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! As you can see below, I had to go with Prego here which is a good sauce as well. Use a sauce that you enjoy. 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 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 one 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) and pour in jar of alfredo sauce. Combine until thoroughly coated.
Pour pasta mixture into bottom of 9×13 dish.
Cover pasta with spaghetti sauce mixture.
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.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
The Best Baked Ziti (+Video)
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 32 ounce jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
- 16 ounce jar alfredo sauce
- 1 pound penne pasta (or ziti or rigatoni)
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Spray a 9"x 13" 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 brown and crumbled, drain excess grease.
- Put back in pot and pour in one jar of spaghetti sauce. Keep mixture on low until pasta is done.
- When pasta is finished, drain excess water from pasta. You want the pasta as dry as possible.
- Put pasta back in large pot (with heat off) and pour in jar of alfredo sauce. Combine until thoroughly coated.
- Pour pasta mixture into bottom of 9"x 13" dish.
- Cover pasta with spaghetti sauce mixture.
- Sprinkle top with mozzarella cheese.
- Cover with 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.
- Serve portions onto plates, and pour additional paghetti 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.
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.
Originally published: May 2011
Updated and republished: February 2020
just made this used smoked Gouda cheese with the mozzarella very good
i meant cheese not cheese cake lol its very good thank you for the post
No problem Ted! I knew what you meant! It’s fixed. Thank you!!!
Hi!
Does the 32 ounces of spaghetti sauce include 16 ounces to mix in with the beef and 16 ounces to top it with, or is it 32 ounces to mix in with the beef, and you need another 16 ounces to top?
Making tonight.
Thanks!
Kristen
Hi Kristen! It’s 32 ounces (the whole jar) that mixes with the beef. I hope that helps. Sorry for any confusion! 🙂
This is a wonderful recipe. So easy and makes great leftovers. Thanks for sharing.
Made this last night and loved it! Easy and delicious. I do agree with having extra sauce on hand. I ate some leftovers today with a bit of the pasta sauce alone added, but am debating making the hamburger/sauce mixture again to add to the left overs (can use extra for a different dish) and possibly adding some alfredo sauce to to the bottom of the plate? Just wondering how everyone else has reheated their leftovers considering the sauces and whether using the oven for the whole pain or microwave for individual servings works best? Thank you again for your great recipes!
This was a total hit with my family. I used Bertolli garlic Alfredo sauce and bertolli meat marinara sauce and my family loved it
Woot! Thank you Angelina!
is there a way to make it without the alfredo? anything i could substitute. trying to keep the calories down. going to use barilla protein plus penne pasta and lean ground beef.
Yum. Made this over at a friend’s house who didn’t have a baking pan so I put it in the oven in a giant pan, worked out just fan. Very easy and perfect recipe to make at someone’s house. Thanks !
This was easy and fast fast just what I was looking for! Interestingly enough this tasted surprisingly close to Stouffers lasagna.
No salt and pepper?
???? Maybe you could use the salt and pepper in the individual meals… win win.????
This was great. My husband doesn’t really like Ziti but he really liked this one. He took leftovers to work and he never does that. I used Sweet Italian sausage instead of hamburger since that is what we had on hand. It turned out great. Thanks so much.
Hey! My family absolutely loves this recipe! We are working to eat healthier (including less calories at dinner) so I’ve been counting calories. My question is how did you get your calorie count? I’ve totaled it and I get 3690. If I divide that by 6 that’s 615 per serving. My ground beef is 88/12 so maybe that’s where a lot of the calories differ. Thank you for the amazing recipe!!!
Can you make this dish ahead and put in ref. till ready to bake?
Thank You, this was quick weekday dinner. Easy and tasty. I used creamy mozzarella. Look forward to trying next time with Parmesan Garlic.
Hi!! We absolutely loved this dish!!
Sorry meant 32oz jar pasta sauce
Is it one 32oz jar of pasta & you use half with meat and heat up the other half to pour on top?
Hi Dayle! You’ll want to use the whole jar with the meat sauce. And if you’d like, you can buy another jar of marinara to serve with the ziti. But it’s not necessary! We just like a lot of sauce 🙂
I make this dish for dinner and my family loved it!! This will be one of my favorite easy dish to make for the family…. Thanks
I’ve made this twice already, and wow, what a great meal! My boyfriend loves it too. If you freeze it, do you assemble it completely, cheese and all? Then freeze, oven to 350 for any extended amount of time or will the 15 mins with foil and 15 mins without be sufficient timing? Thanks! LOVE the recipe!!
Another great recipe! Made it tonight, I added a baby spinach layer and my 6 year old gobbled it up! Win-Win!
Thank you for this recipe. My picky husband loves this and will eat leftovers for days after I make it.
Found on Pinterest. I love this. I make this often in my meal rotation. I do not use the onion. And only use 1 jar of spaghetti sauce. Thank you for the recipe!!
I’m a college student and hate onions so I didn’t add those in but I love this easy recipe
I’m even cooking it for work today!
Nice! Love hearing that Jordyn!!
Love this recipe! I’m in my first trimester and can’t stand cooking hamburger meat, so I used sausage (strange, yes?). Then I didn’t have alfredo, so I used some homemade bechamel that I had frozen. Amazing! Thanks for sharing this quick and yummy dish. My 2 littles and my hubby (and I) all enjoy it!
I doubled this recipe for Christmas Eve and made it exactly as written. It was fantastic. Everyone absolutely loved it. I made two pans in the morning, put in refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature before putting in oven. Baked about 15 minutes longer. Thank you so much. It was so easy for a very busy holiday!
All I had was macaroni but was a huge success! When I cooked the hamburger I added the onion, green peppers, fresh mushrooms, and garlic. Then added plain sauce to those that wanted it. Phenomenal!!!
Hi Bobbie! This makes my day to read! So thrilled you loved it – thank you!!
I only use one can/jar of spaghetti sauce and instead of ground beef I use Italian sausage and no onion. Add a sprinkle of cinnamon for a different taste.