Sour Cream Noodle Bake (+Video)
Sour Cream Noodle Bake is a flavorful dish made with layers of tender noodles coated in a creamy mixture topped with a tomato-based ground beef sauce and gooey cheese!
A HEARTY PASTA BAKE FOR DINNER
This Sour Cream Noodle Bake is an easy, delicious weeknight meal that is sure to please everyone in the family. It requires just a few simple ingredients and you can have it on the table in no time. With a creamy sour cream sauce and cheesy goodness, your family will be asking for seconds! Plus, it’s super affordable – you’ll get a tasty dinner without breaking the bank. It also makes for amazing leftovers so you can really stretch it out for a couple of meals.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
For a tasty twist, consider adding different types of cheese such as mozzarella, cheddar, swiss, or gruyere. Alternatively, add some spice with a pepper jack variety.
Nope! Feel free to substitute ground beef with ground sausage, chicken, turkey, or pork.
Yes! For an Italian twist, swap out the tomato sauce with your favorite pasta sauce (try to use about the same amount). However, be mindful of the additional salt content and adjust accordingly. Additionally, you could make a Mexican version of this by adding some taco seasoning and changing out the cheese to a Mexican shredded cheese blend.
I know there will be several people that just can’t stand the idea of cottage cheese. I get it. But I will tell you, my guys hate cottage cheese but they’ll eat it in this dish. It’s usually the texture and not the taste that gets most people. Cottage cheese really adds so much creaminess (and moisture) to dishes though. If it’s the chunks that you can’t get past, try running it through a blender or food processor to smooth it out before using.
If you really can’t stand to use cottage cheese, you can swap it out for ricotta. However, ricotta cheese is much more dry, so you won’t get the same creaminess in your sauce that you would with cottage cheese.
If you have something that you normally use when swapping out sour cream, then use that. Otherwise you could probably use something like creme fraiche or a plain Greek yogurt. Keep in mind, with every substitution you make, you are getting further and further away from how this dish is supposed to turn out and taste. I have not tested this recipe with any other substitutions.
Leftovers should be stored in the fridge for a maximum of 3 days; beyond that, freeze them and they can last for up to 3 months. When reheating, use the oven and cover the food with foil to avoid it from drying out. Alternatively, you can microwave leftovers (just cover with ap paper towel).
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- ground beef – as I stated in the FAQ above, you can make substitutions here.
- garlic cloves – I’m a big fan of fresh garlic but if you need to make this fast, jarred garlic works fine. It just doesn’t give that stronger garlic flavor like the fresh stuff.
- tomato sauce – you can go with an Italian tomato sauce here or even your favorite pasta sauce.
- egg noodles – I prefer the no yolks egg noodles for this dish.
- small curd cottage cheese – see my FAQ above about the cottage cheese.
- sour cream – I like the full fat stuff here. You could certainly try a lower fat option if you prefer.
- garlic powder and onion powder – we’re just amping up the flavor of the sour cream sauce here. You can use other seasonings that you prefer (like Italian seasoning and dried parsley).
- shredded Colby Jack cheese – I freshly shredded the cheese but you can definitely pick up the pre-shredded cheese if you’re strapped for time.
HOW TO MAKE SOUR CREAM NOODLE BAKE
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and onion, breaking up the beef into crumbles, and cook until there is no pink left and the onion has softened, 8-10 minutes. Add the garlic and stir it in until fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato sauce, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, turn the heat down to low, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
While the sauce is simmering, cook and drain the egg noodles per the package directions. In a large bowl, stir together the cottage cheese, sour cream, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder until well combined. Add the noodles to the bowl and stir so the noodles are coated. Place half of the noodles into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
Top with half of the sauce then top with half of the cheese.
Repeat with the noodles, sauce, and cheese. Place into the oven for 20 minutes until warmed through, and the cheese has melted, serve immediately.
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Sour Cream Noodle Bake (+Video)
Ingredients
For the sauce mixture
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small sweet onion, small diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
For the noodle mixture
- 12 ounces egg noodles
- 1 ½ cups small curd cottage cheese
- ¾ cup sour cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 8 ounces shredded Colby Jack cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and onion, breaking up the beef into crumbles, and cook until there is no pink left and the onion has softened, 8-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and stir it in until fragrant, 30 seconds.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, turn the heat down to low, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- While the sauce is simmering, cook and drain the egg noodles per the package directions.
- In a large bowl, stir together the cottage cheese, sour cream, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder until well combined.
- Add the noodles to the bowl and stir so the noodles are coated.
- Place half of the noodles into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Top with half of the sauce.
- Top with half of the cheese.
- Repeat with the noodles, sauce, and cheese. Place into the oven for 20 minutes until warmed through, and the cheese has melted, serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- Other cheese that would be good, mozzarella, cheddar, swiss, gruyere, or pepper jack for a spicy twist
- Use ground sausage, ground chicken, ground turkey, ground pork in place of the beef.
- You can use your favorite canned pasta sauce in place of the tomato sauce for an Italian twist. I would leave out additional salt if you do this.
- Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days, freeze for up to 3 months.
- If you can’t use cottage cheese, you can use ricotta cheese but the texture won’t be as creamy or moist. See my FAQ’s above.
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.
I have a question on the nutrition info. What is the potassium amount? I know some of the ingredients have potassium, but how much. Want to make this casserole, sounds really good. Thanks for all the great recipes.
My recipe card doesn’t provide it anymore. You’ll have to use your own online nutritional calculator. If you rely on nutritional information for health purposes and decisions, please use your own trusted nutritional calculators for the most accurate information.
Someone mentioned scallions in the comments and it reminded me. I am here to tell you, snip in a generous 1/4- 1/3 cup of chives into the creamy noodle mixture. It takes it over the top and adds lots of flavor.
I like this recipe, as it has more sour cream and cottage cheese than the famous cook I shall not name’s recipe. It’s much creamier and more flavorful.
I accidently came across this recipe and added it to my recipes. My wife made this and I’m here to tell you ‘It was delicious’. I grew up in a small town with Italian food. A lot of the Italians here; The grandparents came over from Italy. Whenever we have eaten out, I always compare the food to my hometown experiences of eating at one of their houses. I have noticed that most of the time we were paying more for the atmosphere rather than the meal. Although the meals were good, I have only tasted Italian like home in South a
America. Yeah…South America! I have come across some great Italian recipes and my wife is a very good cook! I see you have other recipes that we intend to try. I am sure they will be scrumptious as well. Keep up the good work! Thank you and have a very wonderful day!
What a wonderful comment David! Thank you so very much for taking the time!
I have a question. I want to try so many of your recipes, I’m so glad I found your website. I do not like cottage cheese or ricotta, is there something I can use in place of these?
Hi Micki! I actually talk about that above in the Frequently asked questions section 🙂
I’ve made this for years It’s so good I put Italian seasoning in mine mushrooms & olives
Holy cow! This is almost the exact same recipe that we named after an Aunt that introduced it to our family meal rotation when I was a kid. We used to look forward to it every time mom made it and I make it for my husband and myself every now and then. I don’t want to get tired of it so it a few times a year. The only difference is that my Aunt’s recipe called for green onions (scallions) instead of white onions. I use the dark green parts in the noodle mixture and I Sautee the white parts with the hamburger mixture. I also used extra sharp cheddar instead of cojack.
I have doctored the recipe over the years, but it is still very tasty and filling as written. Thanks for the memories, Brandie!