Baked Ziti and Meatballs is comfort food at its best! Flavorful and juicy meatballs are combined with soft and tender ziti pasta in a rich and cheesy marinara sauce, topped off with extra mozzarella cheese for that perfect golden-brown baked layer.
If you’re looking for a hearty meal that is an easy and delicious alternative to spaghetti and meatballs, then this easy Baked Ziti and Meatballs is a must-try. We’re going to make the meatballs from scratch and use ready made marinara sauce, but you can combine your favorite from scratch recipes or even use premade meatballs and jarred sauce for a quick and easy dinner.
This family-sized one pot dinner recipe meal can be made ahead of time, or you can enjoy it straight out of the oven with any leftovers easily stored to be enjoyed again over the following days. If you love easy and delicious pasta bakes, try Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake, Bow Tie Lasagna, and Philly Cheesesteak Pasta.
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🍝 Ingredients:
- Ground meat – I’ve used a combination of beef and ground pork for the meatball mixture, but you can use Italian sausage or ground turkey for turkey meatballs.
- Onion – dry, minced – this adds loads of flavor, without worrying about chunks of raw onion in the meatballs. If you’d like to use fresh, I recommend dicing into very small pieces and sautée-ing for a few minutes before mixing into the meatball mixture.
- Spices, seasonings, and herbs – Worcestershire, dried oregano, coarse black pepper, coarse sea salt (keep more aside for seasoning the pasta water), and fresh basil for garnish (or fresh parsley). A bit of brown sugar in the meatballs helps to balance the acidity in the tomato sauce.
- Italian herb-seasoned bread crumbs – You can also combine bread crumbs with Italian seasoning if you can’t source Italian bread crumbs. I prefer regular bread crumbs over panko for meatballs as they hold more moisture.
- Milk and Eggs – adds moisture to the meatballs
- Ziti noodles – Cook pasta in salted water and cook until al dente. The pasta will cook up a bit more once it’s mixed with the sauce and baked, so it’s best to have it slightly al dente when mixing it into the casserole.
- Canola oil – You can use another neutral-tasting oil like olive oil to brown the meatballs. Cooking them in the oven without oil is another option.
- Spicy Marinara sauce – You can also use another jarred sauce or homestyle sauce. My recipe has red pepper for spice which pairs well with the ziti and meatballs.
- Cheese – I’ve used full-fat Mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese for maximum flavor in this cheesy baked ziti. Pecorino Romano cheese is another great option. Grate the cheese fresh from the block and skip the fillers and powdery residue they add to pre-shredded cheese.
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
- Garnish these Italian-style meatballs with your favorite fresh herbs.
Equipment Needed:
- You’ll need a large skillet, a pot to cook the pasta, and a large mixing bowl.
Substitutions and Variations
- If you enjoy spicy hot dishes, you can add in crushed red pepper flakes or Rotel (tomatoes with chiles) into the marinara pasta sauce, but our recipe does already have some zing. Taste as you go and adjust to your preference.
- If this is a weeknight dinner recipe for your family and you’re short on time then you could use store-bought meatballs instead of assembling them yourself from scratch. I personally love the taste that homemade meatballs offer this dish!
- Make this fun for the kiddos and use mini meatballs.
- If you don’t have ziti noodles, any other medium tubular pasta will work. You could even make a baked spaghetti and meatballs dish!
- You can also use ground meat (ground sausage and a ground beef mixture) and make a meat sauce instead of meatballs. Simply brown the meat before any other steps, drain excess oil, and continue with the marinara recipe.
- We also love to make an alternative version of this that is creamy. Mix in a ½ cup of part-skim ricotta cheese or whole milk ricotta!
- Or you can even place dollops of ricotta on the top of the finished ziti bake!
🔪 Instructions:
PREP: Preheat oven and cook the pasta al dente. Drain pasta and set aside.
Step 1: In a large bowl, combine the ground meat with bread crumbs, seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, milk, egg, sugar, and parmesan cheese.
Step 2: With clean hands, mix the ingredients well.
Step 3: Use a spoon or cookie dough scoop to form meatballs and place meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet while assembling the rest. Cook the meatballs in an oiled skillet over medium-high heat until golden brown on all sides. (See our oven baked meatballs recipe if you prefer to cook them in the oven.)
Step 4: Toss the pot of ziti with marinara sauce, 1 cup of mozzarella, and ¼ cup of parmesan cheese.
Step 5: Spread the coated ziti noodles in a large skillet or a 9×13 baking dish and nestle the meatballs down into the pasta mixture.
Step 6: Cover the meatballs and pasta with the remaining mozzarella cheese and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is browned.
GARNISH: Garnish with fresh basil and enjoy!
Recipe Tips for Baked Ziti with Meatballs
- Serve your Baked Ziti and Meatballs alongside a fresh light salad or some crusty bread that can be used to soak up any remaining sauce. Leftovers can be saved for the following day or for a modified meal such as a baked ziti and meatballs sub.
- Always make use of good quality meat when making your meatballs as this ensures maxim flavor. Homemade meatballs can always be made ahead of time for use in various dishes and stored in the freezer until needed.
- Whatever cheese you opt for, stick to grating your cheese at home instead of buying pre-shredded cheese. Store-bought shredded cheese usually has an anti-caking coating that prevents the cheese from melting smoothly.
- For a creamier casserole, mix a tub of ricotta cheese into the pasta/sauce mixture.
- You can use a slow cooker or crockpot for the final steps on this recipe. Cook the separate ingredients ahead of time. Stir together in a crockpot and top with cheese. Cook on low heat for several hours to heat everything through.
Fun Fact
Despite popular opinion, meatballs are not originally Italian. In fact, meatballs are a dish that can be found in various cultures around the world, including Swedish, Middle Eastern, and Chinese cuisine. The concept of combining ground meat with spices and forming it into tiny meatballs is a technique that has been used for centuries.
Recipe FAQ’s
Baked Ziti and Meatballs can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days in an airtight container or covered in plastic wrap once completely cooled.
This dish freezes well for up to 1 month in an airtight, freezer-safe container. Make sure that your baked ziti and meatballs have completely cooled prior to freezing. To reheat, simply defrost overnight in the refrigerator or in the microwave (using a microwave-safe dish) on the defrost setting and then place your baked ziti and meatballs in a 350℉ preheated oven for about 30-35 minutes till hot and bubbly throughout.
More Pasta Recipes You’ll Love!
If you tried this Baked Ziti and Meatballs Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
Baked Ziti and Meatballs
Ingredients
- ½ pound ground pork
- ½ pound ground beef
- 1 teaspoon dried minced onion
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon coarse black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt plus more for seasoning pasta water
- ½ cup Italian herb-seasoned bread crumbs
- ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese divided
- 16 oz. ziti noodles uncooked
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 recipe Marinara sauce or 46 oz. jarred sauce
- 16 oz. block full-fat mozzarella cheese grated
- Fresh basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a large bowl, combine ground pork, ground beef, onion flakes, oregano, black pepper, salt, bread crumbs, Worchestishire sauce, milk, egg, brown sugar, and ¼ cup parmesan cheese. Use gloved hands to mix the ingredients thoroughly.
- Use a 2 tablespoon (or desired size) cookie dough scoop and form the meat mixture into balls. Roll in your hands for a tighter, more uniform meatball if desired.
- Meanwhile, cook the ziti noodles in a pot of well-salted water according to package instructions. Cook to al dente. Drain.
- Heat cooking oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides – they do not need to cook through to the center as they will continue cooking in the oven. Remove from heat.
- Toss cooked ziti noodles with marinara sauce; adjust the amount of sauce to your personal taste. Mix 1 cup of mozzarella and ¼ cup of the parmesan cheese into the sauce/pasta mixture.
- Spread the ziti/sauce mixture into a large oven-safe skillet or a 9×13 baking dish. Place the meatballs down into the pasta/sauce. Cover with the remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the sauce is bubbly and cheese is browned to your liking.
- Garnish with fresh basil and serve!
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Notes
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- Serve your Baked Ziti and Meatballs alongside a fresh light salad or some crusty bread that can be used to soak up any remaining sauce. Leftovers can be saved for the following day or for a modified meal such as a baked ziti and meatballs sub.
-
- Always make use of good quality meat when making your meatballs as this ensures maxim flavor. Homemade meatballs can always be made ahead of time for use in various dishes and stored in the freezer until needed.
-
- Whatever cheese you opt for, stick to grating your cheese at home instead of buying pre-shredded cheese. Store-bought shredded cheese usually has an anti-caking coating that prevents the cheese from melting smoothly.
-
- For a creamier casserole, mix a tub of ricotta cheese into the pasta/sauce mixture.
Nutrition
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