With just a handful of ingredients this easy rigatoni recipe has a zesty beefy tomato sauce tossed with rigatoni, sprinkled with cheese and baked until golden and bubbly.
What You’ll Need for Baked Rigatoni
Meat: Use lean ground beef (80/20) for a delicious meaty sauce in this baked rigatoni recipe. Pasta: I love rigatoni for all that meaty sauce to cling to. Try other hearty pasta shapes like ziti, rotini, or penne. Sauce: This shortcut sauce levels up a jar of your fave pasta sauce (we love this brand). You can replace it with homemade marinara sauce. Cheese: This casserole is topped with grated mozzarella; feel free to add Parmesan cheese, use pre-shredded, or swap in your favorite Italian cheese blend.
Variations
Meat: Change the flavor by using ground turkey or Italian sausage. Short on time? Toss in some mini pre-cooked meatballs in Step 4. Veggies: Stretch the meal further with veggies—try chopped mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, or diced tomatoes. Cheese: Other cheeses to try are provolone, Monterey Jack, or a Mexican blend. Creamy ricotta can be added to the Sauce in Step 4 for an extra rich and creamy sauce.
How to Make Baked Rigatoni
Serve with garlic toast and a crispy salad, and dinner’s ready! Keep leftover baked rigatoni covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and reheat portions in the microwave.
How to Make Ahead
Prepare this rigatoni pasta bake up to 3 days in advance. To freeze whole, baked, and cooled rigatoni pasta, line the casserole dish with foil before baking. This makes it easy to lift out once frozen, so you can reuse the dish and enjoy a hassle-free meal prep. Wrap the frozen casserole with more foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in a casserole dish in the refrigerator overnight before baking.
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