Easy Beefy Baked Ziti

Melissa Jo

No ratings yet

When life gets busy but you still want a comforting dinner, nothing beats this Easy Beefy Baked Ziti. It’s a hearty, family-friendly baked ziti recipe made with ground beef, ricotta, mozzarella, Pecorino Romano, and a big jar of marinara. I made this before leaving for a trip so my kids would have a cozy, homemade meal ready to go for the weekend—and it’s perfect for weeknights, potlucks, or freezing ahead. For convenience, I used a jar of marinara sauce, but if you want to go the extra mile, you can also use → My Homemade Meat Sauce. If you prefer a lighter version, check out → My Baked Ziti Without Beef. For more recipes like this one you can just click here to see the list!

Print Recipe Email The Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 35

Total Time 45

Servings: 6 people

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion diced
3 cloves garlic minced (or 1 tbsp jarlic)
1 28 oz jar marinara sauce
1 lb ziti pasta cooked al dente
15 oz ricotta cheese
8 oz mozzarella cheese freshly shredded (reserve some for topping)
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 tbsp fresh parsley chopped (plus extra for garnish)
Salt & pepper to taste
Olive oil for sautéing

Method

Cook Pasta

Boil ziti in salted water until al dente. Drain and set aside.

Brown beef

In a skillet, heat olive oil. Add onion and sauté until soft. Stir in garlic for 1 minute. Add beef, season with salt & pepper, and cook until browned. Drain fat.

Add sauce

Stir in jar of marinara. Fill up the jar with 1/4 cup of water. Put the top back on and shake. Simmer 5 minutes.

Mix ricotta & pasta

In a large bowl, combine ricotta, half the mozzarella, half the Pecorino, parsley, and the cooked ziti. Stir in 1 ladle (about ½ cup) of the meat sauce to bring it together.

Assemble layers

Spread a thin layer of meat sauce in a greased 9x13” pan.
Add half the ricotta-ziti mixture.
Top with half the remaining meat sauce.
Repeat layers with the rest of the ricotta-ziti mixture and meat sauce.
Finish with remaining mozzarella and Pecorino on top.

Bake

Cover with foil and bake at 375°F for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10–15 minutes until golden and bubbly.

Serve

Sprinkle parsley on top before serving.

Want to make this later?

We'll email this recipe straight to you, so it's waiting when you need it.

Video

Tried this recipe?

Made this? - it only takes a second and it means the world!