Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

by Sabrina Snyder

Published on

23 Comments

5 from 6 votes
8 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Jump to Recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs is an easy, kid friendly weeknight dinner with cooked meatballs, spaghetti and cheese in a casserole. A lasagna shortcut!

This recipe is an even easier version of my popular cheesy Million Dollar Baked Spaghetti. We have so many kid-friendly Pasta Dinner Recipes that are so simple to make and freeze well for quick weeknight meals!

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs in white baking dish

BAKED SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

Spaghetti and meatballs is the ultimate family comfort food. It’s an easy recipe that you can adjust it to your pickiest eater’s taste (like reserving noodles without sauce for the kid who wants plain everything), plus it’s pretty darn inexpensive.

What I love most about this dish though is it’s a perfect meal prep dish. It freezes well and with about a day defrosting in the fridge, it’s ready to go like it was fresh made. We always have a version of Baked Spaghetti on hand in the freezer. 

Recently we had some friends that were passing through and this spaghetti casserole saved the day! I set it out to thaw in the morning and by the time they got into town, it was oven ready. Some Garlic Bread, a simple salad, and fresh grated parmesan cheese rounded out the meal. We were sitting down to dinner in the time it took to unload their car.

This casserole dish is also great for potlucks or family gatherings. You can make it the night before and bake in the morning while you are getting ready for work or your event. The portions for 8 are generous, and with sides and dessert, you can easily stretch it to 10-12. 

Scoop of Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

How to make ahead Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs:

Follow all the steps until it says to put it in the oven. Top with foil and freeze. Defrost in the fridge the day before you plan on serving and bake as usual. If you cook from frozen, cook time will at least an hour.

While I love this baked version because it makes the cheese so melty and gooey, with a golden brown crust, I know what a time saver making crockpot Spaghetti and Meatballs can be. 

I’ve included instructions for both the slow cooker and the Instant Pot. If you want that delicious browned cheese layer, I recommend popping into a casserole dish, topping with more cheese and broiling for a few minutes before serving.

MORE EASY PASTA DINNERS

HOW TO MAKE BAKED SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray 9×13 baking dish with vegetable oil spray.
  2. Cook pasta as directed and drain (do not rinse).
  3. Add the noodles to a large bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper.
  4. Add in the pasta sauce, meatballs and half the mozzarella cheese.
  5. Pour into your baking dish and spread evenly.
  6. Bake for 30 minutes, covered.
  7. Uncover, top with remaining mozzarella cheese and cook for 10 more minutes until cheese is melted.

 

White Baking Dish with Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs pictured from the top down

VARIATIONS ON BAKED SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

  • Homemade Meatballs: Instead of using frozen meatballs, you can make our easy Homemade Meatballs. This lets you control the ingredients. Just make sure your meatballs are cooked before adding to the casserole.
  • Sauce: We used our Easy Marinara for this recipe but you can substitute your favorite jar of pasta sauce instead. You can also make this dish extra meaty by adding ground beef or Italian sausage crumbles to the spaghetti sauce.
  • Pasta: This easy recipe will work with pretty much any pasta you have on hand, like penne or macaroni. It is also delicious with frozen raviolis! Layer them like lasagna for an extra cheesy version.
  • Vegetables: Saute your favorite veggies like mushrooms, eggplant, or zucchini and add to the layers. We like to add big chunks of roasted garlic sprinkled on top for a slightly spicy, strong flavor.
  • Cheese: Add Ricotta or mascarpone cheese for a richer, creamier dish. For a vegan or lighter version with a creamy cheesy center use a well-drained firm tofu that has been blended to a smooth texture.

SLOW COOKER SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

  • Pour spaghetti sauce into slow cooker.
  • Add 4 cups of water or chicken broth.
  • Toss uncooked noodles in the salt and olive oil.
  • Break spaghetti noodles in half and place partially into sauce.
  • Top with frozen meatballs. No need to stir.
  • Cover and cook on low for about 2-5 hours (Until noodles are soft and meatballs heated)
  • Top with mozzarella cheese.
  • Cover and cook an additional 30 minutes until cheese is melted and sauce is warmed.
  • If transferring to baking dish to broil, hold back on mozzarella until you put in oven.

Quarter pan of baked spaghetti and meatballs

INSTANT POT SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

  • Remove trivet from pot.
  • Place the meatballs in Instant Pot. 
  • Break the spaghetti noodles in half and place on top of meatballs.
  • Drizzle the olive oil and salt over spaghetti. 
  • Add marinara and 3 cups water or chicken broth to completely cover noodles.
  • Cover and set the Instant Pot to manual for 10 minutes. 
  • Quick release the pressure. Serve topped with mozzarella cheese.
  • Optional: Stir in cottage cheese. Transfer to a baking dish, top with mozzarella and bake for 10-15 minutes until warmed through and cheese is melted.

MORE KID-FRIENDLY DINNER IDEAS

HOW TO STORE BAKED SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

  • Serve: You can keep your spaghetti casserole at room temperature for up to 2 hours.
  • Store: Both leftovers and made ahead Baked Spaghetti can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.
  • Freeze: This dish is good in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Pin this recipe now to remember it later

Pin Recipe
Dinner, then Dessert

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs is an easy, kid friendly weeknight dinner with cooked meatballs, spaghetti and cheese in a casserole. A lasagna shortcut!
Yield 8 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder
Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs
PrintRate

Ingredients
 

  • 1 pound spaghetti
  • 6 cups  Marinara Sauce , 2 jars
  • 1/2  teaspoon  kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
  • 1  tablespoon olive oil
  • 32 beef meatballs , cooked and thawed
  • 2 cups mozzarella cheese , shredded and divided

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray 9x13 baking dish with vegetable oil spray.
  • Cook pasta as directed and drain (do not rinse).
  • Add the noodles to a large bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and pepper.
  • Add in the pasta sauce, meatballs and half the mozzarella cheese.
  • Pour into your baking dish and spread evenly.
  • Bake for 30 minutes, covered.
  • Uncover, top with remaining mozzarella cheese and cook for 10 more minutes until cheese is melted.

Nutrition

Calories: 400kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 1008mg | Potassium: 717mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 766IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 147mg | Iron: 3mg
Keyword: Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

Want to save this recipe? Create a free account to easily save your favorite recipes

Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs collage

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

See more posts by Sabrina

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. If you enjoyed the recipe and would like to publish it on your own site, please re-write it in your own words, and link back to my site and recipe page. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

Categories

Leave a comment & rating

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  1. …….Sabrina, I wrote you in comments below this one but I just realized I should have told you that I have a round 2 qt casserole dish, a 1 1/2 qt size, and a 1 3/4 qt size. Which of those would be most appropriate to hold that much spaghetti and meatballs……..and what adaptations should I make time wise if any?
    Thanks again 🙂

    Reply

  2. I’m wanting to make this easy recipe for company next week. However, my 9 x 13 pan will have a cake in it. What size casserole dish would be appropriate instead and would I need to let it bake longer before the last ten minutes to melt the cheese? Thanks so much 🙂

    Reply

  7. Spaghetti is an all-time favorite in my family. Thank you for posting the various cooking methods in your recipe. Always nice to have options!

    Reply

  9. I have been looking for a baked spaghetti recipe, plus one I can stick in the freezer for those times I don’t feel like cooking. Can’t wait to make it.

    Reply

  11. Sabrina,
    I am a senior citizen with limited mobility. I enjoy making your recipes, first, because you explain the process so well, second, it is not at all difficult to make, and third, because the final result is always delicious. I don’t cook as often as I used to, but if I am going to make dinner for my family, I always turn to your recipes. I know that it will always turn out perfect. Thank you for making cooking possible for me again.

    Reply

  12. Can you use turkey meatballs instead of beef meatballs? I have to watch my cholesterol, so I hardly ever eat red meat anymore.

    Reply