Classic Baked Spaghetti (Spaghetti Bake)

This baked spaghetti is the old-fashioned 9×13 kind: spaghetti tossed with a beef and vegetable marinara, a cup of sour cream, and part of the cheese, then topped with more mozzarella and Parmesan and baked until the top is spotty-golden and the edges are browned. The sour cream disappears into the sauce and makes it richer and slightly creamy without turning it pink and soupy. Green pepper and mushrooms give it the flavor of the spaghetti bakes served at church suppers and school potlucks. It serves 8, or 6 with seconds.

Jump to Recipe

Not Lasagna, Not Ziti, Not Mac

Spaghetti bake gets lumped in with other baked pastas, but it’s its own thing:

• No layers. Everything is mixed together before it goes into the dish, and there is no ricotta layer as in lasagna.
• Long pasta. Spaghetti, not ziti or penne, so it holds together in tangled squares when you cut it.
• Tomato sauce, not a cheese sauce. The cheese melts into and over a red meat sauce rather than forming a white sauce like a macaroni casserole.

Ingredients and Amounts

Spaghetti: Twelve ounces is the right amount for this much sauce in a 9×13. Cook it 2 minutes less than the package says. It finishes softening in the oven as it absorbs sauce.

Beef and vegetables: One pound of lean ground beef, one onion, one green bell pepper, and 8 ounces of mushrooms, all diced or sliced small. Mushrooms carry a lot of water, so they need to cook until that liquid evaporates or the bake turns watery.

Sauce: A 24-ounce jar of marinara, a can of diced tomatoes (drained well), and a tablespoon of tomato paste. Season lightly; jarred marinara and Parmesan are both salty, so the recipe uses only 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Sour cream: Full-fat sour cream blends in most smoothly. Stir it into the sauce off the heat, once the bubbling has stopped, so it stays smooth instead of curdling.

Cheese: Two cups (8 ounces) of shredded mozzarella and 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan, each divided in half. Half goes inside, which helps the squares hold together; half goes on top. Shredding mozzarella from a block melts more evenly than pre-shredded, but either works.

Making Baked Spaghetti

Make the meat sauce

Heat the oven to 375°F and grease a deep 9×13-inch baking dish. Put the pasta water on. Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat and brown the beef, breaking it up, until no pink remains, about 6 to 7 minutes. Drain off the fat. Add the onion, green pepper, and mushrooms and cook 6 to 8 minutes, until the mushrooms have released their liquid and it has cooked away. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste for 1 minute, then add the marinara, drained tomatoes, Italian seasoning, oregano, garlic powder, pepper, and salt. Simmer 5 minutes.

Combine the spaghetti, sauce, sour cream, and cheese

Meanwhile, cook and drain the spaghetti and return it to its pot. Take the sauce off the heat and let it stop bubbling, then stir in the sour cream until no white streaks remain. Pour the sauce over the spaghetti, add 1 cup of the mozzarella and 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, and toss with tongs until every strand is coated. Work quickly while the pasta is hot so it doesn’t clump.

Top and bake

Transfer the spaghetti to the dish and spread it out, then scatter the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over the top. Scatter it loosely rather than packing it into an even sheet; the gaps let some spaghetti peek through and brown. The dish will be full, so set it on a rimmed baking sheet to catch drips. Cover with greased foil and bake 20 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 to 15 minutes more, until the cheese is melted with golden spots and the edges are bubbling.

Rest before cutting

Let the bake rest 5 to 10 minutes. The sauce settles and the squares hold their shape instead of sliding apart. The center should read 165°F on an instant-read thermometer. Sprinkle with parsley if you’re using it, then cut into 8 squares with a sharp knife.

Why the Timing Is Longer Than It Looks

Recipes often list 45 minutes of cooking, but that only covers the oven. Bringing a big pot of water to a boil, cooking the pasta, and making the sauce takes about 25 minutes, the bake takes 30 to 35, and the rest takes another 5 to 10. Plan on about an hour and a half from start to serving, including 20 minutes of chopping.

Make Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

• Make ahead: Assemble, cover, and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Bake straight from the fridge, adding 10 to 15 minutes to the covered time, until the center reaches 165°F.
• Refrigerate: Cool and refrigerate within 2 hours, covered, for 3 to 4 days.
• Reheat: Microwave single portions, covered, with a teaspoon of water, for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Reheat a larger amount covered with foil at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes. Either way, heat to 165°F in the center.
• Freeze: Wrap cooled portions tightly and freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. The sour cream can make the sauce look slightly grainy after freezing; stirring the reheated portion smooths it.

More Spaghetti Dinners

If you’d rather keep it on the stovetop, our taco spaghetti and the one-pot dirty spaghetti with andouille both cook the noodles right in the sauce. For another creamy beef pasta, try the creamy beef and shells, or browse more dinner recipes.

Baked Spaghetti Questions

Can I skip the sour cream? Yes. The bake will be a little less rich and more tomato-forward. Don’t replace it with more cheese inside, which makes the squares greasy.

Will it fit in a standard 9×13? It fills a standard 3-quart 9×13 nearly to the rim. A deeper dish, at least 2 1/2 inches, is easier. Either way, bake it on a rimmed sheet pan.

Can I use ground turkey? Ground turkey works the same way, though it browns less and tastes milder. Cook it to 165°F.

Do I break the spaghetti? There’s no need. Long strands hold the squares together; a sharp knife cuts through them cleanly after the rest.

Recipe Card