These stuffed shells with meat sauce will take you to cheesy pasta heaven! The jumbo pasta shells are stuffed with spinach and a cheesy filling and then baked in a hearty meat sauce.
The BEST Cheesy Stuffed Shells
This easy stuffed shells recipe combines three delicious kinds of cheese: ricotta, parmesan, and mozzarella, to get the most irresistible gooey cheese filling for your jumbo shells pasta. You would think that the best part of this recipe is the cheese, but the meaty marinara sauce makes it an even more flavorful and complete meal.
These stuffed shells with meat sauce make a great addition to your easy weeknight dinner rotation and are perfect for any special occasion!
why you’ll love ’em!
- Stuffed shells are easy to prepare ahead of time! You can prepare this dish the night before, or you can freeze it for another time.
- The meat sauce is full of flavor and tastes fantastic with the cheesy shells!
- It’s a classic recipe that even the pickiest of eaters will love.
- You can feed the entire family or have enough leftovers throughout the week.
Featured Ingredients
This stuffed shells with meat sauce recipe uses simple ingredients you can easily find at your local grocery store or already sitting in your pantry or fridge!
- Jumbo shells
- Ricotta, parmesan & mozzarella cheese
- Italian Seasoning
- Salt
- Egg
- Spinach
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion & Bell pepper
- Ground beef
- Garlic
- Marinara sauce (we used our tasty Five Cheese Marinara!)
How to Make Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce
PREHEAT OVEN
Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
COOK PASTA
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook your pasta according to the package instructions. Then drain and set aside for about 10 minutes.
MAKE FILLING
In a large bowl, mix the ricotta, parmesan, ½ cup of mozzarella, Italian seasoning, salt, egg, and spinach until well combined. Then transfer the mixture to a gallon-size storage bag and set aside.
COOK MEAT SAUCE
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. First, add the onions and peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes. Then add the ground beef and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes. Finally, add the marinara sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
ASSEMBLE
Now it’s time to stuff your shells! Before you start, pour 1 cup of your beef marinara into the bottom of the baking dish, spreading it to cover the bottom.
Pipe approximately 1-2 tablespoons of the ricotta filling into each shell. Then line up the shells on the meat sauce in your baking dish until all the noodles and ricotta filling have been used. Top with remaining beef marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese.
BAKE & enjoy!
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. When your stuffed shells with meat sauce have finished cooking, allow the dish to rest for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
FAQs
Your stuffed shells can become watery if you don’t allow your ricotta cheese to dry properly before cooking with them.
To avoid this, place paper towels or a clean kitchen cloth on a rimmed baking sheet to spread your ricotta cheese. Then, top the cheese with more towels and allow it to sit for about 5 minutes.
There are many other different types of cheeses that you can substitute for ricotta cheese. Our top choices include cottage cheese, goat cheese, queso fresco, and cream cheese. They won’t provide the exact same flavor, but they’ll still make for a delicious filling for your pasta shells.
Storage
After your stuffed shells with meat sauce are baked, let them cool completely before placing in an airtight container. Then, store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To reheat, let them come to room temperature and then reheat in the oven covered at 350ºF until the cheese melts and the middle of the shells and marinara sauce are warm.
To Freeze Stuffed Shells
Let your pasta dish cool completely before covering with plastic wrap and aluminum foil—place in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To reheat, let the dish come to room temperature and then heat in the oven covered at 350ºF. Heat until the cheese melts and the middle of the shells and marinara sauce are warm.
Stuffed Shells with Meat Sauce
Ingredients
- 8 oz. jumbo shells
- 16 oz. whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 oz. grated parmesan cheese ~½ cup
- 8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese divided (~2 cups)
- 1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- 5 oz. fresh spinach finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ medium yellow onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 lb. 85/15 ground beef
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 24 oz. marinara sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside — about 10 minutes.
- Add the ricotta, parmesan, ½ cup mozzarella, Italian seasoning, salt, egg, and spinach to a large bowl. Mix until well combined. Transfer the mixture to a gallon-size storage bag and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium/high heat. Add the onions and peppers and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the ground beef and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the marinara sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes. Set aside.
- To assemble, pour 1 cup of the beef marinara into the bottom of the baking dish. Spread to cover the bottom. Pipe about 1-2 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture into each shell. Line up the shells in the baking dish until all the noodles and ricotta mixture have been used. Top with the remaining marinara sauce. Then top with remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes uncovered. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Tips & Notes
- Don’t skip chopping the spinach ahead of time. It is hard to pipe the ricotta mixture with whole spinach leaves coming out.
- Italian sausage would be an excellent substitute for ground beef.
- To make ahead of time, assemble and refrigerate. Bake for 30 minutes covered and then an additional 30 uncovered.
