These are super tasty, creamy, and cheesy stuffed pasta shells with ground beef for a weeknight dinner. My family likes pasta dishes very much, so they were very happy to try these Stuffed Pasta Shells with ground beef, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan. It tastes so good with crusty bread, hot sauce, and Italian salad.
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How to make Stuffed Pasta Shells with Ground Beef
Follow the recipe below, and make sure to read through the frequently asked questions and pro tips to bake the Best Stuffed Pasta Shells.
- Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Add ½ pound jumbo pasta shells to the boiling water. Cook until al dente according to package directions. Then, drain the jumbo pasta shells and rinse under cold water. Set aside
- Step 2. In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil. Add one chopped onion, salt, and pepper. Saute for 4-5 minutes. Then, add 3 minced garlic cloves. Cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add 1 pound ground beef, break it up into chunks. Cook until browned.
- Step 3. Add 2 tbsp of Italian seasoning to the beef mixture. Stir.
- Step 4. Add 1 cup of spaghetti sauce to the beef mixture. Stir until combined. Then, remove the skillet from the heat.
- Step 5. In a bowl, mix together 2 cups ricotta, 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, ½ cup grated parmesan cheese, and one beat egg.
- Step 6. Add the cheese mixture to the beef mixture. Mix until combined
- Step 7. Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan with cooking spray. Then, add the remaining 1 cup of spaghetti sauce. Spread evenly.
- Step 8. Fill each jumbo pasta shell with a cheesy beefy mixture. Place them on the prepared baking pan. Top with extra parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. Enjoy!
what to serve with stuffed pasta shells?
I like to serve these stuffed pasta shells with crusty bread, Italian salad, hot sauce, guacamole, or salsa.
Baking Tips For Stuffed Pasta Shells with Ground Beef
- You can use cottage cheese instead of ricotta.
- I recommend using extra parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese for topping.
- Add a little olive oil to the boiling water while cooking the jumbo pasta shells to prevent them from sticking together.
- You can use marinara sauce or homemade tomato sauce instead of spaghetti sauce.
can you make stuffed pasta shells ahead of time?
Yes, you can make these stuffed pasta shells ahead of time. You can do all the instruction steps, but you don’t need to top the pasta shells with cheese and you don’t need to bake it.
Just wrap the baking pan with stuffed pasta shells with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
When you will be ready to bake it, just remove the stuffed pasta shells with ground beef from the refrigerator, top with cheese, and bake.
how to freeze stuffed pasta shells?
These stuffed pasta shells with ground beef freezing well. You can freeze them before baking or you can freeze the leftover pasta shells.
First, let them cool completely. Then, cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and put it in the freezer. You can store stuffed pasta shells with ground beef for up to three months in the freezer.
how to reheat stuffed pasta shells?
- Remove stuffed pasta shells from the refrigerator or the freezer and reheat them in the microwave or in the oven.
- Reheating time depends on the portion size and where you will reheat the stuffed pasta shells.
- If you want to reheat them in the oven, you should preheat it to 350°F and reheat for 10-15 minutes. You can also top the stuffed pasta shells with shredded mozzarella cheese.
OTHER RECIPES YOU MIGHT ENJOY
- Roasted red pepper rigatoni
- creamy chicken bake
- cheese and garlic crack bread
- johnny Marzetti casserole
- one pot taco spaghetti
Cheesy, Beefy Stuffed Pasta Shells
These are super tasty, creamy, and cheesy stuffed pasta shells with ground beef for a weeknight dinner.
5 from 4 votes
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Course: Dinner
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- ½ pound jumbo pasta shells,
- 2 tbsp olive oil;
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped;
- salt and pepper, to taste;
- 3 garlic cloves, minced;
- 1 pound ground beef;
- 2 tbsp Italian seasoning;
- 2 cups spaghetti sauce;
- 2 cups ricotta;
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded;
- ½ cup parmesan cheese, grated;
- 1 large egg, beaten.
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Add jumbo pasta shells to the boiling water. Cook until al dente according to package directions. Then, drain the jumbo pasta shells and rinse under cold water. Set aside.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add chopped onion, salt, and pepper. Saute for 4-5 minutes. Then, add minced garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add ground beef, break it up into chunks. Cook until browned. Then, add Italian seasoning and 1 cup of spaghetti sauce. Stir until combined. Then, remove the skillet from the heat.
In a bowl, mix together ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, and beaten egg. Then, add this cheesy mixture to the beef mixture. Mix until combined.
Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan with cooking spray. Then, add the remaining 1 cup of spaghetti sauce. Spread evenly.
Fill each jumbo pasta shell with a cheesy beefy mixture. Place them on the prepared baking pan. Top with extra parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes. Enjoy!
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Diane Andrews
We loved this. My daughter said it was like little lasagne boats, lol. The only thing is I’m thinking the Italian seasoning should be 2 tsp. Rather than 2 T? I did 1vT and think I would do 2 tsp next timeReply
- Linda
great recipe for special guests use blender for very fine filling tyReply
- Ashley - 100krecipes
That’s awesome!! 🙂 So glad to hear it!
Reply
