Name: One Pan Baked Ziti
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 1 pound ground Italian sausage; 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes; 8 ounces tomato sauce; 5-6 cloves garlic (, minced); 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes; 1 Tablespoon dried basil ((or 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves added at the end)); 1/2 teaspoon Dried oregano; 3 cups water; 12 ounces ziti pasta ((or similar pasta)); 1/2 cup half and half ((or heavy cream)); 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese; freshly ground black pepper; 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

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My family loves this easy Baked Ziti recipe, and I love that it's made all in just one pan! It's as fast and delicious as comfort food gets and ready in less than 30 minutes!

Looking for more 30-Minute Meals? Try our Salmon Bowls, Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps, Spaghetti Pie, Cajun Chicken Pasta, or Crispy Bean and Cheese Burritos!

A pan filled with homemade Baked Ziti, with a spoonful being lifted.

What we LOVE about this recipe:

30-minute meal – This baked ziti with sausage is one of many quick and easy 30 minute recipes that the whole family will enjoy.
One-Pot Dinner – Only one pan from start to finish, which makes prep and clean-up a breeze.
Adaptable – This recipe can be varied a lot depending on the ingredients you have on hand, like using different kinds of pasta or ground meat, or add in additional veggies.

How to make Baked Ziti:

Brown Sausage: Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, crumbling into small pieces, until browned, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and crushed red pepper flakes to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Sausage being browned in a pan with garlic and crushed red pepper flakes.

Make Sauce: Pour in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, dried basil and oregano. Stir well. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes.

A pan filled with browned sausage with diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, dried basil, and oregano dumped on top.

Cook Pasta: Add water and dry pasta. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes or until noodles are tender.

A homemade Baked Ziti with the pasta dumped in to cook.

Add Cheese: Stir in the half and half, and parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste then sprinkle mozzarella evenly on top.

Two images showing half and half and parmesan being poured on top of the best Baked Ziti.

Bake: Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until the cheese has melted and browned, about 5 minutes.

An easy Baked Ziti recipe with melted mozzarella cheese, ready to serve.

Serve the best baked ziti recipe with a side salad or wedge salad and breadsticks or garlic knots!

The best Baked Ziti recipe served on a plate next to a green kale salad.

Make Ahead And Freezing Instructions:

To Make Ahead: Follow the directions of making the sauce, up to step 4. Don't add and cook the noodles, yet. Continue with step 4 just before you want to serve the homemade baked ziti.

To Freeze: Prepare the ziti pasta up until the baking step. Cover with a double layer of aluminum foil sprayed lightly with non-stick cooking spray then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes, or, bake from frozen, covered in foil for 1 hour and 15 minutes, and uncover and bake 20-30 minutes longer, or until bubbly and warmed through.

Recipe Variations:

Skillet: You can make it in any type of LARGE skillet, as long as it's oven proof. A simple cast-iron skillet would work great.
Noodles: If you can't find ziti noodles at the store, buy them online, or substitute penne, farfalle, or another type of bite-size pasta.
Meat: We love the flavor of ground sausage but feel free to substitute ground beef, or turkey.
Cheese: Substitute any type of shredded cheese if you don't have mozzarella or parmesan.
Crockpot Version: You can also make it in a crockpot.

Check out all my One Pot Meals:

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4.90 from 164 votes

One Pan Baked Ziti

Author: Lauren Allen

My family loves this easy Baked Ziti recipe, and I love that it's made in just one pan! It's as fast and delicious as comfort food gets and ready in less than 30 minutes!

Prep: 5

Cook: 35

Total: 40

Servings:

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Ingredients

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Heat a large 12-inch or bigger oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add sausage and cook, crumbling into small pieces, until browned, about 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, dried basil and oregano. Stir well. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes.
Add the water and dry pasta. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes or until noodles are tender.
Stir in the half and half, and parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle mozzarella evenly on top.
Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until the cheese has melted and browned, about 5 minutes. Enjoy!

Notes

Make Ahead Instructions: Follow the directions of making the sauce, up to step 4. Don't add and cook the noodles, yet. Continue with step 4 just before you want to serve the homemade baked ziti.

Freezing Instructions: Prepare the recipe up until the baking step. Cover with a double layer of aluminum foil sprayed lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes, or, bake from frozen, covered in foil for 1 hour and 15 minutes, and uncover and bake 20-30 minutes longer, or until bubbly and warmed through.

Nutrition

Calories: 584kcal, Carbohydrates: 51g, Protein: 27g, Fat: 30g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 12g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 83mg, Sodium: 954mg, Potassium: 642mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 603IU, Vitamin C: 11mg, Calcium: 261mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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