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Home Collections Winter Warmers

Baked Spaghetti (Epic!)

By:Nagi
Published:15 Jul '19Updated:21 Sep '22
186 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

Baked Spaghetti is everything you know and love about Bolognese in the form of an epic, juicy pasta bake with a bonus layer of molten cheese in the middle!

This is one of those rare foods that is a truly fabulous freezer meal and keeps for days in the fridge!

Lifting a cheesy piece of Baked Spaghetti from casserole dish

Baked Spaghetti

I call it a casserole, I call it a pie, I call it a pasta bake.

I actually don’t really know if there’s a proper name for this, but what I do know is this:

You are going to love it.

Because it’s everybody’s favourite Spaghetti Bolognese – PLUS CHEESE. Need I say more?? 🤷🏻‍♀️

So now, even if you’ve never made anything like this before, you know full well it’s going to be a home run right??

Close up of Baked Spaghetti Casserole in a casserole dish, fresh out of the oven ready to be served

How to make it

On the face of it, you’re really just making a big batch of Bolognese Sauce then mixing it through pasta and baking it with a generous slug of cheese.

The Bolognese Sauce can be made in 30 minutes (minimum) or if you want to go all out, simmer it for a couple of hours and you’ll be rewarded with deeper flavours, a richer sauce and melt-in-your-mouth beef.

And to make the Spaghetti Pie ultra juicy, what I like to do is mix some of the sauce through the pasta and reserve some to spread on the layers.

Adding a layer of cheese slices in the middle also helps. You can use shredded if you prefer, but you get better cheese coverage using less cheese if you use slices. <– Pro cheese tip right there!

Baked Spaghetti Casserole

What you need

No surprises here – basically, you just need everything you use for Bolognese – plus cheese!

Carrot and celery is optional – ups the veg quota a bit but more importantly, adds to the flavour base of the sauce.

Sugar??

Only if needed. Many of the mainstream canned tomato brands here in Australia tend to be on the sour side rather than sweet and full of flavour as Italian ones are.

So if you’re dead set on Aussie-grown, add a touch of sugar to counteract the sourness. This can make all the difference especially if you’re doing a quick simmer rather than slow cooking!

Baked Spaghetti Bolognese Sauce ingredients

Cheese and pasta for Baked Spaghetti

BEST freezer meal!!

There are many recipes where I say “freezes fine”, but few where I say “freezes 100% perfectly!”

This is one of those freezer beauties. It is one of those dishes that comes out perfectly even after keeping it for months in the freezer.

And though it’s best cooked after thawing, it can even be cooked from frozen (though it does take over an hour, being a formidable block of ice that it is straight out of the freezer).

But the clincher is how smug you’ll feel, knowing you’ve got this in your freezer.

Open freezer door, plonk in oven.

Dinner.

Done.

– Nagi x


More Cosy Casseroles and Bakes

  • One Pot Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole

  • Cheeseburger Casserole (Homemade Hamburger Helper)

  • Moussaka

  • Baked Ziti

  • Lasagna (and Vegetarian Lasagna is a must try!)

  • Spinach Ricotta Pasta Bake

  • Seafood Gratin Pasta Bake

  • Browse all Casseroles and Cosy Bakes

Close up of Baked Spaghetti Casserole on a plate, ready to be eaten

Forking lifting up cheesy Baked Spaghetti

Watch how to make it

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Lifting a cheesy piece of Baked Spaghetti from casserole dish

Baked Spaghetti

Author: Nagi
Prep: 15 minutes mins
Cook: 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Total: 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins
Mains
Western
5 from 58 votes
Servings10 - 12
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 208
Recipe video above. It's your favourite Bolognese - in the form of a juicy pasta bake! Do a quick simmer - or go all out and slow cook for a couple of hours for a richer sauce and melt-in-your-mouth beef. **FREEZER BEAUTY!** Can even bake from frozen (see notes).

Ingredients

Bolognese Sauce:

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 garlic cloves , minced
  • 1 onion , finely chopped
  • 1 carrot , finely diced (optional)
  • 1 stick celery , finely diced (optional)
  • 750g / 1.5lb ground beef (mince)
  • 3/4 cup (185ml) dry red wine (or sub with water or beef broth/stock)
  • 3 beef bouillon cubes , crumbled (Note 1)
  • 1.2kg / 2.4 lb crushed tomato , canned
  • 1/4 cup tomato paste
  • 1 - 3 tsp white sugar , if needed (Note 2)
  • 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 dried bay leaves
  • 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme or oregano)
  • Salt and pepper

Spaghetti Bake:

  • 500g/ 1lb spaghetti
  • 8 - 10 slices Swiss cheese (or other type), enough for a layer
  • 2 cups (200g) mozzarella cheese, shredded

Instructions

Sauce:

  • Heat oil in a large, heavy based pot over medium high heat.
  • Add garlic and onion, cook 2 minutes.
  • Add celery and carrot, cook 3 minutes.
  • Turn heat up to high, add beef and cook, breaking it up as you go.
  • Once beef is brown, add wine. Simmer rapidly for 2 minutes.
  • Add remaining Sauce ingredients, stir.
  • Bring to simmer, lower heat, cover with lid. Simmer for 45 minutes (minimum) or 1.5 - 2 hours (best!). 
  • If liquid evaporates too much, add water - should be saucy (see video/pics). Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble & Bake:

  • Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
  • Cook pasta per packet directions, minus 1 minute.
  • Drain, then return into pot.
  • Add just over half the Sauce, toss.
  • Spread half the pasta in a casserole pan, spread with half remaining Sauce.
  • Top with cheese slices, then remaining pasta, remaining Sauce, finish with mozzarella.
  • Cover loosely with foil (so cheese doesn't stick), bake 25 minutes.
  • Remove foil (reserve), bake further 10 minutes than remove.
  • Cover loosely with foil, stand 10 - 15 minutes. Then cut slices with a knife and use a spatula to serve pieces like lasagna!

Recipe Notes:

1. Beef bouillon cubes - or 3 tsp beef stock powder. If you can't find it, add 2 cups of beef stock and simmer with LID OFF. You will need to add more salt.
2. Sugar - use a touch only if needed, can adjust towards end. Depends on the sweetness of the canned tomatoes - good quality Italian brands are sweeter, value house brands can be rather sour.
3. Freezing - best to assemble, cover, cool then freeze. Defrost in fridge 24 hours, then bake per recipe. If baking from frozen, keep covered with foil and bake 50 minutes or until knife inserted in centre comes out hot, then 10 minutes uncovered. 
Can also freeze after baking. Best to thaw then reheat in microwave (only 2 minutes or so per piece).
4. Storage - Keeps extremely well for 4 days in the fridge, reheats perfectly in microwave!
5. Nutrition per serving, assuming 10 servings (generous piece!)

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 486cal (24%)Carbohydrates: 51g (17%)Protein: 32g (64%)Fat: 15g (23%)Saturated Fat: 6g (38%)Cholesterol: 72mg (24%)Sodium: 690mg (30%)Potassium: 865mg (25%)Fiber: 4g (17%)Sugar: 9g (10%)Vitamin A: 1605IU (32%)Vitamin C: 14.1mg (17%)Calcium: 262mg (26%)Iron: 4.4mg (24%)
Keywords: spaghetti bake, spaghetti casserole, spaghetti pie
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

Life of Dozer

This is what happens at dinners: wiping away a disgraceful amount of drool ALL down his front – literally!🤤

Nagi dabbing drool off Dozer

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186 Comments

  1. Kerry says

    November 9, 2023 at 7:29 pm

    5 stars
    We love this! I make the sauce in the morning and assemble it in the afternoon and bake it in time for my kids to come home from school. It is always a hit! It holds well in the oven on a low temperature so my hubby can enjoy it nice and hot when he gets home later.

    In order to prevent the foil from sticking to the cheese you can spray the foil lightly with some cooking spray. Thanks for a super easy meal that only requires one dish to wash after it is served.

    Reply
  2. Janine says

    October 2, 2023 at 5:30 am

    Best recipe ever! Made it a few times now and there are NO left overs! Just made it again tonight but had to sub a few things, used sun-dried tomato paste instead of 🍅 paste, and burattea instead of mozzarella as this was what I had. It will be ready in 10 and everyone is so excited! Let’s hope the subs don’t disappoint us from the wonderful original! If you are reading this – you MUST make this recipe, you will not be sorry!!

    Reply
  3. Merryn says

    August 7, 2023 at 6:20 pm

    5 stars
    Let’s face it…spaghetti is a pretty simple mid-week meal any time. But this baked version took it “next level simple” when de-frosted and placed in the oven. The kids gave mixed reviews about the Swiss cheese but husband and I loved the addition. Thank you past Me for pre-cooking and Nagi for the recipe

    Reply
  4. Tina Z says

    August 3, 2023 at 10:49 am

    5 stars
    Yum my Mum makes this but with a cheese béchamel sauce on top 🤗

    Reply
  5. Suzi says

    July 7, 2023 at 9:41 pm

    5 stars
    My favourite pasta recipe. Want to make this for a friend to freeze and eat later .. would it be ok to put it a foil dish with cover ? Learner chef here… love your recipes Nagi xx

    Reply
  6. Nicole says

    March 31, 2023 at 8:31 pm

    5 stars
    Do not hesitate to make this! Top fave with the kiddos! I blended and snuck in some spinach. my 1 anti-veg son had no idea 🤫

    Reply
  7. MimiGran says

    March 26, 2023 at 5:34 am

    5 stars
    As always, your recipes are delicious and so informative. Made this today for the first time and it is delicious. Thank you, Nagi!

    Reply
  8. Althea says

    February 25, 2023 at 11:18 am

    5 stars
    Just had this for dinner tonight and it was a major hit with everyone. Thank you Nagi for always coming up with such delicious recipes.

    Reply
  9. Lisa Y says

    February 5, 2023 at 11:24 pm

    5 stars
    I wanted something different to make with ground beef so I came straight to your website and searched. I always know your recipes will be easy to follow and turn out well!

    My whole family loved this! Will definitely be making it again!

    Reply
  10. Joachim Plahn-Andersson says

    November 8, 2022 at 4:38 pm

    5 stars
    U forgot the worchestersauce…. 🙂

    Reply
    • Lynda says

      May 29, 2023 at 9:53 am

      “add the sauce ingredients”

      Reply
  11. Paula says

    August 21, 2022 at 3:35 am

    5 stars
    Easy and a crowd pleaser

    Reply
  12. Paula says

    August 21, 2022 at 3:34 am

    5 stars
    Another winner!

    Reply
  13. Paula says

    August 21, 2022 at 3:33 am

    5 stars
    Another winner! Added in sliced mushroom and 2 handfuls of fresh spinach.

    Reply
  14. Mrs. Davidson says

    June 6, 2022 at 9:51 pm

    Can this be made with minced chicken breast?

    Reply
    • Maureen says

      July 30, 2022 at 5:07 pm

      5 stars
      Love this recipe.I use chicken mince.Tastes even better a couple of days later..

      Reply
  15. Heather says

    May 26, 2022 at 9:16 am

    5 stars
    I left a comment below but forgot to give the five stars!!

    Reply
  16. Heather says

    May 26, 2022 at 9:14 am

    I didn’t have any meat in my kitchen! I used mushrooms and olives in the sauce and this turned out extremely well!! Very delicious. Thank you!

    Reply
  17. Linda says

    May 11, 2022 at 5:15 am

    Could you please tell me what size dish is needed for this recipe. Thanks

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      May 11, 2022 at 4:16 pm

      You can use a 9×13 or slightly larger one here! N x

      Reply
  18. Lisa says

    April 28, 2022 at 6:35 am

    5 stars
    Hi Nagi. I made this and froze for my daughter plus 2 children to feed when when she didn’t have much time to cook. All she had to do was pop it in the oven without any preparation. They all loved it, not a scrap left. Another one requested. A success on all fronts. Thank you.

    Reply
  19. Glen says

    March 23, 2022 at 8:16 pm

    Can you make sauce first and keep in fridge and make it a few days later

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      March 24, 2022 at 3:03 pm

      Yes you can Glen! N x

      Reply
  20. Libby Stephens says

    March 21, 2022 at 8:37 am

    In Canada, our crushed tomatoes come in 14- or 28-ounce cans. How do I translate your 2.4 pounds into liquid ounces?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      March 21, 2022 at 1:22 pm

      Hi Libby – the 14oz can is equivalent to our 400 gram can in Australia and the 28oz can is equivalent to our 800 gram cans here. For this recipe you would use 1.2kg which is 1 x 28oz can plus 1 x 48oz can (total 76oz)! N x

      Reply
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Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

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