Classic Baked Ziti

August 4, 2023 – Updated: May 26, 2025

I’ve been making this for more years than we’ve had the farm. Always a hit and easy to make.

Summary

  • Prep Time: 10 min
  • Cook Time: 50 min
  • Other: 5 min (build ziti)
  • Total Time: 1 hr 5 min
  • Servings: 8
  • Yield: 1 baking dish

Ingredients

Quantities in ( ) are for 1.25x and [ ] are for 1.5x to accommodate other baking dishes.

  • 1 lb (20 oz) [24 oz] lean ground beef
  • 1 cup / 150g (188g) [225g] onion, chopped
  • 2 (+) [3] garlic cloves, minced
  • 32 oz (40 oz) [48 oz] meatless sauce
  • 1 cup (1.25 cup) [1.5 cup] chicken broth
  • 1 teaspoon (+) [1.5 tsp] dried oregano leaves
  • 16 oz (20 oz) [24 oz] ziti pasta, cooked and drained
  • 2 cups / 224g / (2.5 cups / 280g) [3 cups / 336g] shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1 cup / 60g (1.25 cups / 75g) [1.5 cups / 90g] grated parmesan cheese

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a large skillet, cook ground beef, onions, and garlic over medium-high heat for 6 to 8 minutes or until beef is browned; stirring frequently.
  3. Stir in spaghetti sauce, chicken broth, and oregano.
  4. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
  5. Stir 1 cup of the sauce into the cooked ziti noodles.
  6. Spoon 1/2 of the ziti mixture into a 13x9x2-inch baking dish.
  7. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Note: quantities are based original size.
  8. Top with 2 cups sauce, then remaining ziti mixture and remaining sauce.
  9. Cover and bake 20 minutes.
  10. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
  11. Return to oven and bake uncovered for 10 minutes or until heated through

Adjustments

  • I do the beef first and sometimes drain before adding the onion and garlic
    • I used 93% lean beef and that the amount of fat wasn’t worth trying to drain. I think there’s enough flavor in this dish that using a low fat beef is fine.

History

  • 2026-09-05 – Made the 1.5x size and if filled our green casserole dish perfectly.
  • 2025-05-22 – Made the standard size for Kathy and me. I used a 45 oz sauce so there was plenty leftover for when we reheated the ziti in a corningware dish a few nights later. I put it on the bottom and top of the ziti and added a little extra cheese just to make it even better. Both meals turned out great.
  • 2024-10-04 – Adjusted to a 1.25x batch and it fit perfectly into my larger casserole dish. Everything gone by the end of dinner, as usual!
  • 2023-12-28 – 40th anniversary for dinner. Family got here today and this is a good travel meal because it can be made before and cooked when people are there. Have made it a dozen or more times so figured it was time to enter this into history. Always a winner!

References