Highest Ever Baked Ziti Recipe

This top-rated baked ziti recipe options al dente pasta with meat sauce, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese! Scrumptious with a salad and garlic bread. And making baked ziti forward of time is really easy and handy!

Highest Baked Ziti Recipe

Britt says: ”  This used to be so excellent! A HUGE hit with my circle of relatives, even my youngest two who’re very delicate eaters. My youngest went again to seconds. Surely conserving this recipe stored, and making plans on making it for our church lunch, I are aware of it’ll be long gone rapid.”

What’s Baked Ziti?

In search of a crowd-pleasing recipe that’s hearty, flavorful, and certain to make you appear to be a famous person chef? Baked ziti to the rescue! Aka al dente noodles layered with ricotta cheese, meat sauce, and a trio of Italian cheeses. Like lasagna… with out all of the fussy meeting and layering! 

The very best recipe for circle of relatives gatherings, potlucks, or any night time you’re yearning Italian-inspired convenience meals. You’ll be able to simply feed 8 folks with one pan of baked ziti. Leftovers? It pairs nice with an Italian chopped salad and a few heat garlic knots or garlic bread! 

How do you Make Baked Ziti BETTER? 

• Be sure to have al dente pasta, as a result of soggy ziti noodles will have to be a sin. 
• Use my flavorful ricotta cheese combination: this secret mix is easy and so delish!
• Say good-bye to dull tomato sauce and hi to hearty meat sauce! This pasta sauce is further flavorsome because of flooring red meat and Italian sausage.
• You’ll be able to make this baked ziti recipe upfront and retailer within the refrigerator or freezer! Or you’ll make the tomato sauce and ricotta cheese combination the day previously and retailer within the refrigerator to make prep even more uncomplicated. 
• A circle of relatives beloved recipe! We’ve been passing this recipe round my circle of relatives for years… it’s a tried-and true-staple! 
• A lot of 5-star evaluations. As a result of on the finish of the day, what YOU guys suppose issues maximum. And loads of you swear via this vintage recipe. 

Don’t Over Cook dinner the Pasta

My greatest factor with maximum baked ziti recipes? The pasta is at all times over baked or under-baked. Burnt noodles are simply as unhealthy as soggy ones. However fortunately, I’ve a way to this pasta drawback. 

Right here’s learn how to cook dinner the pasta completely (al dente) each and every time: 

1. Carry a big pot of salted water to a boil. Upload salt as soon as the water is at a complete rolling boil. 
2. Upload within the pasta and stir. Cook dinner the pasta for precisely 4 mins… and no longer a 2d longer! Significantly, set a timer that can assist you stay monitor of the time. 
3. Drain the pasta and run it beneath chilly water to prevent it from cooking any further. 

So why do you simplest cook dinner the pasta for 4 mins? A couple of rounds of trying out – with numerous other pasta manufacturers – proved this to be the magic quantity! 

Why you wish to have Al Dente Noodles 

Following the process list above, your ziti noodles will nonetheless be exhausting when tired. That is customary, so don’t be scared that you simply undercooked them. You wish to have the noodles to be further al dente in order that they soak up the liquid from the tomato sauce and cheeses. 

Maximum recipes will inform you to cook dinner your pasta till al dente, or a minute prior to al dente, which is 9 to ten mins. Don’t apply this recommendation. That is approach lengthy of a cook dinner time and also you’ll finally end up with gentle noodles. 

Flooring Pork + Italian Sausage Meat Sauce

• This sauce is a bit further effort however utterly price it! You’ll be able to make it upfront and retailer it within the refrigerator for three days or freeze it for as much as 2 months! 
• Flooring red meat and Italian sausage promise an additional hearty meat sauce! Use candy Italian sausage or highly spiced Italian sausage. In the event you use highly spiced, it’s possible you’ll need to cut back the overwhelmed pink pepper flakes. 
• Tomato sauce and tomato pasta be certain that the beef sauce is thick and has quite a few wealthy tomato taste! 
• Kitchen staples like olive oil, salt and pepper, Italian seasoning, sugar, and overwhelmed pink pepper flakes are the spine of this sauce. 
• Recent basil and recent parsley wake the pasta sauce up and provides it a big pop of freshness. 

Let’s get CHEESY…

• Like maximum baked ziti recipes, this one options ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, and mozzarella cheese. 
• However I don’t prevent there, I additionally use Fontina cheese, which tastes scrumptious and melts superbly. If you’ll’t in finding it, use an equivalent quantity of low-moisture mozzarella!
• The ricotta cheese combination comprises egg, egg yolk, basil, parsley, parmesan cheese, fontina cheese, salt, and pepper.
• To verify an excellent distribution of cheese, you’ll grate a few of it and dice a few of it. 

How you can Make Baked Ziti?

Assembling baked ziti is tremendous simple and it’s no longer an actual science, so don’t fear for those who mess this up a bit. However right here’s how I love to do it:

1. Pour a cup of meat sauce at the backside of a big baking dish. Then upload part of the ricotta cheese combination on peak, losing it in random dots in all places the ground of the baking dish.
2. Pour the al dente pasta on peak. Then peak with pasta ultimate sauce. Dot at the ultimate ricotta cheese. Then sprinkle with shredded cheese and in any case scatter at the cheese cubes.

How lengthy to Bake Baked Ziti?

1. You’ll need to bake till the cheese is deeply golden and effervescent. This generally takes about half-hour, however can range relying in your oven and baking dish. 
2. Glass dishes will behavior warmth sooner than thick ceramic dishes. So for those who’re the usage of a thick ceramic baking dish, it’s possible you’ll want to upload 10 to fifteen to the bake time. 

Need your cheese to seem extra golden? You’ll be able to fan the flames of the broiler and let it sit down beneath there for 30 seconds. Simply watch out, it’s simple to burn!

Don’t Bake Coated

Don’t bake this baked ziti lined! Protecting it with aluminum foil will make it inconceivable for the cheese to brown. It’ll additionally entice steam within the foil, which will reason soggy noodles! So you should definitely bake exposed. 

Make Baked Ziti Forward of Time

1. You’ll be able to make this recipe 100% forward of time. Merely bring together as directed, then the wrap the baking dish tightly in plastic wrap. Retailer the unbaked ziti within the refrigerator for as much as 48 hours. 
2. When it’s time to bake, take away the baked ziti from the refrigerator and let it sit down at room temperature for approximately half-hour. Then take away the plastic wrap (don’t bake lined!) and bake as directed. Chances are you’ll want to upload 10 to fifteen mins onto the bake time because you’re baking it from a calming state. 
3. You’ll be able to make the beef sauce as much as 48 hours upfront. Cool it totally and retailer in an hermetic container, within the refrigerator, till wanted. However, you’ll freeze it for as much as 2 months.