Baked Spaghetti with Meatballs

Ok so we eat spaghetti probably once a week, for the last 20 years I’ve been married. It is a cheap meal we all love AND I can make it when I have leftover ground beef or meatloaf the night before too. This one however needs very little prep and NO boiling required which I love.

For the last 15 years most of the time I made Instant Pot spaghettiwhere you also add uncooked noodles. Last night I was craving hearty meatballs and realized I hadn’t shared how to do something similar but in the oven (in case you don’t have that countertop appliance). You will love this one friends.

Yes you can make this without meat in it at all but it makes this meal a lot heartier, feeds more people, and packs it with protein. I made mine homemade with 4 ingredients but you could add frozen meatballs instead if you preferred.

Ingredient Notes

If you wanted to skip the protein, or use frozen meatballs, the prep would be faster. In case you want to make it the way I did here you will need lean ground beef (I like 80/20), a packet of onion soup mix, an egg and breadcrumbs or crushed crackers works too.

Do you have to defrost frozen meatballs?

If you would rather grab a bag of these out of the freezer that works too. No there is no need to defrost or thaw them first. You can just pull them out and spread on the top when directed in the instructions below. Easy peasy.

You will want a package of spaghetti noodles and some olive oil poured over the top will keep them from sticking together. I like to add some Italian seasoning on there too to level up the flavors.

For the sauce you just layer on a jar of spaghetti sauce (any brand you like, 24 oz is best so it coats everything well), water so the noodles can boil right in the dish and a can of diced tomatoes too. It is similar to how we make one pot spaghetti.

How to Cook Spaghetti without Boiling Pasta

This may seem too good to be true right? Well it is surprising to everyone who sees this being prepared with dry noodles right out of the package. It is true though and you will be in awe of how good it turns out.

You pour oil over the noodles first because if not they will stick together and come out in one big clump (no good). That is the bottom layer.

Then you add a few cups of water on the top which will allow them to boil right in the pan instead of boiling separately in a big pot full of liquid.

Pour sauce on top to add additional liquid and flavor to be soaked up by the dry pasta as it cooks in the oven in this case.

Cook until tender which doesn’t take that long especially since there is no prep once it is done. The seasonings, meat, sauce and noodles are all together when done. You just gently stir together and serve when you pull it out!

How Long to Cook Baked Spaghetti and Meatballs

You will need about 40 minutes for the long spaghetti noodles to become tender, but still just a tad al dente. I like this texture because as it sits they will get a bit softer, and saves better when sitting in the fridge and reheated the next day too.

FAQ

Yes if you want to add a layer of cheese to the top add 5-8 minutes at the end to give it time to melt. I typically will cover it with shredded mozzarella but a mixture of that and parmesan would work well too. I wouldn’t add into the layers as it may make the noodles stick together.

If I add meat I do because I don’t want them to get too brown. If I leave those out then it is not necessary so don’t bother with it. You can just layer the noodles, water and sauce in the pan and bake as is to get the pasta tender.

In order to be able to scrape the “noodles” out the squash would need to be cooked and they would already be tender. You would need to use a different liquid ratio in that case, and less bake time, or spaghetti squash noodles would get too soft, and a bit mushy so it wouldn’t be recommended.

Yes you could. Those typically cook faster than those made with ground beef so they may get very tender. You would follow the same directions with the plant-based balls on the top covered in sauce and enjoy!

Wait until it is cooled before transferring into an airtight container. Make sure there is as much sauce as possible inside to stay moist. You will want to reheat within 3 days.

You are going to want to add more spaghetti sauce to the top before reheating, that is the trick. Microwave for 45 seconds to 1 minute until heated, toss to coat with sauce and enjoy again.