This Rigatoni al Forno recipe (Italian for a Baked Rigatoni) is great when you're craving a comforting lasagna but want something easier to make. Mix up the flavorful meat sauce then toss with pasta, some cheese for creaminess, and bake in the oven.
This is a filling recipe! To round out the meal you can serve it with a big green salad and some crusty bread like this Garlic No-Knead Bread or even Air Fryer Garlic Bread or Easy Garlic Knots.
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⭐Why I Love It:
- Easier than Lasagna - The flavors of Rigatoni al Forno are similar to lasagna but no layering needed!
- Cheesy, Filling, and Comforting - A flavorful tomato meat sauce is tossed with pasta and some cheese to make a super cozy, comforting meal.
- Baked Pasta - I love a baked pasta dish for the tender bites and the crispy edges and cheese on top.
❓What is Rigatoni al Forno?
Rigatoni Al Forno is a Baked Rigatoni (similar to Baked Ziti but made with Rigatoni noodles). In Italian, 'al forno' meaning 'to the oven' so a pasta cooked al forno style is a pasta dish baked in the oven.
🥘Ingredients and Equipment
- Rigatoni Pasta - You can swap in another short noodle like Ziti. Also try making this Carbone Spicy Rigatoni recipe, Baked Boursin Cheese Pasta, or One-Pot Spinach Sausage Pasta.
- Ground Beef - If you use a higher fat % ground beef, you can always drain off the excess fat. Another ground meat, like turkey or Italian sausage can also be substituted.
- White or Yellow Onion
- Minced Garlic - Freshly minced is best, but the kind in a jar works too.
- Spices - Italian Seasoning, Red Pepper Flakes, Kosher Salt and Pepper
- Canned Crushed Tomatoes - You'll use 2 of the big 28 ounce cans
- Tomato Paste
- White Granulated Sugar - You can omit this if you prefer, but adding just a small teaspoon of sugar to tomato sauces really helps balance the acidity of the tomatoes.
- Ricotta Cheese - We stir this into the pasta with the sauce to make things a little creamy.
- Shredded Mozzarella Cheese - Both to fold into the pasta and to sprinkle on top before baking
- Shredded Parmesan Cheese - Also to sprinkle on top before baking!
- Fresh Basil - Optional to sprinkle on top before serving.
- Large Pot - You'll need a large pot to cook the 1 pound of pasta.
- Large Pot or Pan - You'll need a second large pot, skillet, sauté pan to make the meat sauce.
- 9x13 inch Baking Dish - You can also split it up and bake in two 8x8 inch baking dishes.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
📖Substitutions and Variations
- Ground Turkey - Instead of ground beef, you can swap in ground turkey to make the dish a little lighter.
- Other Noodles - Using rigatoni is the classic choice, but you can use any shorter noodle like Ziti or Penne. For all noodle types, make sure to boil them to under al dente so the pasta doesn't get overcooked in the oven.
- Red Wine - I love to add about ⅓ cup of a dry red wine before I add the tomatoes. Let the wine simmer, scraping the bottom to deglaze the pan, with the beef and onion so it reduces slightly and then add the tomatoes.
- Vegetarian - You can make this recipe without the ground beef. I recommend adding diced carrots and celery when cooking the onion to help bulk up the sauce.
🔪Step By Step Instructions
Photo 1 - Start by cooking the onion then adding the ground beef and cooking while crumbling.
Photo 2 - Add the garlic, spices, sugar (if using), and tomatoes. Allow the sauce to simmer while you get the pasta cooking. Cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than al dente so it still has a good bite to it.
Photo 3 - Drain the pasta and combine with the meat sauce. Add the ricotta cheese and half of the mozzarella. Fold together so everything is evenly mixed.
Photo 4 - Spray the baking dish with cooking spray and pour in the rigatoni mixture.
Photo 5 - Spread out evenly and sprinkle with the remaining cheeses.
Photo 6 - Bake until the cheese is melted, lightly golden, and the sauce is bubbling around the edges.
🍽Leftovers, Storage, and Reheating
Leftovers and Storage - Baked leftovers can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 4 days. I recommend reheating in a 350 degrees oven (covered with foil), for about 30 minutes or until warmed.
Freezing - If you plan to freeze, I recommend freezing before baking. Assemble the dish in foil baking dishes, cover and wrap well with plastic wrap and foil, then freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before baking in the oven as directed in the recipe. Let it sit at room temperature while the oven preheats so it warms up slightly before baking. It will take a few minutes longer if it's cold from the fridge.
💭Recipe Tips
- Undercook the Pasta - When you are boiling the rigatoni noodles, cook them for 2 minutes under al dente so they can finish cooking in the oven.
- Salt the Pasta Water - Well salting the boiling water is important to add flavor to the pasta noodles themselves. You want to use a very generous large pinch of salt!
- Don't Rinse the Pasta - You want to drain the pasta then add directly to the sauce. Rinsing the pasta removes the starch which is what helps the sauce stick.
👩🍳Recipe FAQs
'Al Forno' means 'to the oven' in Italian so a dish that is al forno style is baked in the oven. This can be a baked pasta dish (such as Rigatoni al Forno or lasagna), pizza, bread, etc.
Pasta al forno means 'pasta to the oven' in Italian or is a baked pasta dish.
Baked Ziti is a type of pasta al forno as it is a pasta dish that is baked in the oven.
🍝Related Pasta Recipes
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PrintRecipe
Rigatoni Al Forno
Rigatoni al Forno (Italian for a Baked Rigatoni) is great when you're craving a comforting lasagna but want something easier to make. Mix up the flavorful meat sauce then toss with pasta, some cheese for creaminess, and bake in the oven.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 servings
- Category: Main, Pasta
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small white or yellow onion, diced
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- ½ tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 28 ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon white granulated sugar
- 1 lb rigatoni pasta
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- ¼-⅓ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Thinly sliced fresh basil, optional for garnish
Instructions
- Make Meat Sauce - Heat a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high with the olive oil and add the onion. Cook until softened then add the ground beef and a pinch of salt and pepper, to taste. Cook the beef, while crumbling, until almost fully cooked. Add the tomato paste, garlic, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Cook for another minute or two. Then add the crushed tomatoes, sugar, and another pinch of salt. Be sure to scrape any bits off the bottom of the pan.
- Simmer Sauce - Bring the sauce to a simmer, lower the heat, and allow to simmer, uncovered, for at least 15 minutes while you cook the pasta.
- Cook Pasta - While the sauce simmers, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and get a large pot of salted water boiling. Once boiling, cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than al dente so it still has a good bite to it. It will finish cooking in the oven.
- Fold Pasta into Sauce - Drain the pasta and add back to the large pasta pot and add the meat sauce. (if your sauce pot is large enough you can add the pasta directly to the sauce instead, turn off the heat). Add the ricotta cheese and half of the shredded mozzarella. Fold together so everything is evenly mixed.
- Add to Baking Dish - Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray and pour in the rigatoni mixture. Spread out evenly and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese and Parmesan Cheese.
- Bake - Bake for about 30 minutes until the cheese is melted, lightly golden, and the sauce is bubbling around the edges. If the cheese is getting too brown before the sauce is bubbling around the edges, you can loosely cover with foil.
- Serve and Enjoy - Allow to cool for 10 minutes before sprinkling with chopped fresh basil and serving.
Notes
Baked leftovers can be stored, covered, in the fridge for up to 4 days. I recommend reheating in a 350 degrees oven (covered with foil), for about 30 minutes or until warmed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅙ of dish
- Calories: 900
- Sugar: 18.6 g
- Sodium: 1016.8 mg
- Fat: 11.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 139 g
- Fiber: 11.7 g
- Protein: 62.3 g
- Cholesterol: 68.2 mg
Katie says
This reminded me of baked ziti and it was so yummy!