Cheesy Stuffed Manicotti Meat Sauce (Printable)
Tender pasta shells filled with three-cheese blend, baked in rich homemade meat sauce with Italian herbs.
# What you need:
→ Meat Sauce
01 - 1 tbsp olive oil
02 - 1 medium onion, finely chopped
03 - 2 garlic cloves, minced
04 - 1 lb ground beef
05 - 1 (24 oz) can crushed tomatoes
06 - 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
07 - 2 tbsp tomato paste
08 - 1 tsp dried basil
09 - 1 tsp dried oregano
10 - ½ tsp red pepper flakes
11 - 1 tsp sugar
12 - Salt and black pepper, to taste
→ Cheese Filling
13 - 1 (15 oz) container ricotta cheese
14 - 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
15 - ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese
16 - 1 large egg
17 - 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
18 - ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
19 - Salt and black pepper, to taste
→ Pasta
20 - 12 manicotti shells (uncooked)
→ Assembly
21 - 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
22 - ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
23 - Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish
# Directions:
01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9×13 inch baking dish.
02 - Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté onion 3-4 minutes, until translucent. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.
03 - Add ground beef; cook until browned, breaking up with a spoon. Drain excess fat.
04 - Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, basil, oregano, red pepper flakes, sugar, salt, and pepper. Simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
05 - Cook manicotti shells in salted boiling water 1-2 minutes less than package instructions. Drain and rinse gently with cold water to halt cooking.
06 - In a bowl, mix ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, parsley, nutmeg, salt, and black pepper until smooth.
07 - Fill each manicotti shell with cheese mixture, using a piping bag, spoon, or zip-top bag with the corner snipped off.
08 - Spread 1 cup of meat sauce over the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Arrange filled manicotti in a single layer over the sauce.
09 - Spoon the remaining meat sauce evenly over the pasta. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.
10 - Cover with foil and bake 25 minutes.
11 - Uncover and bake 10-15 minutes more, until cheese is bubbly and golden. Let rest 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley if desired.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The meat sauce simmers into something that tastes like it cooked all day but actually comes together in under an hour
- There is something deeply satisfying about piping cheese into pasta tubes like a kitchen scientist
02 -
- Undercooking the pasta matters because those extra minutes in the oven prevent mushy manicotti
- Nutmeg might seem unusual but it is the traditional Italian secret that makes cheese fillings taste restaurant quality
03 -
- Use a gallon zip lock bag as an improvised piping bag by filling it and cutting a small corner
- Room temperature cheese filling pipes much more easily than cold filling straight from the fridge