When casserole meets spaghetti bolognese meets lasagne. Perfect for leftovers but even better for a big hearty family dinner. Not had baked spaghetti before? Follow me…
Spaghetti Sauce
The sauce itself is the heart and soul of the spaghetti bake, so it’s important make it shine. This is very reminiscent of a spaghetti bolognese, just with a few tweaks. Principles of a good bolognese all the same though.
Red Wine
A good glug of red wine works wonders in a ragu. Deepens the flavours and works perfectly with the beef. Most, if not all of the alcohol will burn off, but if for whatever reason you don’t add it, just sub more beef stock.
Time
Absolute key to a good meat sauce is simmer for a good 90mins. This will really marry the flavours together and tenderise the beef. Slight annoyance when all you want to do is dive straight in, but 100% worth it – promise! Process shots: Brown onion, garlic, celery, carrot (photo 1), brown beef (photo 2), add tomato puree & wine (photo 3), pour in beef stock, tomato passata & Worcestershire sauce (photo 4), add seasoning (photo 5), stir then simmer (photo 6).
Alrighty, sauce done and dusted, let’s talk spaghetti. The number one tip for cooking the spaghetti is to make sure you only boil until the spaghetti is al dente. You want it to still have a bite to it, or when it bakes it’ll bloat and go too soft. 2mins off the package instructions is usually a good place to start. From there, drain and place back in the pot, then spoon in some of the ragu. This is mainly to ensure the spaghetti doesn’t stick together or to the baking dish, we add most of it later. Follow me…
Baked Spaghetti
Okay, meat sauce and spaghetti ready, let’s talk about the most important ingredient of them all – cheese. Three cheeses to be precise:
Mozzarella
This goes through the centre of the spaghetti bake and also on top. This is will offer a fairly mellow flavour, but will give you the epic cheese pull we all came here for. I have in the past replaced some of the mozzarella with Swiss/Cheddar and both work great.
Ricotta
This is to spread across the top to add a nice creamy layer. Again, fairly mellow in flavour but does add a different textured layer.
Parmesan
Most of this goes on top to add the final crispy layer, but some is actually stirred through the ragu (absolute game changer!). Process shots: Add spaghetti & sauce (photo 1), top with mozzarella (photo 2), top with more spaghetti & sauce (photo 3), top with ricotta (photo 4), finish with mozzarella and parmesan (photo 5), bake (photo 6).
How to serve Baked Spaghetti
From there it’s important to let it rest for a few mins, just to hold it’s shape. Then I like to serve similar to a lasagne, where you slice the portions and use a spatula to serve.
What to serve with baked spaghetti?
Cheesy Garlic bread Roasted Garlic Bread Cheesy Pesto Garlic Bread Pull Apart Caprese Bread Garlic Butter Potato Skins
In conclusion – bread of some sort 😂 To be fair though they are quite hearty portions so don’t feel like you need a side.
Can I prepare this in advance?
You can, it is however really important you don’t fully cook the spaghetti as it does bloat as it rests. Allow to cool, then assemble, cover and pop in the fridge over night or freeze then thaw in the fridge.
Can I keep leftovers?
Yep! Just cool, cover and store in the fridge (2-3days, longer at your discretion) or freeze (then thaw and reheat in microwave). If you like the sound of this spaghetti bake definitely make sure you check out my Homemade lasagne! For more similar recipes check out these beauties too:
Family Comfort Food Recipes
Spaghetti Meatballs Veggie Pasta Bake Sausage Ragu Chilli Con Carne Cottage Pie
Alrighty, let’s tuck into the full recipe for this spaghetti bake shall we?!
How to make Baked Spaghetti (Full Recipe & Video)
If you loved this Baked Spaghetti Recipe then be sure to Pin it for later! Already made it or got a question? Give me a shout in the comments and pick up your free ecookbook along the way!
