Crock Pot Spaghetti is an easy, hands-off way to make everyone’s favorite weeknight dinner. Pasta goes straight into the slow cooker with a tasty marinara sauce made with ground beef and Italian sausage, tomatoes, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Top everything off with lots of mozzarella cheese for a spaghetti casserole the whole family is going to love!
What’s in Crockpot Spaghetti Casserole?
If you love baked spaghetti, you’re going to love how easy it is to make this cheesy spaghetti recipe in a Crock Pot!
- Ground Beef: I recommend using 80/20 ground beef in spaghetti sauce since it has more flavor and juiciness. But you can use a leaner option.
- Italian Sausage: Ground Italian Sausage adds more savory flavor to the meat sauce mixture.
- Spaghetti Noodles: Of course you need spaghetti! Either break noodles into thirds, or buy a box of pot-size spaghetti.
- Marinara Sauce: Use your favorite jar of sauce, or try this homemade marinara sauce.
- Diced Tomatoes: A can of diced tomatoes adds more texture and flavor into the sauce.
- Onions: Mix diced onion into the meat sauce. I recommend using white or yellow onions.
- Garlic: Minced garlic adds more savoriness.
- Italian Seasoning: This blend is a mix of oregon, basil, rosemary, thyme, sage, marjoram, and crushed red pepper.
- Water: Water helps to thin out the sauce.
- Shredded Mozzarella: Top the entire casserole with lots of cheese so that it bakes and melts into everything.
- Granulated Sugar: A pinch of granulated sugar sweetens things up just a tad for the perfect flavor.
- Salt & Pepper: A little bit of salt and pepper helps to create the right taste.
- Olive Oil: Use olive oil to cook the meat.
Pro Tip: If you prefer spaghetti and meatballs over spaghetti casserole, skip the meat in the crockpot, and add these old-fashioned Italian Meatballs when you serve!
Variations on Slow Cooker Spaghetti Casserole
It’s easy to switch out a few ingredients to make this Crock Pot spaghetti recipe perfect for any night of the week.
- Chicken Spaghetti: Instead of ground beef and sausage, use ground chicken and follow the same instructions. You can also use leftover or shredded chicken (fully cooked), and start at Step 2. If you prefer, use alfredo sauce instead of marinara for a creamier dish.
- Taco Spaghetti Casserole: Swap Italian seasoning for taco seasoning; leave out the sausage; use diced tomatoes with green chiles; and use cheddar or colby jack instead of mozzarella. You can also mix in black beans or corn if you like.
- Vegetarian: Skip the ground beef and sausage, and you’ll have a meat-free spaghetti with marinara. Or you can use a plant-based ground meat if you like.
If you don’t want all of the ingredients “baked” together, I recommend making this Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce instead. Then you can pair it with freshly boiled pasta!
Cook spaghetti casserole in a slow cooker set on LOW for 4 hours.
Yes, change it to the WARM setting and it will keep warm to 2 hours
Yes, put uncooked noodles directly in the slow cooker with the sauce. There’s no need to par-boil it first.
To make this dish meat free, you can omit the sausage and meat and add in other veggies like bell peppers and mushrooms. Alternatively you could use Beyond Meat sausage and ground ‘beef’.
If you prefer to use a pressure cooker, follow my Instant Pot Spaghetti recipe instead!
How to Store and Reheat
Let leftover Crock Pot baked spaghetti cool to room temperature. Then store it in an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator for 4 days.
Reheat on the stovetop, microwave, or slow cooker, heating until fully warmed through.
How to Freeze
This slow cooker spaghetti makes for a great freezer meal because it will keep well for up to 3 months. Thaw the casserole in the fridge overnight before reheating it.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this delicious Crockpot spaghetti casserole with fresh garlic bread or Olive Garden style breadsticks, and a chicken caesar salad or Greek salad. This dish also tastes great with parmesan roasted potatoes, roasted mushrooms, or Air Fryer broccoli.
If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy! You can also jump to recipe.
Crock Pot Spaghetti Casserole Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage
- 1 cup onion diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 24 ounces marinara sauce 1 standard jar
- 1 cup water
- 14 ounces diced tomatoes 1 standard can
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch granulated sugar
- 8 ounces spaghetti noodles broken into thirds
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add ground beef, sausage, and onion and cook 5-6 minutes, until beef is cooked through, crumbling with a spoon as you cook. Drain any excess grease and return it to the skillet.2 teaspoons olive oil, 1 pound ground beef, 1 pound ground Italian sausage, 1 cup onion
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant. Stir in the marinara sauce, pouring the water into the jar and swishing it around to remove any excess sauce, then add that to the skillet. Add diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and sugar, stirring to combine.3 cloves garlic, 24 ounces marinara sauce, 14 ounces diced tomatoes, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, Pinch granulated sugar, 1 cup water
- Transfer the mixture to the crock of a 6-quart slow cooker.
- Top with broken spaghetti and stir together.8 ounces spaghetti noodles
- Top with mozzarella, cover, and cook on low for 4 hours.1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella
- Serve garnished with grated Parmesan and fresh parsley or basil.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Becky’s tips
- Long pasta like spaghetti or linguini work great in this recipe, but you can use shorter pasta like penne or fusilli.
- I made this with my favorite marinara sauce, but any pasta sauces will work great.
- Once cooked, you can keep the spaghetti warm in the slow cooker for up to 2 hours.
Nutrition Information
Hi! Can I double the recipe and cook for same amount of time? Also, any way to add a vegetable? Maybe broccoli or spinach?
This recipe is designed for a 6-quart crockpot. If you happen to have an 8-quart crockpot, you can use that and the cooking time will be about the same. If you’re able to fit a double batch in the 6-quart crockpot, you will need to increase the cooking time, but this will depend on your crockpot. I would advise you to check on the crockpot at the 4 hour mark and every 15-30 minutes after that for doneness.
As for veggies, you can definitely add them. It’s up to you if you want to cook them before or add them to the crockpot raw. I would say add them raw if you like your veggies to stay together, and add them cooked if you want them to fall apart and become part of the sauce. Broccoli or spinach both sound great, but I would stir in the spinach (or any delicate greens) at the end to avoid it becoming slimy!
Thank you! Excited to try it!
Can I put in a whole 16 oz of noodles?
If you have the space!
I’ve made this a few times now and each time it comes out perfect. So easy and everyone loves it. I’m sure you could tweak it if you had to, but I find it great as is. Lots of flavor and the spaghetti cooks perfectly. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing, Mark!
I tried out this recipe and it turned out pretty well I’m hoping to use the leftovers for dinner tonight but your tips didn’t say how to reheat it. Can reheat it the crockpot with a little extra liquid?
On the warm setting only!