Stuffed Shells with Meat and Cheese are a delicious pasta dish you can make for dinner any night. These Italian stuffed pasta shells are baked together with meat sauce and plenty of cheese to make an easy casserole. Stuffed Jumbo Shells are the perfect family dinner!
Table of Contents
Stuffed Shells Recipe
This Italian Stuffed Shells recipe is perfect for date night, or for weeknight dinners with the family. Everyone will love these cheese stuffed pasta shells!
It’s hard to go wrong with Italian food. Pasta, cheese, and sauce is just really hard to mess up! Which is why I love recipes like these stuffed shells with meat and cheese. It’s easy, it’s delicious, and no one can turn down jumbo pasta shells stuffed with cheese!
Since casseroles are the ultimate easy dinner, I went with a baked stuffed shells casserole. It’s the easiest way to cook, serve, and save this dish (leftovers are amazing) without hassle.
Jumbo stuffed shells with meat sauce (ground beef), baked into a dish with lots of cheese, served hot and fresh. Yum! I just love the way all of the ingredients fill up inside the shells, so every bite is a dream!
These meat and cheese stuffed pasta shells are the perfect Italian meal for any night of the week!
Italian Stuffed Pasta Shells
I’m a fan of ALL pasta, but stuffed pasta is just extra tasty. I love taking a bite of these jumbo stuffed shells, and getting to taste all of the cheese, meat, and sauce with every bite.
It’s SO good, and I can’t imagine anyone turning down this dish. It’s a real people pleaser!
Easy Stuffed Shells with Meat and Cheese
This easy stuffed shells recipe is just so delicious. It’s filled with such simple ingredients, but it’s exactly what you need for the perfect Italian dish. Three types of cheese for the ultimate cheese stuffed shells!
Ingredients:
- Jumbo Pasta Shells
- Ground Chuck
- Garlic
- Marinara Sauce
- Yellow Onion
- Olive Oil
- Egg
- Cottage Cheese
- Mozzarella Cheese
- Parmesan Cheese
- Basil
How to Make Stuffed Shells with Ground Beef
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
Italian stuffed shells with ground beef and cheese (three kinds) is really easy to make. Here’s a quick overview of the recipe:
- Start by boiling the jumbo shells.
- Brown the beef and make the meat sauce.
- Stuff the shells with cheese and arrange them in the baking dish with the sauce.
- Cover the casserole dish and bake.
A simple process! Check the recipe card below for the detailed instructions.
How long do you cook jumbo pasta shells?
Before assembling the stuffed pasta shells to bake, you’ll need to boil the jumbo pasta shells. Cook them according to the package instructions. It will typically take about 9 minutes to get them al dente.
Keep an eye on them so they don’t overcook. After boiling, set them upside down on a baking sheet to dry.
If you want to cook the pasta shells ahead of time, you can keep them in the refrigerator for a up to a couple of days, and then stuff them and prepare them for baking.
Can you freeze cooked stuffed shells?
Yes! This baked stuffed shells recipe is really just a casserole, so it’s definitely freezer-friendly. Let the casserole dish cool, cover it, and set it in the freezer.
You can also portion out the pasta in freezer-safe containers, so it’s ready to reheat at a later time.
How do you reheat frozen stuffed shells?
To reheat frozen stuffed shells, let it thaw in the refrigerator first. Then you can bake according to the directions below.
What are pasta shells called?
Pasta shells are traditionally known as “Conchiglie”, but most brands will have them labeled as jumbo shells at the store.
What do you eat with baked stuffed shells?
Just like all casseroles, these Italian Stuffed Shells with ground beef and cheese can be a meal all on their own. It’s quite a hearty dish and can be pretty filling.
That being said, I don’t feel like it’s right to serve any type of pasta without some garlic bread on the side. And you might as well throw in a nice casear salad to complete the meal (and make it feel slightly healthier). The perfect dinner!
I can’t wait for you to try this amazing pasta dish. It’s a real crowd pleaser, and I just know you are going to love it. If you want a Mexican version, try these Cheesy Mexican Stuffed Shells. And if you want a crockpot version, try this Slow Cooker Stuffed Shells recipe.
More Pasta Recipes
After you’ve made this easy stuffed shells recipe, be sure to check out some of our other carby favorites!
See the recipe card for details on how to make Stuffed Shells with Meat and Cheese. Enjoy!
Italian Stuffed Shells Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chuck
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 26 ounces marinara sauce (1 jar)
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 2 cups small curd cottage cheese (4% milk fat)
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese divided
- 20 jumbo pasta shells cooked per package directions, to al dente
- Chopped fresh basil leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F and spray a 9×13 (3 qt.) baking dish with nonstick spray; set aside.
- After cooking the pasta shells, drain and place them (separatelupside-down on a large sheet pan to dry.
- Brown the beef, in a large skillet, set over medium heat until cooked through and no pink remains. Drain off the rendered fat.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Heat the olive oil, in the same skillet, and add the onion. Cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds more.
- Reduce heat to low and add the marinara; simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, mix together egg, cottage cheese, 1-cup mozzarella and ½ cup Parmesan.
- Pour 3/4ths of the meat sauce in the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Stuff the shells with 1 rounded tablespoon of cheese mixture and arrange them on top of the meat sauce, open-side up. Spoon the remaining meat sauce in-between the shells but not directly on top of the shells.
- Cover with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove the foil and sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over the shells. Bake 5-7 minutes longer, or until the cheese is melted.
- Serve with garlic bread and a delicious salad.
- Enjoy!
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Nutrition Information
Want to try this but do not like cottage cheese or ricotta cheese in dishes. What can use to change this.
You can use your favorite white cheeses instead!
I add sharp cheddar cheese to mine simply because I like it
Turned out great can’t wait to taste it the cook time does need to be updated
Definitely modify to your liking! Everyone’s house appliances cook differently!
The cook time on this is wildly inaccurate. Even if you take out all the prep time you’re looking at over an hour. You mention in two other review replies that you’re going to fix the time and you haven’t. We’re going to be eating late tonight.
The cook time is innaccurate. It states the cook time is 30 minutes. But you must simmer the sauce for 30 minutes alone before adding it to the baking dish, where the entire thing is then baked off for another 30 minutes with an addition 5-7 minutes uncovered.
If you’re looking for quick, may not be your best choice. But it is good.
Thanks for sharing, Joseph!
My 1st time and it was delicious. My daughter has had it plenty of times so she requested it. She loved this recipe as well.
Thanks for stopping by, Tai!
In your intro to the recipe you have prep time as 15 minutes and cook time as 30 min for total time of 45 minutes. Your direction say to cook the shells and hamburger which could be the 15 min. But then directions say add sauce to meat mixture and cook 30 min. Then once you fill shells and place in baking dish with meat sauce to bake for 30 min. Then add cheese and bake another 5 min. So this is closer to a 90 min total time then the 45 min you list. Please correct this so those of us trying your delicious recipes have more realistic time frame
Thank you, Sue for pointing that out!!
This was amazing! I followed the recipe exactly except I added fresh basil to the sauce and top of the casserole once baked. I also added a tablespoon of sugar to the sauce to reduce the acidity of it. Thank you for the awesome recipe!!!
Thanks, Katy!
So delicious and easy! I made my meat sauce and cheese mixture before going to the office. I cooked and cooled and stuffed my shells as well. I then placed stuffed shells in tupperware and put in refrigerator. Set meat sauce in fridge as well. When I got home it was quick and easy to reheat meats sauce and assemble shells and sauce in casserole dish. Such a nice easy prep ahead dinner. Will be repeating requests!
Great idea! Thanks, Cindy!
I can’t get enough of this meal! We’ll be making this weekly. It’s that delicious! Thank you so much.
Thank ya, Jen!
Stuffed pasta shells are my kids’ favorite dinner! So easy and they taste amazing!
AGREE!