30 Minute One Pan Ground Beef Penne
This beef penne uses just one pan and goes from stove to table in 30 minutes. The pasta cooks right in the savory tomato beef sauce and is topped with Parmesan and mozzarella cheese. It’s a favorite weeknight comfort food dish!
Because it’s Monday and maybe we’re all feeling a little busy with life these days, it’s the best time to share this ground beef penne that is easy, fast, hearty, and comforting.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s a true one pan dinner. The ground beef, sauce, and pasta all cook in the same pan, so there’s less cleanup at the end.
- It’s the kind of 30-minute dinner you’ll actually want to eat. It’s quick and easy, but still feels like a cozy, hearty pasta dinner.
- A pantry staple adds tons of flavor. Worcestershire sauce adds a savory depth to the beef and tomato sauce that makes the whole dish taste richer.
- It’s simple without tasting basic. It’s easy to make with big flavors.
- This is a good back-pocket dinner. The ingredients are straightforward, and it works well for nights when you want something hearty without much effort.
Ingredients
- Ground beef: I recommend using lean ground beef so the sauce doesn’t end up too greasy. You can also use ground turkey.
- Marinara sauce: Use your favorite jarred sauce.
- Diced tomatoes
- Worcestershire sauce: Don’t skip this! It makes the sauce taste like it cooked much longer.
- Penne: I’ve only tested this recipe with penne. Other pasta shapes may take more or less time.
- Parmesan cheese
- Fresh mozzarella cheese
- Vegetable broth or stock
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Italian seasoning
- Olive oil
- Fresh parsley
How to Make It
- Brown the ground beef in a large pan or pot. Add all of the seasonings as it cooks and stir well, breaking the beef apart.
- Add the marinara, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, and broth. Stir and add the dry pasta and stir again. Bring the liquid to a boil and then adjust the heat to medium and cover the pan. Simmer the pasta for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often, or until it’s tender.
- Sprinkle both kinds of cheese over the top of the pasta. You can broil the cheese for a few minutes in the oven or melt it by covering the pan with a lid.
More One Pan Pasta Recipes
30 Minute One Pan Ground Beef Penne
This one pan ground beef penne is a hearty 30-minute dinner with a savory tomato sauce, Parmesan, and melted mozzarella cheese.
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Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ½ tablespoon garlic powder
- ½ tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 (14.5-oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 cup jarred marinara sauce
- ½ tablespoon chopped parsley
- 12 ounces penne see note
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
- 4 ounces thinly sliced fresh mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the ground beef, garlic powder, onion powder, and Italian seasoning. Cook the beef, breaking it up with a spatula, until browned and cooked through.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce, diced tomatoes, marinara sauce, and parsley and stir to combine. Add the penne and the vegetable stock. Increase the heat to high and bring to a simmer. Lower the heat to medium, cover, and cook for 10-15 minutes or until the penne is tender, stirring frequently. While the pasta is cooking, preheat the oven to broil.
- Uncover the pan and sprinkle the parmesan over the top. Place the mozzarella slices on top. Transfer the pan to the oven and broil until the cheese is melted.
Notes
Pasta: The pasta should cook in the sauce in about 15 minutes, but be sure to test it and cook it a little longer if it’s not quite tender.
Stir the pasta often: This helps it cook evenly and keeps it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Mozzarella: Fresh mozzarella is nice and melty, but regular shredded mozzarella cheese works great, too.
Ground beef: You can swap the beef for ground turkey, ground chicken, or Italian sausage.
Broiling: Make sure your pan is oven-safe before placing it under the broiler to melt the cheese. If you don’t have an oven-safe pan, skip the oven and cover the pan with a lid to melt the cheese.
Nutrition Estimate
Calories: 491kcal | Carbohydrates: 50.5g | Protein: 36.1g | Fat: 15.2g | Saturated Fat: 6.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 7.1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 86.7mg | Sodium: 771.3mg | Fiber: 3.5g | Sugar: 5.5g
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More Comfort Food Recipes
- Baked Beef and Bean Tostadas
- Skillet Chicken Pot Pie
- Mushroom Macaroni and Cheese
- Meatball Stroganoff
Happy cooking,
This post was updated from the archives. It was first published in October 2016.
I LOVE easy one-pan meals: this suits me so well! It looks delicious, and I’ve gotta find those no-cook no-drain penne. Sounds very convenient.
Look for them! They’re usually right next to the other pastas 🙂
I have to use gluten free pasta, so unfortunately no boil noodles aren’t available. If I added already cooked pasta noodles to this dish, would I just eliminate the vegetable stock?? Looks delish!
Hi Kelly, I would cut the vegetable stock in half and maybe boil your noodles for a couple minutes less than you usually would. Add them to the pan and let them finish cooking in the sauce. Hope that helps!
When you work full-time and have children that have to be twelve places at one time, one pot wonders are perfect for my household!! I found this recipe today while searching Pinterest for one pot meals. It was delish, my family and I enjoyed it!! Super easy to make also!!
One-pot dinners to the rescue! So glad you enjoyed this one, Shaunta – thank you for letting me know 🙂
I don’t see the pot size. Video is not working.
Hi Karen, I’m sorry the video didn’t work! I just checked it and it’s playing on my side, so not sure what the issue might be. As far as the pan size, I recommend using a 10-12 inch pan.
I tried this recipe with regular penne noodles and had no problem. I used an entire box of penne and used 1.5 cups of vegetable stock and cooked it as this recipe directed for 15 minutes. It came out perfect! It wasn’t too watery and pasta was thoroughly cooked. I didn’t need to prepare boil noodles.
Hi Jessica! Thanks for letting me know – I’m glad it worked well with regular pasta. I haven’t tried it like that yet, so thank you for letting me know 🙂
You know it’s good stuff when both kids, who don’t agree on anything, ask you make it again.
That’s great! 🙂
I am unable to reach your recipe for the beef penne. I just end up looking at questions, answers, pictures and a paragraph of ingredients without measurements. I click on recipe it goes nowhere. I would really like to make your berf penne. Please help..
I’m so sorry you’re having trouble accessing the recipe! I am not seeing this issue on my end, so including this link – can you try clicking on that to see if it works? http://www.girlgonegourmet.com/lemon-honey-glazed-carrots/ If not, please email me at april@girlgonegourmet.com and I will send you the recipe.
This pasta was delicious! I cook for my parents and sister once a week and they all loved it! Even my dad, who is not a fan of red sauce, liked it a lot! Maybe put a tad less liquid in next time, possibly 3/4 the veggie stock.
I’m so glad you like it! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
One pan meals are so great for busy weeknights.
Love this recipe. It’s a weekly staple at the moment!
That’s so great, Shannon! So glad you like it 🙂
Looks so delicious and would like to try the recipe for the one pot Beef Penne, but didn’t see the nutritional guide any where in the recipe. I’m on WW and need to figure out the WW sp value.
Thanks, Lina
Hi Lina, I updated the recipe with the nutritional content.
I made this last night and we loved it. I used my dutch oven and I did add fresh onion and mushrooms. It was great will make it again.
I like the mushroom idea! So glad you liked it 🙂
Made this with reg pasta and overall very easy to make. However was very bland….this needed salt. I didn’t broil the cheese either just put the lid back on and let it melt.
We’ve made this a few times and love it! So easy to do
“No boil” penne is the same as regular dried Penne you buy at the store. You just add it in with all that stock.
Took a while to figure out what she was talking about. If it was true “no boil penne”, wouldn’t need all the liquid. Pretty good quick meal.
I made this for supper and it was really good! I actually had the no boil penne on hand so I used that. I drained the tomatoes and used the juice as part of my liquid. I didn’t have vegetable stock so I used beef broth instead. I used quite a bit more pasta sauce than 1 cup as my husband doesn’t like sauces too dry. It was such a hot night, I didn’t want to turn the broiler on so I just put cheese on top, covered it and let the cheese melt with the pan on the stove. I would definitely make this again.
So glad you guys liked it, Kristi! Good call on not turning on the oven 🙂