Baked Penne with Meatballs (Dump & Bake Recipe!)

This baked penne is so easy! Everything, including the pasta, cooks in one 9×13″ pan for the easiest baked pasta. There’s no precooking required (thanks to frozen meatballs) and minimal prep time. Combine everything in the pan, pop it in the oven, and not long after, you have the best comfort food dinner that’s cozy, hearty, and satisfying.

baked penne and meatballs in a baking dish.

Recipe Highlights
Ingredients
Four Easy Steps!
A Few Qs and As
More Pasta Recipes

We’re taking the fuss out of baked pasta and making this ridiculously easy, very delicious baked penne.

The low fuss part has to do with the easy prep. No pre-cooking, no multiple pots and pans! Just one baking dish and ingredients that barely need any prep. For this pasta bake, they all cook together in the pan (including the pasta!).

The very delicious part has to do with the savory tomato sauce with the equally savory meatballs and just enough cheese on top to finish it off. It’s the best kind of comfort food made so, so easy.

Recipe Highlights

Don’t let the longish ingredient list put you off because there’s not any real prep work involved except for chopping an onion and I even have a shortcut for that to make this a completely prep-free pasta dish.
We’re taking advantage of the freezer and pantry big time with this recipe. You might already have many of the ingredients on hand.
The tradeoff for all the shortcuts and the one-pan situation is the cook time. It does take a while for the penne to bake, but it’s hands-off time! The best kind of time!

This is a recipe for nights when you want to cook but you don’t want an intensive cooking experience. This is so not intensive – it’s easy, breezy cooking at it’s best.

Ingredients

There are four main parts: the pasta, the sauce, the meatballs, and the cheese. For the sauce, I adapted my easy pasta sauce recipe to make it one-pan pasta-friendly. That means it has more liquid than the original so the pasta can cook in it.

Olive oil
Chopped yellow onion – you can chop it up yourself or use frozen chopped onion to make it easy.
Canned tomato sauce
Beef broth or chicken broth
Garlic powder
Italian seasoning
Salt and black pepper
Red pepper flakes
Penne pasta – you don’t have to boil and drain it. It cooks in the oven.
Frozen beef meatballs – use frozen beef meatballs, turkey meatballs, or frozen homemade meatballs.
Mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
Chopped fresh parsley or fresh basil for garnish

Four Easy Steps!

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the onions, tomato sauce, broth, and all of the seasonings in a 9×13” baking dish. Stir to combine. Add the penne and press it down into the sauce. It should be completely submerged. If it isn’t add a little more broth.

Place the meatballs over the top and lightly press them into the pasta and sauce. They don’t need to be completely submerged. If any of the penne pop up above the sauce, press them back in.

Cover the pan with foil and bake the pasta mixture at 375°F for 45 minutes. After the time is up, take the pan out of the oven and remove the foil. Carefully stir the pasta and meatballs. Place the pan back in the oven (uncovered) and bake the pasta for 15 minutes.

Take the pan out of the oven and sprinkle the cheese over the top. Pop it back in the oven for about five mintues or until the cheese is melted. Let the baked pasta stand for a few minutes. Garnish with the parsley, if using, and serve.

A Few Qs and As

Can you use a different kind of pasta?

I have only tested this recipe with penne pasta, so I can’t say for sure if another shape will work. If I have to guess, I think a similar short pasta shape with the same cooking time would work but can’t guarantee it.

Can I make this meatless?

Yes, you can leave out the meatballs (or use frozen veggie meatballs) and use vegetable broth instead of beef broth or chicken broth.

Are you sure I don’t have to boil the pasta before baking it?

For this recipe, you don’t need to boil it first. I developed this recipe so that the pasta, sauce, and frozen meatballs all cook at the same time. It’s like magic. This won’t work for all baked pasta recipes (like my baked pasta with sausage and cheesy baked ziti) – it’s all about the amount of liquid.

Should you bake pasta covered or uncovered?

It depends on the recipe. For this one, you need to cover it for most of the time so the pasta can cook and absorb the liquid. The foil traps the liquid and keeps it from evaporating before the pasta can soak it up. Once the penne is almost cooked, you take the foil off. The excess liquid will cook off so you have a thickened sauce with the pasta. The best rule of thumb? Always follow what the recipe recommends.

How are the leftovers?

Very good! They keep well in the refrigerator for three to four days or you can freeze the leftovers. The pasta will be a little drier after being chilled so you may want to add a splash of broth (or some jarred marinara sauce) when you reheat it.

You can pick up the ingredients for this baked penne to have one hand for those nights when you want a completely low-fuss dinner. Add a salad or bread on the side to complete the experience!

Happy one-pan pasta baking,

overhead photo of the final dish in a baking pan.

More Pasta Recipes

Dump and Bake Chicken Parmesan Casserole – another easy one-pan baked pasta!
Italian Sausage and Bell Peppers Pasta – super simple and full of fresh flavor from the peppers.
Zucchini Orzo – this is one of my favorite easy pasta recipes to make during the summer!
White Spinach Lasagna – this is a small-batch lasagna that serves four.
Cheese Manicotti with Meat Sauce – comforting, hearty, and always a classic!
Fontina Cheddar Mac and Cheese – the fontina cheese gives this easy mac and cheese the creamiest sauce.
Ground Beef Stroganoff – always a family favorite!