Name: Italian Stuffed Shells (With Beef!)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 65 min
Ingredients: 20 pieces jumbo shell pasta (about half of a 12 ounce box); salt; 24 ounces marinara (can use a 24-28 ounce jar); ½ teaspoon olive oil; 1 teaspoon minced garlic; 1 pound ground beef (I used 80/20); ½ teaspoon salt; 2 large eggs; 15 ounces ricotta cheese (part skim); ¼ cup parmesan cheese; 1 teaspoon oregano; 1 teaspoon basil; 1 teaspoon onion powder; ½ teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon pepper; 2 cups mozzarella cheese

Cozy stuffed shells with ground beef is the perfect family meal to have on the table. Well-loved and family-friendly, this cheesy dish is the perfect one-pan dish for any night of the week, and can be prepped and frozen in advance for easier dinners later.

A spoon scooping a cheese covered ground beef stuffed shell in a saucy pan.

Table of Contents

Why We Love Ground Beef Stuffed Shells

Cozy Family Friendly Dinner – My grandma was Italian and stuffed shells was one of those dishes she made when she wanted us to have a big cozy family dinner or for a holiday. These stuffed shells always feel a little extra special, but they aren’t difficult to make.
Great For A Crowd – This dish can scale easily to feed more people. Stuffed shells are always well liked and you can prep everything ahead of time to make it easier to bring to a potluck or party.
Easy Meal Prep – This is a great dish to make for a larger Sunday dinner, or make on the weekend for a quicker meal during the week. Batches of Italian stuffed shells freeze great and can be baked from frozen. This is also a great dish to bring to someone who just had a baby or maybe was in the hospital and needs a little extra care and help with meals.

Try my slow cooker Italian sausage and peppers, baked Italian beef meatballs or easy baked ziti for more great Italian recipes.

Ingredients For Italian Stuffed Shells (With Ground Beef!)

Ingredients for a stuffed shells with beef in bowls on a counter from overhead with text labels.

Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions below in the recipe card.

For The Jumbo Pasta Shells

jumbo shell pasta we want the bigger shells we can stuff
salt
marinara you can use your favorite pasta sauce

For The Meat

olive oil
minced garlic
ground beef I used 80/20
salt

For The Cheese Filling And Topping

2 large eggs
15 ounces ricotta cheese part skim, I prefer using the lighter cheese here but you can use a full fat ricotta cheese for a richer stuffed shell.
¼ cup parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 cups mozzarella cheese – you can also use an Italian cheese blend

How To Make Stuffed Pasta Shells With Beef

For The Shells

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Layer about a cup of the marinara sauce over the bottom of a 9×13 pan evenly.
Place a large pot of water on the stovetop. Add salt generously to the water and turn the stove to high to bring the pot of water to a boil. Place shells in the water and cook for about 8 – 9 minutes, cooking them just under al dente. They should be a little flexible but not floppy. Drain the shells in a colander and set to the side to cool.

Use a large pot of water, bigger then you might normally use for pasta for this stuffed shell recipe. This will help keep the shell pasta from sticking to each other and breaking. I boil the shells for 8-9 minutes, usually a little less than if you were making the shells according to the package. This helps to keep the shell pasta in one piece, and they will soak up some of the moisture from the pasta sauce when baking.

For The Meat

In a large skillet add the olive oil over medium high heat. Add minced garlic to the oil and cook for a minute or two until fragrant.

A pan with garlic in the pan, with raw ground beef and salt in bowls nearby.

Place the ground beef in the skillet. Break up the ground beef with a wooden spatula and sprinkle with salt. Stir the meat as needed, cooking it until it is no longer pink. Drain any excess grease and set to the side.

A frying pan with cooked ground beef with parmesan cheese and ricotta cheese in bowls nearby on a kitchen counter.

For The Cheese Filling And Topping The Layers

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Crack the eggs into a large bowl and beat with a fork until the yolk cracks. Add ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, oregano, basil, onion powder, salt and pepper. Mix the cheese mixture well until thoroughly combined.

A large glass bowl filled with ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and egg for the stuffed shell filling with small bowls of spices nearby.

A bowl of ricotta cheese filling mixture next to a bowl of cooked ground beef and a bowl of cooked jumbo shell pasta.

Layer the cooked shells with the cheese mixture and the ground beef evenly between the shells. Place the shells in the pan in rows over the marinara sauce.

A hand holding a half full stuffed shell full of ricotta cheese that they just filled over a casserole dish.

A hand holding a full stuffed shell full of ricotta cheese and beef that they just filled over a casserole dish.

Spread the rest of the marinara sauce in dollops on top of each of the stuffed shells with a spoon evenly. Top generously with cheese then cover with aluminum foil.

Beef stuffed shells covered in marinara sauce unbaked in a white baking dish from above.

Beef stuffed shells covered in marinara sauce and half covered in cheese unbaked in a white baking dish from above.

Bake the entire pan for 20-25 minutes or until hot and the cheese is gooey. Then serve and enjoy!

Cooked ground beef stuffed shells covered in melted cheese in a casserole dish from above.

Can I Add Spinach To These Stuffed Shells?

Adding spinach to the ricotta mixture is always a great addition. I usually use about a cup of fresh spinach and cook it down in a pan before adding it to the cheese. It’s important to remove as much water as possible from the spinach or the shells can become water.

You can also add frozen spinach that you’ve defrosted in the microwave. With frozen spinach it’s important to drain away the water and pat the spinach dry with paper towels really well. Sometimes it even takes a couple rounds of paper towels to get the spinach dry enough.

Can I Swap The Ground Beef For Sausage, Ground Turkey Or Ground Chicken?

Sausage crumbles can be swapped for half of the ground beef or all of the meat if you prefer. When using sausage it’s important to remove any extra oil from the sausage well or the stuffed shells can become greasy. I prefer a mixture that is half sausage and half ground beef.

Ground turkey or ground chicken can also be swapped into this recipe for the ground beef pound for pound. You can also blend turkey or chicken with sausage if you prefer.

Try a twist on stuffed shells with my Taco Stuffed Shells which also uses ground beef. I like making a pan of both when I take the time to make stuffed shells. They both freeze great!

Can I Swap Ricotta Cheese For Cottage Cheese?

Some people prefer using cottage cheese over using ricotta cheese. It is ok to swap cottage cheese for ricotta cheese cup for cup.

I grew up in an Italian American family and we always used ricotta cheese. It wasn’t until I met my father-in-law that I even knew people swapped cottage cheese for ricotta cheese sometimes!

If cottage cheese is your preference, your stuffed shells will turn out just fine. I recommend if this is your first time making stuffed shells that you try the recipe with ricotta cheese as I know ricotta cheese is what my direct family prefers.

Chicken stuffed shells on a plate next to a fork.

What To Serve With Stuffed Shells

Ground beef stuffed shells are a meal all by themselves. I’ll usually serve these shells with a green salad and some crusty bread. If I am feeling more ambitious I’ll make something like homemade garlic knots or cheesy biscuit pull apart garlic bread.

Homemade Italian beef meatballs are also always welcome on the table, and any leftovers freeze easily. My Italian grandma almost always had a big bowl of meatballs, sausage and pasta on the table to feed the whole family at the holidays along with dishes like these stuffed shells. A slow cooker full of cranberry meatballs (which uses frozen meatballs) is another great side or appetizer with this dish.

If I am making this dish for a larger group of people, I might add a pan of super cheesy baked ziti so there is a dish for those who don’t eat meat. Italian wedding soup or chicken penne alfredo are both great additions when you are cooking for a larger crowd.

Can You Freeze Stuffed Shells?

Yes, these stuffed shells freeze great! I will often double the recipe, then make a pan of ground beef stuffed shells to eat for dinner and one pan for the freezer. Frozen stuffed shells will taste their best if baked and eaten within 3 months.

You can assemble the stuffed shells and freeze before baking. You can also bake the shells and then freeze, or you can also freeze leftovers. I like to freeze leftovers in individual portions for a quicker dinner.

Expect if you are baking a full pan of frozen stuffed shells with ground beef that they will take a little longer to heat all the way through. For an entire pan expect that is will take 35-45 minutes to heat the shells from frozen. I would start checking the shells for doneness after about 30 minutes.

How Far In Advance Can You Make Stuffed Shells With Ground Beef ?

You can prep these stuffed shells with ground beef up to a full 24 hours in advance. Simply assemble them up to the point where you add the mozzarella cheese on top, then cover them and place them in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake.

How Long Will Stuffed Shells With Meat Last?

Expect these stuffed shells will last for about three days after baking. Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container or freeze leftovers.