Jumbo Stuffed Shells With Meat (Ground Beef!)
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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.
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.
Ingredients For Italian Stuffed Shells (With Ground Beef!)
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.
- 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.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Bake the entire pan for 20-25 minutes or until hot and the cheese is gooey. Then serve and enjoy!
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.
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.
More Dinner Recipes
Mexican Stuffed Shells (Taco Stuffed Shells)
Chicken Penne Alfredo
Easy Meatless Baked Ziti Recipe
One Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta
Italian Stuffed Shells (With Beef!)
Ingredients
For The Shells
- 20 pieces jumbo shell pasta about half of a 12 ounce box
- salt
- 24 ounces marinara can use a 24-28 ounce jar
For The Meat
- ½ teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 pound ground beef I used 80/20
- ½ teaspoon salt
For The Cheese Filling And Topping
- 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
Instructions
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. See notes for more info.
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.
- 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.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Bake the entire pan for 20-25 minutes or until hot and the cheese is gooey. Then serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This?
I would love to see it! Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!