This easy crock pot baked ziti recipe cooks uncooked pasta right in a rich homemade meat sauce with plenty of melted cheese. Ricotta gives it the creamy flavor of lasagna without the work.
With about 20 minutes of prep, everything cooks together in the slow cooker for an easy cheesy pasta dinner with no need to boil the pasta first.
Jump To (scroll for more)
Featured Comment by Kathleen:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"I have made this several times for my Husband. He is a very picky eater…he absolutely loves this!!! It is a 5-star rating for us!!"
📝 TL;DR — Recipe Summary
What: Easy baked ziti in a crock pot is made with uncooked pasta, homemade meat sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan.
Why: Cheesy comfort food with no need to boil the pasta first, and only about 20 minutes of prep.
How: Add the sauce, uncooked pasta, ricotta mixture, and mozzarella to the crock pot in steps, then cook on LOW for about 4 hours.
🥣 Ingredients
- Pasta – Use regular uncooked ziti or penne, not oven-ready or no-boil pasta. It cooks directly in the sauce.
- Mozzarella cheese – Provides the melted, gooey cheese throughout the baked ziti.
- Ricotta, Parmesan, and egg white – Ricotta gives the dish its creamy lasagna-like flavor. Parmesan adds flavor, while the egg white helps the ricotta mixture hold together.
For the Homemade Meat Sauce
- Crushed tomatoes – The tomato base for the homemade sauce.
- Ground beef or Italian sausage – Use either one or a mix of both. Brown and drain before adding to the sauce.
- Onion and garlic – Cook with the meat to build the flavor of the sauce.
- Seasonings – Basil, salt, pepper, and optional red pepper flakes.
👨🍳 Quick Overview: Crock Pot Baked Ziti
1. Prepare the meat sauce
Brown the meat with the onion and garlic; drain. Add the meat to the seasoned crushed tomatoes.
2. Mix the ricotta cheese
Mix the ricotta with Parmesan, egg white, parsley, and salt.
3. Add to the crock pot
In order, add half of the meat sauce, uncooked pasta, ricotta mixture, and mozzarella to the crock pot. Repeat, finishing with sauce and mozzarella.
4. Cook
Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours. Check at 3 hours and stop when the pasta is tender.
👇 Scroll down for the printable recipe card with step-by-step photos — or keep reading for cooking tips, options, and storage.
⏲️ How Long to Cook
- LOW (recommended): About 4 hours. Start checking at 3 hours since crock pots vary.
- HIGH: About 2 hours. Start checking at 1 hour.
- Doneness: Stop cooking when the pasta is tender but not mushy.
Save this recipe!
Enter your email address and we'll send the link straight to your inbox!
🍝 Pasta Tips
- Use regular uncooked pasta—not oven-ready or no-boil. Ziti and penne work well.
- Pasta shapes cook at different rates. Smaller shapes cook faster, so check for tenderness early.
- Be cautious with whole-wheat or gluten-free pasta. Cooking times and results can vary by brand.
✔️ Sauce Options & Variations
- Sauce: Homemade sauce gives the best results, but jarred marinara works as a shortcut.
- Meat: Use ground beef, Italian sausage, or a mixture of both. Brown with onion and garlic, then drain before adding to the sauce.
- Vegetables: Add mushrooms, spinach, or bell peppers if you like.
- Seasoning: Adjust basil, oregano, or red pepper flakes to taste.
↕️ Scaling for Two or Family Size
- Half recipe: Use a 2-quart mini crock pot and check the pasta early.
- Full recipe: Use a 3- to 4-quart crock pot.
- Double recipe: Use a 6-quart or larger crock pot.
- Cooking time stays about the same. Cook until the pasta is tender.
Scaling the ingredients: In the recipe card, change the number of servings. Use the adjusted amounts in the ingredient list—the instructions do not adjust automatically.
🍅 Crock Pot Italian Recipes
You may also like these crock pot Italian favorites:
Crock Pot Italian Chicken Pasta
Delicious Crock Pot Italian Chicken Pasta is loaded with mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, tender chicken, and pasta. It is cooked in an easy homemade marinara sauce that cooks the dry pasta and chicken while it simmers. You will love this cheesy Italian bake.
🥗 Serving and Storage
- Serve with a green salad and garlic bread.
- Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat in the microwave or covered in the oven. Thaw frozen baked ziti overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
❓ FAQs
Baked ziti is an Italian-American pasta dish made with tomato sauce, cheese, and ziti pasta. It often includes ground beef or Italian sausage but can also be made without meat.
Ziti has straight-cut ends and is slightly larger, while penne has angled ends. Either works well in this recipe, and penne is often easier to find.
Yes. Skip the meat and use the tomato sauce and cheeses. You can also add mushrooms, spinach, or bell peppers.
📖The Recipe Card
Crock Pot Baked Ziti Recipe (Easy Cheesy Pasta)
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef - or Italian sausage
- 1 small onion - chopped
- 2 cloves garlic - crushed
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 egg white
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese - grated
- 1½ teaspoons salt - divided
- ½ teaspoon dry parsley
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1½ teaspoons basil
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper - optional
- 2 cups dry ziti noodles - or penne
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese - shredded
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Brown the Meat — Chop 1 small onion. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown 1 pound ground beef (or Italian sausage). Add the onion after 3–4 minutes. Add 2 crushed garlic cloves in the last minute. Cook until no longer pink, about 9–10 minutes total. Drain excess fat.
- Mix the ricotta mixture — In a bowl, combine 1 cup (8 oz) ricotta, 1 egg white, ¼ cup grated Parmesan, ½ teaspoon dried parsley, and ½ teaspoon salt; do not overmix.
- Make the sauce — In a medium bowl, mix 28 oz crushed tomatoes, 1½ teaspoons dried basil, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper.
- Stir in the drained cooked meat to finish the meat sauce. Add ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper if you like a little heat.
- Layering — Spray a 3- to 4-quart (or larger) slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Spread about 1½ cups of meat sauce over the bottom. Add 1 cup uncooked ziti (or penne).
- Dot with half of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle ½ cup shredded mozzarella.
- Second layer and top — Repeat: 1½ cups meat sauce, 1 cup uncooked pasta, the remaining ricotta, and ½ cup mozzarella. Top with the remaining meat sauce and 1 cup mozzarella.
- Cook — Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours. Start checking the pasta at 3 hours—crock pots vary. Stop when the pasta is tender to prevent overcooking.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
For scaling and crock pot sizes (half-batch in a 2-quart mini, double in a 6–7 quart), see the Scaling section in the post. The pasta goes in uncooked. Standard ziti or penne works best. Very small shapes, whole-wheat, or gluten-free pastas can be unpredictable. Crock pot temperature and pasta shape affect cooking time. Start checking at 3 hours and stop when the pasta is tender—pasta can go from undercooked to overcooked quickly.Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Inspired by a Pioneer Woman recipe for Baked Ziti, which is more lasagna-like with ricotta and Parmesan. I adapted it for the crock pot.
Editor's note: Originally published December 5, 2013. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Dea Varner says
Made this for the first time today for our football game day dinner and it did NOT disappoint!!!! I had a bit smaller Mostacelli noodle so it was done at about the 3 hour mark but was soo creamy and yummy with all that cheese! Will definitely make this again!
Kathleen says
Hi Dr Dan! I have made this several times for my Husband. He is a very picky eater---AND - - - he absolutely loves this!!! It is a 5 star rating for us!! Thank you very much for sharing your talents. 😊❤️
Gail says
My hubby hates cottage cheese or ricotta could I do this with all mozzarella or a combination of mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Gail,
I'm sending you an email also.
Without the ricotta, I would increase the Parmesan to 1/2 cup and add maybe add a half cup more of mozzarella. Mix all that in with the rest of the Mozzarella with the salt and parsley. Skip the egg. Increase the cheese between layers to 3/4 cup. This should work but I have not do it.
Dan
Charlotte says
Made this recipe last week (the ricotta and sausage sauce) but had to freeze both and use a week later due to time restraints. Put the recipe together yesterday after thawing and cooked as directed, it turned out divine! Delicious and will make again!
Sara says
howdy all, i am cooking this 'as we speak', i want to say that this recipe could go either way because i didn't really measure - but i LOVE pasta ! you take noodles, ricotta cheese and sauce = world peace in my book !
i have never made a meat sauce before (thank you Dr Dan for showing me how). the container of ricotta was 15oz and i used the whole thing, i also used some cottage cheese and about 14 oz of mottz, and to make sure it wasn't dry, as some other folks posted, i added a splash of jar sauce that was already in the fridge.
i love the idea of using uncooked noodles, i will let you know how this turns out.
thank you for teaching me something new.
Sara
oh, as for the pasta, i used store brand ziti noodles, 2+ cups, it didn't quite us the whole box (wish it did), but i didn't have another can of crushed tomatoes to add the needed moisture.
Sara says
Dr Dan, (sorry for the late update) - my Ziti turned out great. i also think it was a little dry, i think this is just personal preference. i kept a small bowl of sauce on the table for people to add if they wanted. the noodles cooked perfectly and the homemade sauce was delicious ! thank you for another great dinner.
Monica says
I liked it. I had to cook it on high For 2-1/2-3 hours, as I started it too late in the day. I feel like it came out too dry. I did not use wheat penne, maybe the recipe calls for too much? If I make again I will try maybe a bit less pasta. I also tweaked the ingredients up a bit, I used cottage and added more mozzarella, and used half ground beef and half Italian sausage.
Dan Myers says
Just made this, and after 5 hours on low, the noodles aren't even close to being cooked. Followed the recipe exactly. :(
Franc says
Hi Dan,
Everyone at the church luncheon loved the Baked Ziti...even my picky husband. I would have preferred making the day of serving, but it worked out ok. I took it out of refrigerator a few hours prior to reheating, partially reheated and then finished it off plugged into the crock pot in the parish hall while we were at mass. I even had a request for the recipe.
Thank you for the recipe Dan.
Fran says
Hello Dan,
The Baked Ziti is in the Crock as I write. I love the layering. I’m still questioning the dry pasta. Time will tell.
I am bring it to a church luncheon tomorrow. I’m wondering what is the best way to reheat it in the morning; we leave the house about 10 am?
Pending recipe rating for taste, but process was 5 stars.
Thanks for the recipe.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Fran,
Welcome to the blog.
The dry pasta works well if it is a standard quality brand. I have done it many times.
Reheating... I usually don't have much in the way of leftovers. But I would reheat like a casserole. Covered tight in a casserole dish in a 350 oven for about 30 minutes or a bit more until hot.
I would NOT reheat in the crock pot. They have been known to break when reheating things like this. I do cheat some with soup or chili but rarely.
Dan
Susan says
This is my second time making crock pot ziti. This time I used half beef and half sweet Italian sausage. My family and friends loved this lasagney-ziti, cheesey and filling. Served 8 with a leftover serving for me! Wonderful, easy and fun to make. Add garlic bread and some salad: perfecto! Thank you for sharing this recipe.