This baked ziti with sour cream and ground beef is a mouthwatering dish that will quickly become a family favorite. Perfect for feeding a crowd or enjoying dinner with leftovers, this hearty baked pasta recipe is both comforting and delicious. It can be prepped ahead of time and even frozen before baking for added convenience!
Today, I have such a delicious dinner recipe for you! And as usual with my recipes, this one will feed a crowd.
And if you’re just feeding your family and they love leftovers as much as mine, this will be perfect. If you’re not serving a crowd (or a group of leftover lovers), you can always halve this recipe.
This recipe, as it is, makes a heaped 9″x13″ pan of deliciousness. I realize it’s a lot.
But I have to tell you that the leftovers taste even better after all the flavors have had time to get to know each other.
This baked ziti does take a bit of prep time, but if you’re like me, I don’t mind a little extra prep time when I’m rewarded with leftovers for days.
Plus, you can prep this whole pan in probably 30-40 minutes, then cover it, and put it in the fridge to bake later or the next day. It’s even freezable!
I have to say, I’ve also tried this recipe using Provolone cheese for one of the layers of cheese, and it is so tasty! I don’t always have provolone on hand, though, so I usually use mozzarella. It’s good either way and a little less expensive using just mozzarella, or so I’ve found.
I know sour cream seems a bit strange, but it’s so good in this.
If you’re still a bit hesitant, ricotta cheese is also super yummy. I’m not sure if either way is authentic. To be honest, I didn’t even use ziti; I used rigatoni. Whoops.
We love it served with a big serving of Caesar salad. I hope you’ll give this baked ziti a try!
And for another scrumptious Italian dish, try this awesome-looking manicotti! Also, if you don’t have any Italian seasoning on hand, try using this Spaghetti Seasoning Recipe in its place!
Enjoy. 🙂
Baked Ziti with Sour Cream
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups (200 grams) diced onion
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (15 grams) minced garlic
- 1 1/2 pounds (680 grams) ground beef
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2/3 cup (158 ml) red wine
- 28 ounce (794-gram) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 14.5 ounce (411-gram) can diced tomatoes, undrained
- 6 ounce (170-gram) can tomato paste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried parsley
- 2 tablespoons (7 grams) chopped fresh basil
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) sour cream
- 400 grams (3 2/3 cups) grated mozzarella cheese
- 24 ounces (700 grams) dry ziti (use gluten-free ziti to make this dish GF)
- fresh parsley as garnish, optional
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium heat, cook the onion in the olive oil until the onion is softened, about 5-8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the red pepper flakes and red wine and cook for about 3-5 minutes or until most of the wine has been absorbed.
- Add the ground beef and break it up with a wooden spoon. Brown the beef. When almost done, add the remaining sauce ingredients and simmer over low heat for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more salt to taste. Remove from the heat. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 °F (205 °C), and cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside.
- In a 9"x13" (23 cm x 33 cm) casserole dish or pan, spread just enough sauce to cover the bottom. Add half the pasta, then a little less than half the remaining sauce.
- Top with the sour cream by dropping small spoonfuls all over the surface and then gently spreading them - making sure to get it all the way to the edges of the pan.
- Top with half the cheese. Add the rest of the pasta, then the rest of the sauce and the rest of the cheese.
- Place in the oven to bake for 35-40 minutes until the sauce is bubbling. Broil so that the top gets golden if desired, then let cool for a few minutes and top with fresh parsley.
- Let leftovers cool, cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Notes
- Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel, and Malbec are good choices for the red wine, but you can really use whatever you have on hand. Cheap stuff is just fine and what I use!
- If serving as a main dish, it’ll likely serve 10-12 people with hearty portions.
If serving alongside sides like salad or bread, you can stretch to 15 servings.
Comments & Reviews
ANNE LAWTON says
Yum! I love the addition of sour cream in this!
ChihYu says
This is the perfect comfort dish! I love the sour cream!
Heather H says
I”ll bet the sour cream makes this creamy and delicious. I’ve love classic ziti but I am having your version next.
Raia Todd says
Ohhhh, that looks like pure comfort food!
tina says
This baked ziti looks so good! Can’t wait to try!
Charlotte Moore says
It really looks yummy. I like to use the whole wheat penne in recipes that call for pasta.
How many ounces or cups would the cheese be?
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
I usually do too! It’s so yummy!
I believe 400 grams is about 14 ounces. It worked out to between 3 and 4 cups of grated cheese ?