These stuffed shells are filled with three types of cheese, then covered in marinara sauce and more cheese and baked to golden brown perfection. A comfort food classic that’s great for feeding a crowd!
When I’m looking for an easy meal that will please both kids and adults alike, I turn to baked spaghetti, lasagna roll ups, or these ultra cheesy stuffed shells.
Stuffed shells are a popular dish for good reason – they’re hearty and elegant looking, yet easy to make. And who can resist all of that cheese? This version uses ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella cheeses, along with zesty marinara sauce, for a totally satisfying meal.
How do you make stuffed shells?
Start this dish by boiling your pasta shells. While the shells are cooking, prepare the filling by mixing together ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, along with seasonings and egg. Use a spoon or piping bag to fill each cooked shell with the cheese mixture. Pour marinara sauce into the bottom of a baking dish, then arrange the shells on top of the sauce. Spoon more sauce over the shells, then sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Bake the pasta covered, then uncovered until browned and bubbly. Add a sprinkle of fresh parsley, then serve and enjoy.
Tips for the perfect pasta
- Be sure to undercook your shells by 1-2 minutes because they will continue to cook when they go into the oven.
- I prefer to use whole milk ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, but if you’re looking to save a few calories, you can use part skim.
- Skip the pre-shredded bags of cheese and grate your own instead. I find that the pre-grated cheeses at the store tend to be coated with anti-caking agents and preservatives, and do not melt as smoothly.
- You can assemble this dish up to 8 hours before you plan to bake it. Cover the dish with foil and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat. You may need to add another 10 minutes to the baking time to compensate for starting with chilled pasta.
- Choose a high quality jarred marinara sauce. I typically use Newman’s Own or Classico brands.
Flavor variations
This is a classic version of baked shells with a cheese filling, but you can add a variety of ingredients to this dish to customize it to your tastes.
- Protein: Stir 8 ounces of cooked crumbled ground beef, Italian sausage or ground turkey into the cheese mixture. You can also try using shredded cooked chicken.
- Vegetables: Add up to 1 cup of veggies to the cheese filling such as spinach, mushrooms, onions, red bell peppers, broccoli, zucchini or kale. Make sure to finely chop the vegetables and cook them before they go into the mix.
- Sauce: Swap out the marinara sauce for creamy Alfredo sauce, or use a hearty bolognese style meat sauce instead.
- Cheese: You can use other types of cheese instead of the three I’ve listed, such as cream cheese, small curd cottage cheese, provolone, fontina, asiago or romano.
Can you freeze stuffed shells?
This dish will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 3 months. Assemble the shells, then cover tightly and freeze. When you’re ready to eat, bake the shells from frozen and be sure to add another 30 minutes to the cooking time. You can also freeze individual sized portions of leftover shells that have already been cooked. Reheat previously baked shells in the microwave in 90 second intervals until heated through.
How long are stuffed shells good for?
Stuffed shells will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, which makes them a great candidate for meal prep. You can store your baked shells in the pan with foil to cover, or transfer them to an airtight container.
More pasta recipes you’ll love
Stuffed Shells Video
Classic Stuffed Shells
Ingredients
- 24 jumbo pasta shells cooked according to package directions
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided use
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 3 cups marinara sauce divided use
- 2 tablespoons parsley chopped
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat a 9"x13" baking pan with cooking spray.
- Spread 1 1/2 cups of the marinara sauce in an even layer in the bottom of the pan.
- Place the ricotta cheese, 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese, Italian seasoning, egg, salt, pepper and parmesan cheese in a bowl. Stir to combine.
- Fill each shell with the ricotta mixture and place in the baking dish.
- Spoon the remaining marinara sauce over the shells, then sprinkle the other 1 1/2 cups of cheese over the top.
- Cover the dish with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Uncover the pan, then bake for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and starting to brown.
- Sprinkle with parsley, then serve.
Has anyone prepared this and refrigerated overnight to bake the next day? Would it hold up okay?
That should be fine!
This was a hit with my family! I made one dish with marinara and another with alfredo sauce. I also oddly ran out of filling halfway through the shells, but the shells I filled were plenty for 4 of us. I would probably leave it in the oven for 10 extra minutes, as the shells weren’t piping hot (or perhaps my oven is not heating correctly!).
Absolutely delicious. My husband said it tasted like we were eating in the North End if Boston. Can’t wait to make it again
If i were to add spinach to the mix – would you suggest cooking it first?
Yes you’ll want to cook it and squeeze out any excess water!
Can you use the powder grated cheese instead of fresh grated cheese?
Do you mean for the parmesan?
Refrigerated grated parmesan or from the grocery shelf?
Refrigerated!
I made this recipe tonight, exactly as the recipe was written. It was perfectly delicious. The entire family loved it! Thank you for sharing your recipe. I wish I could post photos, it was a beautiful meal.
Is there something I could substitute the egg for?
You can just omit it!
Perfectly delicious. Cant wait to share the next pan with my friends!
Omg super AWESOME. Made for the first time. I added ground pork to the filling and chives to the top. So worth it took no time at all to prepare and cook. Love it!!!!!
Great idea! I always add the real bacon pieces in the package already cooked. Just don’t use bacon bits… They’re too hard. The real bacon pieces are easy!
I’m making this for the 2nd time tonight. The first time my family absolutely loved it! Tonight I made my own marinara sauce for the first time ever!
When I make this for my teenage granddaughter she goes wild and then my husband gets home he goes nuts. I have made your recipe at least 10 times exactly as the recipe calls for. I believe this will be a regular in our home for a long time
I have made this recipe several times and my family loves it!
This was so easy to make and it turned out excellent!! Thank you so much. Highly recommend.
My Italian nona added prosciutto to the filling. The taste was incomparable!
OK I have to admit this is my 9th time making this recipe! It turns out fantastic every single time. I tend to double the filling so I can incorporate more shells but that’s just another compliment to the chef! I also add some crushed red pepper and, when available, fresh baail. This recipe is a keeper! It is on permanent rotation at my house quite possibly forever. Thank you, chef!
I add some sour cream and cup more cheese
Absolutely delicious and incredibly easy to make. I made this exactly according to the directions. The last 10 mins of cooking made this meal got and bubbly. My family ate it up.
This is approximately my 5th or 6th time using this recipe and it is delicious! Because most boxes of jumbo shells contain 40 or so, I double the filling and use a 9″ x 13″ glass tray as well as an 8″ x 8″ for overflow. I usually add chopped spinach, crushed red pepper and a little 2% cottage cheese but, even when I don’t, the recipe turns out perfect every time. Thank you!
Made this last night for my family. It was absolutely delicious. We made 24 shells, and had plenty of filling. However if using the entire 12oz box, you would probably run out. Thanks for sharing.
I served this to 50 people for dinner and they absolutely loved it.
This is my go-to stuffed shell recipe! The only thing I do different is I double the stuffing ingredients. It’s weird because I only use 1 box (12 oz) of jumbo shells, but not doubling the stuffing ingredients is never enough to stuff them all. Maybe my stuffing spoon is just big, lol.