Sloppy Joe Pasta

Teresa Ambra

Sloppy Joe Pasta is irresistible. This amazing pasta recipe combines the best of Italian and Tex-Mex. It's a delightful pasta dish that's kid-friendly and one your family will surely love. It's also a super quick and easy 6-ingredient recipe that's perfect for weeknight dinners when you're short on time. This comfort food casserole is so good, you'll want it in your monthly meal rotation plan.

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 15

Course Beef, Main Dish, Pasta Main Dish

Cuisine Italian/Tex-Mex

Servings

Calories 351 kcal

Equipment

1 9x13" glass baking dish
1 large skillet
1 hamburger chopper to cut meat down in small pieces while frying
1 spatula
1 wooden spoon
measuring cups
measuring spoons
1 medium stock pot with lid
1 colander
aluminum foil

Ingredients

1 lb. 93% to 96% lean ground beef (I used 2 1/4 lbs. ground beef)
2 pkts. Sloppy Joe mix
12-16 oz. box medium shell pasta cooked and drained
32 oz. jar spaghetti sauce or your favorite kind (see note below)
1 cup water, if needed I never use this much—I use about 1/3 to ½ cup at the most
24 oz. ctn. Ricotta cheese or cottage cheese
8 oz. pkg. sharp Cheddar cheese shredded

Instructions

In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil.
Add shell pasta and cook according to package directions.
Drain in colander.
While pasta is cooking, in a large saucepan, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.
Use a hamburger chopper to break the meat down into small pieces while frying.
Stir in the Sloppy Joe mix, spaghetti sauce and enough water to rinse out the spaghetti sauce jar--about 1/3 to 1/2 cup.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered, for 5-10 minutes.
Remove from heat; stir in drained, cooked pasta.
Spoon half of the beef mixture into a greased 9x13" casserole dish.
Top with Ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese) and remaining beef mixture.
Bake, covered with foil, at 350° for 35-45 minutes or until bubbly.
Remove foil.
Sprinkle with Cheddar cheese and bake until cheese is melted about 5-10 minutes longer.

Notes

NOTE: When spaghetti sauce was first mass-produced in the late 1970s or early 1980s all the jars were a full quart (32-ounces). Over the years, the size of the jars have decreased until now they are only 24-ounces. This recipe needs a full 32-ounces. So you need 1 1/2 24-oz. jars to get the amount of spaghetti sauce needed for this recipe.

NOTE: I increased the amount of ground beef to 2 1/4 lbs. We really liked the increased amount of meat in the recipe.

NOTE: The original recipe called for cottage cheese. However, most people don't like cottage cheese and it is a little on the soupy side. That's why I've changed this ingredient to Ricotta cheese instead.

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home.

Nutrition

Calories: 351kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 23gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 557mgPotassium: 495mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 772IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 274mgIron: 2mg

Keyword beef, casserole, cheese, ground beef, main dish, noodles, pasta

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