Dutch Oven Baked Ziti
Overview
Italian sausage meat sauce, ricotta pockets, two cheeses, baked in the Dutch oven. Can be fully assembled hours ahead. Designed to pair with 07 Italian Roasted Vegetables.
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 lb ziti or penne pasta
- 1 lb Italian sausage (sweet, hot, or mix), casings removed if links
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 24 oz jarred marinara sauce
- 14 oz crushed tomatoes (one can)
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 0.5 teaspoons red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 0.5 teaspoons black pepper
- 15 oz whole-milk ricotta
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup fresh basil or parsley, chopped
- ¾ cup + 2 tbsp grated Parmesan (divided)
- 16 oz low-moisture mozzarella, shredded from block
- 1 tablespoon salt for pasta water
Equipment Needed
- Dutch oven
- Large pot (for boiling pasta)
- Wooden spoon
- Separate mixing bowl (for ricotta)
- Ladle or large spoon
Instructions
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Preheat and start pasta water: Preheat oven to 375°F. Bring a large pot of water with 1 tbsp salt to a boil for pasta.
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Brown the sausage: Set the Dutch oven on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, let heat 8 minutes. Crumble sausage into the pot. Cook 6-8 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no pink remains and it’s starting to brown.
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Cook the aromatics: Reduce heat to medium. Add diced onion, cook 4½ minutes until softened. Add minced garlic, stir 30 seconds until fragrant.
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Simmer the sauce: Pour in marinara, crushed tomatoes, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Bring to a gentle simmer, then reduce to low. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes while pasta cooks.
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Cook pasta (al dente minus 2 min): Once water is boiling, add pasta. Cook 2 minutes less than the box says (e.g., box says 11 min, cook 9). Before draining, scoop out ½ cup pasta water and reserve. Drain pasta.
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Mix the ricotta: While pasta cooks, in a separate bowl whisk together ricotta, egg, chopped basil/parsley, and ½ cup of the Parmesan. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Set aside.
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Reserve half the sauce: Once sauce has simmered 10 min, turn off the heat. Scoop out about half the sauce into a bowl and set aside — you’ll use it for topping.
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Coat pasta in sauce: Add the drained pasta to the sauce remaining in the Dutch oven. Stir to coat every piece. If it looks too thick, add reserved pasta water, 2 tbsp at a time.
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Layer cheeses: Scatter half the mozzarella (~8 oz) over the pasta. Dollop the ricotta mixture in spoonfuls across the top — don’t stir it in fully. You want pockets of ricotta, not a uniform mix. Pour the reserved sauce over everything. Top with the remaining mozzarella and remaining ¼ cup Parmesan.
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Bake covered: Cover Dutch oven with its lid. Bake covered 20 minutes.
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Uncover and brown: Remove lid. Bake another 18 minutes uncovered until the cheese on top is bubbling and golden brown in spots. If you want more browning, broil 1-2 minutes at the end — watch through the oven window, don’t walk away.
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Rest before serving: Let rest 10 minutes on a trivet. This sets the cheese and lets the sauce thicken so it doesn’t run all over the plate. Spoon out generous portions, sprinkle with extra fresh basil if you have it.
Notes
Make-ahead (the killer feature): Build the whole dish up through Step 9, cover the Dutch oven, refrigerate up to 24 hours. From cold: bake covered at 375°F for 35 min, uncover, bake 15-20 more min. Tack 15 min onto total time.
Why undercook the pasta: It keeps cooking in the sauce in the oven. Fully cooked pasta = mushy ziti.
The pasta water reserve: It has dissolved starch that helps the sauce cling and stay loose. Don’t skip it.
Vegetarian version: Skip sausage, sub 1 lb cremini mushrooms (sliced, sautéed first until they release liquid and it evaporates, ~10 min). Add 1 tsp fennel seeds for the “sausage” flavor note.
Troubleshooting
- Sauce too thick before pasta goes in: Add reserved pasta water, ¼ cup at a time.
- Final dish looks dry on top after baking: Drizzle 2 tbsp olive oil before serving, or hide it under fresh basil.
- Cheese not browned enough: Broil 1-2 min at the end. Stand at the oven door. Cheese goes from golden to charcoal in 30 seconds.
- Bottom of Dutch oven sticking: Means it was set too low in the oven OR oven runs hot. Move to middle rack next time.
Storage
Cools well in ceramic containers, 4 days fridged. Reheats best at 350°F in the oven covered with foil, 20-25 min. Microwave works but the top gets rubbery.