Crock Pot Baked Ziti
on Jun 03, 2023, Updated Feb 11, 2025
This easy Crock Pot Baked Ziti recipe is a great recipe to feed a crowd! It is so simple to assemble and even the noodles cook right in the crock pot.
The Best Easy Baked Ziti!
This baked ziti recipe is so easy to prep and will feed a crowd. Even the noodles cook right in the slow cooker.
I love that the slow cooker does all the work for me with just a few minutes of prep work. Normally when making a pasta dish, I would spend extra time dicing up onion and garlic to get that extra depth of flavor.
For this baked ziti crock pot recipe I didn’t add any extra spices (except fresh basil) and it was so good!
Ready for the step by step? I’ll show you just how simple it is! (full ingredient amounts are included in a recipe card at the bottom of this post).
Ingredients & Notes
- Jarred pasta sauce: go for a good quality pasta sauce for the best flavor
- Tomato sauce
- Uncooked penne pasta: yes, the pasta will go in raw. No need to boil it at all first!
- Ricotta cheese
- Eggs
- Freshly chopped basil: I don’t suggest leaving this out or substituting it. The fresh basil really makes the flavor of this dish!
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
How to make crock pot baked ziti
Step 1: Add the 15 oz of ricotta cheese, basil, and 2 eggs to a bowl. Mix it up until it looks like what is pictured below.
Fresh basil really adds a lot of flavor, so don’t leave this part out!
Step 2: Mix together the pasta sauce and tomato sauce in a bowl and divide your penne pasta into three equal amounts. Now it is time to assemble the baked ziti.
Recipe Tip
Before beginning, spray your crock pot with cooking spray. This will help cleanup be a lot easier!
Step 3: Measure out 2 and 1/3 cups of sauce mixture and pour it into the bottom of the crock pot. Next, measure the penne into three equal amounts and add 1/3 of it to the top of the sauce.
I have eye balled it in the past and usually mess it up, so it’s worth taking the extra minute to divide evenly into three bowls before you begin layering.
Step 4: Add half of the ricotta/egg/basil mixture. You can either add the ricotta in dollops, or spread in an even layer.
Step 5: add half of the parmesan cheese in an even layer.
Step 6: repeat the steps for the next level: another 2 and 1/3 cups of sauce, 1/3 of the uncooked penne, the remaining ricotta mixture, and the remaining parmesan cheese.
Add the rest of your penne on top. And lastly, the rest of your sauce! Spread it out as evenly as you can, so that the noodles on top cook properly.
Step 7: Place the lid onto your crock pot and cook the baked ziti on high for 2 hours and 15 minutes.
I have tested this recipe several times, and the perfect amount of cook time appears to be right around 2 and a half hours, before the noodles get too soft. After the 2 hours and 15 minutes, it should look like this image below.
Step 8: Time for the last step which is the mozzarella cheese on top!
I have used both asiago and mozzarella, and both are delicious. Basically any italian cheese you can get your hands on will be great!
Several readers have commented with their substitutions that turned out to be delicious. After the remaining 15 minutes of cook time, the cheese will look all melted and amazing like this.
It’s time to eat! One note: this makes enough to feed a crowd, so you will need a 6 quart or larger slow cooker.
The flavor of this crockpot pasta is just out of this world delicious. If you have never made pasta in a crock pot, this is a great recipe to start with!
This is a family favorite in our house, and I can always count on it coming out perfect every time! I have tested this recipe to perfection and it gets RAVE reviews every time I make it.
Serving idea
We like serving ours with roasted veggies and garlic bread! My favorite is pairing it with my oven roasted frozen broccoli. Super simple and delicious dinner with barely any cooking!
The layers of pasta and cheese are so good. I love getting the bites of fresh ricotta and basil. And the noodles cook in the sauce so they soak up all the yummy flavor!
Can I substitute the ricotta cheese?
Cottage cheese is a commonly used substitute for ricotta in baked ziti as it has a similar texture. You could also try using cream cheese in place of the ricotta.
Reader Dee says, “Cottage cheese works just fine, the eggs act as a binder. Cream cheese also works well. I’ve made this recipe many times.”
How to store
Leftover baked ziti can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
More Pasta Recipes
Crock Pot Baked Ziti
Ingredients
- (2) 25 ounce jars of pasta sauce
- 15 oz tomato sauce
- 1 pound UNCOOKED penne pasta
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup basil, freshly chopped
- 2 cups parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Combine the ricotta cheese, eggs, and fresh basil in a bowl and stir well.
- In a large bowl, combine both jars of pasta sauce and the tomato sauce together.
- Grate the Parmesan cheese and set aside.
- Grease the inside of a 6 qt slow cooker.
- Add 2 1/3 cups of pasta sauce to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Add 1/3 of the uncooked penne. It's worth measuring the penne into 3 parts. before you begin to ensure an evenly cooked dish.
- Dot on half of the ricotta mixture and spread out evenly.
- Add half of the Parmesan cheese (1 cup).
- Add another 2 1/3 cups of sauce mixture.
- Add an additional 1/3 of the uncooked penne.
- Dot on the remaining ricotta and spread out.
- Sprinkle on the remaining parmesan cheese (1 cup).
- Add the last 1/3 of the uncooked penne.
- Top with the remaining 2 1/3 cups of sauce mixture.
- Cover the crock pot baked ziti and cook it on high for 2-3 hours, or until the pasta is al dente. Mine was perfect right around 2.5 hours.
- During the last 15-30 minutes, add the mozzarella cheese to the top and allow it to melt.
- Serve alone or topped with red pepper flakes and served with garlic bread and a side salad.
Absolutely delicious! I just tweaked it a bit by adding some pasta seasoning to the ricotta mixture and garlic powder to the pasta sauce mixture. I didn’t rinse my pasta and it turned out great! My family loved it!
So glad you enjoyed it Tracy!
I cant wait to try this tomorrow nigbt…just got a crockpot delivered tonight, was thinking of throwing all of these ingredients before work and school so I can cum home to a nice dinner…however u said 2-3 hours. Low.. I am not at my house for 8 hours , what do u suggest? Thanks
–MiKe
Hey Mike,
If you don’t mind the noodles a little softer, you can cook on low for 4-6 hours. However, I suggest cooking on high for 2-3 hours for best results. Hope you enjoy it!
My crockpot isn’t the oblong shape, it’s a bit smaller and round-will this affect the meal or no?
Hi Alyssa,
The shape of the slow cooker does not matter, as long as it is 6 quart. Otherwise the recipe will not fit (it fills up to the top of a 6 qt crockpot.)
I think mine is 4 quarts, can I make that work?
Hi Alyssa,
4 Quart would be too small to fit a full batch of this recipe. I would suggest halving it if you need to use that size 🙂
Super excited to try this tonight!!! It’s cooking right now! With company coming over it was so easy to just throw it all together and now I can visit untill it’s done!
Hi I want to make this tonight 🙂 how long is the cooking time? Thanks!!!
I have made this twice now. Simple to assemble, full of flavor, excellent!
So glad you enjoyed it Lydia!
Hello,
I am looking forward to making this for my book club tonight. I have to start it early at work to be sure it’s cooked in time. If I cook it on low for 2 hours then turn it to high for 2 hours, would that be OK? If not, what would you suggest?
Thanks!
Hi Grace,
The last time I made this we cooked it on high for around 2-2.5 hours. This is what I would recommend as it turned out perfectly for us! Just keep an eye on it in the last half hour or so to be sure that the noodles do not get soggy. If you must cook it longer, you can try cooking on low for 4-5 hours, but I have never tried it this way so I am not totally sure of the result but I think it should work. Hope you enjoy it!
I tried cooking it on low for 9 hours and added a can of diced tomatoes to the top (also used whole wheat noodles). The top did not dry out, the taste was great, but the penne definitely got fairly soggy. We’re still eating it all up, but I will be sure to plan this for a non-work-day next time and cook it no more than 5-6 hours. Thanks!
Hello! Has anyone tried with gluten free noodles?
I want to double this recipe, dip I still cook it the same time? Thanks Deb
Hi Deb,
If you double this recipe you will need to use two crockpots, and the cook time would be the same for each pot (as if they were separate batches which they would be.) Hope you enjoy it!
Can I make the baked zitI in a 4 quart crick pot. Will it work.
Hi Michelle,
This recipe will completely fill a 6 qt slow cooker, so if you are using a 4 quart I would suggest cutting the recipe in half.