Make dinner time quick and easy with this One Pot Rigatoni Bolognese! Everything cooks in one pot – even the pasta cooks right in the sauce!
One pot pasta recipes are always my go-to on those absolutely crazy days, and dinner prep is incredibly quick and easy with this One Pot Rigatoni Bolognese, which is what I always go for when I don’t feel like hauling out the Instant Pot to make Instant Pot “Baked Ziti”.
Everything cooks in one pot for quick prep and easy clean up – even the pasta cooks right in the sauce. Some call me a lazy cook, but I like to call myself efficient.
Just a side note: I’m well aware that a real Bolognese sauce simmers for hours to get the perfect flavor. But calling this quick and easy weeknight dinner Bolognese makes it sound like so much more effort, and sometimes a haggard mother needs to feel special, too 😉
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is an overview of the ingredients in the recipe (great to use as a visual grocery list at the store!). Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Ground beef: I always use lean ground beef for this, but you can use ground Italian sausage in place of the beef if you prefer. Ground turkey is also an option if you want to make a lighter meal.
- Pasta: This recipe works with most pasta shapes that cook in around 10 minutes (I do not recommend instant varieties, or very small or thin shapes, they usually need less liquid to cook and the pasta will stay soupy), though I do love rigatoni a lot with bolognese sauce.
- Broth: Feel free to use chicken broth if you don’t have beef on hand. The flavor will be a little different, but still delicious.
How to make One Pot Rigatoni Bolognese
Start by cooking the beef in a little olive oil with salt and pepper until it’s browned and crumbled. If you have a lot of grease emerging from the meat, feel free to drain it at this point (1).
Next, stir in the vegetables and sauté for a few minutes, until the onions have softened (2).
Now add the herbs, seasoning and tomato paste. Stir them in well until the tomato paste is fragrant (3).
Add the beef broth, scraping any browned bits off the bottom of the pot (4).
Finally, stir in the diced tomatoes and uncooked rigatoni (5).
Now, you’ll want to bring the liquids to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook the pasta until the rigatoni are done to your liking. Stir from time to time to make sure the pasta doesn’t stick and burn on the bottom of the pan.
Once the rigatoni are cooked, the liquids should have reduced to a saucy consistency. If you feel like it needs more broth, add more during the cooking – but don’t overdo it or you’ll end up with bolognese soup.
I recommend serving the pasta right away – the sauce thickens as it sits, and it’s really best eaten straight away.
Recipe tips
- No pre-cooking the pasta! I always get comments on my one pot pasta recipes turning out soupy, and usually it’s because the pasta was pre-cooked – do NOT pre-cook the pasta!
- Chopping the vegetables:
- When cooking with little kids around, I like to get all of the prep work done ahead of time. Sometimes I even chop veggies during nap time in the morning!
- Here, you need to chop onion,carrot and celery. These are relatively easy to clean and prep. Did you know that it’s easier to peel an onion after rinsing it? It kind of sticks the peel together so it doesn’t annoyingly flutter everywhere.
- Chop everything quite small so it softens quickly during cooking. And to be even more lazy, I usually throw it all in my food processor and pulse a few times until it’s chopped up. So easy!
- Make sure to sauté the tomato paste for a few minutes: Stir the tomato paste into the pot and seasoning and cook for another minute – it is important to roast the tomato paste before adding any liquids, to give it a richer flavor.
Freezer instructions
You can make this and freeze it in a casserole dish. Reheat in the oven at 360°F covered with foil for about an hour (no need to defrost). Sprinkle with cheese and bake uncovered for another 10-15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and the casserole is piping hot all the way through.
General freezer tips
- make sure to use containers or bags suitable for freezing
- label with the name and use-by date (freeze for up to 3 months)
- reheat until piping hot all the way through before serving
Tips for leftovers
Turning leftovers into a pasta casserole is the best way to reheat leftovers here. Refrigerate any leftovers in a casserole dish for up to 3 days. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 15-20 minutes at 400°F, or until hot and bubbly.
If the pasta feels dry, stir in ½ cup – 1 cup of tomato sauce before sprinkling with cheese.
More one pot pasta dinners
PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback! You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Sign up for my email list, too!
One Pot Rigatoni Bolognese
Recipe details
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 1 carrot finely chopped
- 1 celery stalk finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- salt & pepper to taste
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 3 cups beef broth or more as needed
- 1 (28-oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (16-oz) box rigatoni pasta uncooked
- grated parmesan to serve (optional)
Instructions
- Brown the beef: Heat oil in a medium-large pan. Brown the beef, seasoning with a few pinches of salt and pepper as it cooks.
- Cook the vegetables: Add the finely chopped vegetables to the pot with the beef and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until softened (about 2-3 minutes).
- Season and deglaze: Add garlic powder, Italian seasoning, a pinch of salt, pepper and tomato paste to the pan. Stir until mixed in well. Pour in 3 cups broth, scratching the browned bits off the bottom of the pan.
- Cook the pasta: Add the diced tomatoes and uncooked pasta to the skillet, making sure to stir everything in until the pasta is covered with liquid. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the pasta is done, about 15 minutes. Add up to one more cup of broth during cooking, as needed. Serve with grated parmesan.
Notes
Ingredient Notes:
Ground beef: I always use lean ground beef for this, but you can use crumbled Italian sausage in place of the ground beef if you prefer. Pasta: This recipe works with most pasta shapes that cook in around 10 minutes (I do not recommend instant varieties, or very small or thin shapes, they usually need less liquid to cook and the pasta will stay soupy), though I do love rigatoni a lot with bolognese sauceCooking Tips:
No pre-cooking the pasta! I always get comments on my one pot pasta recipes turning out soupy, and usually it’s because the pasta was pre-cooked – do NOT pre-cook the pasta! Chopping the vegetables: When cooking with little kids around, I like to get all of the prep work done ahead of time. Sometimes I even chop veggies during nap time in the morning! Here, you need to chop onion, carrot and celery. These are relatively easy to clean and prep. Did you know that it’s easier to peel an onion after rinsing it? It kind of sticks the peel together so it doesn’t annoyingly flutter everywhere. Chop everything quite small so it softens quickly during cooking. And to be even more lazy, I usually throw it all in my food processor and pulse a few times until it’s chopped up. So easy! Make sure to sauté the tomato paste for a few minutes: Stir the tomato paste into the pot and seasoning and cook for another minute – it is important to roast the tomato paste before adding any liquids, to give it a richer flavor.Freezer tips
You can make this and freeze it in a casserole dish. Reheat in the oven at 360°F covered with foil for about an hour (no need to defrost). Sprinkle with cheese and bake uncovered for another 10-15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and the casserole is piping hot all the way through. Freezer tips- make sure to use containers or bags suitable for freezing
- label with the name and use-by date (freeze for up to 3 months)
- reheat until piping hot all the way through before serving
Cookie says
This recipe is good but be sure to remember to SALT TO TASTE. I know it seems like a no Brainer but I followed this recipe to the tee and didn’t see it out to do so. Came out good but definitely could of used some sea salt during preparation. I added a bit after and it totally took it to te next level but if I’d if done it before I know I of could.
Dean Miller says
This was absolutely amazing… such a simple and easy recipe, will definitely be adding it to my dinner list of favourites… TOO DIE FOR!!!!
Phyl says
Nora…Do u drain the juice from the canned tomatoes? I want to make this tonight but not sure on the canned tomatoes if they get drained or not.
Thank you.
Melanie Grein says
AMAZING!! I’ve made it twice now for my family and they love it! I love that you’re an “efficient” cook…makes life easy! This comes together fast and tastes like a restaurant meal…It’s a keeper…thank you so much!! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes…
JD says
I made this tonight and it was extremely good. I followed the recipe closely, using water with some added beef base and substituting tri-color garden rotini. The final result had a very rich flavor and I don’t see any need to tweak the recipe when I make it in the future. Thank you for this delicious recipe! It has been added to my list of husband-approved dishes!
Heather says
This recipe was delicious! I used vegetable broth instead of water, and Morningstar beef-less crumbles to make it vegetarian friendly. My kids all loved it, even the picky one! I added red pepper flakes and fresh basil at the end. The noodles did take about 10 minutes longer to cook FYI. I will definitely cook this again.
Nora Rusev says
That is so smart to make it vegetarian! And I’m glad you and your kids enjoyed it. The noodle cooking times vary so much across brands, crazy. Sorry yours took so much longer 🙈 I think I’m going to have to start giving instructions per pasta brand in my one pot pasta recipes, haha!
Jane Saunders says
So fantastic. I often made stovetop pasta as a quick meal (which cooks the pasta in with everything) but had never thought to extend this hack to a bolognese before. Just what my weeknights need on a regular basis
Nora Rusev says
I’m so glad you enjoyed the pasta, Jane! Thanks for your review, I appreciate it.
Emmalyn says
Sorry to overrun you like this hahaha but another BF vote
Coming in. Just made this on a whim for lunch bc it looked so good and it was DELISH. Didn’t have garlic powder so use a little more Italian seasoning, and used beef broth instead of water. Boyfriend wholfed it down.
Thanks for sharing!!
Nora Rusev says
Don’t be sorry, Emmalyn! Keep those comments coming, it’s always great to chat 🙂 I’m so glad you and your boyfriend enjoyed the pasta. And good call on the seasoning!
Alice E says
Combing from buzzffeed too and def making this for dinner tonite. Looks so good! Is the celery mandatory? I know I have everything else at home and don’t feel like jumping into the store after work.
Nora Rusev says
Alice, no it’s absolutely fine to make without the celery! If you have a green pepper by any chance, you can use about a quarter of that chopped up if you like the flavor (I would never eat it as-is, but I do really like it in some dishes with ground beef). But it’s fine to just skip it. Hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we do!
Jen says
Just saw this on a buzzfeed post and would love to make this week, but wondering if I can sub in gf pasta? My son is celiac so we have to I am not one of those crazies wo do this voluntarily lol
Nora Rusev says
Jen, yes you can absolutely! I heard from a friend that the gluten free varieties can get mushy a bit faster vs regular ones, so I would try and pick a more sturdy brand/shape. Make sure to check often and definitely start with 2.5 – 3 cups water and adjust from there. Hope that helps!
Phyl says
Nora… do u use the juice from the big can of tomatoes or drain it? It does not say. I am making it now and getting to that point of adding the tomatoes. Guess I better check recipes for questions a day or so before I plan on making it
Thank you.
Phyl
Nora says
Phyl, I usually do add it! Sorry if that wasn’t clear in the recipe. I hope it worked out for you?
Phyl says
Nora
Thank you for responding. I did make it left out the carrots and celery only cuz I chopped so much yesterday for tortellini soup and failed to make extra but it was still good. I shared with a couple neighbors and they liked it also.
Thanks again.
Phyl