Name: Easy Rigatoni Bolognese
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 16 oz. uncooked rigatoni pasta; 1 lb. ground beef; 1 tbsp. olive oil; 24 oz. your favorite marinara sauce; shredded Parmesan cheese and parsley, to garnish (optional)

Jump to Recipe Jump to Video

This Easy Rigatoni Bolognese, made with only 4 ingredients and in less than 30 minutes, is going to become your family's favorite in no time!

This Easy Rigatoni Bolognese is a true crowd-pleaser and time-saver. Made with just a few simple ingredients and no fuss, it is a treasure for a busy housewife. I cook it on an almost weekly basis and we never get tired of it. It is one of my husband's Top 5 favorite dishes, and one of my Top 10. 🙂 Need I say more?

Of course, you can use other kinds of pasta in this recipe. I just like rigatoni best. Some may argue that spaghetti is the best pick, but it is truly a personal preference.

Rigatoni Bolognese Video Tutorial

So, let's start with the basics.

What is Bolognese?

It’s a fairly simple Italian meat sauce made with ground beef, onions, carrots, celery, fresh herbs, garlic, diced tomatoes, and wine. It’s most famous for its thick and meaty texture that nicely sticks to the pasta of your choice. In this recipe, however, we are going to simplify this sauce and cook beef in Marinara. The flavors will be very similar to the original Bolognese sauce, but the effort will be just minimal.

Main Ingredients

Pasta. Of course, you can use other kinds of pasta. I used rigatoni.
Ground Beef. I prefer organic grass-fed ground beef. Italian sausage or ground turkey (or chicken) is another option.
Marinara. Use your favorite brand.
Olive Oil. Extra virgin, please.
Optional: Parmesan cheese and parsley, to garnish.

How to Make Rigatoni Bolognese

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the rigatoni and cook for 10-12 minutes, or until al dente; drain and set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, cook the beef with olive oil on medium heat, for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the Marinara Sauce, reduce the heat to low, and keep cooking for another 20 minutes.

4. Add ½ of the meat sauce to the pasta and mix well.

5. Divide the pasta between the serving plates and add the remaining meat sauce on top.

6. Garnish with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Recipe tips

Cooking pasta. Use enough water and add a generous amount of salt. Adding salt means more savory, flavorful results when the pasta is cooked. How much should you add? Some say the water should taste just like the sea.
Add extra spices. If you like to kick up the flavors you can add some oregano, red pepper flakes, and/or garlic.
Garnish. Garnishing your dishes not only makes them look more appealing but adds extra hints of flavors. Take this extra step and make your dish special!

Freezing Rigatoni Bolognese

This dish can be frozen in a few ways:

Freeze just the sauce. Store the sauce alone in a sealed container and freeze for up to 6 months. Let thaw in the fridge and reheat in a saucepan when preparing.

Freeze the whole dish. Just turn it into a casserole! Transfer it to a casserole dish, cover it with plastic wrap and freeze. When ready to serve, remove from the freezer, cover with foil, and place it straight in the oven. Bake at 360°F for about 50 minutes. Remove the foil, sprinkle with cheese, and bake uncovered for another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted.

What to serve these Rigatoni Bolognese with

I hope you enjoy this Easy Rigatoni Bolognese. This recipe is so tasty and satisfying, you'll definitely want to come back to it again and again. Bon appetite!