This cheesy meatball casserole recipe comes together quickly, uses everyday ingredients, and is comforting on a cold day! Use frozen or fresh meatballs.
You can use any kind of meatballs for this casserole. I used a package of frozen store bought meatballs, but homemade will of course work too! Try my classic beef/pork Italian Meatballs or my healthier Chicken and Spinach Meatballs. You can even make this recipe when the meatballs are frozen.
How to make meatball casserole (overview):
Boil the egg noodles for a couple of minutes less than package directions indicate. Once cooked, drain and add to a 9x13 casserole dish. Meanwhile, in a skillet, sauté the onions for a few minutes, then add in the garlic, marinara sauce, and meatballs, and heat through. Pour the skillet contents into the casserole dish, add half the cheese, and toss. Spread it out into an even layer, then top with the remaining cheese and bake for about 10-15 min until hot & bubbly. (Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below)
Recipe notes & tips:
- I used a 24 oz. package of frozen meatballs because it's convenient and that's the package size they come in at my grocery store, but depending on how many people you're feeding or if you want to use homemade meatballs instead, you can use as many/few as you like.
- You don't have to stick to marinara sauce if you don't want to... you could use any jarred tomato-based pasta sauce. If you want a touch of creaminess, add a few spoonfuls/drizzles of Alfredo sauce into the casserole before baking.
- Try my Easy Marinara Sauce if you want to make it from scratch (I'd do a double batch).
What to serve with meatball casserole?
A side salad (try my Parmesan Arugula Salad or make a Caesar salad with my Easy Caesar Salad Dressing). Garlic bread would go great too!
More cozy casseroles to try:
- Beef Noodle Casserole
- Easy Baked Spaghetti
- Cheesy Broccoli Casserole
- Creamy Cheesy Chicken Tetrazzini
- Simple Ground Beef Casserole
Questions about this meatball casserole? Let me know in the comments below!
Easy Meatball Casserole
Ingredients
- 3 cups uncooked egg noodles
- 24 ounces meatballs (I used frozen) see note
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 cups (a 24 oz. jar) marinara sauce
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F and move the rack to the top third of the oven.
- Cook the noodles for a minute or two less than the package instructions suggest, then drain them and transfer to a 9x13 casserole dish.
- Meanwhile, add the olive oil and onion to a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for 4-5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds.
- Add in the marinara sauce and meatballs and heat through. Important: if using frozen meatballs, it's important to cook them until thawed (depending on the size/type of meatballs, this may take 8-10+ minutes). Simmer over medium heat (or lower if it's bubbling too much) and stir occasionally. Break a meatball in half to ensure that it's fully thawed.
- Pour the skillet contents into the casserole dish and add half the cheese and toss together (I also add some salt & pepper at this point), then spread it out evenly.
- Top the casserole with the remaining cheese and bake, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until it's hot and bubbly. Optional: broil it for a few minutes (watch it so it doesn't burn) to brown the cheese.
Notes
- For convenience sake, you can use pre-made frozen meatballs. Use as many/few as you like. 24 oz. of them made quite a lot of casserole, so you could even use half the amount if you're only feeding 4 people, for example. Thawed meatballs or fresh homemade meatballs (my recipe is linked) will work too (any kind of meatballs will be fine).
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Hadley says
Looks delish— Would you recommend the same prep if I use a different type of pasta? Thank you!
Natasha says
Hi! Yes... but if it's a particularly small shape (like macaroni), I'd use less than 3 cups since that will make way too much. Other than that, swapping pasta should be fine. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂