These easy Stuffed Shells are the perfect dinner and a family favorite. Filled with three kinds of cheese and baked in Marinara Sauce, it’s quick to prepare and leftovers keep and reheat beautifully. Watch the video tutorial and see how easy it is to make ricotta-stuffed pasta shells.
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We love Pasta recipes from Creamy Shrimp Pasta to Shrimp Scampi Pasta and of course our Homemade Pasta from scratch. If you are a fan of pasta, this Stuffed Shells Recipe is a must-try!
Stuffed Shells Video Tutorial
My kids love these stuffed jumbo shells filled with ricotta and melty mozzarella cheese over a bed of Marinara Sauce. They always disappear fast and reheat well so I put them into their lunchboxes and those lunchboxes always come home empty which feels great.
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What are Stuffed Shells?
Stuffed shells are similar to Italian Manicotti or Cannelloni. Stuffed shells are jumbo pasta shells (sold in most grocery stores usually in the pasta isle), stuffed with ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese filling. Pasta shells are perfect pockets for easy stuffing.
How to Make Stuffed Shells
There are 3 main elements to stuffed pasta shells; the pasta, sauce and cheese filling, but the process is easy.
- Cook Pasta Shells – according to package instructions in salted water.
- Make the Red Sauce – Sautee onions in oil, add garlic, salt pepper, and oregano. Stir in 3 cups of your favorite Marinara Sauce. Pour sauce into a 13×9 casserole dish.
- Combine Cheese Sauce – In a large bowl, mix together ricotta, 2 cups shredded mozzarella, parmesan, 1 egg, salt, pepper, and oregano.
- Stuff Shells – The easiest way to portion is to fill a trigger ice cream scoop halfway with cheese filling then transfer it into the shell. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup mozzarella over the pasta shells
- Bake – Cover with foil, and bake at 375˚F for 30 minutes then broil uncovered for 2-4 minutes.
Common Questions
Once shells are cooked to al dente, drain the hot water then fill with cold water to stop the cooking process and keep the pasta from sticking.
Al dente means firm to the bite. Most package instructions will give you timings for perfectly cooked al dente pasta. Do not overcook shells or they will be flimsy and hard to stuff.
Yes, this will work great in a glass casserole dish. Broiling is not recommended with glass bakeware so once you remove the foil, increase the heat to about 475˚F and bake for 3-5 minutes until cheese is bubbly.
The best substitute for ricotta in stuffed shells is drained and mashed plain cottage cheese.
Serve With
Stuffed shells are the perfect vegetarian main course paired with Garlic Bread and a simple side salad or veggies
Make-Ahead
- To Refrigerate: Assemble, cover with foil and refrigerate unbaked stuffed shells for 1-2 days then bake as directed, adding 5 minutes to the bake time if baking a chilled casserole. You can also refrigerate a fully cooked and cooled lasagna.
- Freezing: Fully assemble shells in a casserole dish (without baking), cover tightly with foil, and freeze up to 3 months. Bake from frozen (covered with foil) at 375˚F for about 45 minutes.
- Reheating: Warm portions in the microwave or oven until shells are heated through and cheese is melted.
Microwaving Tip:
Pasta tends to get dry when reheated, but here’s a simple trick that could be used to retain moisture: Add a drizzle of water over your food before reheating. Also, to prevent splatter, we highly recommend using a plate cover.
Stuffed shells truly are easy to make. The prep time is minimal and the oven does the rest. It’s sure to end up on your list of go-to dinners.
More Pasta Casseroles
Pasta bakes are the best kind of family-friendly dinner. Each of these recipes makes a big batch and each reheats really well which is perfect for meal prep.
- Baked Feta Pasta – easy and excellent
- Classic Lasagna – layers of noodles and beefy sauce
- Chicken Lasagna – in white sauce
- Baked Ziti – noodles in meat sauce
- Lasagna Roll-Ups – the easiest way to serve lasagna
- Chicken Tetrazzini – in cheesy cream sauce
Stuffed Shells Recipe
Ingredients
- 20 jumbo pasta shells, cooked to package instructions
- 1/2 medium onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 3 cups marinara sauce
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1/4 cup parsley, plus more to garnish
Instructions
- Cook Pasta: Preheat oven to 375˚F. Cook shells in salted water according to package instructions (stirring several times to keep the pasta from sticking to the pot), then drain and fill pot with cold water to stop the cooking process and keep shells from sticking to each other.
- Make Sauce: In a deep pan over medium-high heat, add 1 Tbsp olive oil and sauté chopped onion until softened and golden (3-5 min). Add minced garlic, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and 1/4 tsp oregano. Sauté another 1 minute stirring constantly until garlic is fragrant. Add 3 cups marinara and bring to a uniform boil then simmer for 2 minutes and pour the sauce into the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish.
- Cheese Filling: In a large bowl, add 15 oz ricotta cheese, 2 cups mozzarella, 1/3 cup parmesan, 1 egg, 1/4 cup parsley, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Stir until well combined.
- Stuff Shells: Use about 1/2 ice cream scoop or just until filled (do not overstuff). Place them in the casserole over the marinara sauce in a single layer. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese over the top.
- Bake: Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. The sauce should be bubbling at the edges. Remove foil and broil for 2-4 minutes to lightly brown the cheese. Remove from the oven and garnish with parsley to serve.
Nutrition Per Serving
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
Really tasty and overall simple, definitely takes some time to stuff the shells but I am not sure how much of that was because I was running back forth playing referee between the 1.5 and 3.5 year old lol.
Can I add sausage or ground beef to the recipe?
Hi Ida, yes, you can sautee 1/2 lb of ground beef with the onion. Also, push the shells down into the sauce afterward. The shells go in easier without the meat in the sauce, but both taste great. Can you tell I’ve experimented with a meat sauce? I hope you love the recipe!
The stuffed shells and sauce came out AMAZING. Thank you for sharing your recipes.
My family loved this recipe so it’s definitely a keeper! The only issue I had is that the jumbo shells stuck together when boiling. So much so, that half of them were ruined but thankfully I had another box. What do suggest for that?
Great to hear that! Please check this portion in the recipe “How to keep pasta shells from sticking together?” for more tips.
I meant how to keep the shells from sticking together abd to the bottom of the pot while boiling them.
A couple of tips that can help, be sure to use a pot large enough so there is plenty of water and space for the pasta. Do not over cook the pasta (it should be al-dente). Don’t forget to salt your water.
Add some cooking oil to your water before you add the pasta and mix right away after you add the pasta. That should prevent it from sticking together.
This is hands-down the best shells recipe ever. I made it today for me & my husbands’ 39th wedding anniversary dinner. He kept raving about them; they are excellent. Followed the recipe, just added extra garlic & onions. This is our holiday, bday & special occasion meal now. Thank you Natasha!
Delicious! I never thought of broiling at the end, but it makes such a difference! Definitely a hit at my house!
I use nutmeg in my cheese mixture and it is delicious! Gives it a nice smoky flavor to the cheese! I read this recipe on a box of shells and I have never seen it anywhere else but it is delicious! Not a whole lot of nutmeg but just enough that you can taste it! I promise you will love it
Hello,
Is it okay if I do not use the egg for the shell stuffing?
Thank you
I have not tried a version without eggs yet to advise but one of readers shared this comment “My two children (and their adults) were so excited to get to try these – one of my children is allergic to egg so I substituted the egg for 2 tsp. corn starch and it worked beautifully! Thank you so much for another wonderful recipe! You make recipes approachable and you’ve never steered me wrong. ” Hope that helps.
I live in Italy. If you use real parmigiano (not the stuff in the green can) you can leave out the egg. We don’t always put egg in pasta stuffing when using ricotta. The parmigiano melts and helps to bind the other indgrediants together. Also, try putting the ricotta through a sieve so that the consistancy is less crumbly.
Could you use this with alfredo sauce in place of marinara sauce?
Hi Kristy! With the combination of ingredients, we prefer the marinara sauce but feel free to experiment with it.
You may also enjoy our Chicken lasagna recipe with white sauce.
Love this recipe and so easy to fix. Heat up well the next day for leftovers as well. Made them for a neighbor after her baby was born for her to heat up to feed the family and she asked for the recipe.
That’s wonderful, Kristy!
Made this tonight and it was a hit in our household! I couldn’t find the big shells so I used cannelloni instead. Any tips on filling them? My ziplock bag idea was a bit of a mess. Definitely will make this again. Thanks Natasha for another great recipe 😊
Hi Sara! You’re very welcome. I’m so glad you tried the recipe and loved it. A ziploc bag would be my go to as well for filling them.
I just tried this recipe. I added chicken to the recepie yummy!!
Thank you for the recepie.
You’re very welcome, Carole!
I love this recipe for both stuffed shells and manicotti. I’ve made it twice and each time it was fantastIc!
Love this recipe! Family favorite I always make a double batch as family has a tendency to show up on shells day!!
Question: I just made your marinara sauce exactly the way you said. Then I was making your stuffed shell recipe which said to sauté the onion, the garlic, the spices and add marinara sauce again. If the original recipe has the onions and garlic and spices do you still have to add them for the marinara sauce that’s under the stuffed shells?
Hi Ellen! Yes, I still do even when using my homemade marinara.
Loved ❤️ loved ❤️ loved it… superb taste and it was so easy to make…. thank you very much… 😍
Have made this and many of your recipes including chicken pot pie, fancy chicken salad and chicken tetrazzini to name only a few. Thank you for all these!
You’re welcome! I hope you’ll love all the recipes that you will try.
Can you use parsley spice instead of fresh parsley?
Hi Rheeza, I haven’t tested that but if you are going to substitute, you would replace 1/4 cup fresh parsley with 1 Tbsp of dried parsley. That should work well in the sauce but I would not garnish with dried parsley.