Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website.
With this easy dump-and-bake dinner, frozen tortellini and frozen meatballs go straight into the oven in one dish — no boiling or thawing necessary! With rich marinara, bold red wine, zesty red pepper, herbs, spices, and two different types of cheese, this tortellini and meatballs is a hearty, flavorful casserole for your busiest weeknights.
Table of Contents
- The Difference Between Tortellini and Ravioli
- Ingredients for Baked Tortellini and Meatballs
- How to Bake Frozen Tortellini and Meatballs
- What to Serve with Tortellini and Meatballs
- Preparation and Storage
- Recipe Variations
- Tips for the Best Tortellini and Meatballs Recipe
- Dump-and-Bake Tortellini and Meatballs Recipe
Dinnertime doesn’t get much easier than a dump-and-bake casserole with about 10 minutes of prep! Just stir together the ingredients — you don’t even have to thaw the tortellini and meatballs first.
With a handful of pantry staples, baked tortellini is a meal that you can throw together with pantry (or freezer) staples when you don’t have anything else planned on the menu. Great for those hectic nights when you don’t want to make another stop at the grocery store! Just add a side salad and some garlic bread for a low-effort supper that the whole family will love!
The Difference Between Tortellini and Ravioli
While both pastas are stuffed with meats, cheeses, or vegetables, they are not quite the same. Ravioli is two layers of pasta that form a pillow-like shape, whereas tortellini is folded into hat-like, ring shapes that are similar to dumplings.
What is tortellini traditionally stuffed with?
Tortellini are ring-shaped pasta originally from the Italian region of Emilia. They are typically stuffed with meat, cheese, or spinach, and are sold either frozen, fresh, or dried. In this recipe, I’ve shown frozen cheese tortellini, which includes creamy ricotta, Parmesan cheese, and Romano cheese.
Do you put a sauce with tortellini?
Like any other pasta, tortellini is best when served with a sauce for moisture and flavor. Even if it’s just a drizzle of olive oil or melted butter, you’ll want something to finish off the dish and prevent the pasta from becoming dry and sticky.
Here we’re using store-bought marinara sauce for ease, which is a simple tomato sauce made with olive oil, tomatoes, onion, garlic, herbs, and spices. We’ll jazz it up with even more flavor — such as red wine, crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and onion powder — to give it homemade taste with minimal effort!
Does tortellini have to be boiled?
While traditional recipes call for boiling tortellini, this dump-and-bake method is a hands-off option that allows you to cook the pasta right in the sauce in the oven. It’s a quick, flavorful, comforting, and incredibly easy casserole!
Ingredients for Baked Tortellini and Meatballs
This is just a quick overview of the ingredients that you’ll need for baked tortellini and meatballs. As always, specific measurements and step-by-step instructions are included in the printable recipe box at the bottom of the post.
- Frozen cheese tortellini and frozen miniature (or “bite size”) meatballs: do not thaw these ingredients before adding them straight to the oven. The tortellini cooks quickly, and the meatballs are fully cooked when frozen, so you just need to heat them through in the oven.
- Marinara sauce: a jar of high-quality store-bought sauce is a perfect easy binder for the casserole.
- Beef broth or water: additional cooking liquid for the pasta to absorb as it bakes.
- Red wine: flavors the sauce and gives it a richer, bolder, more homemade taste.
- Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and onion powder: additional herbs and spices to give the casserole even more flavor.
- Mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese: for that ooey, gooey, melted cheese on top! These two cheese compliment tortellini, marinara, and meatballs really nicely.
- Kosher salt: add a bit to the sauce so that you season the tortellini as it cooks.
How to Bake Frozen Tortellini and Meatballs
It doesn’t get much easier than a one-dish meal with just 10 minutes of prep time! I’ve included the detailed instructions in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here’s the quick version:
- Stir together all of the ingredients except for the cheese.
- Cover and bake for 30 minutes, or until pasta is tender and meatballs are warm.
- Sprinkle cheeses over top, and place the dish under the broiler for a few minutes so that the cheese can melt and brown on top.
- Garnish with chopped fresh herbs, if desired, and serve!
What to Serve with Tortellini and Meatballs
Here are some easy sides that compliment tortellini and meatballs:
- Garlic Bread or Breadsticks
- 3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, Flaky Biscuits, Cheese Biscuits, or Drop Biscuits
- Crusty French Baguette, No-Knead Cast Iron Focaccia, Focaccia Bread, No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread, Soft Dinner Rolls, or Homemade Crescent Rolls
- 3-Ingredient Sour Cream Muffins, Pumpkin Muffins, or Pumpkin Bread
- Green Salad with Red Wine Vinaigrette, Mixed Greens with Dijon Vinaigrette, Wedge Salad with Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing, Caesar Salad, or our favorite House Salad with Candied Pecans
- Fennel Salad with Apples and Creamy Cider Dressing
- Parmesan Roasted Cauliflower or Garlic Roasted Broccoli
- Sauteed Zucchini or 3-Ingredient Parmesan Roasted Yellow Squash
- Sweet and Spicy Collard Greens with Tomatoes and Onions or Sauteed Spinach
Preparation and Storage
- Make Ahead: You can prep this dinner in advance and keep it stashed in the freezer until you’re ready to bake it! To do so, simply assemble the casserole, cover tightly with foil, and freeze the unbaked casserole for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake the tortellini and meatballs, pull the dish out of the freezer and bake as instructed. You’ll probably need to extend the baking time some, but just keep your eye on it.
- Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days; however, the pasta absorbs the sauce the longer it sits, and therefore can become mushy.
- Reheat leftovers in a 350°F oven just until warmed through, about 15-20 minutes. You can also reheat individual servings in a microwave for 1-2 minutes. Be careful not to heat the leftover pasta for too long, though — overdone tortellini has a mushy, gummy texture.
- I don’t recommend freezing leftovers after baking. The thawed pasta will have an undesirable texture.
Recipe Variations
- Use any flavor of frozen tortellini. We like cheese tortellini, but a meat-filled tortellini or spinach tortellini will also work well. You can also use frozen chicken meatballs, turkey meatballs, or veggie meatballs, or try ground sausage or browned ground beef instead.
- Stir in some veggies, such as fresh or frozen (thawed and squeezed dry) baby spinach, sauteed mushrooms, onion, or zucchini, frozen peas, or parboiled or steamed broccoli.
- Swap out the marinara sauce for jarred Alfredo sauce. Use white wine instead of red wine, and chicken broth instead of beef broth.
- Omit the crushed red pepper flakes for a mild dish.
- The nutritional information provided is just an estimate, and will vary depending on the brand of tortellini, meatballs, and sauce that you use.
Tips for the Best Tortellini and Meatballs Recipe
- Use miniature meatballs (also called “bite size” or “cocktail size” meatballs). These are smaller and therefore heat through in the same amount of time as it takes to cook the tortellini.
- Do not let the tortellini or meatballs thaw before baking the casserole, or the texture will be “off” and the cooking time will be different.
- The total baking time will vary depending on a number of different factors, including the type/size/brand of tortellini and meatballs, the type of pan that you use, and on your individual oven. As a result, keep an eye on the tortellini as it bakes. You’ll know it’s done when the pasta is al dente (tender, with a firm bite). The tortellini will continue to cook and soften as it sits in the hot sauce, so you don’t want to overcook it and end up with mushy or torn tortellini.
- Garnish the dish with fresh herbs like fresh basil, fresh parsley, and fresh oregano for a bright finishing touch.
More Tortellini Recipes to Try
Dump-and-Bake Chicken Tortellini Alfredo
40 minutes mins
Meatball Soup with Cheese Tortellini
35 minutes mins
Sausage and Cheese Tortellini Skillet
30 minutes mins
Dump-and-Bake Tortellini and Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 (19 ounce) package frozen cheese tortellini (about 4.5 cups of frozen tortellini), not thawed
- 2 cups frozen mini meatballs (also called "bite size" or "cocktail size" meatballs), not thawed
- 3 cups marinara sauce
- ½ cup beef broth or water
- ¼ cup red wine (or sub with additional beef broth or water)
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (use less, or omit entirely if you don’t like it spicy)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Optional garnish: chopped fresh herbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking dish or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- In the prepared dish (or in a separate bowl), stir together the stir together frozen tortellini, frozen meatballs, marinara sauce, water, red wine, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and onion powder. Season with a little bit of salt to taste; stir. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove dish from oven; stir well. At this point, the pasta should be tender and the meatballs should be warm. If the tortellini or meatballs are still undercooked, cover the dish and return to the oven until done. Then move on to the next step.
- Heat the broiler on HIGH. Sprinkle mozzarella and Parmesan over the top of the casserole. Place the dish (uncovered) under the broiler for a couple of minutes, just until the cheese melts. Keep a close eye on the dish while it’s under the broiler, since it can burn quickly.
Notes
- Use miniature meatballs (also called “bite size” or “cocktail size” meatballs). These are smaller and therefore heat through in the same amount of time as it takes to cook the tortellini.
- Do not let the tortellini or meatballs thaw before baking the casserole, or the texture will be “off” and the cooking time will be different.
- The total baking time will vary depending on a number of different factors, including the type/size/brand of tortellini and meatballs, the type of pan that you use, and on your individual oven. As a result, keep an eye on the tortellini as it bakes. You’ll know it’s done when the pasta is al dente (tender, with a firm bite). The tortellini will continue to cook and soften as it sits in the hot sauce, so you don’t want to overcook it and end up with mushy or torn tortellini.
- Garnish the dish with fresh herbs like fresh basil, fresh parsley, and fresh oregano for a bright finishing touch.
