Rigatoni Pie with Parmesan, mozzarella, sausage, and red sauce. It’s a cheesy, zesty baked pasta that is as good reheated as it is freshly made.
Consider making the sauce a day or two in advance.
Ingredients
- For prep
1.25 lbs. rigatoni
1 Tbs olive oil
2/3 cup loosely packed, grated Parmesan
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage
- For the sauce
1 Tbs olive oil
1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered
4-5 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/2 tsp coarse salt, plus more to taste
1 Tbs dried oregano
1 Tbs dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
1 large can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes
1 regular can (15 oz.) crushed tomatoes
1 Tbs tomato paste
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Coarsely-ground fresh black pepper, to taste
- For assembly, baking, and garnish
Butter
1 lb. mozzarella, sliced into pieces suitable for stuffing cooked rigatoni
12 slices provolone
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes or to taste
Fresh thyme leaves, for garnish
Directions
- Prep
- Cook the pasta according to package directions, but undercook it by 33%. Strain it, toss it with oil, and spread it out on a half sheet pan until it’s cool enough that it will not melt cheese. Transfer it to a mixing bowl and toss with Parmesan. Set aside.
- Preheat a 12-inch skillet over a medium flame (setting 4 out of 9). Add the sausage and scramble it until no pink remains, about 7 minutes. Be diligent about breaking it up; you want it crumbly, not chunky. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the meat to a bowl; do not clean out the pan.
- Make the sauce
- Pulse the onion and garlic in a food processor until finely chooped. Add 1 Tbs oil to the pan, then add the onion mixture, salt, and spices. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add the crushed tomato and paste. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes. With heat on lowest setting, add vinegar. Taste for salt (adding perhaps 1.5 tsp coarse) and add pepper, stirring for 1 full minute between tastings. Off heat. Ladle 2 cups of the sauce to a blender, purée it, then stir it back into the pan.
- Assemble, bake, and garnish
- Wipe the oil from the sheet you used for the pasta and place the sheet it in the oven. Grease a 9-inch springform with butter. Spread 1 cup of sauce (2 ladles full) gently and evenly into the pan. Fill the pan with the pasta, stuffing each one with mozzarella as you do, and standing each rigatoni on end. (Preheat the oven to 400°F when you’re about half-way through arranging the rigatoni.) Once you’ve got the pan filled with rigatoni, if there’s any Parmesan that remains in the rigatoni bowl, or any more of the mozzarella, tuck it in between the rigatonis, avoiding the edge of the pie. Spread 2 cups sauce over the pasta. Reserve any unused sauce. Toss 1/4 of the Italian sausage into the reserved sauce. Top the cake with the remaining sausage. Top the sausage with provolone, and then with red pepper flakes. Cover the pan with a dome of foil that does not touch the cheese. Bake for 25 minutes on the sheet.
- Remove the foil and continue to bake until the cheese browns to your liking, another 20 minutes or more.
- Move the pie to a rack (and place the sheet pan in the sink to soak) and rest the pie for 10-20 minutes.
- Run a knife around the edge of the pan, unmold, garnish with thyme, and serve with reheated, reserved meat sauce.
Notes
- Some types of pans should not be preheated. Check your manufacturer’s instructions.
- If you’re hoping to cut the servings into pie shapes, you’ll have to let the pie cool almost completely – or even refrigerate it, slice it, and reheat the slices. Served hot, family style, you’ll probably just have to dig bowlfuls with a very large serving spoon.
- Nothing in the pie needs to be cooked in the oven. You just have to heat the pie through and melt and brown the cheese. However, the longer it bakes, the more you’ll get some fantastic, crusty, baked pasta along the edge of the pan. If the recommended baking time doesn’t do this in your circumstance, add five more minutes next time. (There’s no easy way to check it during the process.)
The Backstory
An Instagram post by Delallo Foods is what convinced me to give this a try. It looks so fun, and so easy! Somehow, I was unable to just “toss” the pasta into the pan and have it all stack itself. 🙂 Still, if how much time this actually takes shocked me, I nonetheless did enjoy eating it.
Social Learning
Rigatoni pie is time consuming, and back breaking, and most of that it tied up with stuffing the rigatoni. This pie also dirties a lot of dishes and requires practically all the kitchen equipment you probably have! For all that work and mess, you do get a tasty baked pasta. But you could throw these same components into a much easier configuration and have the result be just as delicious … so it comes down to the presentation. Is all this work and mess worth it?
The answer to that question might lean more toward yes with some improvements. I originally used mozzarella pearls, thinking they’d easily fit into the rigatoni. They did not. That’s why I recommend something like a thickish matchstick shape. That’d save a lot of time. A whole pound of mozzarella seems like a lot, but you might consider making it cheesier, perhaps by adding more mozzarella … maybe mixed into the provolone topping.
Now, the positives: it is spectacular to behold. It’s also very good. Maybe it’s not the best pasta I’ve ever had, but in terms of everyday fare, it’s a definite yes. The sweet sausage is perfect in this context. In addition to that, you can’t beat what baking does to pasta. The sauce is vibrant and zesty, which I love. The pie is delightfully spicy, but if you’re not into that, halve the red pepper, at least.
Yeah, it’s a bummer that you need more than one box of pasta, but less than two. I have a feeling that some rigatonis have a wider diameter, which might allow you to use just one box. One box of Barilla was just not quite enough.
I recommend that you grate your own Parmesan. One you’ve done that, you’ll already have the processor out, and you won’t feel bad about using it on the onion and garlic.
I can see why you might want to use a jar of store-bought sauce instead of making one. It’d save you a lot of time and back ache. There are some good ones out there, although the homemade one I’ve given you in this recipe kicks ass. Plus, you could make this homemade sauce ahead, which would allow you to spread out the work so that it seems less taxing. Nonetheless, if you do go with the jar, you’ll need two: one for the pie, and at least part of the second for serving.
Note that when you unmold the pie, it will leak oil. So if you serve it family style, you’ll want to place it on something washable. To store the leftovers, wash the springform ring, place it back onto the base, and use a silicone lid to cover the pie.
Rigatoni Pie
Credit for images on this page: Make It Like a Man!, unless otherwise indicated. Thank you, Kesor. This content was not solicited by anyone, nor was it written in exchange for anything. References: Everyday Pie, Food Network, Martha, Tasty. Make It Like a Man! has been ranked by Feedspot as #15 in the Top 30 Men’s Cooking Blogs.
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That my friend is a work of art!!
Thanks so much, Lori!
Holy Cow, Jeff! I took one look at that photo and said “Yes, this is happening!” I love everything about this pie…even if it is a pain in the ass to make. I’ll gladly do the extra dishes. Plus, crispy pasta nubbins are one of my favorite things in a baked pasta dish!
David @ Spiced recently posted…Buffalo Chicken Pasta Salad
I hope you do it! I’d love to hear how it goes.
That looks SENSATIONAL. Wish I could have a slice with extra sprinkle of hard cheese atop!
angiesrecipes recently posted…Rye Rolls / Roggenbrötchen
Wish I could share one with you!
I could go for some slices of it right now. I’m hungry! You’ve created an inventive recipe.
Thanks!
Wow. This is a masterpiece! I’ve baked some similar pasta dishes, but this one is exquisite. I don’t think I’d be patient enough… good to know about the leaking oil!
Chef Mimi recently posted…Coconut Cream and Lime Margarita
Thank you, Mimi! I’m not sure I’d have the patience to do it again!
Molto invitante questa torta di pasta, perfetta per i giorni di festa!
Thank you!
Looks delicious and makes a nice presentation.
Thank you, Judy!
Wow! Wow! Wow! That looks incredible! And those crispy bits, soooo good! But stuffing each rigatoni? That’s a lot of work.
Eva Taylor recently posted…Retro Olive Balls
Oh, it was! I thought it would be, but it turned out to be way more work than I even thought. Thanks!
This looks like a showstopper of a dish Jeff, and I would have to read the instructions a few times to get how you really pull it together. However it looks delicious and a lot of fun, a different way to serve lasagne for sure. Well done for persevering with it.
Pauline recently posted…We Are Harvesting and Preserving our Fresh Ginger, now is the right time to do it
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This is a serious tour de force, Jeff! Very impressive and I can only imagine how good it tastes! And it’s also beats present at the table!
Thanks, David!
I love baked pasta, so this is right up my alley! Such a hearty and tasty combination of flavours, too.
Thanks, Ben!
Wow, what a presentation! The rigatoni ‘shells’ look rather thin so it looks like a lot of work to stuff each one. I think I would forget about the fancy presentation and just ‘throw’ all the ingredients together to get the same taste result. Good effort!
Fran @ G’day Souffle recently posted…Cochinita Pibil
I kind of feel the same way!
Spectacular looking dish! I love pasta pies. Never made one, and probably should. But in the meantime, I’ll just drool over yours. 🙂
John+/+Kitchen+Riffs recently posted…Seared Steak with Arugula and Spinach
Wish I could serve you a slice, John!
Stunning presentation, and well worth the time, I think. Though I love that it’s delicious no matter how one presents it. If I’m lucky my teenagers will help me with the mess. 😜 ~ Valentina
There you go! And thank you!
What a cooking masterpiece. Very impressive Jeff. I’ve eaten such a pie, but have always thought it too much work for a pasta bake. But you’ve got me thinking of it more as a masterpiece not just a plate of pasta.
I wonder if you froze the grated cheese and then crumbled it if it would work better for stuffing the tubes. Now, I know I’ve got to give this a try…
Ron recently posted…A peek at Gothenburg and a visit to Haga…
That’s a great idea, Ron! And thanks!
What a beautiful pie recipe! Especially its sauce is so rich. I loved it. Presentation looks great. I am sure it must be delicious.
Thank you!
Jeff, wow, this looks fantastic. This would make a great entree for Sunday Supper or when entertaining. Book marked! Thanks for the inspiration.
best,
Velva
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Jeff,
This looks recipe sounds icredible and what a fabulous presentation for company too.
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Thank you!
What an absolutely incredible dish! I’ve only seenit once before and it blew me away just like yours is doing right now. Beautiful job on the presentation and I’m sure it is as delicious as it looks.
mjskitchen recently posted…Tomato Confit Risotto
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Wow, this is a work of art! I can’t wait to put this one on the dinner table.
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Thanks, Julie!