Slow Cooker Rigatoni Casserole

ByJennifer Osterholt April 14, 2025April 14, 2025

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Pasta cooks until tender in a slow cooker filled with a rich, meaty red sauce and plenty of cheese to make an easy and delicious meal.

Black serving spoon lifting rigatoni noodles cooked in a delicious tomato sauce with plenty of sausage out of a slow cooker that's full of cheesy pasta.

Easy Slow Cooker Pasta Recipe

Inspired by our popular Crock Pot Spaghetti, this twist on the original slow cooker pasta is so effortless it’s worth trying!

We tested variations of this recipe using ground beef and Italian sausage. The deeper, more dynamic flavor of pork is the clear winner in our house. A quality Bob Evans product is preferred over a store brand for the best quality.

Great for a party or serving a sports team of teenagers, serve these saucy noodles pair well with Cheesy Garlic Bread. Finish the meal off with a simple Chocolate Earthquake Cake or No-Bake Cookies.

Fork ready to lift a flavorful bit of pasta with red sauce and cheese off of a white plate with the slow cooker in the background.

If you like this recipe you may also enjoy our Mostaccioli Casserole and Cream Cheese Stuffed Shells. A similar stove top version of this recipe is our Sausage and Pasta Skillet.

Ingredients Needed

One Pound of Pasta – we like rigatoni or ziti but most pastas work fine
Tomato Juice – most of this will get absorbed as the noodles cook
Pasta Sauce – use your favorite red sauce
Italian Sausage – has seasonings included, but ground beef works too
Onion – deepens the flavor of the meal
Seasonings – salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder
Cheese – a combination of ricotta, parmesan and a layer of mozzarella on top is our favorite way to enhance the pasta.

Ingredients to make slow cooker pasta are tomato juice, one pound of raw pasta, parmesan cheese, Italian sausage, pasta sauce, onion, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper on a wooden counter top.

Step By Step Instructions

Grease a 5 quart or larger crock pot – we typically use a 6 quart.

Brown meat and drain well. Add onions and cook until translucent.

Add tomato juice, red pasta sauce, spices and cooked meat. Stir everything together well!

Garlic powder, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning poured over top of pasta sauce and tomato juice in a slow cooker.

Italian herbs and spices spread over tomato juice and pasta sauce in a crock pot with a pound of cooked Italian sausage poured on top.

Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours. This allows the sauce to really soak up the herbs, spices and the meat flavor.

Add the Parmesan and ricotta cheeses and stir again.

Then stir in the raw pasta ensuring that no pasta is exposed on top of the sauce.

Spoon scooping ricotta cheese into red sauce covered with Parmesan cheese.

Box of raw tubular pasta poured into a black crock pot full of a meaty red sauce.

Cover and cook for about 30 minutes until the pasta is tender. I typically try to stir once or two to help cook evenly.

The slow cooker pasta is ready to eat at this point.

Ricotta cheese and Italian sausage in a savory red sauce with rigatoni on a serving spoon being lifted above the crock pot full.

Overhead view of a black slow cooker with a serving spoon of cheesy rigatoni on a wooden table.

Or you can add a layer of mozzarella cheese, replace the lid and allow it to melt.

Add a little eye appeal by garnishing with parsley if you please. Serve and enjoy!

Tips For Success

Meal prep by cooking the sausage and onions a couple days ahead of time or even freezing them.
The sauce can cook longer for a few hours, but the pasta is best eaten shortly after cooking through.
Cooking pasta in a slow cooker takes about 30 minutes once the sauce and liquid are already hot.
If you run out of tomato juice and sauce a little chicken broth can be added if necessary to keep the noodles from drying out.

Overhead view of spoon lifting cooked pasta coated in cheese out of a slow cooker full.

More Easy Slow Cooker Recipes

My mom’s classic Crock Pot Beef Stew is an amazing recipe.

Chicken Parmesan Stuffed Peppers work more veggies into an Italian inspired dish.

This Two Hour Crock Pot Chili is also a solid recipe.

Categories:

Main Dish, Pasta, Recipes, Slow Cooker,

Jennifer Osterholt

I share how to make life easier while raising a busy family! From delicious desserts to easy dinners and simple breakfast recipes. I’m here to make your time in the kitchen more efficient while building confidence!