1 PAN VEGAN RIGATONI BAKE
If I could scream from the rooftops how delicious this dump and bake one pan vegan rigatoni bake casserole turned out, then I would!! It’s vegan, plant-based, cheesy, meaty, hearty and freaking fabulous!! It’s so good it will please any crowd, I’m sure of it!
This recipe is made with vegan meat. You can use my homemade tofu taco meat or store-bought vegan ground beef like Gardein or Lightlife! Any of these will work here. We will also be using a vegan mozzarella cheese. Use either my homemade or store-bought Miyoko’s liquid mozzarella.
I love 1 pot/1 pan meals and dump and bake meals and casseroles. If you love this dish, then you will also love my amazing baked vegan ziti!
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN 1 PAN RIGATONI PASTA DISH
Step 1. Add all of the ingredients to a large deep casserole dish except for the vegan mozzarella cheese.
Step 2. Give all the ingredients a thorough stir to really make sure everything is well mixed and all the spices are distributed evenly.
Step 3. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes.
Step 4. Add the vegan liquid mozzarella cheese, extra basil and red pepper flakes and bake again for another 10 minutes or until firm and golden on top.
Look at that heavenly cheesy meaty vegan casserole. This recipe is so easy and really truly is a dump and bake meal. It requires zero cooking beforehand!
This recipe will serve a large crowd too, as it makes a lot!!
MORE VEGAN EASY 1 POT DINNERS
1 Pan Vegan Rigatoni Bake
Easy vegan plant-based meal is this 1 Pan Rigatoni Bake! It is cheesy, meaty, hearty, a crowd-pleaser, easy to make in 1 dish and so delicious and comforting! Dump and bake casserole!
Ingredients
- One lb (16 ounces) uncooked rigatoni pasta (use gluten-free if needed)
- 1/2 cup (80g) finely diced white onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 3 cups (720g) tomato sauce/passata
- 3 cups (720g) water
- 1 cup (110g vegan ground beef (either Gardein or Lightlife OR my homemade taco meat)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar or regular sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes plus extra on top
- 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3/4 cup (180g liquid mozzarella cheese (either my homemade or store-bought Miyoko's)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Add the ingredients to a large deep casserole dish in the listed order of ingredients, except the mozzarella. We will be baking it first before adding the cheese.
- Give all the ingredients a thorough stir to really make sure everything is well mixed and all the spices are distributed evenly.
- Press the pasta into the liquid to make sure they are covered fairly well.
- Bake uncovered for 35 minutes. Remove the dish and pour the liquid mozzarella cheese over the top and spread out with a spoon.
- Top with extra dried basil and red pepper flakes. You can use fresh basil if desired, I just did not have any, but I'm sure it would be even better!
- Bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is firm and golden like in the photos. Cool a few minutes and serve!
Tried this recipe?Tag @thevegan8brandi on Instagram and use tag #thevegan8!
This one will definitely be in my rotation. I made a half recipe and made lots of errors but it still turned out great. First I forgot the garlic. Took it out of the oven and stirred and put back in the oven. Then after about 8 minutes I saw chopped onion and red pepper sitting on the counter. Repeat and adjusted the time. This will be a great dish for company dinners. The texture of the taco meat reminded me of sausage. So I am thinking maybe making the taco meat with Italian sausage spices. Love all your recipes!
So glad it was a hit Joan!!
This is really really good. I had to cook my covered but other than that it was perfect!!
What a great time saver! This was super. I do have a request, though …to add a recipe scaler to your site. Not that it’s a huge deal, but it’s just two of us and I sometimes get lost in the calculations when reducing ingredients in the middle of preparation. Thanks!
Do we use the entire bottle of miyokos mozzarella cheese? Also, making this with your taco meat recipe. Do we prepare and bake and then add as per recipe instructions?
Hi Tina! No, just use 3/4 cup of the cheese. And yes, if you are using my homemade taco meat recipe, make it first! If you use store-bought vegan ground meat like gardein, no need to cook it first.
It was delicious! Thank you.
Do you precook the vegan ground
Nope!
This sounds so good! If I’m going to cheat and use jarred pasta sauce, which other ingredients can I skip?
Hi Faith! You should be able to skip the sugar!
Terrific flavors! Anyone who loves a warm, gooey pasta dish, that highlights the pasta, will love this recipe! And that cheese! The flavor is outstanding! It could sub for a sour cream, in my humble opinion. It’s well worth the effort to make the cheese substitute.
I’m so thrilled to hear how much you loved this Lizbeth!!
This was outstanding. And to top it off it is easy!!!’ Throw everything in one dish and you’re just about done. I did cheat and use a marinara sauce because I am lazy but seriously we will be making this every week.
Making this in a couple of days. Already bought the Gardein crumbles. They are frozen. Am I supposed to defrost before adding to the casserole dish with the other ingredients? Thank you!
No need to defrost first, as it bakes a long time in the oven and will be fine!
I have made many meals for my husband. I made this for the family a couple of nights ago and he said it is his favorite thing I’ve made. It was insanely good (and I hate pasta)!
So satisfying!! This is a must try for vegan and non-vegan eaters alike!
I made this recipe and it was delicious and so easy. Next time I will add mushrooms and some spinach. Thanks for an easy, tasty recipe that makes a lot!
Sounds amazing, thank you so much Sharon!
Wow what a perfect recipe!! Super flavorful usually means lots of work but this was so easy to make!! Going in the dinner rotation!
I made this and did not disappoint. Love, love, love this! Assuming leftovers will freeze ok?
Comes together quickly, super easy and so fun to customize to your own tastes/needs. Thank you for sharing this creation with us 💙🤍
This recipe is fabulous! I made it with tofu crumbles and used the Myokos liquid mozzarella. It was sooo good! I also used whole wheat penne noodles! It will be on repeat in my house. I cheated a bit and used Raos sauce 🤷🏻♀️. It is really easy and delicious!
I made 2 casserole dishes, one with Barilla chickpea pasta and one with Brami pasta. I took both dishes out after 35 minutes and didn’t put back in the oven. The Barilla chickpea pasta cooked too long. The Brami pasta was cooked perfectly. I used fresh basil and tofurky chick’n in the non GF pasta dish. I loved it!
Amazingly delicious and so so easy! I used chickpea pasta so it was a protein-packed dish of 😋😋!
Thank you thank you thank you for the easiest and yummiest Sunday dinner ever!
I love that Iris, so happy it was such a hit and I loved your picture on Instagram!!
I plan on making this with your homemade taco meat recipe. Should I make the taco meat as written (with all the “taco flavorings/spices”) and tomato sauce or should I modify the recipe?
This looks amazing and I don’t want to mess it up!
Thanks!
Yes, make the taco meat as written first! It will add so much yummy flavor. Let me know how it turns out!
This one hits the spot. My 18 year old non vegan son loved it too!
I made this for a half marathon pre race dinner, packed with all the nutrients and protein.
*I used beyong meat crumbles and chickpea pasta.
Brandi has done it again!
SO thrilled to hear this Moira!!! Glad it was such a hit!