Recipe: How To Make This Viral Casserole For Dinner
60 mins
Cooking Time
Easy
Difficulty
14
Ingredients
Non Veg
Diet
The million-dollar spaghetti pasta recipe is the latest dish to make the rounds of social media, and for all the right reasons. A cross between spaghetti with meat sauce and lasagna, it typically has layers of spaghetti, a rich cheese mixture, meat sauce, and plenty of melted cheese on top.
This viral dish is also budget-friendly because it turns inexpensive ingredients into a hearty, rich dish for the entire family.
The spaghetti pasta recipe gets its name because of its popularity (and not the price of the ingredients!). Thanks to the layers of meat, cheese, and sauce, the dish is a crowd-pleaser. And since the dish is baked in an oven, it gives you time to prepare your sides, making it perfect for party prep.
For this spaghetti pasta recipe, you can try a few variations. If the beef, sausage, and cheese like a combo too rich for your taste, only use one of the two meats. Secondly, while spaghetti is the traditional pasta used, you can substitute it with another one of your choice. You can pair this pasta with garlic bread or a simple salad to offset the richness, along with ice-cold lemonade, sweet iced tea, or even a cola.
Preheat the oven to 175 °C. Now, cook the meat sauce. Place a large skillet on medium heat. Add the ground beef and sausage, season with salt and pepper, and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Drain the excess grease. Now, add onions and garlic, sauteeing till the onions turn translucent. Set aside ½ cup of marinara sauce and add the rest. Stir well and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
Description - Step 2
Step 2: Make the noodles and cheese layer
Cook the spaghetti “al dente”, as per the package instructions. It should take 8-10 minutes. Drain the water. Add the hot spaghetti to a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and the reserved marinara from step 1. Toss to combine. In a separate bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, ricotta (or cottage cheese), and sour cream until smooth and evenly mixed.
Description - Step 3
Step 3: Assemble and bake
Add half of the pasta to the bottom of a 9×13’’ pan. Add a cheese layer on top. Smooth it with the back of a spatula. Add the remaining noodles. Top with the meat layer – smooth it into an even top. Lastly, top with mozzarella cheese and Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and lightly golden. Let it cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
The dish gets its name from its rich, indulgent layers of pasta, meat sauce, cream cheese, and melted cheese. The combination creates a luxurious texture and flavour that tastes "worth a million dollars."
Yes. The casserole can be assembled up to a day in advance, covered, and refrigerated. When ready to serve, simply bake until heated through and bubbly.
Both are layered baked pasta dishes, but Million Dollar Spaghetti uses spaghetti noodles instead of lasagna sheets. It also typically features a cream cheese-based filling rather than a béchamel sauce.
Absolutely. While many recipes use a combination of beef and sausage for added flavour, you can use either one on its own, depending on your preference