Southern Cheesy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey
Southern baked spaghetti is its own institution — layered like a lasagna, heavy on the sharp cheddar, with a Creole-seasoned turkey sauce running through it. This one overperformed on the channel because it's family-dinner food in the truest sense. Wait the full ten minutes before cutting in; it's worth it.
In the video I call this one a Southern-style classic with a healthier twist, and the twist is the ground turkey — my pick for a leaner protein in a dish that doesn't hold back anywhere else. Three cheeses go into these layers: three cups of sharp cheddar, three cups of mozzarella, and a half cup of Parmesan. I recommend buying the blocks and shredding them down fresh, but I mean it when I say packaged shredded works just as fine — some weeks there's time to shred, and some weeks there isn't.
I move quick in this one, so mid-video I stop and tell you straight: if I'm moving too fast, don't worry, I got you. Back then that meant the measurements were written out below the video — here, everything's laid out in the card on this page. And while the sauce simmers, you're already greasing the dish and getting ready to layer.
Watch me make it — video from my YouTube channel
The recipe
Southern Cheesy Baked Spaghetti with Ground Turkey
Ingredients
- 1 pound spaghetti (cooked al dente per package)
- 1 pound ground turkey (ground beef works too)
- 2 jars Ragú Old World Style Traditional Sauce
- 1 medium onion
- 2 tablespoons butter
- about 1 tablespoon Bertolli olive oil (for tossing noodles), plus cooking spray for greasing the baking dish
- 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning]
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- sugar, to taste (optional, to balance acidity)
- 3 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded; fresh-shredded preferred)
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese (shredded)
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (shredded)
How to Make It
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Boil the 1 pound of spaghetti until al dente per the package directions (about 10–11 minutes for the brand used), standing over it at the start until the strands loosen up.
- Drain the spaghetti.
- Toss the drained spaghetti with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to keep it from sticking, and set it aside.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter.
- Before the butter is fully melted, add the onion and sauté for a couple of minutes.
- Add the 1 pound of ground turkey.
- Season with Creole seasoning, garlic powder, pepper, salt, dried basil, and dried oregano.
- Mix everything in and cook until the turkey is no longer pink in the middle.
- Add the 2 jars of Ragú sauce.
- Stir in a little sugar to balance the acidity, if desired (completely optional).
- Let the sauce simmer.
- While the sauce simmers, grease the baking dish all around with cooking spray so the noodles won't stick.
- Spread a first layer of spaghetti in the dish.
- Top with the turkey sauce, then the cheeses (any order on the cheeses).
- Repeat with another layer of spaghetti, sauce, and cheeses.
- Finish with a final layer of sharp cheddar cheese on top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and toasted brown.
- Let the dish sit for about 5–10 minutes to cool down.
- Cut into it and serve.
Curtis's Tips
- Shred the cheese fresh — buy the block and shred it down — but if you don't have time, packaged shredded cheese works just as fine.
- If ground turkey isn't your thing, go ahead and use ground beef; I chose turkey as the healthier, leaner protein.
- Feel free to adjust the seasonings and ingredients to your preference.
- The sugar in the sauce is completely optional — it's just there to balance the acidity.
- Stand over the pasta at the beginning of the boil until it's all loosened up, and set a timer so you don't forget it.
- Oiling the noodles after draining and greasing the baking dish both keep the noodles from sticking.
Why this works
A good chunk of the technique here is sticking insurance, and the video shows it paying off. About a tablespoon of olive oil goes over the drained spaghetti — not a lot — and the baking dish gets greased all around before any layering starts. When I start building the layers, the noodles come apart clean, and I point it out: they didn't stick because we added the olive oil. The other quiet move is the little bit of sugar in the sauce — completely optional, but it's in there to balance out the acid, nothing more. And the finish is a visual cue, not just a timer: bubbly, toasted-brown cheese on top is what tells you it's done.
FAQ
Can I use ground beef instead of ground turkey?
Go ahead — I say it right in the video. I went with ground turkey as the healthier, leaner choice of protein, but if ground turkey isn't your thing, use ground beef. Same checkpoint at the stove either way: the meat cooks until it's no longer pink in the middle before the sauce goes in.
Do I really need to shred the cheese fresh?
It's what I recommend — buy the block and shred it down. But I say in the same breath that if you don't have time for that, packaged shredded cheese works just as fine. Nobody's judging you for grabbing the bags on a busy night.
How do I keep the noodles from sticking?
Two moves, both in the video. After you drain the spaghetti, hit it with some olive oil — not a lot, just about a tablespoon — and set it aside. Then grease the baking dish all around before you layer. When I go to build mine, the noodles lift clean because of that oil. And at the start of the boil, stand over the pasta until it's all loosened up, then set your timer so you don't forget it.
What order do the layers go in?
Spaghetti first, then the turkey sauce, then the cheeses — and you can go in any order with the cheeses. Repeat for the next layer, and save sharp cheddar for the very top. Don't waste none of that.
How do I know it's done — and can I cut in right away?
The bake is 30 minutes at 350°F, but the real tell is the top: you want the cheese bubbly and toasted brown. Then let it sit for about five to ten minutes so it cools down — only after that do you want to cut into it.
Estimated nutrition, per serving (recipe makes about 6 servings): ~1004 calories · 58 g protein · 51 g fat · 78 g carbs. Computed from the ingredient list using standard reference values — an estimate, not a lab analysis; your exact brands and portions will vary.
