This oven baked 4-ingredient sausage and pepper ziti is the kind of no-fuss comfort food my husband begs for every single weekend—and I’m always happy to make it because it truly is that easy. It leans on classic Italian-American flavors: browned sweet Italian sausage, tender bell peppers, a good jar of marinara, and plenty of ziti, all baked until the edges are a little crisp and the sauce clings to every noodle. No cheese, no extra garnishes—just a hearty, saucy pasta bake that goes straight from oven to table and looks perfectly homey piled into a big glass bowl. It’s ideal for busy days when you want something satisfying without a sink full of dishes or a long ingredient list.
Serve this sausage and pepper ziti in a large glass bowl, just like a family-style Sunday supper. I like to pair it with a simple green salad dressed with olive oil and red wine vinegar to cut through the richness of the sausage and sauce. A loaf of crusty bread or garlic toast is great for swiping up any extra marinara at the bottom of the bowl. If you enjoy wine, a medium-bodied red like Chianti or a zesty Montepulciano d’Abruzzo complements the sweet Italian sausage and bell peppers nicely, but even a chilled sparkling water with lemon works well to refresh the palate.
Oven Baked 4-Ingredient Sausage and Pepper ZitiServings: 6
Ingredients
12 ounces dried ziti pasta
1 pound sweet Italian sausage links, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds
2 medium bell peppers (any color), cored and sliced into thin strips
24 ounces jarred marinara sauce (about 3 cups)
1 tablespoon olive oil (for greasing the baking dish, optional)
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for pasta water
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (optional)
Directions
Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish or similar casserole with olive oil if you’d like easier cleanup.
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the ziti and cook until just shy of al dente, 1 to 2 minutes less than the package directions. The pasta will finish cooking in the oven. Drain and set aside.
While the pasta cooks, heat a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the sliced sweet Italian sausage in a single layer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is browned on the edges and cooked through, about 6 to 8 minutes. If there is an excessive amount of rendered fat (more than a tablespoon or so), carefully spoon off and discard the extra.
Add the sliced bell peppers to the skillet with the sausage. Cook, stirring frequently, until the peppers have softened slightly but still hold their shape, about 4 to 5 minutes. You want them tender-crisp so they don’t turn mushy in the oven.
Pour the jarred marinara sauce into the skillet with the sausage and peppers. Stir everything together, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring the mixture just to a simmer, then taste and season with the kosher salt and black pepper if using. Turn off the heat.
Add the drained ziti directly into the skillet (or into a large mixing bowl if your skillet isn’t big enough). Toss well until every piece of pasta is coated in the sausage, pepper, and marinara mixture. This is where the flavors really start to marry, so take a minute to fold everything together thoroughly.
Transfer the sauced ziti into the prepared baking dish, spreading it into an even layer. Cover the dish tightly with foil to keep the moisture in and prevent the pasta from drying out.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling around the edges and the pasta is tender when you taste a piece from the center. If you like slightly crisper top edges, remove the foil for the last 5 minutes of baking.
Carefully remove the dish from the oven and let the ziti rest for about 5 minutes. This short rest helps the sauce settle and cling to the noodles so it’s easier to serve.
Spoon the baked sausage and pepper ziti into a large glass serving bowl. Use a big serving spoon to scoop up generous portions, making sure you get plenty of sausage and peppers in each serving. Bring it straight to the table and serve hot.
Variations & Tips
For a spicier version, swap some or all of the sweet Italian sausage for hot Italian sausage, or add a pinch of red pepper flakes when you stir in the marinara. If you prefer a milder flavor, use only sweet sausage and choose red, yellow, or orange bell peppers, which are naturally sweeter than green. You can also cut the sausage into smaller half-moons if you want it to stretch a bit further through the dish. If you miss the richness of cheese, sprinkle a small handful of grated Parmesan or mozzarella over individual bowls instead of adding it to the entire bake, so the base recipe stays a true 4-ingredient meal. For a slightly lighter dish, use turkey or chicken Italian sausage and a marinara labeled as lower in sodium. To prep ahead, you can cook the pasta, sausage, and peppers, combine with sauce, and refrigerate in the baking dish for up to 24 hours; add about 10 extra minutes to the baking time if starting from cold. Food safety tips: Always cook sausage to a safe internal temperature of 160°F (71°C) for pork or 165°F (74°C) for poultry-based sausage. Avoid tasting or handling undercooked sausage with the same utensils you use for cooked food unless they’ve been washed. Cool leftovers quickly and refrigerate within 2 hours; reheat thoroughly until steaming hot before serving, and enjoy leftovers within 3 to 4 days or freeze for longer storage.
