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15 Best Shells Pasta Recipes

15 Best Shells Pasta Recipes

Who doesn’t love shells pasta? It’s versatile and has endless possibilities! 

Discover our best shells pasta recipes, including the classic stuffed shells, shells pasta with shrimp, and many more. 

When it comes to people’s favorite food, pasta is undoubtedly among the top entries that provide recipes that taste good and are so filling. 

Pasta is a simple ingredient typically made from grain, which is versatile and convenient as it allows you to create many different dishes with it. 

It has many different shapes and forms, leading to countless variations and possibilities for pairing pasta with specific recipes. 

One popular pasta type known for its shape and practical design is the Conchiglie or shell pasta. 

Shell pasta is a pasta variety shaped like a conch shell, which makes it great at catching sauce. 

This allows the pasta to trap every part of the delicious sauce, even the lighter, more delicate sauces, to evenly distribute the sauce throughout the pasta dish. 

Shell pasta is commonly used in its plain wheat type but may also come in different varieties that add natural pigments, such as squid ink or tomato extract, providing different colors to the shell pasta. 

Eating shell pasta, no matter what recipe you make, lets you enjoy a burst of flavor with each pasta shell, which is why shell pasta is an excellent option for many different shells pasta recipes

The #14 Cheesy Taco Stuffed Shells is an impressive reimagination of the Mexican dish that allows you to enjoy a different take on the classic. 

This quick and cozy meal represents how convenient it can be to use shell pasta with this fuss-free recipe in under 30 minutes. 

It combines ground beef, white cheddar, and tomato sauce with tender pasta shells in one pot that cooks together until it’s all creamy and melted. 

A bowlful of this simple yet luscious recipe provides all the pleasurable comfort you would ever want in a pasta dish, making it an ideal meal you can serve to your family and friends. 

This cheesy stuffed shells recipe is a classic dish that’s the ideal comfort food. 

It combines various delicious kinds of cheese and marinara sauce to provide creamy and zesty flavors and create this satisfying pasta dish. 

Using three types of cheese, ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese are combined with Italian seasoning, egg, salt, and pepper, which are then used to fill each shell of pasta. 

The stuffed shells are placed on a layer of marinara sauce, covered with more sauce, and topped with more cheese before it’s all baked in the oven for 20 minutes. 

This recipe is a go-to option when serving food for larger crowds, as you can easily make large servings in different batches. 

This Bacon & Tomato Pasta Shells recipe is a variation of the Amatriciana, a classic Italian recipe that combines pasta with sauce pork-based sauced called “guanciale” and tomatoes and elevates the recipe with thick-cut bacon. 

This savory pasta can be made by frying the bacon in olive oil and butter until golden brown. 

Spices are added to season the meaty mix before adding the tomato paste, cherry tomatoes, and garlic as it stews and releases all of its flavors. 

Shell pasta is ideal for this recipe, as it can capture delicious sauce and meaty bits, providing a scrumptious bite with every forkful. 

This elevated recipe to the mac and cheese provides comfort food with a touch of elegance! 

This shell pasta recipe is made with cauliflower, zucchini, and taleggio cheese, which has a rich and mellow taste. 

The main ingredients are combined with fresh spices and other elements, such as dry white wine and heavy cream, all baked in the oven for up to 15 minutes until the top part turns crispy and golden. 

This decadent dish is made even better with high-quality shell pasta, which retains its texture without turning mushy throughout the baking process. 

Nobody ever says no to good chicken parm, with the recipe encapsulating Italian cuisine so well.

The combination of juicy chicken, and rich tomato sauce, with melty mozzarella, makes everything so delightful. 

A great way to enjoy this classic recipe is by making it into a delicious shell pasta dish. 

The combination of shell pasta stuffed with chicken parm is a perfect idea, with all the umami and savory goodness you would ever want in a thick and creamy bite.

This dish is packed with plenty of flavors, with richly made ingredients that make it such an elegant recipe. 

Each element of this dish is made to add layers of deliciousness, from the garlicky breadcrumbs and the plump shrimps, to the tangy lemon anchovy dressing, to provide an incredible plate for everyone to savor.

A creamy pasta shell recipe that combines a buttery sauce with sweet peas and bacon to serve a whole crowd-pleasing meal. 

Sweet peas provide a fresh flavor to this dish, while the bacon adds to the pleasant crunch, mixed with the al dente shell pasta that holds on to the creamy, buttery sauce, which makes it so satisfying.

Every element of this dish, from the crispy bacon to the creamy butter sauce combined with peas and shallots, can be made while the pasta is being cooked, making it a quick and easy meal to prepare.

Named after the island of Capri, this traditional Caprese recipe uses Conchiglie, or shell pasta, to create a stuffed shell pasta that can transport you straight to Italy with just one bite. 

This pasta features sun-dried tomato cream sauce, made by combining ricotta, mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, salt, and pepper, before adding chicken broth and heavy cream to simmer and thicken. 

The thickened sauce is spooned into the shell pasta, which is placed on a dish to bake until the cheese is all melted.

Italian cooking centers on simple recipes that utilize the freshest quality ingredients available for the season, with this recipe focusing on the natural flavor of each component used. 

This baked pasta is made with mascarpone cheese which is rich and creamy, paired with savory sausages and mushrooms that provide plenty of umami flavors. 

The result is a delightful pasta with a silky texture, making it an elegant pasta option you can serve to impress your guests.

This marvelous meatless pasta recipe highlights the luscious mascarpone cheese, an Italian cheese made from heavy cream, to provide a richly textured meal full of flavor. 

To make this delicious recipe, a cheese mixture of ricotta, mascarpone, parmesan, and mozzarella is combined with sauteed spinach and mushrooms, which are filled into each shell of pasta before being placed in the oven to bake for 30 minutes. 

Set your plates and expect nothing but a burst of flavor with each bite of this dish! 

This recipe lets you stuff the popular Mexican dish, the Enchilada, into jumbo shells to create a next-level pasta plate you’ll love! 

An enchilada is typically made with various ingredients, from meats, cheese, beans, potatoes, and vegetables, all rolled with a corn tortilla, with this recipe elevating the traditional dish by stuffing the filling inside jumbo shells instead. 

While you may opt to use regular standard-sized pasta shells, creating this recipe with jumbo shells provides a more massive experience with every bite.

This Chicken Alfredo Soup is the epitome of comfort food, serving up creamy spoonfuls of happiness with all its familiar tastes.

It combines creamy Alfredo sauce, made with butter, flour, milk, cream and parmesan cheese, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, with a thickened soup base utilizing chicken broth and diced chicken to create a sublime dish.

Everyone loves a classic lasagna! 

This recipe goes for the savory beef and ricotta combination filled into tender pasta shells, with an equally delicious sauce base and topped with melted cheese, making this dish highly recommended. 

These pasta shells are stuffed with a creamy, cheesy, and meaty filling and baked in a tart and savory red sauce, making it a hearty and all-familiar meal with a different twist. 

Jumbo pasta shells are used in this recipe, which captures all the filling and sauce so remarkably, making it easier and more enjoyable to consume. 

This recipe transforms the classic Mexican Taco into a delicious pasta favorite that everyone will surely enjoy! 

This reimagination combines salsa, cheese, and taco meat, with jumbo-sized pasta shells to create a creamy and savory pasta dish with all the familiar taco flavors. 

A meaty and cheesy taco mix is made for this dish by combining cooked ground beef with taco seasoning and water and adding in salsa and cheese when the water evaporates. 

The taco mix is then scooped into jumbo pasta shells and topped with more salsa and cheese before getting baked in the oven for 5 minutes. 

Packed with all the delicious stuffing that you can find from the sea, these stuffed shells are so rich and luscious. 

This seafood recipe features crabmeat, scallops, and shrimp, combined with mustard, mayonnaise, seasoning, shallots, and parsley, mixed with a rich, creamy sauce, which is all scooped into individual jumbo pasta shells. 

A baking dish layered with bechamel sauce serves as the foundation and the topping for the stuffed shells, with buttery breadcrumbs, which are then placed in the oven to bake.

The bottom line

Plenty of shell pasta recipes provide satisfaction and delight, with each one so filling and flavorful. 

With the variety of options to choose from, you can pick one out for each day of the week, and find many more versions you can try and cook right at home!

Shells Pasta Recipe Assortment

Shells Pasta Recipe Assortment

Discover our best shells pasta recipes, including the classic stuffed shells, pasta shells with shrimp, and many more.

Ingredients

  • One-Pot Creamy Beef & Shells
  • Classic Stuffed Shells
  • Bacon & Tomato Pasta Shells
  • Baked Shells With Cauliflower & Zucchini
  • Chicken Parm Stuffed Shells
  • Pasta Shells With Shrimp & Garlicky Bread Crumbs
  • Creamy Pasta Shells With Sweet Peas & Bacon
  • Creamy Caprese Stuffed Shells
  • Baked Pasta With Mascarpone, Sausage, & Mushrooms
  • Mascarpone Stuffed Shells With Spinach & Ricotta
  • Enchilada Stuffed Shells
  • Chicken Alfredo Soup
  • Lasagna Stuffed Pasta Shells
  • Cheesy Taco Stuffed Shells
  • Seafood Stuffed Shells

Instructions

  1. Have a look at our list of Shells Pasta Recipes.
  2. Choose the dish you want to recreate.
  3. Start cooking your newly found recipe.
  4. Share your insights on our Facebook page!

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