Classic Lasagna Recipe
This Classic Lasagna Recipe is real comfort food. It is really easy to make, and great if you have dinner guests – you really can’t go wrong.
You can prepare this dish up front, or even the day before, and keep it covered in the fridge until you want to cook it. This makes it so easy when you have guests as you then just add the cheese on the top and put it in the oven 50 minutes before eating.
In some places, this meal is called lasagna bolognese, as the meat sauce is similar to that used in spaghetti bolognese.
Italian Lasagna
This is a basic version, and the amount of ingredients you use depends obviously on the size of the dish you use in the oven and the number of guests you have.
To make changes to this basic lasagna recipe, you can add things like carrots, mushrooms, celery and even paprika. This can add a bit of variety to suit your own taste if you wish.
I also have an Alfredo chicken lasagna recipe on this site that uses spinach. I am pretty sure a spinach and beef lasagna would also go down well. We may try that some day.
Just add other ingredients to the meat mix at a suitable time, depending on what it is. But really, this version is just fine on its own and is the ultimate classic Italian lasagna.
It didn’t need the ketchup, we just added that for colour in the photo below!
Classic Lasagna Recipe
Origins of lasagna
Lasagna is an Italian dish that has been enjoyed for centuries. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Greece and Rome.
It is a type of sheet pasta that is layered with a variety of ingredients, including tomato sauce, meat, cheese, and vegetables and is baked in the oven.
So how do you spell lasagna?
So I have spelt Lasagna in the title of this post with an ‘a’ and not an ‘e’.
In Italian ‘Lasagne’ is the plural of ‘Lasagna’, and is apparently normally how the English would spell it.
But I am pretty sure I have seen ‘Lasagna’ used more often in restaurants so hope no-one is offended. Either way, it does not change the taste!
Read a bit more in this Wikipedia link if you are interested in the origins of this dish.
Cooking the pasta noodles
The important thing with all lasagna is to make sure the pasta gets properly cooked. The trick is to make sure all the pasta sheets are immersed in sauce, otherwise you may get some hard crispy bits.
If you really want to be sure, then you can pre-soak the pasta sheets in hot water, but be careful as the sheets will stick together.
The best way is to let the lasagna sit in the fridge for a bit before you put it in the oven, so that all the pasta sheets get properly wetted with sauce. And make sure you make enough bechamel sauce!
I also sometimes use a glass dish as my lasagna dish so you can see what is happening and the different layers of sauces bubbling away.
But then you do not have to – here is one I made recently in a normal square ceramic lasagna dish. This dish is a bit less deep than my other lasagna dishes and there was only room for two layers of lasagna and sauces. But I did not notice the difference.
I hope you try making this recipe. It is really good. If you do, please let me know how you get on in the comments sections below!
Thanks!
How to make Classic Beef Lasagna
Classic Beef Lasagne Recipe
This recipe shows you how to make a classic Italian beef lasagne with a Bolognese and bechamel sauce. Very tasty and delicious.
Ingredients
- 800 g minced beef
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp Worcester sauce
- 2 cans chopped tomatoes
- 3 tbsp tomato puree
- 2 onions, chopped
- 200ml beef stock
- 1 sprig fresh thyme, chopped
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
- 50g salted butter
- 50g flour
- 8-12 lasagne sheets, depending on size of lasagne dish
- 50g Parmesan, grated
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 800ml milk
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 50g strong Cheddar cheese, grated
Instructions
Meat sauce
- I like to use a wok to fry the ingredients. It is just easier for me and stops me making too much mess in the kitchen as I get less spillage. I also have a wok with a lid, which enables me to simmer the mixture without losing too much fluid.
- Firstly fry the minced beef until it is browned. Then pour away any fat that has been produced and put the cooked mince onto a plate. Next, using the same wok, fry the onion and garlic until softened.
- Then add the meat back to the pan. Add the beef stock, chopped thyme, tomato puree, Worcester sauce and tinned tomatoes and slowly bring to the boil. Then cover the pan and simmer on a low heat for about 30 minutes, until the meat sauce has nicely cooked.
White (Béchamel) sauce
- In the meantime, make the white sauce. This is just like a standard white/cheesy sauce that I use in several recipes.
- First, melt the butter and then add the flour. Cook for a minute and then slowly add the milk. Use a hand whisk to get rid of any lumps and stir until it starts to thicken. Then add the Parmesan cheese, nutmeg and mustard, and season with salt and pepper, stirring well to finish off the sauce.
Stack your lasagna
- Now it is time to put it all together. First, put a layer of the meat sauce (about a third) on the bottom of the pan. Then place the pasta sheets on top, with no overlap, cutting if need be, followed by a layer of white sauce. Add another layer of meat sauce and a layer of pasta. Then repeat with a layer of white sauce and the last layer of meat sauce. Finally, a last layer of pasta followed by the last layer of white sauce – so effectively three layers of meat sauce, pasta, white sauce on top of each other.
- Make sure all the pasta is well and truly covered on both sides by sauce.
- You can easily cover and keep the dish in the fridge until you want to cook it. Then finally cover the last layer with the grated cheddar cheese, and the meal is prepared and ready to go in the oven.
- To cook, place in a pre-heated oven (160C) for 50 minutes, or until the cheese is browned and pasta is fully cooked.
Notes
Slice into the lasagna to produce good-sized helpings. Serve with fresh ciabatta and butter, and a nice glass of Chianti.
Enjoy!!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1464Total Fat: 83gSaturated Fat: 38gTrans Fat: 2gUnsaturated Fat: 35gCholesterol: 392mgSodium: 3034mgCarbohydrates: 73gFiber: 8gSugar: 21gProtein: 107g
This nutrition information was automatically calculated by Nutritionix, but may not be 100% accurate.