One of the most loved foods in the world is finally here! This is a traditional Italian Lasagna, made the Italian way with layers of slow cooked Bolognese ragu and cheese sauce. No ricotta – that’s the American-Italian version. Though patience is required, it is quite straight forward to make as you will see in the recipe video!
Traditional Italian lasagna
Lasagna, lasagna. How I love thee! It is possibly one of the most loved foods in the whole wide world, and understandably so. There is just something so sentimental about lasagna, so comforting. It evokes images of of gatherings with family and friends all around the world. It is the sort of food that is like a big warm hug, and so more-ish you want to keep digging in until you burst.
Lasagna just rocks. Full stop.
And if you’ve never tried a homemade one before, that needs to change! If you can make spaghetti bolognese, you can make lasagne. It just requires a wee bit more patience.
OK, bit more than a wee bit more patience. But it’s totally worth it. A real homemade Lasagna is epic.
Homemade Lasagna – three parts
There are 3 components to making lasagna:
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The meat sauce;
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The white sauce – creamy and thick, but no cream required!
-
Assembling and baking.
What goes in lasagna
The Meat Sauce is basically just like Bolognese. You need:
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Onion, garlic, carrot and celery – for the flavour base, a soffrito;
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Beef
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Canned tomato and tomato paste
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Red wine – for extra flavour!
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Seasonings – beef bouillon cubes (stock cubes), bay leaves, thyme, oregano, Worcestershire sauce
For the white sauce, you need:
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butter
-
flour
-
milk
-
cheese
For assembling, you need:
- lasagna sheets – preferably fresh (from the fridge section of grocery stores) but dried works just fine too
-
cheese!
How to make lasagne
See? I told you the meat sauce is just like making Bolognese! Though here, we cook that meat sauce long and slow, to develop incredible rich flavours and make the beef melt-in-your-mouth tender.
Layering up!
And here’s how you layer it up:
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Smear a bit of meat sauce on the base first – stops the lasagna sheets from sliding around;
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Layer 1 – top with meat sauce, bit of white sauce
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Layer 2 – lay out more lasagna sheets, then top with more meat sauce and more white sauce
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Layer 3 – repeat again, lasagna sheets, meat sauce then white sauce; and
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Topping – cover with lasagna sheets, pour over remaining white sauce then sprinkle with cheese.
Pop it in the oven, and THIS is what comes out….
That moment when you cut into the golden bubbly cheesy top and you serve up a piping hot, oozy, meaty slice of lasagna….
That’s a little bit of food heaven, right there.
Lasagna first timers, the recipe video below will be super helpful. ❤️ Trust me, you got this. – Nagi xx
PS Also happens to be one of the nicest food gifts you can make for someone. Freezes 100% perfect, and is a huge step up from the usual simple casseroles. Right? 😉
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Traditional Italian Lasagna recipe video!
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Lasagna
Ingredients
Ragu Bolognese:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion , finely chopped (white, yellow or brown)
- 1 medium carrot , finely diced
- 1 rib / stick of celery , finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 kg / 2 lb beef mince (ground beef) (Note 1)
- 800g / 28 oz crushed tomato
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 cup (250ml) red wine , bold not light (Note 2)
- 3 beef bouillon cubes , crumbled
- 2 bay leaves , dried or fresh
- 1/2 tsp each dried thyme and oregano
- 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 - 2 tsp sugar (if needed - Note 3)
- 1/2 tsp salt and black pepper
Cheese Sauce (Besciamella):
- 60g / 4 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup (75g) flour
- 4 cups (1 litre) milk (I use low fat)
- 2 cups (200g) shredded cheese (Colby, Gruyere, Cheddar, Monterey Jack, OR 1 cup shredded parmesan) (Note 4)
- Pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
- Salt and pepper
Lasagna:
- 350g/ 12 oz fresh lasagna sheets (or 250g/8oz dried) (Note 5)
- 1 1/2 cups (150g) shredded mozzarella cheese
- Finely chopped basil or parsley , for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Ragu:
- Heat oil in a large heavy based pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, celery and carrots. Cook for 10 minutes until softened and sweet - they should not brown (if they do, turn heat down).
- Add beef, turn heat up and cook the beef, breaking it up as you go.
- Once the beef has all turned brown, add the remaining Ragu ingredients EXCEPT the sugar.
- Stir then adjust the heat so it is bubbling very gently. Place the lid on and cook for 1.5 - 2 hours, stirring every now and then, then remove the lid and simmer for 30 minutes.
- The ragu is ready when the meat is really tender and the sauce has thickened and is rich - see video for consistency (Note 6). Adjust salt and pepper to taste, and add sugar if required (Note 3)
Cheese Sauce:
- Warm milk up in a saucepan (optional - just makes sauce thicken faster).
- In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium low heat. Add flour and mix constantly for 1 minute.
- Pour about 1 cup of the milk in, mixing as you go to incorporate into the flour mixture. Once mostly lump free, add remaining milk. Use a whisk if needed to make it lump free.
- Turn heat up to medium high. Stir occasionally at first then regularly after a few minutes until sauce thickens - about 5 - 8 minutes. It should coat the back of the wooden spoon.
- Remove from heat, add cheese, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Mix until the cheese is melted. The Sauce should be thick but still easily pourable - the consistency of heavy cream (you need to be able to drizzle it over the Ragu when layering - see video). If it's too thick, add a splash of water or milk.
Assemble:
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.
- Use a 33 x 22 x 7 cm / 13 x 9 x 2.5" baking dish.
- Smear a bit of Ragu on the base, then cover with lasagna sheets. Tear sheets to fit.
- Spread over 2 1/2 cups of Ragu (enough to cover sheets), then drizzle over 1 cup of Cheese Sauce.
- Top with lasagna sheets (Note 7). Spread with another 2 1/2 cups of Ragu, then 1 cup of Cheese Sauce. Top with lasagna sheets then repeat 1 more time.
- Top with a 4th layer of lasagna sheets, then pour over the remaining Cheese Sauce.
- Sprinkle with Mozzarella, then bake for 25 minutes or until golden and bubbling.
- Stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting and serving, garnished with basil or parsley if desired.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
He just sprawls across the floor when he sleeps. No curling up cutely, chin on paw, like all those cute doggy pics you see all over the internet. Nope, this one just collapses and sprawls out right in my line of path (straight line from kitchen to table is over him – of course).
I love this recipe so much! It makes THE BEST lasagna – and bolognese I’ve ever known 🙂 How long will it keep in the freezer? I’m putting most of it in straight away this time. Thank you x
Hi Virag – up to 3 months in the freezer is my general rule 🙂 N x
Oh perfect – new baby arriving in September so the timing couldn’t be better 😀 thank you!
This was amazing! Made it over the weekends for my siblings, and I would make it again.
I cooked the ragu and cheese sauce and assembled it the night before, and then baked it in the oven for lunch the next day. Great dish to make in advance so I could entertain guests, instead of being busy cooking and cleaning away in the kitchen.
Maybe next time, I’ll add birds eye chillies to the ragu for an added kick.
Thanks Nagi.
I never usually follow a recipe for Lasagna but so glad i did with yours , it was delicious definitely a keeper in my book , i also made the vegetarian one and it was also very very good
Hi! I read all the Q&A. 12-21-18 toassemble,freeze,defrost and bake if preparing for a future meal or 5-24-17 bake, freeze, totally defrost, reheat. I will be doing the latter so am I correct in assuming when reheating I will need to bake it a 2nd time at 350F for 25 min again?
Also, it’s just me and hubby and we can’t eat it in 3 days. Can we half all the ingredients with 1 lb of meat or is it better to cook as is then freeze half so everything melds together as a large batch as written? Thanks in advance!
Hi, do you think you could use half beef mince and half pork mince?
Yes 100% Leigh, enjoy! N x
This is a great recipe! Can I make the Ragu in a slow cooker instead?
The most successful Lasagne I’ve ever made! Just love the method of cooking the Ragu. Thanks for another brilliant recipe Nagi.
I’ve been cooking a lot of your recipes lately and just like the others this one was delicious. Thank you!
I often assemble and freeze without cooking first . Then I defrost in fridge the day before I need it, it always works out well, I let it sit for 10 to 15 mins before serving.
Best lasagna ever! Reminded me of true quality fine italian restaurant lasagna.
Can I use high pressure cooker to cook the Ragu?
Hi Jane, you could do up to step 4 and then place in a pressure cooker for 20 minutes. You’d then need to return it to the stove and reduce the liquid however. N x
Delicious, whole family loved it. Thank you!
Yum! I used half lean beef mince and half pork mince, 700ml passata instead of tinned tomatoes, and not quite as much extra cheese on top. It was delicious!
Sounds fabulous Sarah!! N x
Best lasagna I’ve ever made or had. I’ve been making lasagna for years but often it was quite dry the following day and found I needed to have additional sauce with leftovers – (never really followed a recipe for it).
Gave this one a go on the weekend and it was so delish and far from dry – even 2 days later!!! I subbed the wine for stock and used pizza cheese for the sauce (Blend of Mozzarella, Cheddar and Parmesan) which worked perfectly. I also did half regular mince / half lean mince. 100% winner….thank you!!!
As always Nagi, your recipes are so easy to follow and so informative. You really have a great talent in writing recipes and at the same time answering every question that I have. I love your recipes and this lasagne was perfect! Actually it has become a little embarrassing. Every time someone asks me for a recipe it is ALWAYS one of yours. It is like I’m obsessed.
Oh my gosh! I was literally just thinking the same thing as I wrapped up cooking one of her recipes for dinner (5th one this week lol) and am here researching more. I AM obsessed 😂 and if that makes me creepy then so be it because there really just isn’t another recipe blog anywhere near as good as this one in my eyes.
Hello. This was the first time we really did Lasagne and it was awesome, delicious. We used all mince and next time we’ll do 70% mince and 30% pork. You explained it so well so it was so easy to do. We cooked the ragu for 2 hours and the flaviur was awesome. We also precooked the lasagne. Thank you so much for an awesome recipe.
Hello, can we use wheat flour for cheese sauce ? it doesnt specify
Made it for my partner and I… thats 3 days worth of dinners … i used soy milk and grated 24mth aged parmesan and added heaps of nutmeg.
I only used 500g mince..but doubled the carrot, tripled the cerlery, added asparagus and brown mushrooms (i feel i had to considering i always feel guilty eating the white sauce). I didnt add red wine as I am pregnant and paranoid..so added 1 cup of beef stock, and therefore 2.5cubes of stock pieces.
I usually hate when i read a comment about someone changing the recipe too much but above worked for me due to dietary needs. Red wine and more meat would have made it more rich but this worked out really well for us.
The recipes here are so easy to prepare and cook and have so far yet to fail me.
Delish!
My hubby absolutely loved it. My first time with Lasagna and it turned out perfect. Since I had time in hand, I cooked Ragu for almost 4 hours. Trust me that if you are not careful Ragu would finish off before you get to layering lasagna 😀
Hahaha this comment made me giggle! This is definitely a problem I have in the kitchen. You think you’re “just tasting” to make sure everything’s perfect then next minute half the meals gone lol
My bf and I made this a few weeks ago and it was delicious. It was our first time making lasagna from scratch and this was the best recipe. We used half beef mince and half pork mince, and used shredded pizza cheese mix for the bechamel sauce (we live in Australia). Highly recommend. We’re going to try and make this in the slow cooker next time.
Has anyone used quorn with this recipe? Any tips?
I’d love to know too Carys!! N x
I know that this is a lasagna recipe, but it is possible to make the bolognese sauce and just put it on top of spaghetti? and maybe add some of the white sauce to it?