The Best Lasagna Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What can I add to lasagna to make it taste better? ›

Sugar: This secret ingredient transforms an ordinary tomato sauce into one that tastes like it has simmered all day. The sweetness balances the tomato's acidity, making the sauce more well-rounded. Cheese: Mozzarella, ricotta and Parmesan cheeses come together to give this lasagna its extra-decadent flavor.

The key to creating the absolute best lasagna is to use a combination of ricotta and cottage cheese. Ricotta brings the rich creaminess while cottage cheese lightens things up and seasons the whole dish. For even more cheese, we recommend also using shredded Mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese (or Pecorino Romano).

Let me break it to you: If you want to make a lasagna, three layers just won't cut it! For the perfect lasagna, you need at least 4-5 layers to really enjoy all those mouth-watering flavors. And, here's a pro-tip: make sure to season each layer generously, but not too much. The average lasagna has 8 layers!

Too much between one layer and another will keep you from ever getting a perfect slice. Too little and all you'll taste is pasta. Do not put large pieces of vegetables or meat in lasagna for the same reason as above. To get a perfect lasagna, the filling should be finely sliced or even creamy.

The best jarred pasta sauce for smooth marinara fans is Victoria Marinara. Victoria has a stunning brick red color with just the right amount of acidity. “I'm tasting fire-roasted tomatoes,” says Sarah Tramonte in the Test Kitchen. Pop open a jar of this sauce for your next lasagna recipe.

Adding egg to ricotta cheese helps to bind the cheese for lasagna so that it doesn't ooze out of the casserole when you cut it. Basically, the egg helps all the cheesy goodness stay intact. So what happens if you don't put eggs in your lasagna? It'll just be a bit runnier, but omitting the egg won't affect the taste.

Eggs help prevent the ricotta from drying out and serve to bind the ricotta so it doesn't become runny. One or more eggs are recommended whether you add the other ingredients mentioned here or not.

While ricotta is included in certain varieties of lasagna in Italy, the style that serves as the primary inspiration for American recipes is the one from the region of Emilia Romagna. There, it's traditionally layered with pasta, bolognese, and béchamel—with no ricotta to be found.

Generally, lasagna has about 3 or 4 layers of pasta, with sauce, ricotta cheese, mozzarella, béchamel, and sometimes meat or even meatballs or sausage between those layers. Our many layer lasagna has around 12 layers of pasta, or even more depending on how thin you end up rolling the dough.

Should you Prebake lasagna? ›

Bake it ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator, assemble it, chill it, and bake it later, or assemble it and store it in the freezer to bake later. Whichever method you choose, all of which will result in a bubbly, cheesy dinner that everyone will enjoy.

In an oven preheated to 375 degrees F, this homemade lasagna should be perfectly baked in about 50 minutes (30-40 minutes covered, 5-10 minutes uncovered).

(Do notice that I put the noodles criss cross – perpendicular from the layer below – it helps it to hold together when you serve it). So, the noodles directly on the cheese means there won't be enough for a top layer of noodles.

The correct way to compose lasagna is: ragù sauce on the base, then: lasagna pasta, besciamella sauce, ragù sauce, grated parmesan cheese for each layer, tipically 4 or 5 layers, no more because it will get difficult to bake and the pasta will not be completely cooked in the middle layers.

There's a lot of discussion around this topic in the lasagna recipe world, but generally most lasagna recipes start with a layer of red sauce, followed by a layer of white sauce, followed by a layer of pasta and cheese. Then you continue with this layering until you have completely filled your tray.

When you pull the lasagna out of the oven, top it with dried parsley, garlic powder, and fresh ground pepper (don't add more salt – frozen food is notorious for having high sodium content). Your family will beg for more!

Add some umami-rich ingredients: Umami is a savory taste that can be found in ingredients like mushrooms, tomatoes, and soy sauce. Adding some of these ingredients to your lasagna can help to deepen its flavor. Incorporate some cheese: Cheese is a classic lasagna ingredient that can add a lot of flavor.

Use vegetables like carrots, onions, and celery for flavor plus lots of garlic and herbs. If making a meat sauce, brown and season the ground meat before adding the tomatoes.