The Best Lasagna is here! Layered with a rich meat sauce and a creamy parmesan white sauce, plus the perfect amount of mozzarella cheese! NO ricotta cheese needed!
The Best Lasagna…
My mama’s famous lasagna recipe is hands down the best lasagna I have ever had in my life. She learnt her ways from her Italian friends when she lived in New York City, adjusting the recipe through the years to perfect it…and every single person that tries her recipe comes back for seconds, thirds and leftovers for the next day!
Just LOOK at that CHEESE!
I blame this post all on her. This recipe is not exactly ideal to look at and salivate over in a month that we are all on our low carb, Keto, paleo, weight watchers, cabbage soup, low fat, low carb, rabbit food diets. But…It’s Lasagna. And I DO know that many of us still have to cook ‘normal’ foods for our families.
Why do I blame her? Long story short, she made me do it:
“Karina!”
“WHAT?!”
“You don’t have a lasagna recipe on your blog! WHY?”
“Ummm, I don’t know? But I can’t do one right now because I can’t eat it. Don’t make me suffer.”
“So? What does that have to do with your blog?”
“Ugh. OKAYYYY FIIIINE. You cook, I’ll shoo…” banging and clanging going down in my kitchen, wooden spoons flying around everywhere, fridge door screaming to be closed before I could finish my sentence. Ah…the chaos.
How To Make Lasagna Meat Sauce
The most important part of this whole things is her sauce. It’s rich with flavour and texture.
- Our sauce is made with a mix of ground beef and pork. This is OPTIONAL. If you don’t like pork you can definitely use beef to replace it, but the pork does add a traditional lasagna flavour to the sauce.
- Most sauces use crushed tomatoes as a base, however we love mixing in a bottle of Passata (or American tomato sauce) to add richness.
- Using tomato paste results in a thick and rich sauce. Don’t skip this ingredient! We love using one with garlic and herbs, but plain is also fine.
The Best Lasagna White Sauce
This is where things go from yeah, it’s okay TO oh-my-god-this-is-so-good! We don’t use any ricotta cheese in our lasagna. Not because we don’t like ricotta (mmm….could go a Spinach and Ricotta Grilled Cheese right about now), but because white sauce makes it so much more flavourful. Especially her parmesan white sauce. It’s SO GOOD you’ll want to put this Béchamel on EVERYTHING!
You need only 4 ingredients to make this Béchamel happen:
- Butter
- Flour
- Milk
- Parmesan cheese. If you don’t like parmesan, replace it with Gruyere, Romano, Asiago, Manchego, or more Mozzarella.
Dry Or Fresh Lasagna Sheets
We prefer fresh lasagna pasta sheets which are found in the refrigerator section of most grocery stores. If you can’t find or don’t have access to fresh, you can use dried.
No Cook or Instant Noodles can be used without pre-boiling (check the packet instructions first). You can assemble as normal. To ensure the pasta has enough liquid to cook through while the lasagna is baking, we normally add about 1/2 cup of water to our sauce when using INSTANT.
Pre Boil Or Pre Cook Pasta Sheets need to be boiled first before assembly. Follow the instructions on the packet. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil into the water to prevent the sheets from sticking together and stir them occasionally with a wooden spoon. Transfer each cooked lasagna sheet carefully into a large bowl or pot filled with cool water to help stop the cooking process. Leave them in there until ready to use. This helps prevent them from sticking together or drying out. You can do this while the meat sauce is gently simmering away so all elements are ready at the same time.
Assembly
Once you’ve layered your lasagna, you need to make sure you last layers (or top layers) finish with pasta > meat sauce > white sauce > mozzarella cheese. Yeah, that order results in a golden, crunchy and cheesy top with a layer of juicy meat sauce underneath.
Crispy edges, a gooey, cheesy centre, perfectly cooked fresh lasagna pasta sheets in between a creamy parmesan white sauce and an abundance of cheese.
Lord, help me.
For more lasagna variations, you might like these: Easy Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup | Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Boats | Easy Lasagna Stuffed Burritos | Beef And Pumpkin Lasagna | Chicken Pumpkin and Ricotta Lasagna!
Mama's Best Lasagna
Ingredients
Meat Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 carrot, finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic cloves, minced
- 24 ounces (700 grams) ground beef mince
- 10 ounces (300 grams) ground pork mince, or beef
- 24 ounces (700 grams) Passata
- 14 ounces (410 grams) crushed tomatoes
- 3 heaped tablespoons tomato paste, (I use garlic and herbs flavoured)
- 2 beef or vegetable bouillon cubes, crushed
- 1 teaspoon each dried oregano and basil
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar, (if desired)
- Salt and pepper, season to your tastes
White Sauce (Béchamel):
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons flour, all purpose or plain
- 4 cups milk, (I use low fat)
- 1 cup fresh shredded parmesan
Lasagna:
- 13 ounces (375 grams) fresh lasagna sheets*
- 17 ounces (500 grams) fresh mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
Meat Sauce:
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat, then add in the onion and carrots and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until softened. Add in the garlic and sauté for about 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Add beef and pork (if using) and cook while breaking it up with the end of your spoon, until browned.
- Pour in the Passata, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, crushed bouillon and dried herbs. Mix well to combine and bring to a gentle simmer. Season with desired amount of salt and pepper (I use about 3/4 teaspoon each) and sugar if needed. Cover and cook for about 20-30 minutes, occasionally mixing, until the sauce has thickened slightly and meat is tender.
- Adjust salt, pepper and dried herbs to your taste.
Parmesan White Sauce:
- In a large pot, melt butter over medium heat. Remove from hot plate; add the flour and whisk for about 30 seconds, or until well blended.
- Place pot back onto stove, reduce heat down to low and slowly whisk in 1 cup of the milk until well combined. Once well blended, add the remaining milk in 1 cup increments, mixing well after each addition, until all the milk is used and sauce is free from lumps.
- Increase heat to medium and continue cooking sauce while stirring occasionally until it thickens (about 6-7 minutes) and coats the back of your wooden spoon.
- Add in the parmesan cheese and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper and mix until the cheese is melted through.
To Assemble:
- Preheat oven to 350°F | 180°F.
- Spoon about 1 cup of meat sauce on the base of a 9x13-inch baking dish, then cover with lasagna sheets. (Trim sheets to fit over the meat if needed.) Layer with 2 cups of meat sauce (or enough to cover pasta), 1 cup of white sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers (leaving the remaining cheese for the top).
- Pour the remaining meat sauce and white sauce over the last layer of lasagna sheets and top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake for 25 minutes or until golden and bubbling.
- Garnish with parsley and let stand for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving.ENJOY!
MJ says
Love the fact you publish the nutritional value of your meal!!!! I pay attention to this a lot and it’s hard to track when it’s not given!! BIG PLUS TO YOUR SITE !
Mj says
Was trying to find a new lasagna recipe and the white sauce caught my attention. OMG SOOOO GOOD! We loved it! It got devoured !
Glad to have find your site, first recipe but not the last one!
Thank you!
Richard Santini says
This was my very first time making lasagna,so of course I looked on line for some guidance. Your recipe stood out to me for I am not a huge fan of ricotata. cheese. I made my meat sauce the way I originaly make my spaggetti sauce and instead of parmesean cheese for the brashmel I used cream cheese and more mozerella. This was the perfect Recioe for a beginners adventure to making lasagna. My guest were more than just pleased and begging me for the recipe. I added a little homemade french bread that i made to serve on the side which complimented the lasagna perfectly. I can not thank you enough for helping me make my lasagna the hit and the talk of the evening.
Jennifer says
I just made this today. Everyone loved it. As I am a picky eater when it comes to this dish. I loved it myself and I will be saving it for future use. Thank you for sharing.
Shannon says
ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!! The name does not lie. We had my brother n law over for his birthday and some other family over, as well. Everyone raved about it. The flavors are amazing. I agree on the pork…it really makes the sauce! I will use that sauce recipe for everything!!! I was thinking I might put it over spaghetti squash next time! It’s delicious. My bechamel turned out a little runny…but i thickened it up with more cheese and a longer boil. I think I can perfect it next time. Thanks for sharing this family gem! So yummy!
Susan Kehoe says
I thought I had the best lasagna recipe handed down from my sister who lives in Australia. This was fabulous. I’ve never made it with bechamel before. I’ve always used cream cheese. I also used fresh lasagna sheets, a much quicker option. Scooping it out of the casserole was a little messy, but maybe I didn’t let it sit long enough. Delicious!
Jesse says
I’m definitely making for my daughters birthday.. If I make the night before, how long should I reheat next day in the oven???
Maisie says
This was the best lasagne hands down! I did incorporate one layer of ricotta because I had it on hand. Thanks so much for the recipe and also for a great bechamel sauce recipe. My bechamel sauce always turned out lumpy but this recipe was spot on.
Lia says
I finally found my perfect lasagna recipe thank you for sharing! It was a hit with the whole family even my very picky seven year old daughter who for the first time ever asked for a second serving. Was hoping to get some advice however… I did let cool down for 10 min before cutting but the pieces didn’t hold their shape the way I was hoping. Definitely not a big deal for my family and I but I was hoping to make at our next party and nice pieces would be important. Should I have cooked the sauce longer than what’s recommended in the recipe? Is the meat sauce supposed to be left with no liquids? Also I agree with one of the other posts that the white sauce didn’t thicken enough either. Any advice you can offer to make this a perfection would be really appreciated as I want this recipe to be a keeper! Thank you 🙂
Dana says
This is by far THE BEST lasagna I have ever made! My husband said, make sure you right this one down. I have 2 younger kids loved it and 2 teenage boy hockey players who billet with us who devoured the rest of before they went to bed😋 Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Anthony says
All I can say is we made 2 trays and it was all gone in less than 24 hours with just 4 people eating it ….awesome
Karina says
This is great to hear!! I am so glad that you like the lasagna. It is one of my very favorites as well. Thanks for following along with me!! xo
Chris says
My family enjoyed this recipe! Followed instructions closely and came out perfect. Only thing I did differently is added more Parmesan to sauce. Instead of 1 cup I used 1 1/2 -2 cups. Thank you I’ll cook again!!
Noor says
Hello all! I was wonderingif I could use onion powder instead of an actual onion as I have some family members who don’t like the texture of onions. Also, can I make the day before and refrigerate then bake the day of?
Karina says
Yes, you can make the day before. That will be great! If it is longer than a day I would recommend freezing it. Enjoy your lasagna! XO
Anne Beary says
Why my white sauce is dense? I was having trouble to spread it…:(
Still it turned out fine…
Gonna redo it soon 🙂
Thanks for the recipe!
Dave says
White Sauce was water. 4 Tbsp melted butter + 4 tbsp of flour + 4 cups of milk was watery. What’d I do wrong?
Karina says
Oh no! I am not sure what went wrong. I wish I was in your kitchen to help you!
Karen says
You should bring the sauce to a low boil; once it boils, reduce to a simmer and your sauce will thicken up just fine 🙂
This is the standard way to cook any bechamel sauce. Hope that helps!
Wendy Webster says
Just made this and my Husband said its the best lasagna he has ever tasted!! Will be making it this way again.
Thank you!
Brittney says
My husband always swore he didn’t like lasagna. Turns out, it just doesn’t like traditional lasagna with ricotta, so the white sauce was awesome for us 🙂 Super yummy, and now I can make lasagna and he will eat it 😉
Liepa says
Me and my friends will have a lasagna party this weekend and we’ll be making 2 lasagnas: one vegetarian and one following your recipe!
Do you think we could cook them in the oven both at once?
I’m really excited to try this recipe it looks beautiful!
Karina says
Yes, you will just want to check on them and rotate them around as they are cooking so each pan gets the right amount of heat throughout the meal.
Janet says
This is my very first review and I must say I followed the recipe and this was easy and delicious. Everyone love it from ages 4 to 60. Will make again for sure!
Ana says
If I don’t eat beef what Can I use as a substitution that would make this yummy?
Karina says
Would sausage work for you?!
Patty Gaugler says
You can use ground pork, sausage, Bison, anything you like. If you’re Vegan, try frying Tofu. Flavor it then add it to your sauce. You can also chop zucchini, or other veggies. Anything that will add bulk to your lasanga and taste good. Good luck.
Jaime L Heifner says
This is an amazing recipe!
A. Reynoso says
It took a while to make, but DELICIOUS! It was a hit at the dinner table. People went for seconds! I used whole grain lasagna instead of the regular. I love the white sauce touch. Glad I chose this recipe.
Brittny says
Would using the white sauce AND ricotta be an overkill?
Karina says
HMMM! That does sound delicious! Let me know how it turns out! Enjoy!
Karina says
This was the second time I tried making a lasagna and, thanks to your amazing recipe, it came out so much better than the first time! I tend to be better at making sweet treats so it was really empowering when I tried this recipe and the dish not only looked like yours but also tasted amazing! I’m gluten intolerant and was able to successfully substitute the pasta and the flour for gluten free ingredients. The only difference was that I needed to add two more tablespoons of the gluten free flour to the bechamel sauce in order to get a thick consistency and it took a bit longer to thicken. I also left out the bouillon cubes and it still tasted great! I got great comments on the lasagna 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing and I will definitely be trying some of your other recipes soon!!!
Phia says
Looooved it! Nobody talked during dinner, only heard moans and noms, haha. It was that delicious! Only had 1 pd of beef on hand so, instead of making a trip to the store, I substituted half of the meat required in the recipe with some lentils simmered in the same concoction of tomato sauce. Amazing! Will make it again and again, thank you so much! And that béchamel, my goodness! Licked the pot clean!
Karina says
YAY!! That is exciting! I am so glad that it was so good. Thank you so much for sharing! XO
IAS says
Great recipe!!! Not surprised because I love all of your recipes!!
Clare says
This was the nicest lasagne I have ever tasted, let alone made. So good! I am gluten free so I just substituted the gluten ingredients for non gluten and it still worked great. Will definitely now be a favourite go to recipe! Easy to make and amazingly tasty!
Susan P says
Thank you for this wonderful recipe, I made 1/2 of a recipe and it was so easy to downsize. My husband absolutely loved it. It’s a keeper.
David Waltrip says
My apt smells amaze balls right now and tried the sauce as directed hen added red wine goodfellas style so yeah did not have 4cups milk so I used half cup milk and then sour cream and cottage chesee wit grated parm added to the original roo. Came together just fine. Can’t wait till I can feed the family with this. Thanks again.
Jan says
Delicious lasagna, nice and cheesey and quite easy to make. Everyone loved it and so glad I tried it as it will now be my lasagna recipe of choice.
Lemar says
This recipe was errrrthang! I will keep this recipe for when I meet my future husband lol.
Susan P says
I made this over the weekend. When I told my husband I was trying a new lasagne recipe he moaned. He’s not always happy when I try new things. Well, at first bite he was moaning with happiness. We all absolutely loved your recipe. It was so rich and creamy. The sauce will be a keeper as well for future purposes. Thanks so much. Once again Mama knows best!
Karina says
That is great to hear! I am so glad that he loved it! Thanks so much for following along with me!
Yessi says
Hi Karina,
I’ve found the best lasagna recipe ever! Thank you for sharing this with us!
I’ve made 2 trays with this recipe and they were absolutely, deliciously out of this world!
Sharmonique says
This is a great recipe! I was weary of the white sauce but it’s absolutely delicious. ❤️❤️❤️
Ery Man says
Hi Karena , love ur recipes I cooked a lot of them already, I’m Egyptian so Bashamel is like a basic thing for us , after u make the sauce let it cool down then add one egg and some black pepper , it takes the taste to another level ! Thanks keep the good work up!
Karina says
That is awesome! I am so glad that you have found recipes that you like! Thanks so much for following along with me!
Becky says
I’m making this now – do you drain the meat? I didn’t see anything about it……
Karina says
Hi Becky! No we don’t drain it. Once you add the tomato paste it will thicken with the sauce. Having said that though, if there is too much liquid you can drain some of it 🙂
Jackie says
Hi Karina
What brand of garlic and herbs tomato paste did you use in this recipe. I can’t seem to find that flavor in my area.
Karina says
I used a garlic and herb flavored paste. I just get it at our local grocery store. I hope you are able to find a similar flavor at your grocery store. Even a regular tomato paste is great too!
Cheri Mckissen says
Have you made this in advance and if so, how does it come out? Is the moisture retained in it or does it tend to be drier? What are the adjustments you make in the cooking time too?
Karina says
I haven’t made it in advance but you are welcome to bake it and then freeze it so it does have all the flavors at the beginning. Hope that helps answer your question.
Alyson says
This is SO good!
We love lasagna but the way I’ve been making it since I was 19 had become a bit boring, so I set out to find a more advanced recipe. My main requirement – NO RICOTTA CHEESE. My husband can’t stand the stuff! I literally searched “best lasagna no ricotta” and that’s how I discovered this page LOL. I wanted to make it for our Valentine’s Day dinner last night, so I made my grocery list per your recipe and headed out. I had never even heard of passata and was worried I wouldn’t be able to find any, but to my surprise Kroger had exactly one brand of it in the tiny Italian section next to the pasta. Evenings are crazy at my house, with kids getting home from school and homework, etc, so I started cooking early so I could assemble it and have it waiting to go in the oven exactly when I needed it.
I made only one substitution, which was to use hot Italian sausage in place of the plain pork (we like our spice down here in Texas, LOL). This dish was perfection – despite the fact that my bechamel did not want to come together properly and had a weird texture (I just made some last week for chicken alfredo and it was perfect. Does that ever happen to anyone else – perfect one time and not even close the next? Ugh). Anywho, the taste was spot on so I just went with it, as I had already used all the parmesan for it.
Well I am rambling now. My point is, this recipe is delicious, and easy to follow at that. My husband and kids have all declared it a keeper. My 6 and 8 year olds even gave it somewhere along the lines of “fifty hundred thousand thumbs up!” Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Karina says
AWE! Thanks so much for sharing! I am so glad that it is a keeper and that you all enjoyed it! Thank you for the rave compliments and following along with me!
Christina says
Hi, do you happen to use fresh crushed tomatoes or canned? And if we’re substituting the bouillon cubes for beef broth how much would that transfer into measurements? Thanks so much!!
Karina says
I like to use fresh crushed tomatoes but a can works just as good! One beef boullion cube or a teaspoon of boullion granules makes one cup of broth, so one cup of beef broth would be the equivalent.
Jennifer says
Would like to make for Ash Wednesday…can we make the sauce meatless and still have the great flavor?
Karina says
Of course! You may not have the same flavor but it will still be great;)!!
Teresa says
Can you make this a couple days ahead.
Karina says
Yes, you are welcome to freeze it or refrigerate up to 3 days. Hope that helps answer you question.
MELISSA MENCIA says
Made this tonight for my family. Everyone LOVED it. It was so delicious!! Only thing was , it was a bit messy. Maybe my parmesan sauce was too liquidy?? Thanks Karina!!!!
Karina says
Messy is good;)!! I am glad that it tasted great and that everyone LOVED it! That is the most important thing! Thanks for sharing!
Ellen says
This sounds so good I can’t wait to try it. Can I substitute something for the bouillon cubes? They are usually so full of salt I don’t like using them. Thanks, Ellen
Tymeron Smith says
You are always welcome to use the can of beef broth instead if you would like. They tend to have less sodium in some of them. Hope that helps!
Christina says
Please post your recipe for Passata. I looked it up online and I am seeing several different ways to make it. Thank you.
Tymeron Smith says
I will definitely work on making some posts on pasta. You are more than welcome to go to my blog and look up “pasta” in the search button. There are several different recipes that you may like. https://cafedelites.com/?s=pasta
Tymeron Smith says
We like to layer the lasagna with a thin layer of meat sauce! You are welcome to try your way too!
kaanaeli moshi says
I made this tonight and it was amazing. My really family enjoyed it. We even have leftovers which will probably test even better. Thanks for sharing this
Janet says
Pasta sheets are not available in my area. I’m afraid if I use cooked dry lasagna “strips”, the white sauce will leak into the meat sauce below. Anyone tried using those for this recipe?
Karina says
Hi Janet. Dry strips are fine to use. I’ve updated the recipe notes to include those for you ?
Denise Gibbs says
You are right when you say this is the best Lasagna ever!!!! Cannot wait to try it soon
Karina says
Thanks Denise!
Michael says
This calls for fresh lasagna sheets which aren’t readily available around here. Would you suggest I substitute oven ready lasagna or regular lasagna and boil it first? Thanks. I’m looking forward to trying this recipe as I’ve never made one with a white sauce.
Karina says
HI Michael! I’ve updated the recipe notes to include those options. I would use Instant if you can find them to avoid pre boiling them, but it depends on what you can find. Either works really well in this!
Michael says
So..is there three layers of Lasagna sheets? or two?
Let me know please, I want to make this for sure!..Looks Yuummmmy!
Thanks…
Karina says
Hi Michael, we normally get three layers!
Andrew says
Do you have to pre cook the lasagna noodles?
Karina says
Hi Andrew. Not if you’re using fresh pasta. I’ve updated the recipe notes to include all options.
john racz says
is there no way to just get the recipe fo the lasagna?
Tymeron Smith says
The recipe is at the bottom of the page. Hope that helps!
Anne Pik says
I am definitely going to make this heavenly dish! Question – are the lasagna sheets cooked before assembling? And if I can’t find lasagna sheets, when using regular lasagna pasta should I precook? Just want to make sure I don’t ruin your recipe.. Thanks Karina!
Tymeron Smith says
The pre-cooked sheets need to be boiled before layering. Follow the instructions on the box that you purchase then add it to the lasagna. Hope that helps!
Leslie says
Hello I have tried lots of your recipes and truly LOVE THEM ALL. So easy to make. Thank you. For this one I have a question. Do you boil the lasagna sheets before layering? It says fresh sheets so im confused. Probably a dumb question.
Tymeron Smith says
AWE! Thank you so much! I really appreciate that! I would follow the instructions on the box of the lasagna sheets but normally no. If you purchase the pre-cooked ones then yes, you will need to boil them before. Hope that helps!
Carole Strawn says
I think I’ve finally found my perfect lasagna recipe. Can’t wait to try it but first I need to lose 20 lbs. LOL. This looks awesome and thank you (and your Mom) for sharing.