Mama's Best Lasagna

A serving of lasagna is being lifted out of a white baking dish, with a string of melted cheese trailing from it. The lasagna is topped with a generous layer of melted mozzarella cheese and sprinkled with chopped parsley. The layers of pasta, meat sauce, and cheese are clearly visible, showcasing the lasagna's cheesy and saucy interior.

4.97 from 212 votes

The Best Lasagna is here! Layered with a rich, tomato sauce, a creamy parmesan white sauce and topped with fresh mozzarella, you'll be craving this lasagna every weekend.

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 45

Total Time2 5

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Best Lasagna, Lasagna, Pasta

Servings: people

Author: Karina Carrel

Ingredients

Meat Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
1 carrot finely diced
4 cloves garlic cloves minced
24 ounces ground beef mince
10 ounces ground pork mince or beef
24 ounces Passata
14 ounces crushed tomatoes
3 tomato paste heaped tablespoons. I use garlic and herb flavoured.
2 beef bouillon cubes or vegetable, crushed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon sugar if desired
1/4 teaspoon salt season to your tastes
1/4 teaspoon black pepper season to your tastes

White Sauce (Béchamel):

4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour all purpose or plain
2 1/2 cups milk
1 cup shredded parmesan fresh

Lasagna:

13 ounces fresh lasagna sheets
17 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese shredded
2 tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped

US - Metric

Instructions

Meat Sauce:

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat; sauté the onion and carrots for 8–10 minutes until softened, then stir in the garlic for 1 minute. Add the beef (and pork, if using) and cook while breaking it up with a spoon until browned.

Make sure your pot is well-heated before adding the vegetables so they soften evenly without steaming.

Pour in the passata, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, crushed bouillon, and dried herbs. Season with salt, pepper (about 3/4 tsp each), and optional sugar. Cover and cook at a gentle simmer for 20–30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the meat is tender and the sauce thickens.

Taste the sauce toward the end of cooking and adjust the salt, pepper, dried herbs, or sugar to balance the acuteness and acidity to your preference.

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. If the sauce is too thick, add a little more milk until it turns into a nice and creamy consistency.

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°C fan forced. (375°F | 190°C conventional)

Spoon about 1 cup of meat sauce onto the base of a 9x13-inch baking dish to prevent sticking and add flavor from the bottom up.
Cover the meat sauce layer with lasagna sheets. (Trim the sheets to fit over the meat if needed).
Layer with 2 cups of meat sauce (or enough to cover the pasta), and add half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat these layers, leaving the remaining cheese for the top.
Pour the remaining meat sauce and the white sauce over the very last layer of lasagna sheets. Bake for 40 minutes.
Top with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Cover the lasagna (with aluminum foil) and bake for 40 minutes. After baking, uncover the lasagna and put it back in the oven for at least 10-12 minutes more, or until golden.

You can use the grill for this step, but just for 5-6 minutes. Be careful; you don't want to burn the lasagna.

Once beautifully golden and out of the oven, garnish with fresh parsley. Let it stand for about 10 minutes before slicing and serving. ENJOY!

Video

Notes

Make Ahead, Storage And Reheating

Lasagna is one of my favorite meals to prep in advance. I actually prefer assembling the whole dish a day before because it gives the flavors a chance to really meld together in the fridge overnight.

Make Ahead: Assemble the lasagna completely, cover it tightly with foil, and store it in the fridge for up to 24 hours before baking. When you are ready for dinner, bake it straight from the fridge. Just add about 15 extra minutes to your cooking time to make sure the cold center heats all the way through.
Fridge: Keep any baked leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Freezer: This freezes beautifully for up to 3 months. I highly recommend letting it cool completely, slicing it into individual portions, and wrapping each square in plastic wrap before putting them in a freezer bag. This makes pulling out a quick lunch or single dinner so much easier.
Reheating: Let your frozen slices thaw in the fridge overnight. You can warm individual pieces in the microwave, or place them in an oven-safe dish covered with foil and bake at 350°F (180°C) until heated through. Covering it with foil prevents the pasta from drying out.

Happy cooking! Xx

If your family fights over those browned, crunchy cheese edges, take the foil off during the last 15 minutes of baking. For an extra golden crust, you can even switch your oven to broil for the final 2 minutes, but do not walk away! Keep a close eye on it so the cheese does not burn.

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