Classic Italian Lasagna

Lasagna is an iconic Italian comfort food made with a layer of noodles, a layer of a cheese mixture, a layer of meat, and a layer of sauce, followed by another layer of each. Often made with ricotta cheese and marinara sauce, lasagna is a warm, savory dish that any experienced cook should know how to make.

Read below for our lasagna recipe and some fun facts about your favorite type of pasta.

Lasagna’s Origin Story

Lasagna is considered one of the world's oldest pasta dishes. It originated in Italy around the 1200s, first showing up in a poem — with no recipe attached. 

Talk about torture: reading about a delicious pasta dish in a book of poetry but not knowing how to make it.

The First Lasagna

Thankfully, the first lasagna recipe appeared just a few centuries later in the 14th-century cookbook Liber de Coquina or The Book of Cookery in English. However, the earliest lasagna is a far cry from what we know and love today.

Early lasagna was pasta made from fermented dough flattened into long, thin sheets. This part of the original lasagna recipe was eventually passed on to modern versions of the dish. However, as far as historians can tell, early lasagna was just flat noodles with cheese and spices on top.

Lasagna Now

The cooks of Venetia, Italy, first came up with the lasagna we recognize several hundred years back. This lasagna is the wide, flat noodles with ruffled edges used to make a layered dish with sauce, cheese, and Italian seasonings.

Some foodies argue that lasagna is the noodles itself, while the dish we all love is called lasagna casserole. Whatever you want to call it — whether it’s lasagna casserole or just lasagna — we can all agree that it’s a delicious Italian recipe worth making.

The Ingredients in Lasagna

Lasagna is made with a few key ingredients, but you can add or subtract from this list in a variety of different ways and still get a delicious dish. The classic lasagna recipe includes all of the following ingredients:

Ground Meat: Lasagna is a hearty, meaty dish that is typically made with either lean ground beef or Italian sausage — or a combination of both.

Tomatoes: Lasagna is often made with diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste. Mixing these ingredients creates a deliciously acidic tomato layer. Without tomatoes, it’s impossible to make the best lasagna.

Spices: The spices and seasonings used to make lasagna are key in making the dish so flavorful. Some primary lasagna spices are black pepper, fresh parsley, fresh basil, and fennel seeds.

Lasagna Noodles: If you go to your local grocery store, you can easily find high-quality premade lasagna sheets. However, if you’re a purist and have some time on your hands, you can make homemade lasagna noodles.

Cheese: The primary cheeses used to make lasagna are ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese. We recommend buying shredded mozzarella, grated parmesan cheese, and a full pound of ricotta. Some choose to substitute cottage cheese, but we vote for ricotta every time. 

Egg: You need one large egg for this recipe, which helps the gooey ricotta cheese stick together and keeps the lasagna’s shape intact.

Onion and Garlic: Onions are staples in Italian cooking and are essential for lasagna. Likewise, you’ll need whole garlic to make your lasagna taste as authentic and flavorful as possible.

How Do You Layer Lasagna?

Classic lasagna features multiple layers of each of the elements: The ricotta mixture, the meat sauce, the noodles, the mozzarella, and the parmesan. Ideally, your bottom layer should be meat sauce, followed by your first layer of noodles.

After your bed of noodles is laid down, top them with ricotta cheese. Each of the cheeses in lasagna has its own dedicated layer to keep the flavors distinct and robust; after the ricotta comes the mozzarella, followed by more meat sauce and parmesan.

Once you’ve gone from layering meat sauce to parmesan, you’re ready to start the cycle over. Some lasagna dishes feature two of each layer, while others feature more than two or just one. This is one of the aspects of making lasagna that depends on your personal preference. 

Our easy lasagna recipe only includes one layer of each ingredient, as this helps keep prep time and total time in the kitchen to a minimum.

When in doubt, follow this order:

1. Meat sauce comes first on the bottom of your baking dish. This layer includes the tomato mixture and your meat of choice.
   
   
2. The noodles, ideally cooked al dente, come next. A layer of about six noodles should fill a 9x13-inch baking sheet.
   
   
3. Next comes the ricotta mixture.
   
   
4. Top the ricotta with a layer of shredded mozzarella cheese.
   
   
5. Next comes another layer of meat sauce.
   
   
6. Finish up with grated parmesan cheese.
   

In addition, it's customary to top off your lasagna with any remaining grated parmesan you have. This gives the dish a complete and classic look.

How Long Should Lasagna Cook?

Once you’ve fully assembled your layers of ingredients, your lasagna only needs 50 minutes to cook, but this time will be separated into two sections.

After you preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and it reaches the correct temperature, you’ll cover the lasagna with foil and bake it for 25 minutes. Once 25 minutes is up, you’ll uncover the dish and let it cook for another 25 minutes.

In addition, it’s important to let the lasagna rest for about 15 minutes before you start cutting into it and serving it up. The rest time helps the lasagna settle and maintain its shape and texture.

What Should You Serve With Lasagna?

A few of our favorite side dishes for lasagna include:

• Garlic bread
• Breadsticks
• A tomato-based salad topped with feta cheese
• Roasted brussels sprouts
• A wedge salad

How Do You Heat Leftover Lasagna?

As you might imagine, reheating leftover lasagna in the microwave doesn’t always have the best results. The main reason the microwave isn’t your best option is that it can alter the texture of the noodles, making them mushy and diminishing the overall quality of your meal.

Instead of using the microwave to reheat lasagna, we recommend throwing it in the oven. Cover your leftover lasagna with aluminum foil and let it bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Reheating with the oven will get you infinitely better texture and flavor than going the microwave route.

How Do You Store Leftover Lasagna?

In an airtight container, you can refrigerate leftover lasagna for three to five days. However, if you really want to make your leftover lasagna last and know you won’t finish it within a few days, you can always freeze it.

Once the lasagna reaches room temperature, transfer it to an airtight container like a heavy-duty freezer bag and put it in the freezer. Your leftover lasagna can stay good for up to three months when frozen.

The easiest way to preserve leftover lasagna is to start planning to freeze the dish as soon as you start cooking. You can do this by baking your lasagna in an easy-to-freeze container, such as an aluminum foil lasagna pan or casserole dish. 

You can freeze whatever is left of the lasagna in the same pan you used for baking by covering the top with a tightly-sealed layer of aluminum foil.

If you’re heating frozen lasagna, you can follow the same steps we recommended for leftovers from the fridge. Just remember to add about 10 minutes of extra baking time, as it takes a bit for the lasagna to thaw!