What sort of heathen starts of a lasagne with a layer of pasta?

[LushyMcLushFace]

Watching Dinner Date (I know, I know ) and one guy is making lasagne. Am I the heathen as I always start off with a layer of the tomato based sauce?

I start with thin layer of bechamel to soak into the pasta layer which you need on the bottom to get the slice of lasagne out properly. Then the ragu, pasta, bechamel, pasta, ragu, pasta, bechamel, pasta, bechamel & parmesan. I like it saucy but I dont like the ragu and the bechamel to mix while cooking.

My mother used to make wonderful lasagne that held together beautifully ( can't bear sloppy lasagne) . She always started with a pasta layer

I use the 'fresh' lasagne sheets that you soak in boiling water for a few mins before using

Lasagne sheet on the bottom
Veggie bolognese layer (mushrooms, onions, peppers, sweet potatoes and butternut squash in a tomato pasta sauce)
Lasagne
White sauce layer
Lasagne
Veggie bolognese
Lasagne
White sauce
Lasagne
Veggie bolognese
Lasagne
White sauce
Cheese on top

Yum!

No wonder he can't keep a date interested!! 🤨🙄

And the most popular TV ad for lasagne (Barilla) has them putting a meat sauce layer on top.
Yes, I tried that after seeing the advert. It looks nice but it's really just a waste as it goes all dry.

I use creme fraiche instead of bechamel

But, back to the OP, always sauce at the bottom to start with.

I layer as follows

Beef
Bechamel
Pasta
Beef
Bechamel
Pasta
Beef
Bechamel
Pasta
Bechamel
Grated mozzarella

It's common sense surely as it's easier when you're serving the lasagne as it's more solid compared to a layer of sauce+meat as the base layer.

I always put a sheet of lasagne in the bottom, it cooks perfectly and makes serving easier. I get about 6 repeats of lasagne sheet/ragu/bechamel in a standard depth lasagne dish.

Of course you put a layer of pasta on the bottom! Makes it much firmer and easier to serve.

Only bechamel on the top (and grated cheese towards the end of the cooking). Bechamel sauce which has gone crunchy through being baked on top of a lasagne makes me think there has to be a Deity at work in this forsaken place we call a universe. It's the tastiest thing ever.

I'm mortified at my spelling mistake in the thread title

Bechamel, pasta, bolognese, Bechamel sauce, pasta, bolognese, bechamel sauce, pasta, bolognese,, pasta, bechamel and then grated Parmesan

what sort of heathen

That would be Italians

Always use fresh lasagna, start with a sheet at the bottom of the buttered dish, and then ragu, bechamel, Parmesan, repeat, repeat, finish with bechamel and Parmesan. No cheese, no veggies. Thank you .

Bit of white sauce spread over the bottom, lasagne sheets, ragu, white sauce, lasagne sheets, meat, white sauce.

On another note can anyone please recommend a deep lasagne dish that lasagne sheets actually fit without having to snap bits off?

It's easier to serve if there's a layer of pasta at the bottom as you can pick up the whole slice without having to go back to the dish and scoop up the remaining sauce.
I have found my people

Spent years juggling with messy sauce before I put a layer of pasta on the bottom. Life saver.

I used to put pasta-cheese sauce-pasta-bolognese-pasta (and repeat), with grated cheese on top of the cheese sauce to finish off Yummy, but about 1000 calories a slice as well as expensive

I always start with a layer of pasta on the base, I like it quite firm, not sloppy at all. I get about four repeats of the layers, and it serves out in neat portions.

... and I now have a Weight Watchers advert in the sidebar