I’m going to make lasagne for the first time ever - any tips or tricks?

[YoongiMarryMe]

I do cook, honest guv, but no-one but me has had any interest in lasagne and I can’t be bothered making it for just me! But youngest DS has asked to try it so I now need to make an Epic Lasagne so he likes it and I have an excuse to make it fairly often from now on.

Help me Obi-Wan Mumsnet, you’re my only hope.

Just buy the big jar of dolmio white lasagne sauce rather than make a bechamel, and use the pre-grated mozzarella and cheddar mix for maximum stringy brown bubbliness.
And a good slosh of Worcester sauce will make your ragu even nicer

I try to avoid making it too much as it is a bit of a faff. Also ds and me at home so I do a surprise one every now and then.

We don't like to too firm, so I make the sauce on the more runny side. And I add cheese so cheese sauce.

Start with a layer of sauce in the dish so the sheets don't stick to the bottom and they cook properly.

So cheese sauce, lasagne sheet, bolognaise mince (also not too dry), cheese sauce, lasagna sheet, mince sauce etc.

Lots of grated cheese on top and into the oven for 30 mins or so.

Yes, we like cheese. Omit this if you like.

Loads of finely grated Parmesan between the layers. White wine in the ragu.

I don’t buy jar sauces bechamel is pretty simple - but I would recommend factoring in plenty of time to make the ragu first. I often make double portions earlier in the day and freeze half for another meal. Then it isn’t such a slog at dinner time. Other top tips are plenty of Worcestershire sauce in both ragu and bechamel. Generous portions of both in relation to pasta so it’s not dry and more cheese than you’d think!

Make a huge one and freeze it in cooked portions - I think it's even better reheated. And often when I've made lasagne from scratch and used what feels like every sodding pan in the kitchen, I don't often enjoy it. I need a bit of distance between the making-faff and the eating-glory 😂
Half pork/half beef, plenty soffrito, wine or vermouth, garlic, toms, nutmeg, bay, milk, I like to use ricotta or cottage cheese or mascarpone to pimp the bechamel. I like it quite sturdy so I use plenty of pasta 😁

I buy the fresh sheets of lasagne, mince, a jar of Dolmio sauce, cheese and a tub of cheese sauce. Brown the mince, add sauce and cook for about 20 minutes, you need quite a lot of liquid, so just add more water. I then layer lasagne sheets first, then mince, another sheet, then mince and topped with sheet. Then I spoon cheese sauce on top and sprinkle cheese and bake for about 40 minutes in oven. Leave it to rest for about 5/10 minutes after cooking and it will set nicely. If you use dry pasta sheets, cooking time will be about an hour. If you don’t have dolmio sauce, you can use tinned tomato’s, mixed herbs and some garlic and maybe a beef stock cube.

My Italian roots are crying

You need a lot less ragu per layer than you think. I spread it so it’s only just covering the base. One mince-blob thick, as it were. Little gaps are fine.

And once you’ve made it, let it sit for 10-15 mins at least before serving up. It binds together better and you can bring it out in sliced chunks rather than hot bubbling sloppy spoonfuls.

I tend to use previously made ragu as it spreads out the work. I don't use cheese sauce, I find it too rich, just bechamel (easy to make) but lots of cheese on top. Mine is always a bit too sloppy but it tastes delicious 😋

I make bolognaise and use that with white sauce.

My recipe is from a book, Valentina Harris, finely chopped onion, carrots, celery. I add mushrooms too. Sauté this until soft, remove and sauté the meat with oregano and tomato purée until browned. Add the vegetables back, add a little garlic to taste, then tinned tomatoes plus water. Add bay leaves and simmer until thickened and reduced. You can do this the day before, that lets to flavours develop. Then build up as usual with the pasta sheets and white sauce.

I use extra virgin olive oil rather than vegetable oil.

I'll bet.
Some of these . Better off with a Findus ready meal if you think it really only needs dry mince and a jar of dolmio.

I also make bolognais for the red sauce.

My tip. A teaspoon of Branston or other chutney in the red sauce.

Also make a very generous amount of the white sauce (I always add cheese too) and add a ladle to each layer drizzled over.

Make sure you cook it long enough. Should be at minimum 50minutes but ideally an hour unless you are using fresh pasta.

Who knew lasagne was such a hop topic? Never have I had replies come in so fast 😂

But the division! Jars or no jars? Cheese sauce or no cheese sauce?

I just skimmed as was shocked at getting any replies so am going back to read properly and make notes, thank you!

It's pretty easy. Make a basic Ragu. Just soffritto, garlic, mince, red wine, tin toms. Salt, pepper, oregano, sugar. Simmer. Keep it moist. Bechamel sauce. Keep it loose.

Use fresh lasagna, and just layer. Butter the dish,aler pasta, ragu, bechamel, parmesan. Pasta, ragu, bechamel, parmesan...... Top with pasta, bechamel, parmesan and butter.

Oven for 45 mins at 160.

This is the recipe I was looking at (because I’ve made a LOT of her recipes and they’ve all been delicious) https://www.recipetineats.com/lasagna/#wprm-recipe-container-21417 But am open to suggestions if you don’t see that as an Epic recipe!

The hints for a more solid less sloppy lasagne are very helpful and not something I’d even given thought to!

🤣

Oh I do love a good old lasagne. Biggest tip is:

Leave it to rest upon removing from oven. For like 30mins...it'll be perfectly hot still (it's like lava anyways straight from oven) and hold its shape. Nothing worse than a homemade lasagne that is all sloppy because of serving straight from oven.

I'd also make a few, and freeze as you might as well if you've all the ingredients out. Just double/triple up on ingredients!

Don't go too fancy or add too much strange veg if it's for a child...you can adapt this in further bakes if it proves a hit! But in saying this it is easy to hide veg in a bolognese (finely chopped carrots, celery, mushrooms)

Make it in advance by at least a few hours to let the dried pasta sheets soften.

Slightly sloppier ragu than for bolognaise and don't bother pre-cooking your pasta. More bechamel than you think you could possibly need. Leave it to settle for a bit before baking and then bake long and slow so it all melds together lusciously.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/maryberrysslasagneall16923/amp

Can't go wrong with Mary Berry! I also agree with other OPs that you need more bechamel than you think.

I use this recipe

www.dontgobaconmyheart.co.uk/best-lasagne-recipe/

OP, I think you are going to regret wanting your little one to want lasagne. Made properly, it's an effing pain 😅

The ragu, for instance, needs to cook for at least an hour. You're not just "mixing a sauce in with some mince", here.

And like a PP said, you will use every pan you possess. Definitely make enough ragu to save some for another day/dish.

Oh and I use fresh lasagne sheets as in the recipe, and make a huge amount as it freezes really well in portions

If you want to make it from scratch, allow at least an hour more than the recipe suggests.

It's lovely but takes a while. 😊

The longer it sits about, the better it is! Always better as leftovers IMO. And jars? Nooo