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–+ servings
Meat Lasagna in a white dish.

Meat Lasagna

5 from 3 votes
Created by Mariam Ezzeddine
This Meat Lasagna is the easiest lasagna recipe you'll ever make! A hearty homemade lasagna packed with ground beef and ricotta cheese.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Main Dishes, Pasta
Cuisine Italian
Servings 12 servings
servings

Ingredients

  • 1.5 lbs. ground beef
  • 1 large onion petite diced
  • 3 tbsps. olive oil
  • 48 oz. spaghetti sauce I used tomato & basil
  • 3 oz. tomato paste
  • 1 tbsp. black pepper
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano
  • 1 tsp dried basil
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 15 oz. ricotta cheese
  • 1 cup fresh basil chopped
  • 1 tsp salt or less to taste
  • 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 12 sheets lasagna pasta cooked
  • 1/2 cup pasta water save from cooking pasta

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
  • Cook pasta al dente according to package directions. Save 1/2 cup of water.
  • To prepare the sauce, bring a large skillet to medium-high heat. Add in the oil and sauté the diced onions for 2-3 minutes. Add in the meat and break it up really well to avoid any clumps. Cook until the meat it no longer pink.
  • Add in the spaghetti sauce, tomato paste, salt, spices and pasta water. Cook until the sauce thickens up. About 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat.
  • To assemble the lasagna, place about 1 cup of the pasta sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Then cover the sauce by laying 3 sheets of the lasagna pasta. Spread some ricotta cheese, add more meat sauce, mozzarella cheese and some fresh basil. Repeat the steps until you run out of the ingredients. You should have about 4 layers total.
  • Cover with foil wrap and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove the foil wrap and bake for another 10 minutes.
  • Once the cook time is done, remove from the oven, let it rest for about 5 minutes, then garnish with fresh basil and serve.

Notes

  • Use a preheated oven.
  • Add some fennel seeds to give the Meat Lasagna more of a sausage flavor.
  • Use jarred spaghetti sauce to keep this recipe simpler.
  • For a thicker ricotta line a colander with a clean cloth and pour ricotta into it.  This gives you a thicker cheese sauce, no watery lasagna here!
  • Be sure you put a little sauce down in the pan first so that first layer of pasta does not stick to the pan. 
  • The final layer of pasta needs to be totally covered in sauce to prevent the noodles from becoming too brittle.
  • After removing from the oven, allow the Meat Lasagna sit for 10 minutes before cutting into it. This stops your layers from sliding apart.
  • You can reduce the ground beef and mix in some ground chicken, turkey if you like.
  • You can sneak more veggies in if you like, just be wary that this can up the water content, you don't want to end up with a soupy lasagna.
  • Garnish with fresh basil.
  • Meat lasagna will stay fresh for 3 – 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Nutrition

Calories: 469kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 26g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 80mg | Sodium: 1091mg | Potassium: 766mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1058IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 264mg | Iron: 3mg
Tried this recipe?Rate the recipe below and mention @cookinwithmima and tag #cookinwithmima so I can see your recreations.