Lasagna Al Forno {No Boil Recipe} (2024)

Why You’ll Love Lasagna Al Forno

• It’s a make once - eat twice (or more) type of meal.
• It reheats well the next day and it’s perfect for the freezer.
• No need to boil lasagna sheets before assembling your lasagna, but there are 2 tricks that you MUST do to have evenly cooked lasagna.
• Prepare some of the elements in advance - like ragu sauce. It tastes even better the next day.
• Make the whole dish in advance and reheat before serving.
• Which makes lasagna perfect for big family gatherings.
• Flavor - last but not least, you’ll fall in love with rich, hearty and comforting combination of layers of pasta, beef ragu, bechamel sauce and Parmesan cheese.

INGREDIENTS

• Lasagna Pasta Sheets - you can use dry or fresh pasta sheets (store-bought). Dry lasagna sheets will often read on the package: oven-ready lasagne. But even if it doesn’t say that you can still use any lasagna sheets because of the magic tricks that I’m going to teach you.
• Beef Ragu Sauce - traditional lasagna recipe calls for authentic Ragu Alla Bolognese also known as Bolognese sauce. However this simplified beef (or mixed meat) ragu will also work great. Selection of meat for ragu depends a lot on your personal preference. Mixed meat (half pork, half beef) makes rich and flavorful sauce while a mix of pork, beef and chicken or turkey makes a lighter and more delicate ragu. You can also use beef only or beef + pancetta (salt-cured pork belly) to make ragu for your lasagne.
• Bechamel Sauce - easy 5-minutes white sauce for lasagna which is also known as Salsa Besciamella. Remember that Bechamel Sauce for Lasagna should be slightly thinner than the classic version, This means you need to use more milk for that same amount of butter and flour. Avoid store-bought bechamel.
• Parmesan Cheese - freshly grated Parmesan cheese will give the most flavor but in this case even grated quality store bought Parmesan will work great. You can also use half Parmesan and half Pecorino cheese if you like stronger flavor.
• Mozzarella Cheese (optional) - classic Lasagna recipe doesn’t include any other types of cheese except Parmesan but a lot of Italian nonnas love to add a few cubes on Mozzarella cheese between the layers. I like to add it just on the tops for delicious cheesy crust. You can try both ways and what you like best.

How To Make Lasagna Al Forno - Step By Step

Start preparing lasagna by making ragu meat sauce.

Ragu can be made a day or 2 in advance or use a batch of Ragu Alla Bolognese from the freeze (thawed).
This helps significantly to cut down lasagna preparation time.

Prepare Italian Beef Ragu

• Start by preparing soffritto. Dice carrot, onion and celery into small cubes. Put them in a large pan with a generous splash of olive oil (about ¼ cup).
  Let simmer until onions become semi-translucent.
  TIP: If you want to add extra flavor to your ragu, start by frying pancetta (salt-cured pork belly) cut into small cubes in a dry pan. Once pancetta is nicely roasted, add soffritto (carrots, onion, celery).
  In this case just a quick drizzle of olive oil will be enough.
• Once soffritto is ready add ground meat crumbling it with your hands.
  Set the heat to high and continue to stir and break any large lumps of meat with a wooden spoon. You’ll see meat will start to release some liquid.
  Continue to cook on high heat lightly roasting the meat until all the liquid has evaporated.
  TIP: I like to cook soffritto and meat in a large pan to help meat roast perfectly without boiling it. Once it’s ready for tomato sauce I’ll transfer everything in a dutch oven. You can cook ragu from start to finish in a large pan or in a dutch oven.
  This step is extra which you can skip, but trust me, the flavor it gives makes a big difference.
• Once meat is lightly roasted add wine. Red wine or white wine of your choice. Let evaporate.
• Add salt and a little pepper to taste. If you used pancetta remember it already contains salt. Plus, you can always add extra salt at the end.
• Add tomato passata (tomato pure) and water or broth with 1:1 ratio. When adding water I like to add water to the tomato pure can and wash out any remaining pure, then add it to ragu.
  Cover with a lid leaving a small opening for steam to come out and set on slow simmer for 1.5 - 2 hours.
• Check on your ragu occasionally making sure there’s still enough liquid.
  If needed add a little more water or broth to thin it out. Remember ragu will thicken a little as it cools.
  As a final result you should have ragu of medium thickness or of medium thinners I would say.
  Taste for salt and pepper and add more if needed.

Prepare Bechamel Sauce

When you’re ready to assemble lasagna start preparing the Bechamel sauce.

• In a stove-top pot set on medium heat add butter. Once butter is melted add flour and whisk well until a thick creamy paste forms. Stir well for a few seconds.
• Slowly pour in about ⅓ of the milk. Continue whisking energetically breaking all the lumps. Make sure to scrape well the bottom and sides of the pot.
• Once you have reached smooth consistency slowly add the rest of the milk, nutmeg and salt to taste.
• Continue whisking until the sauce starts to thicken. It should still be runny, creamy but not watery! Turn the heat of and cover the pot with a lid.
  Remember! Bechamel sauce will continue to cook a little even with the heat of. So it’ll thicken further without you knowing this. It’s a good practice to the turn the heat of once you’ve reached ALMOST desired consistency.

Assemble Lasagna Layers

• Once you have all elements for lasagna ready put a pot or a kettle of water to boil.
• Pour hot boiling water in a large bowl or shallow dish that can fit a single lasagna sheet. Add a few drops of oil (any oil) to prevent lasagna sheets from sticking together.

IMPORTANT: This step is necessary only if you use dried lasagna sheets. Skip this step and further reference to it if you’re using fresh pasta!

• Place Lasagna in a preheated to 390F (200C) oven for 40 minutes.
• At 25 minutes mark lower the temperature 355F (180C).
• If you notice lasagna started to brown too much, cover the top with an aluminum foil and continue to cook.
• Allow to rest for 10-15 minutes for serving.

Ingredients listed in the recipe are good for 7.5/10.5 inch baking dish.
A 7x11 or 8x10 will also work. If you have a large dish feel free to double the ingredients and make an extra layer or make another small dish of Lasagne Al Forno.

As an alternative you can freeze just ragu and use it later in the recipes like Pappardelle Alla Bolognese.

Top Tips For Making The Best Lasagna Al Forno

• Perfect top layer every single time. Set aside a little less than ¼ of ragu and a little more than ¼ of bechamel sauce (or ⅕ if you plan to make 5 players. Same for Parmesan cheese.
  This way you can divide the remaining sauces between the layers and even if you over do one of the layers you still will have enough sauce for the top layer!
• Spread ragu sauce well. Especially around the corners. Nobody wants to eat a corner piece without the meat.
• Don't let lasagna sheets fit the pan perfectly. they’ll expand in the oven. In fact, if you’re using dry lasagna sheets it’s highly recommended there’s a little space left around the edges. If lasagna sheets fit the baking dish to a T they might curl up in the oven as they puff.
  Another option how you can avoid this is to slightly cross-layer the sheets.
• Beef ragu and bechamel sauce should be rather thin. This is super important to help the pasta cook in the oven and absorb the moisture from the sauces.
• Cover Lasagna with an aluminum foil or parchment paper after about 25 minutes in the oven. If you notice it starts to brown too much.
• Let it rest before cutting and serving. Once lasagna is baked, let it rest on the kitchen counter for at least 10-15 minutes better 30 minutes. This way you can cut perfect individual portions without it falling apart.

HOW TO STORE

Lasagna will last in the fridge for 3 days.

HOW TO FREEZE

Make it directly in aluminum foil pans with covers and store in the freeze for up to 4 months.

Always freeze Lasagna AFTER baking and once it’s completely cool.

You can freeze it as whole or in individual portions. If you’re freezing Lasagna in individual portions make sure to arrange each portion in a pan that fits perfectly. If you freeze it in a bigger container lasagna might fall apart when you reheat it.

HOW TO REHEAT FROZEN LASAGNA

Homemade frozen lasagna should be first thawed. If you’re planning to make it for lunch, take it out of the freeze the night before. If you plan to eat it for dinner, take lasagna out of the freeze in the morning. Once thawed or almost thawed cover with an aluminum (tin) foil and cook in a preheated to 350F (175C) oven for 20-25 minutes.

What is Lasagna Al Forno?

Lasagna is arguably one of the most popular Italian pasta dishes. It’s made with wide rectangular pasta sheets that are layered with meat ragu, bechamel sauce and cheese.

Translated from Italian Al Forno means in the oven. Al Forno style simply means it’s oven baked.Like Lasagna Al Forno, Tortellini Al Forno, Frittata Al Forno, Castagne Al Forno (oven roasted chestnuts) etc.

Lasagna or Lasagne?

So you’ve heard people say Lasagna and Lasagne, but which spelling is correct?

The answer is BOTH. And no, it’s not the difference between American and British spelling. Being an Italian dish let’s take peak in Italian grammar for a second.

Lasagne is a plural form of lasagna. Lasagna is a single pasta sheet, lasagne more than 1 pasta sheets.

Lasagna as in singular form also refers to a dish itself.

So technically you can say Lasagna Al Forno (as a dish) or Lasagne Al Forno (as you use multiple pasta sheets to make the dish).

Can I make Lasagna with fresh pasta?

Absolutely! There’s no need to pre-boil or soak fresh pasta sheets (store-bought), just make sure to make thin Ragu and Bechamel sauce as directed in the recipe.

Do you have to boil lasagna sheets?

No, this is a 100% no boil lasagna recipe! You can use lasagna pasta sheets that say no boil lasagna sheets” in the package or ANY dried lasagna sheets taking into consideration my tips about making it.

How long does it take to bake Lasagna?

It takes about 40-45 minutes total. Bake Lasagna at 390F for about 25 minutes and than bake it at 350 for another 15-20 minutes until golden crust.

Can I make Lasagna without Ricotta Cheese?

Absolutely! This Lasagna is made without Ricotta.
In fact, classic Lasagna recipe from Emilia-Romagna where it originated from doesn’t call for no other cheese except Parmesan. There are however lasagna recipes from other parts of Italy, mainly from Campagna region - Naples where ricotta cheese is substituted for Bechamel sauce.

Can I make Lasagna without Ricotta Cheese?

Absolutely! This Lasagna is made without Ricotta.
In fact, classic Lasagna recipe from Emilia-Romagna where it originated from doesn’t call for no other cheese except Parmesan. There are however lasagna recipes from other parts of Italy, mainly from Campagna region - Naples where ricotta cheese is substituted for Bechamel sauce.

Is this a cheater Lasagna recipe?

No, not at all. This is an authentic Nothern Italian lasagna, just how nonna makes it!
The only difference is that most nonnas make lasagna with fresh pasta. While you can also make this lasagna with fresh pasta I'll teach you all the tricks to make the most delicious NO BOIL lasagna using dried pasta sheets.

Is this a Make-Ahead Lasagna?

Both! You can prepare and cook it in advance, store it in the fridge for 1 day and reheat when ready to serve. If you need to prepare lasagna more time in advance see freezing options.
It’s also perfect to be cooked and served immediately.

Lasagna Al Forno {No Boil Recipe}

Delicious, juicy Lasagna Al Forno can be made without the need to boil lasagna pasta sheets. Learn all the tips and tricks for this perfect no boil lasagna!

Print Pin Rate / Comment

Servings: 6