My Very Best Traditional Lasagna Recipe Recipe (2024)

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This Traditional Lasagna Recipe is loaded with layers of homemade meat sauce, oodles of cheese, and plenty of chewy lasagna noodles. Pro tip: Pre-cut the lasagna before baking for easier, cheesier, slices.

I entered the Lasagna Arena with my popular Make-Ahead Lasagna, a recipe I created because I was interested in bypassing the step where you boil lasagna noodles (and the way that oven-ready, pre-boiled lasagna noodle/pasta sheets shredded on your fork grossed me out).

In that homemade lasagna recipe, the noodles go in dry and you let the whole thing sit for a few hours before baking (or overnight, making it a fun way to prep a meal ahead of time). It works perfectly, tastes great, and people love it. It’s honestly my best lasagna recipe on the site, if only for the convenience factor.

For everyone else who doesn’t have the luxury of additional time, here’s the easy lasagna recipe you’ve requested: The same delicious flavors, homemade sauce, and oodles of cheese, but you cook lasagna noodles first. There is no added wait time, so you can pop this homemade Lasagna in the oven as soon as you’re done building it.

Ingredient notes

• Lasagna noodles: NOT “oven-ready” or “no-boil noodles.” Those pre-cooked noodles will shred on your fork in the most unappetizing way, while the “real” noodles will not.
• Ground beef:This recipe calls for 2 pounds of ground beef, but doing 1 pound each of ground beef and ground Italian sausage is delicious, too.
• Sugar:Even a tablespoon is too much for some people. If you don’t like the sound of sugar in your meat sauce, please leave it out. In my family, people add ¼ cup or even up to ½ cup.
• Italian seasoning:It’s easy to make yourownhomemade Italian seasoningwith dried basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme and marjoram.
• Ricotta cheese:Make your own ricotta with just 4 ingredients: Milk, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt.

Step-by-step instructions

To make the noodles and the cheese filling:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large pot or Dutch oven, bring 4 quarts water and 1 tablespoon salt to boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta well and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking (this also removes the starch so the noodles won’t stick to each other).

2. In a large bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, parsley, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cover and chill the ricotta cheese mixture until assembling the lasagna.

To make the meat sauce:

1. In a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat, add beef (or sausage) and onion, and cook until mostly browned, about 5 minutes. Break up clumps with a wooden spoon and drain if desired. Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

2. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, and fennel seeds. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I like 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper). You should have about 2 quarts of sauce.

To assemble and bake the lasagna:

1. In the bottom of a 9-inch x 13-inch casserole dish, spread 2 cups meat sauce. Arrange a single layer of pasta over the meat sauce (I do 3 full-size noodles lengthwise and then a partial noodle crosswise).

2. Spread with a heaping 2/3 cup of the ricotta mixture. Top with about 1 ½ cups (5 ounces) of mozzarella. Sprinkle with ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese.

3. Spoon 2 cups meat sauce over the cheese. Make another layer of noodles, ricotta mixture (heaping 2/3 cup), mozzarella (1 ½ cups) and Parmesan (⅓ cup). Repeat layers 1 more time, for a total of 3 layers (you will have extra sauce which you can pass separately).

4. Cut lasagna into twelve pieces (this makes it much easier to serve later; you can remove a piece without pulling the melted cheese off the entire lasagna). Spray a large piece of aluminum foil with nonstick spray and cover baking dish.

5. Bake, covered with foil, for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake until hot and bubbly, about 25 minutes longer.

6. Cool 5 minutes, then garnish with parsley or fresh basil if desired.

Recipe tips and variations

• Yield: As written, this classic Lasagna recipe is made in a 9” by 13” baking dish, enough for 12 servings.
• Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
• Make ahead: Make this recipe up to 3 days before you need it and keep it in the refrigerator.
• Freezer: Wrap the unbaked lasagna tightly in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as directed (preheat oven to 375 degrees, bake 25 minutes with foil, 25 minutes without foil). To bake the frozen lasagna straight from the freezer, bake 1 hour covered with foil and 24 minutes without the foil (the lasagna must reach 165 degrees on an internal thermometer).
• To go: Prepare this Lasagna in the oven-safe insert of a 9×13-inch crockpot and then tote it with you to your holiday gathering. Bonus, you won’t have to ask your host to keep it warm!
• Pesto: Got a jar of pesto in the pantry, or homemade pesto in the refrigerator? Add a surprise layer somewhere for lots of extra flavor.
• Spinach: Add fresh spinach to your ricotta cheese mixture for a pop of green and extra nutrition.
• Customize your sauce:Change up this sauce to your personal protein preference. For a lighter sauce, use ground chicken or ground turkey instead of beef and ground pork sausage. You could even add veal for a “meatloaf mix.”
• Herbs: Stir minced fresh herbs into the final sauce or garnish your dish with fresh parsley or fresh basil.
• Spicy:Stir in red pepper flakes to taste with the other spices or pass separately at the table.
• Creamy:Reminiscent of bechamel sauce, add heavy cream to taste (start with ¼ cup and see if you want more). If you have time for the sauce to simmer longer, stir in a leftover Parmesan cheese rind from the freezer.
• Buttery:Add 1 or 2 tablespoons butter or a drizzle of olive oil to the sauce for a rich, buttery taste.
• Lasagna Soup: Set and forget my Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup with only 10 minutes of prep.
• Zucchini Lasagna: Grilled ribbons of zucchini stand in for lasagna noodles in this Zucchini Lasagna layered with ricotta and marinara-coated ground beef.
• Zucchini Parmesan: In lieu of the whole breading-and-frying situation, this fuss-freeZucchini Parmesan uses roasted zucchini “noodles” in one of my best Italian dinners for busy weeknights.
• Meat sauce:My favoriteHomemade Meat Saucehas both ground beef and Italian sausage. It’s perfect for lasagna, spaghetti, or spiralized zoodles, and it comes together with easy pantry ingredients.
• Meatless:For a hearty meatless marinara sauce, try myHomemade Tomato Sauce. You can add extra vegetables like onions, bell peppers, celery, or finely diced carrots. This one makes a great pizza sauce, too!
• Spaghetti and Meatballs:This classicSpaghetti and Meatballs Recipeis a hearty and comforting family dinner idea. One bite of this Italian-American dinner recipe will transport you to a Midwestern red sauce restaurant.
• Spaghetti Squash with meat sauce:Learnhow to cook spaghetti squash, then top with homemade tomato sauce or your favorite meat sauce.
• Italian meatballs:These classicItalian Meatballsare ready to be sauced and served with spaghetti, on meatball subs, or as an appetizer. Pan-fry and baking instructions included! Or try my wildly popular Turkey Meatballs.