Julie Clark
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Easy Lasagna Recipe (No Boil Noodles)
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Learn our easy lasagna recipe with no boil noodles! This classic recipe uses two meats and three cheeses for amazing flavor. Your favorite store-bought spaghetti sauce keeps it simple.
About two years ago we shared our family’s best lasagna recipe. It is 100% homemade (ok not the pasta, but the rest is homemade). It takes a little work, but it is so good and so worth it.
What happens if you’re short on time and still craving that classic homemade lasagna flavor? Lasagna shortcuts like ravioli lasagna bake, lasagna roll ups or skillet lasagna are always options, but this easy oven ready lasagna recipe is an easy solution. By using your favorite spaghetti sauce our no boil noodle trick, you can make this quickly!
What readers are saying about this easy lasagna recipe:
Jeff says, “I’m a guy that just does not like to cook! I love to eat but just don’t have an enough of an imagination to make something good. But after making this simple lasagna recipe, everybody loved it. The taste was awesome but also just to look at it after it was done in the oven looked amazing! Believe me I never talk about something I’ve made like this but it truly was perfect.” ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Pat says, “I made this homemade lasagna recipe today and it was a terrific hit! My mother-in-law said it was the best lasagna she has ever tasted! Thank you so much for this delicious recipe.” ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
Lasagna with Ricotta or Cottage Cheese?
When I was growing up, I always had lasagna with cottage cheese. I didn’t love the texture of ricotta so my mom always put cottage cheese in lasagna instead.
These days I’m more tolerant of ricotta in lasagna. You can use either cottage cheese OR ricotta in this recipe. Use the same amount for either cheese you choose to use in this no boil pasta lasagna. You can even mix cottage cheese and ricotta cheese together. Both are delicious, but ricotta is more authentic.
Ingredients for Lasagna
This no boil pasta lasagna has simple ingredients, most of which are pantry staples.
A few notes:
- Ground beef and Italian sausage. A combination of these two meats give the best flavor. You can season ground pork with our homemade Italian sausage seasoning if you prefer.
- Spaghetti sauce. This is excellent with a store-bought sauce such as Rao’s marinara or try our homemade spaghetti sauce.
- Lasagna noodles. Can you use the dry lasagna noodles without boiling? Yes! We don’t even specifically use oven-ready noodles. Just use regular lasagna noodles and they should cook just fine if you follow our instructions.
✨ See the recipe card for the full ingredient list. ✨
How to Make this Easy Lasagna Recipe
To prepare, preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
- In a large skillet over medium heat brown the ground beef and sausage together. Drain off and discard any fat. Add the minced garlic and spaghetti sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes.
- In a large bowl, mix together the cheese mixture: ricotta cheese, 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese, eggs, ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese, dried parsley, salt and ground black pepper. Mix well.
- To assemble, spread ¾ cup of sauce on the bottom of the baking pan. Cover the bottom with 3 uncooked lasagna noodles. Top with ⅓ of the ricotta cheese mixture and ¼ of the sauce. Repeat layers (noodles, cheese, sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce).
- For the top layer, add 3 noodles, remaining sauce, remaining 1 cup mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Spray a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray. Cover with the pan with aluminum foil (sprayed side down). This prevents the cheese from sticking. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.
- Let the lasagna stand for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Pro tip
If your pasta sauce is a thick, hearty sauce, add ½ cup water to the edges of the pan. If your sauce is runnier like Old World Style Ragu or even Rao’s marinara sauce, you won’t need as much water.
What to Serve with Lasagna
Try this easy lasagna recipe with our homemade garlic bread and an Italian salad.
Italian green beans and roasted potatoes are always great options, too!
How to Reheat Lasagna
If you are wanting to heat leftover lasagna that is in a pan, cover it with foil and bake it in an oven that you’ve preheated to 350º Fahrenheit. Bake it until the internal temperature reaches 165º F. This will take at least 30 minutes, but depending on how much is left, could take up to 50 minutes.
You can also reheat individual slices on a plate in the microwave.
Can you freeze lasagna?
Yes! You can freeze this easy lasagna recipe both before and/or after you cook it. Here are a few tips:
- Use a disposable aluminum pan to make your lasagna in. Then you can easily wrap the unbaked lasagna and freeze it.
- If you are baking the lasagna before freezing it, allow the lasagna to cool completely before wrapping it.
- Wrap the lasagna twice in plastic wrap and once in foil.
- Remove the frozen lasagna from the freezer the day before you want to bake it. This will help it bake more quickly in the oven.
- Freeze for 2-3 months.
How to Cook Frozen Lasagna
This easy lasagna recipe will cook the most evenly and have the best results if you remove the lasagna from the freezer the day before you want to cook it. This will help it to mostly defrost and bake more easily.
- Remove the wrappings, then cover with just one layer of foil.
- Bake in a 350º F oven covered for about 50 minutes, then uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.
- **If the lasagna was previously baked, you won’t need to bake it as long. Start at 30 minutes covered, then uncover and bake until heated through and bubbly on the edges.
Easy Lasagna Recipe (No Boil Noodles)
Learn our easy lasagna recipe with no boil noodles! This classic recipe uses two meats and three cheeses for amazing flavor. Your favorite store-bought spaghetti sauce keeps it simple.
Servings 15
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Resting Time 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ pound sweet Italian sausage
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 48 ounces spaghetti sauce (your favorite sauce)
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese)
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley or 4 tablespoons freshly snipped
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
- 12 lasagna noodles
- ¼ cup water**
Instructions
- To prepare, preheat the oven to 350ºF and spray a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
- In a large skillet over medium heat brown the ground beef and sausage together. Drain off and discard any fat. Add the minced garlic and spaghetti sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes. 1 pound ground beef, ½ pound sweet Italian sausage, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 48 ounces spaghetti sauce
- In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta, 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese, eggs, ½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese, dried parsley, salt and ground black pepper. Mix well. 15 ounces ricotta cheese, 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, 2 large eggs, ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons dried parsley, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
- To assemble, spread ¾ cup of sauce on the bottom of the baking pan. Cover the bottom with 3 uncooked lasagna noodles. Top with ⅓ of the cheese mixture and ¼ of the sauce. 12 lasagna noodles
- Repeat layers (noodles, cheese, sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce).
- Top with 3 noodles, remaining sauce, remaining 1 cup of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. If your sauce is a thick, hearty sauce, add ½ cup water to the edges of the pan. If your sauce is runnier like Old World Style Ragu or even Rao’s marinara, you won’t need as much water. ¼ cup water**–
- Spray a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray. Cover with the baking dish with aluminum foil (sprayed side down). This prevents the cheese from sticking. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.
- Let the lasagna stand for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Video
Notes
- The liquids from the spaghetti sauce should be enough that the noodles will cook beautifully in the oven as the lasagna bakes.
- You don’t need oven-ready lasagna noodles. Regular lasagna noodles should cook just fine.
- If you prefer, you can boil lasagna noodles as the box instructions suggest and then make the lasagna as described. Don’t add any extra water if you choose this method.
- Garnish the top of this classic lasagna recipe with fresh basil, fresh oregano or fresh parsley.
- Refer to the article above for more tips and tricks.
- The calories shown are based on the lasagna being cut into 15 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 piece of lasagna. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information. **
Nutrition
Calories: 358kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 92mg | Sodium: 862mg | Potassium: 522mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 750IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 244mg | Iron: 2mg
How much Spaghetti sauce do I mix with the ground beef and sausage while cooking the meat on the stove?….
This was the first time making lasagna. The side notes really helped & I followed the recipe to a T. I just added some Spanish & red & green peppers. I liked how will it held up. Even when cut.
I made this last night and it came out very good. The only changes I made was to leave out the sausuage and I added zucchini and fresh mozzarella on top. I will make again.
This recipe is easy and delicious. I made the sauce early in the day and put it in my slow cooker to simmer until I was ready to put it together. I doubled the recipe. One pan went to a friend recuperating from surgery. His family called and asked if I would share the recipe. The other pan my family shared as we were coming and going from sports. This was a big, big hit. I highly recommend it and I am going to try the other variations on here soon!
I made this recipe today and it was a terrific hit! My mother-in-law said it was the best lasagna she has ever tasted! Thank you so much for this delicious recipe
Just a quick question… Does this recipe call for regular uncooked pasta noodles or the “oven ready” noodles ?
just made this recipe yesterday and it was so easy to do and delicious to eat!! i definitely will use this recipe again in the future!
First time making lasagna and I have to say this quite easy and I would definitely make again. Mine took about an hour and 10 minutes total (60 min covered, 10 min uncovered) and then the last few minutes I put on a low broil to crisp up the cheese. Turned out great!
I didnt cook the pasta and left it for 50min and added 1/2c of water around the perimeter and the pasta was still firm.
Hi I made this last night and I baked it for 45 min. then took the cover off and baked it for an additional 10 min. But when I took it out of the oven it was dry. I haven’t eaten it yet bc it’s late. So tomorrow I’ll reheat it and hopefully it will taste ok. The instructions on the noodle package had mentioned you have to cook it right away. It shouldn’t be put in the refrigerator overnight for the next day to bake it. It does something to the noodles bc as your putting everything together the… Read more »
Can I freeze it with the water in it?
How long would you recommend baking if I make the night before and have in the fridge?
I’m a guy that just does not like to cook! I love to eat but just don’t have an enough of an imagination to make something good. But after making this everybody loved it. The taste was awesome but also just to look at it after it was done in the oven looked amazing! Believe me I never talk about something I’ve made like this but it truly was perfect.
Thank you
Jeff
Smells & tastes just like at maggiano’s.
Easy and very delicious. Used a dish larger than 9x 13 and doubled the Ricotta cheese and added more meat to the sauce. Used up every bit of it in the layers. I like it really cheesy and love Ricotta ! Great recipe!