A crowd-sized lasagne made from scratch: a slow-simmered beef and pork bolognese, a homemade béchamel, and layers of fresh pasta and cheese, all built and baked in the BIGGA skillet.
Prep: 30 mins | Cook: 4 hrs | Total: 4 hrs 30 mins (including resting) | Serves: 8–10
Ingredients
Bolognese
- 2 onions, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely sliced
- 500g beef mince
- 500g pork mince
- 300ml red wine
- 2kg passata
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- Rosemary, basil, oregano
Béchamel Sauce
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tsp nutmeg
Assembly
- Bolognese sauce (as above)
- Béchamel sauce (as above)
- 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup grated parmigiano reggiano
- ½ cup finely grated parmesan
- 10–16 sheets fresh lasagne sheets
Equipment
- BIGGA skillet
- Deep dish pan, for the bolognese
- Small saucepan and medium saucepan, for the béchamel
- Whisk
- Ladle
- Foil
Method
Make the Bolognese
- Preheat the pan. Preheat a deep dish pan to searing temperatures.
- Brown the onion. Add a tbsp of oil, followed by the onion. Let the onion brown from caramelisation.
- Brown the mince. Add garlic and stir into the browned onion before adding both beef and pork mince. Regularly break apart and stir the mince, allowing it to thoroughly brown.
- Deglaze with wine. Add the red wine to deglaze the pan and let the alcohol cook out at a lower temperature for a few minutes.
- Add the passata and herbs. Stir in the passata, lemon juice, rosemary, basil, and oregano.
- Simmer. Reduce temperature to low and slowly simmer for 2–3 hours until the consistency is slightly sticky.
Make the Béchamel Sauce
- Warm the milk. Heat milk in a small saucepan until just warm, take off heat and set aside.
- Make the roux. Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Once completely melted and bubbling, add the flour and stir to create a roux. Cook for 2–3 minutes until golden.
- Whisk in the milk. Add a small amount of warmed milk (about 3 tbsp) and mix until thickening. Slowly add the rest of the milk whilst whisking vigorously to create a smooth, thick white sauce. Add nutmeg in the last minute and stir through.
Assemble and Bake
- Butter the pan. Add a few small dollops of butter scattered around the base of your BIGGA skillet.
- Start with bolognese. Ladle a thin layer of bolognese sauce over the butter and spread across pan.
- Add pasta. Add a layer of lasagne sheets (slight overlapping helps).
- Add the sauces. Add another bolognese layer and a béchamel layer (about a ladle of each), spreading evenly.
- Add cheese. Spread a handful of mozzarella and a sprinkle of parmesan over the sauce.
- Keep layering. Continue repeating until about 1cm from the top edge of the pan. Rotate the angle of pasta sheets with each layer.
- Top it off. Finish with a sauce layer, sprinkle mozzarella then grated parmigiano reggiano across the top.
- Bake and rest. Cover with foil and bake at 180°C for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake a further 15–20 minutes until golden and bubbling. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Tips
- Slightly overlap the lasagne sheets in each layer.
- Rotate the angle of the pasta sheets with each layer.
- Stop layering about 1cm from the top edge of the pan.
- Rest the lasagne for 10 minutes before serving.
FAQ
How long should you simmer bolognese for lasagne?
Slowly simmer the bolognese on low for 2–3 hours, until the consistency is slightly sticky.
How do you make béchamel sauce for lasagne?
Melt butter until bubbling, add flour and cook the roux for 2–3 minutes until golden. Whisk in a little warm milk until it thickens, then slowly add the rest while whisking vigorously. Stir in nutmeg in the last minute.
Do you need to cook fresh lasagne sheets first?
No. This recipe layers fresh lasagne sheets straight into the pan between the sauces.
How long do you bake lasagne?
Bake covered with foil at 180°C for 30 minutes, then uncovered for a further 15–20 minutes until golden and bubbling. Rest for 10 minutes before serving.
