Homemade Lasagna with Meat Sauce Recipe

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By: Becky - The Cookie RookiePosted: 10/31/19Updated: 2/2/24

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This Homemade Lasagna with Meat Sauce is made with a delicious and rich meat sauce for an easy, traditional, and comforting main meal. This Italian layered pasta dish is loaded with flavor and only takes 20 minutes of prep time. Perfect for a weeknight meal and fancy enough to serve to guests.

Table of Contents

Why We Love This Homemade Lasagna Recipe

Easy. The meat sauce is incredibly rich, but it doesn’t take hours of cooking to achieve the flavor, so it’s great for a weeknight meal.
Cheesy. Just like the traditional Italian recipe, ricotta cheese is layered with the meat sauce, rather than béchamel which is often used.
Hearty. I honestly don’t think there’s a better comfort food than a cheesy lasagna layered with a rich and flavorsome meat sauce. It’s so filling, and it’s a dish the whole family will love!

Variations on Lasagna with Meat Sauce

You can swap out the ground beef for ground turkey, chicken, veal, or soy crumbles and the sweet Italian sausage for a hot variety for a bit of spice!

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How to Make Ahead and Store

Homemade lasagna with meat sauce is a great dish for meal prep and make ahead meals. You can assemble and bake the lasagna, let it cool to room temperature, cover and place it in the fridge. It will keep well for around 3 days. You can also assemble the lasagna the day before and keep covered in the fridge to bake the next day.

How to Freezeand Reheat

You can freeze fully baked homemade lasagna, and it will keep for up to 3 months. Wrap the whole dish in plastic wrap and foil and place in a freezer bag. Thaw the dish in the fridge overnight and reheat in the oven. Here are some more tips for freezing meals.

Serving Suggestions

Pair this homemade lasagna with Copycat Olive Garden Salad, Cucumber Onion Salad, Roasted Lemon Parmesan Broccoli, Oven Roasted Asparagus, or Homemade Garlic Bread.

What is the correct order to layer lasagna?

Start with a thin layer of sauce over the entire bottom of the baking dish. Then, top with noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, and Parm. Repeat this process twice to create a layered dish, then top with noodles, sauce, and cheese for the final layer.

Is lasagna better with ricotta or cottage cheese?

That’s up to personal preference. For this more traditional recipe, we went with ricotta. Cottage cheese is a great substitute, though!

What keeps lasagna from falling apart?

Ensuring you have a nice and thick sauce helps hold this lasagna together. Also, make sure to allow the dish to cool for at least 10 minutes after baking to get clean, even cuts that hold together.

Does lasagna cook better in glass or metal?

Lasagna can be cooked in any kind of oven-safe dish. Tomato sauce is acidic and can react with certain metals, but that shouldn’t be an issue in this recipe, so use whatever dish you have on hand.

Should lasagna be baked covered or uncovered?

Cover the lasagna for most of the bake time to keep it from drying out, then uncover in the last few minutes to crisp up the cheese!

More Lasagna Recipes To Try

Stovetop Lasagna
Crockpot Lasagna
Vegetarian Lasagna
Seafood Lasagna
Mexican Lasagna
Caprese Lasagna
Ravioli Lasagna
Weight Watchers Lasagna

5-Star Review

“I’ve always been too intimidated to make homemade lasagna but it was a lot easier than I thought. Turned out perfectly and was 10x better than a frozen one!” -Stephanie

Recipe

4.69 from 45 votes

Author: Becky – The Cookie Rookie

Prep: 20 minutes minutes

Cook: 45 minutes minutes

Total: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Serves10 people

Print Rate

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There's nothing better than a comforting, cheesy homemade lasagna to warm your belly!

Step-by-step photos can be seen below the recipe card.

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Ingredients

For the Sauce:

▢ 2 pounds ground chuck
▢ 1 pound sweet Italian sausage casings removed
▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
▢ 1 onion diced
▢ 3 cloves garlic minced
▢ 28 ounces San Marzano crushed tomatoes (1 large can)
▢ 30 ounces tomato puree (2 cans)
▢ 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
▢ ¼ cup hot water
▢ 2 teaspoons kosher salt
▢ ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
▢ 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves or 2 teaspoons dried parsley
▢ 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh oregano leaves or ½ teaspoon dried oregano
▢ 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves or 1 teaspoon dried basil

For the Cheese and Pasta Layers

▢ 15 ounces Ricotta cheese
▢ 1 large egg lightly beaten
▢ 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil
▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
▢ ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
▢ 1¼ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese divided
▢ 9 ounces no-boil lasagna noodles 12-15 noodles
▢ 1 pound whole milk Mozzarella cheese shredded

Recommended Equipment

9×13 Baking Pan

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F and adjust oven rack to middle position. Spray a 9×13-inch casserole or lasagna pan with nonstick cooking spray.

For the Sauce

In a large Dutch oven set over medium heat, cook the beef and sausage until no pink remains. Strain the cooked meat and set it aside in a separate bowl for later.
2 pounds ground chuck, 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
Return the Dutch oven to the stovetop and heat the oil over medium heat. Add diced onion and cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is translucent and has softened. Add the garlic, stir, and cook for an additional 30 seconds.
2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 onion, 3 cloves garlic
Add the tomatoes and tomato puree, stir, and reduce heat to medium-low.
28 ounces San Marzano crushed tomatoes, 30 ounces tomato puree
In a small bowl, combine the sugar and hot water – stir until sugar is dissolved. Add the sugar water to the tomato mixture and stir well.
1 tablespoon granulated sugar, ¼ cup hot water
Add salt, black pepper, parsley, oregano and basil. Stir well.
2 teaspoons kosher salt, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves, 1½ teaspoons chopped fresh oregano leaves, 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
Add the cooked meat mixture and cook 15 minutes or until sauce is hot and has thickened a little.

For the Cheese and Pasta

In a medium bowl, whisk together Ricotta, egg, basil, salt, pepper, and ½ cup Parmesan.
15 ounces Ricotta cheese, 1 large egg, 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil, 1¼ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

For Assembly

Pour ¼ cup meat sauce into the prepared baking dish and spread it over the entire bottom surface.
Place 3-3½ noodles, side-by-side, across the top of the sauce and slightly press the noodles into the sauce.
9 ounces no-boil lasagna noodles
Place 1-teaspoon-dollops, about 2 inches apart, of the Ricotta mixture over the noodles.
Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese evenly over the Ricotta layer.
1 pound whole milk Mozzarella cheese
Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese over the Mozzarella layer.
Pour 1½ cups sauce evenly over the Parmesan layer.
Repeat the process, beginning with the noodle layer, 2 more times.
For the top layer, place 3 noodles on top, spread with the remaining sauce, and sprinkle with Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.
Spray a piece of aluminum foil (large enough to cover the lasagna) with nonstick cooking spray and cover the lasagna.
Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes, then remove the foil. Continue cooking the lasagna 30-45 minutes or until the cheese is toasty brown in spots and the lasagna is bubbling and gorgeous.
Transfer lasagna to a cooling rack and cool 10-15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!

Becky’s tips

Use the freshest ingredients and whole milk rather than light cheeses for the most flavorful dish.
Be sure to spray your dish with cooking oil so for easy removal.
Cook the lasagna in a pre-heated oven for the best results.
Let it cool for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Storage:Store homemade lasagna in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 843kcal (42%) Carbohydrates: 40g (13%) Protein: 47g (94%) Fat: 56g (86%) Saturated Fat: 24g (150%) Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g Monounsaturated Fat: 22g Trans Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 197mg (66%) Sodium: 1650mg (72%) Potassium: 1170mg (33%) Fiber: 4g (17%) Sugar: 10g (11%) Vitamin A: 1364IU (27%) Vitamin C: 20mg (24%) Calcium: 510mg (51%) Iron: 6mg (33%)

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Meet Becky - The Cookie Rookie

Becky is a wife and mother living in Saint Louis Missouri. She founded The Cookie Rookie in 2012 as a creative way to share recipes. Now, she is a trusted resource for easy cooking around the world, being featured in Taste of Home, The Kitchn, ABC’s Home and Family, and more. Here at The Cookie Rookie she is the editor in chief of all recipes and continues to enjoy sharing her passion for cooking for busy families. She has since founded two additional food blogs, Easy Chicken Recipes and Easy Dessert Recipes.