Baked Meat Lasagna Recipe

Sweat vegetables

Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil. When shimmering, add the diced onion, carrot and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 6–8 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook 30–45 seconds until fragrant.

Brown the meat

Increase heat to medium-high. Add ground beef and ground pork to the pot. Break up with a spoon and cook until browned and no longer pink, about 6–8 minutes. Spoon off and discard excess fat if there is more than about 1 tablespoon.

Season and deglaze

Stir in salt, black pepper, dried oregano and dried basil. Add tomato paste and cook 1–2 minutes, stirring, until it darkens slightly. Pour in the red wine (if using) and scrape up any browned bits from the pan; simmer until most of the wine has evaporated, about 2–3 minutes.

Simmer sauce

Add crushed tomatoes, bay leaf and sugar (if using). Bring to a gentle simmer, reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer gently for 20–30 minutes to meld flavors, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Remove bay leaf. If sauce seems very thin, simmer uncovered a few more minutes to thicken. Reserve about 1 cup of sauce for serving or for the bottom of the pan during assembly.

While the ragù simmers, combine ricotta, egg, grated Parmesan, chopped parsley, salt, pepper and nutmeg (if using) in a medium bowl. Stir until smooth and homogenous. Refrigerate until ready to assemble so flavors meld and filling holds shape.

If using regular dried lasagna noodles: bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add noodles and cook until just pliable but still slightly firm (about 1–2 minutes less than package directions). Drain and lay noodles flat on a lightly oiled baking sheet separated so they don't stick. If using no-boil noodles, skip this step and have package ready.

Preheat and prepare pan

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly butter or spray a 9x13-inch (or similar) baking dish. Spread about 1/2 cup of the reserved sauce across the bottom to prevent sticking and to flavor the first pasta layer.

Layer 1

Arrange a single layer of 3–4 lasagna noodles over the sauce, slightly overlapping as needed to cover the bottom.

Layer 2 - Ricotta

Spread one-third of the ricotta mixture evenly over the noodles using a spatula or spoon (about 2/3 cup).

Layer 3 - Meat Sauce

Spoon and spread about one-third of the meat ragù over the ricotta layer (about 1 1/2 to 2 cups).

Layer 4 - Mozzarella

Sprinkle about 1 cup of shredded mozzarella evenly over the meat sauce.

Repeat layers

Repeat the noodle, ricotta, meat sauce and mozzarella layers two more times (total of 3 cheese layers). For the final top layer, place noodles, spread remaining sauce evenly over the top to fully cover the noodles, then sprinkle remaining shredded mozzarella and grated Parmesan across the surface.

Bake

Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil (spray underside with a little oil to prevent cheese sticking) and bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake uncovered another 15–20 minutes until cheese is bubbly and golden and edges are bubbling.

Rest and serve

Remove lasagna from oven and let rest, uncovered or lightly tented, for 15 minutes to set (this makes slicing cleaner). Garnish with fresh basil leaves if desired. Cut into 8–12 portions and serve with reserved extra sauce on the side if desired.