How to Make Lasagne with Ragù and Béchamel

This is a from-scratch recipe for Lasagne with Ragù and Béchamel. If you have bought a prepared Providoor dish, use its product instructions instead; the raw ingredients and cooking times below do not apply to reheating it.

Recipe yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 400 g fresh egg lasagne sheets
• 500 g beef mince, about 20 per cent fat
• 250 g pork mince
• 2 chicken livers, trimmed and finely chopped (optional)
• 1 brown onion, finely diced
• 1 carrot, finely diced
• 2 celery stalks, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 400 g tomato passata
• 250 ml full-bodied red wine
• 150 ml full-cream milk, for the ragù
• 1 bay leaf
• 80 g butter, for the béchamel
• 80 g plain flour, for the béchamel
• 1 litre full-cream milk, for the béchamel
• A few gratings of fresh nutmeg
• 120 g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated
• Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Make the soffritto. Sweat the diced onion, carrot and celery in olive oil over low heat for 10 minutes until soft but not coloured. This is the aromatic base of the ragù.
2. Brown the meat. Raise the heat, add the beef and pork mince and cook until any liquid has evaporated and the meat is browning in its own fat. If using, stir in the chopped chicken livers for the last two minutes.
3. Deglaze and simmer. Add the wine and let it bubble away almost completely, then stir in the tomato paste, passata, bay leaf and milk. Simmer uncovered at the barest blip for 2.5 to 3 hours until the ragù is thick enough to mound on a spoon, then season it with salt and black pepper.
4. Make the béchamel. Melt the butter, stir in the flour and cook the roux for two minutes. Whisk in the milk gradually, then cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Season with salt and nutmeg.
5. Prepare the sheets. If using fresh sheets, blanch them in salted boiling water for 30 seconds in batches and lay them on clean tea towels. Fresh thin sheets give you more layers per centimetre.
6. Layer thin. Smear béchamel over the base of the dish, then build repeating layers of pasta, a thin coat of ragù, a thin coat of béchamel and a scatter of Parmigiano. Aim for at least six layers of pasta, each sauced sparingly.
7. Top properly. Finish with a final sheet completely covered in béchamel to every corner, then Parmigiano. Any exposed pasta will dry out and turn leathery in the oven.
8. Bake. Bake at 180C in a preheated oven for 25 to 35 minutes until golden at the corners and bubbling at the edges.
9. Rest before cutting. Rest the lasagne for at least 10 minutes out of the oven. The starches set as they cool, which is what lets a slice hold its layers instead of slumping.

Serving and preparation notes

Cooking times depend on your equipment and ingredient size. Keep raw-food preparation separate from ready-to-eat food and follow appropriate storage directions. This recipe is distinct from the product sold below.

Prefer a prepared dish?

Classic Italian Lasagne is a separate product with its own ingredients, serving count and preparation. Check the current page and latest packaging before use.

For prepared meals, use the reheating guide. Explore the current menu and postcode delivery.