Lasagne Bolognese (original recipe from Bologna)

The real Lasagne Bolognese, based on the original recipe from Bologna. This lasagne is hearty, filling and aromatic. A tempting dish for friends and family!

Lasagne Bolognese is not only a feast for the palate, but also for the eyes. It consists of seven layers of pasta sheets made from a dark green pasta dough with spinach.

In between are creamy béchamel, spicy parmesan and the latest version of the Bolognese ragout (deposited with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce by the Italian Academy of Cuisine on April 20, 2023).

Make your own lasagne bolognese: how to do it

This lasagne takes a certain amount of time to prepare and is made in several stages:

1. Making the Bolognese
2. Making the lasagne sheets
3. Making the béchamel
4. Coat the lasagne
5. Bake the lasagna

The Bolognese needs the most time, as it should simmer for at least 2 to 3 hours. However, it does not need to be watched constantly. I highly recommend sticking to this cooking time for Bolognese, as it is only with time that the deep and hearty umami flavor develops.

If you want to save working time, you can replace the homemade lasagne sheets with store-bought ones. My recommendation:

If the lasagne is intended for guests, it can be useful to prepare it in advance. Read more about this in my article Preparing lasagne.

Ingredients (for 6 to 8 people)

The ingredients are sufficient for a large lasagne dish* measuring 38 x 25 cm. In total, this makes about 4 kilograms, enough for 6 to 8 people.

Prepare the Bolognese

First, fry the diced bacon in olive oil for a few minutes [1]. Then add the chopped vegetables and fry for about 5 minutes so that they fall apart [2]. Now add the mince [3] and fry vigorously for about 10 minutes so that it is brown on all sides and the liquid that escapes evaporates immediately [4].

Pour the wine into the pan and allow it to evaporate for several minutes until the smell of alcohol disappears [5]. Now add the tomato purée [ 6], tomato puree [7] and half of the stock [8].

Stir everything in thoroughly [9] and cook the bolognese for 2 to 3 hours with the lid on [10]. Halfway through the cooking time, you can add whole milk, which must be completely reduced [11]. The remaining stock can be added as required [12].

As soon as the cooking time is over, season with salt and pepper. The ragout should be creamy and have a nice, dark orange color.

Here are some helpful resources about Bolognese:

• Official recipe for Bolognese
• Boil down the bolognese
• The right ingredients for Bolognese
• Store the Bolognese
• Quantities for Bolognese

Prepare the béchamel

Melt the butter in a pan over a medium to low heat [1]. Now sprinkle some of the flour into the pan and immediately mix thoroughly with a whisk [2]. A viscous liquid will form [3]. Work in the rest of the flour so that the mixture becomes crumbly and leave to heat in the pan for a few minutes to release the roasted aromas [4].

Gradually pour the milk into the pan, stirring constantly, so that the mixture thickens slowly [5]. Increase the temperature at the end and allow the sauce to thicken further until it has a creamy consistency [6]. Season with salt and nutmeg [7, 8].

Here are some helpful resources about béchamel:

• Recipe for béchamel
• Storing béchamel
• Prepare the béchamel
• Freeze and defrost the béchamel

Prepare the lasagne sheets

Place the cooked and well-squeezed spinach in the blender [1]. Add the eggs [2] and blend for about 30 seconds [3] to create a homogeneous, dark green liquid [4].

Form a flour well and pour in the spinach mixture [5]. Work the flour into the liquid first with a fork and then with the dough scraper [6] from the outside inwards to form a crumbly mass. Form the mixture into a lump with your hands [7], collect as many crumbs as possible and knead the dough for at least 8 minutes [8].

The surface of the dough should be silky to the touch, no longer sticky and free of cracks [9]. Wrap the dough airtight in cling film to prevent it from drying out. Leave it to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature and away from direct light [10, 11, 12].

Divide the dough into three pieces to make it easier to work with the pasta machine [13]. Pass the dough several times through the largest setting of the machine [14] and then once through each additional setting until the dough is about 1 mm thick (setting 6 on my Marcato Atlas 150).

Repeat the process for all the pieces of dough [15] and then cut the pasta sheets into squares of the same size [16] (adapt to the shape of the oven dish and bear in mind that the pasta sheets will get bigger when cooked).

The lasagne sheets must be pre-cooked for 2 to 3 minutes, preferably just before the lasagne is coated. Once cooked, you can lay them out on a baking tray and separate them with baking paper.

Here are some helpful resources about lasagna sheets:

• Pasta dough with spinach
• Make your own lasagne sheets
• Do you have to pre-cook lasagne sheets?

Coat the lasagne

Grease the base of the baking dish with butter [1] and then add a little béchamel and bolognese [2]. Spread the sauce thoroughly [3] and apply the first layer of lasagne sheets [4].

Now spread the béchamel and Bolognese over the pasta sheets [5] and sprinkle with plenty of Parmesan [6]. Apply the next layer of pasta sheets and cover the next 3 to 4 layers in the same way.

For the final layer, apply a little béchamel, bolognese and parmesan [7] and place a knob of butter in each corner of the oven dish [8].

Here you can find more information on how to coat lasagne correctly .

Bake the lasagna

Preheat the oven to 180 °C top and bottom heat and bake the lasagne for 30 minutes on the middle shelf. For a nice crust, you can activate the grill mode for the last 2 minutes.

Here you can find more information on how to bake lasagne properly.

Storing the lasagne

Once baked, classic Bolognese lasagne can be kept in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, or even frozen for several months. The shelf life of lasagne depends on which ingredients it contains, whether it is fresh or baked and how it is stored.

You can find more information about storing lasagna here:

• Storing lasagne: how long does lasagne keep for?
• Freeze and defrost the lasagne: How to preserve the taste

Reheat the lasagne

If you have made too much lasagne, you can keep it in the fridge for a day or freeze it for several weeks without any loss of quality.

Some even find that it tastes even better on the second day because the flavors combine over time.

To enjoy them a second time, they should then be reheated in the right way.

How do you reheat lasagne? Lasagne is best reheated in the oven by sprinkling it with water, covering it with aluminum foil and placing it in an oven preheated to 180 °C for 20 minutes. Shortly before the end of the baking time, you can remove the foil, sprinkle the lasagne with cheese and finish baking in grill mode at 220 °C.

Here you can find more information on how to reheat lasagna properly.