Easy Beef Lasagna – easiest lasagna ever without the need to boil noodles or slave hours over the sauce. Perfect meal for a busy weeknight dinner.
Oh hi there! I so glad you came to join me in my culinary adventures because I have a super easy recipe to share with you. If you’re like me, you’re probably scared to make lasagna because of all the work it takes, boil the noodles, make the sauce, assemble the lasagna and bake it. This recipe is a lot simpler and it makes for a fabulous weeknight dinner.
So let me start by saying that I’m not a lasagna virgin. I’ve been making lasagna for a long time now and every single time, although I love the end result, I’m so tired at the end because of all the work involved.
MY LATEST VIDEOSHowever, I always look for shortcuts in the kitchen, because who wants to slave in the kitchen all day long.
So let me tell you what shortcuts I took this time. I got the brilliant idea to not boil the noodles. At first I was scared that the noodles wouldn’t cook through. I also used store bought marinara sauce. But don’t let me stop you, if you want to make your own marinara sauce, feel free.
Because I was worried about the noodles being not cooked enough, I added some water to my sauce, I knew the noodles would absorb some of that juice while in the oven cooking. Let me tell you, this was the best lasagna I have ever made. Because the noodles weren’t precooked the lasagna wasn’t mushy at all, the noodles stayed firm, al dente, and super delicious.
From now on this is the only way I’ll ever make lasagna. I understand if you’re skeptical about making lasagna with uncooked noodles but trust me and give it a try. I know there are no boil lasagna noodles, but I used the regular kind, because I heard those noodles are just not the same.
Have you ever tried making lasagna with uncooked noodles? If you have I’d love to hear from you and how your lasagna turned out.
Do you love lasagna as much as I do? Try my other lasagna recipes:
- Chicken Lasagna alla Bolognese
- Zucchini Lasagna
- Taco Lasagna
- Skillet White Chicken Lasagna
- One Pot Hamburger Helper Lasagna
- Lasagna Soup
If you try this recipe, please let us know! Leave a comment, rate it and tag a photo #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!
Easy Beef Lasagna - easiest lasagna ever without the need to boil noodles or slave hours over the sauce. Perfect meal for a busy weeknight dinner.
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 tbsp oregano dried
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
- 1/2 tsp pepper or to taste
- 24 oz marinara sauce (1 jar/680 g)
- 1 cup water
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 12 lasagna noodles
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
- Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.
- In a sauce pan or skillet, cook the ground meat until no longer pink. Add chopped onion, 1 tbsp of the oregano, salt, pepper and continue cooking until onion is cooked through and translucent.
- Add the marinara sauce to the skillet and the cup of water. Stir and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a small bowl combine the ricotta cheese, 1 tbsp oregano, eggs, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Mix well.
- In a baking dish that's about 9x13 inches, start assembling your lasagna. I usually start with a couple ladles of the sauce at the bottom, this is especially necessary now that the noodles aren't cooked. Lay 3 lasagna noodles over the meat sauce. Next layer with ricotta mixture and about 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Add another 3 lasagna noodles, meat mixture, ricotta mixture, mozzarella. Repeat until you have 4 layers of noodles, and end with ricotta cheese and mozzarella cheese.
- Bake in the oven for about an hour. It will take the entire hour for the noodles to cook. You may try with a fork to ensure noodles are cooked.
Store leftovers in a covered airtight container for 3 to 5 days in the refrigerator or 2 to 3 months in the freezer. Refrigerate within two hours of cooking.
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
Originally published April, 2014.
For years I have made lasagne with uncooked lasagne noodles. I do add extra water to the sauce , but I put the lasagne together the day before I want to serve it and have it ready to go in the fridge. It takes longer to cook from cold, though.
I can’t wait to try your version of beef lasagna. I used to boil by noodles before making lasagna but now I soak my noodles for about 20 minutes in hot tap water. They’re softer, but not cooked.
Do let me know how they turn out!
This is AMAZING! I’ve stayed away from lasagna because it’s so cumbersome to make, but I’m going for it now.
You’ll love it!
I was super hesitant to buy the marinara used in this recipe because I had never tried it before. But I decided to step out of my comfort zone and OH MY! Very very tasty. I baked all the ingredients in a glass 9×13 casserole dish as recommended and cover it with foil. The lasagna was ready in exactly an hour. Not soupy or anything! Me and my boyfriend LOVED IT! Definitely making this again another day
That’s great, happy you liked it!
So I put meat sauce on every layer?
You should just put the meat sauce over the noodles, that should be enough.
Love love love this recipe. Very easy to do in little time! I covered it with aluminum foil and the noodles turned out prefect! I didn’t add the oregano because I didn’t have any, but it still turned out perfect!
Hi Jo,
I really enjoy your recipes. It is always good to see what other people are cooking! A year or so ago I bought a couple of packages of the type of noodles that don’t need boiling before using in Lasagne. I was dubious about how well it would turn out, but it was great. In fact I served the Lasagne to company, who all ate second helpings. Since I made two pans I froze one, and it was just as good a couple of weeks later. After the success of that I have made it several times with regular noodles, but I use Veggie Ground Round, (we don’t eat beef), and the result is really good. My basic recipe is similar to yours, but it changes each time, depending on what is in the fridge!
Thanks Jenny!
Hi Joe – I had cooked my lasagna in the oven for the full hour – I didn’t cover it (wasn’t sure if I was supposed to). It smells great, but the top layer of noodles are curled and crunchy. Is there anyway I can “save” this – should I add more water and cover it, put back in the oven? I don’t think I had enough sauce for the amount of noodles I used. Thanks!!
Hi Lisa,
You could add more sauce maybe mixed with a bit of water and pour it in the dish, then cover it up with aluminum foil and bake it a bit longer, it should create a bit steam inside and hopefully that top noodle will cook a bit and not be so crunchy.
Do you recommend it should be covered while cooking at all?
You don’t have to Morgan, but it doesn’t hurt to cover it for half the time.
Can I prepare this the night before and bake in the morning or will it cause the noodles to become soggy?
That should be fine, they wouldn’t get too soggy because they’re not cooked.
Hey Jo,
I need your help. Can I layer the bottom of the pan with the dry noodle first? And then add the riccota, etc, and then the sause?
I would start with the sauce first since the noodles aren’t cooked they will need that liquid to soften and cook.