Dinner · Italian

Classic beef lasagne

Name: Classic beef lasagne
Total time: 130 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 1 Brown onion; 1 Carrot; 1 stick Celery; 2 cloves Garlic, crushed; 1 tbsp Olive oil; 500g Beef mince; 2 tbsp Tomato purée; 1 tsp Dried oregano; 2 tins Chopped tomatoes; 1 cube Beef stock cube, in 200ml water; 50g Butter; 50g Plain flour; 700ml Semi-skimmed milk; 100g Italian-style hard cheese, finely grated; 250g Lasagne sheets

A slow beef ragù, a proper white sauce and crisp corners that people will fight you for.

Start to finish: 2 hr 10 min
Hands-on: 53 min
In the fridge: 3 days
Freezes: Yes

Contains gluten, dairy, celery

Ingredients

4 portions

1Brown onion
1Carrot
1 stickCelery
2 clovesGarlic, crushed
1 tbspOlive oil
500gBeef mince
2 tbspTomato purée
1 tspDried oregano
2 tinsChopped tomatoes
1 cubeBeef stock cube, in 200ml water
50gButter
50gPlain flour
700mlSemi-skimmed milk
100gItalian-style hard cheese, finely grated
250gLasagne sheets

Plus salt, pepper and water.

Method

1
Finely chop the onion, carrot and celery, and crush the garlic.
2
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan and brown the mince over a high heat for 8 minutes, breaking it up, until it is properly brown and not grey.
3
Turn the heat down, add the chopped veg and cook gently for 10 minutes, until soft. Stir in the garlic, purée and oregano for a minute.
11 min, mostly hands-off
4
Add the tomatoes and the stock cube crumbled into 200ml water. Simmer gently with the lid ajar for 40 minutes, stirring now and then, until thick and rich. Season well.
42 min, mostly hands-off
5
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 190C (170C fan) and make the white sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook for a minute. Take it off the heat and whisk in the milk a splash at a time until smooth, then simmer for 5 minutes, stirring, until it coats the back of a spoon. Stir in half the cheese and season.
6
Spread a third of the ragù over the base of a baking dish about 20 by 30cm and cover with a layer of lasagne sheets, snapping them to fit. Spread over a quarter of the white sauce. Repeat twice more, then finish with the rest of the white sauce and the rest of the cheese.
7
Bake for 40 minutes, until golden and bubbling and a knife slides easily through the pasta. Leave to settle for 10 minutes before cutting.
50 min, mostly hands-off
8
Serve, or cool completely, cut into portions and pack into tubs for the fridge or freezer.

On the day

Reheat portions in the microwave, or covered with foil in the oven, until piping hot in the middle. A sharp green salad alongside is all it needs.

Cook’s tip

Use the sheets straight from the box, no boiling. Keep the ragù a little looser than you would for spaghetti, because the pasta drinks the liquid as it bakes.