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Lasagna

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Lasagna

The Ragu

Spending time on your ragu and letting it develop depth makes all the difference to the flavour of the sauce, so don't rush it or skip any ingredients. It becomes bold, rich but really well balanced. We're going to brown the mince until it sticks to the pan and forms a fond, then deglaze with red wine to lift all that flavour back up. The wine reduces by 80% then the passata (Italian strained crushed tomatoes) goes in, which concentrates the savoury notes and stops the sauce tasting raw. From there it cooks low and slow for at least two hours, with a parmesan rind dropped in to add background depth. Right at the end I stir in milk, which softens the acidity and balances the richness without making the sauce taste creamy.

Make the ragu the day before if you can. It deepens overnight in the fridge and saves you from running three components on the same day.

Pasta

For the pasta (aka lasagna sheets or lasagna noodles), the spinach has to be blanched and squeezed dry before it goes into the eggs. Wet spinach throws the hydration off and you'll end up adding more flour to compensate, which gives you a tougher dough. Once it's blended with the eggs and worked into the flour, rest the dough for at least two hours wrapped in cling wrap. The rest lets the gluten relax, which is what allows you to roll it thin without it springing back. When you sheet it out, do an envelope fold on the biggest setting and pass it through twice before stepping the rollers down. The fold builds the layers and gives you a smoother, more even sheet.

Bechamel

The béchamel is a blonde roux, not a brown one. You're cooking the flour just long enough to lose the raw taste, about two minutes. Any darker and it'll dull the white sauce. Add the milk in stages, 100 to 150ml at a time, whisking constantly into the corners of the pot. Lumps come from flour pockets the whisk hasn't reached, not from adding milk too fast.

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Ingredients

2 sticks celery
1 large carrot
1 brown onion
4 cloves garlic
60ml olive oil
500g pork mince
500g beef mince
250ml red wine
700g tomato passata
100ml milk
Sea salt, to taste
350g mozzarella, grated
100g Parmesan, grated, plus rind
small bunch of basil

PASTA

250g baby spinach
3 eggs
320g Tipo 00 flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tbsp olive oil

BECHAMEL

50g butter
50g flour
600ml milk
sea salt and cracked white pepper

Equipment

Chopping board
Chef’s knife, wooden spoon, tongs, slotted spoon, whisk and fork
Microplane or fine grater
Large heavy-based saucepan or dutch oven
Large saucepan (for blanching spinach and cooking pasta)
Large bowl of ice water
Blender
Cling wrap and aluminium foil
Pasta machine
Oiled tray
Medium saucepan (for béchamel)
23 x 30cm deep baking dish

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Directions

COOK THE RAGU

Finely dice the celery, carrot and onion, then finely grate the garlic.
Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large heavy based saucepan or dutch oven over high heat. Working in batches, crumble in some of the mince to the pan and turn the heat down to medium. Cook the mince, without stirring, for 8-10 mins, then break up with a wooden spoon and stir to brown all over. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining mince.
Leave approximately 1 tablespoon of the fat in the pan and add the carrot. Season with some salt and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes, then the celery and garlic and sweat down for another minute.
Return the mince to the pan and pour in the red wine. Bring to a simmer and cook until the wine reduces by 80%.
Add 600ml of the passata (reserving the remaining for later) to the pan with the parmesan rind. Mix well and bring to a simmer, then lower the heat and cook covered for 2-6 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. (add some additional water if the sauce becomes too thick). While this is cooking, make your pasta.
Add 100ml of the milk to the ragu 30 minutes before it is finished. When cooked, remove the parmesan rind and allow the ragu to cool to room temperature.

MAKE THE PASTA

Blanch the baby spinach in a large saucepan of boiling salted water for 20 seconds, then drain and plunge into ice water to stop cooking.
Drain well, then squeeze out the excess water. Transfer to a blender with the eggs and blend until smooth.
Pile the flour onto a clean work surface and make a well in the centre. Pour the spinach mixture into the well with a pinch of salt and the olive oil.
With a fork, slowly begin to incorporate the flour from around the edges into the spinach, until all the flour is incorporated, then begin kneading the dough until smooth and elastic.
Wrap the dough in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to rest.

ROLL OUT PASTA AND COOK

Lightly flour a clean work surface. Halve the pasta dough (cover the other half so it doesn’t dry out) and roll 1 portion out to a rectangle about 1cm thick.
Roll the dough through a pasta machine on the biggest setting twice. Do an envelope fold on the sheet and press down to seal with your hands, then return to the pasta machine on the same setting. Roll it through twice more.
Turn the pasta machine setting down 1 notch, then pass the dough through twice. Continue to do this through to the second last setting, until you have a long, thin pasta sheet.

MAKE BECHAMEL

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the flour and reduce the heat to medium. Season with salt and cook for 2 minutes, stirring, until the flour is cooked out and turns a blonde colour.
Gradually add the milk 100-150ml at a time, whisking constantly until smooth. Simmer for 10 minutes, until thickened, then season with salt, and stir in the nutmeg.

ASSEMBLE AND BAKE

Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F) fan forced. Using a 23cm x 30cm deep baking dish, start with a layer of meat sauce on the base, followed by pasta sheets, béchamel, mozzarella and parmesan. Repeat the layering to make 5 layers (reserving some of the mozzarella and parmesan for the top), finishing with a layer of pasta.
Spread the reserved passata over the top of the pasta, then cover lightly with foil. Bake for 35-40 minutes.
Remove the foil and sprinkle over some basil leaves then the reserved cheeses. Return to the oven for a further 10 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C (390°F) and bake for a further 5 minutes, until golden brown.
Let the lasagne cool for 10-15 minutes, then slice into portions and serve.

Notes

Rest the lasagne before slicing

Give it 15 to 20 minutes uncovered before you cut into it. The béchamel firms up, the layers settle, and you get clean slices instead of meat sauce running across the plate. It will still be piping hot after that rest.

Par-cook and ice-bath the pasta

It seems unnecessary for fresh pasta but it makes everything easier. The shock stops the cooking, the cooked surface starch helps the layers grip each other, and the sheets are pliable enough to fit into the corners of the dish. Lay them on an oiled tray once they’re cool so they don’t stick to each other while you build the rest.

Keep the layers thin

With this many layers stacked in a deep dish, the temptation is to load each one heavy with ragu and béchamel. Don’t. Thin, even layers cook through more reliably and slice cleaner. A light ladle of ragu and a thin spread of béchamel per layer is plenty as the flavour stacks up across the whole dish.

Storage

Lasagne keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days, covered. Reheat individual portions covered in a 180°C oven for 15 minutes, or in the microwave on medium power if you’re in a hurry. To freeze, defrost overnight in the fridge before reheating. The ragu freezes brilliantly on its own and is worth doubling. The pasta dough can be made a day ahead and kept wrapped in the fridge.

Lasagna

Ingredient Notes

Pork and beef mince:

We'll use equal parts pork and beef. Pork brings fat and a softer texture, beef brings savoury depth. Beef alone gives you a heavier, drier ragu, and pork alone tastes too light.

Parmesan rind:

Don’t skip this. The rind dropped into the ragu releases umami slowly over the long simmer and deepens the sauce in a way grated parmesan can’t. Save your rinds in the freezer for stocks and ragus. If you don’t have one, stir in an extra 20g of grated parmesan towards the end of cooking.

Tipo 00 flour:

Italian-milled flour with a fine grind that gives fresh pasta its silky texture and elasticity. Plain flour works in a pinch but the dough will be slightly tougher to roll thin. If you cook fresh pasta often, get a bag.

Red wine:

This dish needs a bold wine like a Sangiovese or shiraz. I like to use wines from the region the dish comes from as a general rule, so go for a big Italian red. With cooking wine, try to find something that's a good price but still drinkable.

FAQs

Can I make this ahead of time?

Yes, and I’d encourage it. Assemble the whole lasagne, cover it well, and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before baking. Add 10-15 minutes to the covered bake time if it’s going in from cold. The ragu can be made up to 3 days ahead, the béchamel a day ahead, and the pasta dough a day ahead.

Can I freeze it?

Yes. Freeze it baked or unbaked, in portions or whole. For the best texture, freeze unbaked, defrost (thaw) overnight in the fridge, then bake from cold (add 15 minutes to the covered bake time). Already baked lasagne freezes fine, but the pasta gets slightly softer when reheated.

Can I use dried lasagne sheets instead of fresh?

Yes. Use about 250g of dried sheets, and either soak them in warm water for 5 minutes before layering or use the no-boil kind. The texture won’t be the same as fresh spinach pasta, but the dish still works. Keep the layers slightly wetter to compensate, as dried sheets pull moisture from the sauces as they cook.