One Pot Skillet Lasagna
Published February 6, 2023
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One pot Skillet Lasagna! Browned beef, hearty pasta and an herby marinara sauce are all simmered together in a skillet on the stovetop then layered with a trio of rich Italian cheeses and cooked to melty deliciousness. The easiest way to make a fantastic lasagna!
A Quick and Easy Skillet Lasagna Recipe!
This is likely to quick become a new family favorite! It’s unbelievably easy to make yet the finished result is undeniably impressive for something so simple.
You get all the flavors of a traditional lasagna with a fraction of the effort. None of that tedious pre-cooking and repetitive layering. And huge bonus – there’s not tons of extra dishes!
Let’s also not forget you don’t even need to turn the oven on. This is a cooked solely on the stovetop.
Which could also be nice if you want free up oven space to bake breadsticks, garlic bread, or roasted broccoli to pair with this.
A classic dish with a updated and simplified, modern weeknight spin. So much to love here, especially that overload of cheese!
Skillet Lasagna Recipe Ingredients
- Olive oil
- 90 to 95% lean ground beef
- Salt and black pepper
- 24 oz jar marinara sauce
- Water
- Fresh parsley and fresh basil
- Uncooked lasagna noodles (not no boil)
- Mozzarella, ricotta cheese, and parmesan cheese
- Red pepper flakes (optional)
How to Make Skillet Lasagna
- Heat olive oil in a 12-inch skillet or brasiser over medium-high heat.
- Brown beef: Crumble in beef in chunks then season with salt. Let sear until slightly browned on bottom for a few minutes then begin to crumble up beef. Once beef is nearly cooked through add garlic and continue to toss and cook beef through.
- Pour in liquids and seasonings: Pour in marinara sauce and water. Add parsley, basil, red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a light simmer.
- Add lasagna noodles and toss and submerge into liquid. Cover, reduce heat to moderately low. Simmer until pasta is nearly tender, stirring occasionally and adding a little more water as needed, for about 15 minutes.
- Add cheeses: Dollop in half of the ricotta (in about 5 scoops), sprinkle in half of the mozzarella and half of the parmesan. Stir a few times to submerge cheese. Cover with remaining half of the cheeses (again dolloping ricotta).
- Cover and continue to cook until cheese is melted, about 3 to 5 minutes longer.
- Let rest about 5 minutes off heat. Sprinkle with parsley if desired and serve.
Possible Variations
- Healthier option: Use lean ground turkey for the ground beef and also replace regular semolina based lasagna noodles with whole grain lasagna.
- Italian sausage substitute: You can replace the ground beef with Italian sausage here. Just drain the fat after it’s been browned.
- Simplest version: To make this recipe as simple as possible omit the garlic, parsley, basil and red pepper flakes. To finish you could sprinkle with some dried parsley for a pop of color if preferred.
- Pre-shredded cheeses: These will work fine here too, but if using shredded parmesan rather than grated use 1/2 cup (it measured a little differently, the finely grated is heavier by volume than finely shredded but you want the same weight).
- Alternate pasta: You can try another type of pasta here like bow-ties if you want to skip breaking the lasagna into pieces. Campanelle should work well too. Use the same weight.
- Make it vegetarian: Try using sauteed vegetables (such as zucchini, bell pepper, and mushrooms) in place of the beef or use a vegetarian beef substitute such as Beyond Beef or Impossible Beef.
Helpful Tips for One Pot Lasagna
Helpful Tips for One Pot Lasagna- If you don’t use a very lean beef then just drain the fat before continuing on to the next step of adding sauce so the dish isn’t greasy.
- Stir the mixture at least once or twice during the covered simmer time so the lasagna pasta cooks evenly and doesn’t stick together.
- Every skillet will cook a little differently and steam will escape according to how snug the lid fits or not, with that said monitor the moisture level so it doesn’t burn up on bottom and add more water as needed. It should always look a bit wet.
- A heavy skillet or braiser works best here for even heat distribution and cooking. I like to use this one here.
More Delicious Italian Style Recipes
Follow Easy Cooking Zone
Skillet Lasagna
Browned beef, hearty pasta and an herby marinara sauce are all simmered together in a skillet on the stovetop then layered with a trio of rich Italian cheeses and cooked to melty deliciousness. The easiest way to make a fantastic lasagna!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb (90 to 95% lean) ground beef
- 1 Tbsp minced fresh garlic
- Salt and black pepper
- 1 (24 oz) jar marinara sauce (I like to use Classico Four Cheese here)
- 1 1/4 cups water, then more if needed
- 3 Tbsp chopped chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
- 3 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, or more to taste (optional)
- 9 (7.5 oz) uncooked lasagna noodles, broken into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 cup (4 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup (8 oz) ricotta cheese
- 1/3 cup (1.4 oz) freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a 12-inch skillet or braiser over medium-high heat.
- Crumble in beef in chunks then season with salt and pepper. Let sear until slightly browned on bottom for a few minutes then turn and crumble up beef. Once beef is nearly cooked through add garlic and continue to toss and cook beef through.
- Pour in marinara sauce and water. Add parsley, basil, red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a light simmer.
- Add lasagna noodles and toss and submerge into liquid. Cover, reduce heat to moderately low. Simmer until pasta is nearly tender, stirring occasionally and adding a little more water as needed, for about 15 minutes.
- Dollop in half of the ricotta (in about 5 scoops), sprinkle in half of the mozzarella and half of the parmesan. Stir a few times to submerge cheese. Cover with remaining half of the cheeses (again dolloping ricotta).
- Cover and continue to cook until cheese is melted, about 3 to 5 minutes longer.
- Let rest about 5 minutes off heat. Sprinkle with parsley if desired and serve.
Nutrition Facts
Skillet Lasagna
Amount Per Serving
Calories 437
Calories from Fat 162
% Daily Value*
Fat 18g28%
Saturated Fat 9g56%
Trans Fat 0.3g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 7g
Cholesterol 86mg29%
Sodium 854mg37%
Potassium 791mg23%
Carbohydrates 35g12%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 5g6%
Protein 33g66%
Vitamin A 1556IU31%
Vitamin C 19mg23%
Calcium 299mg30%
Iron 4mg22%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.