Lasagna is not just a casserole, but one of the most outstanding dishes of Italian cuisine. It can be cooked with different fillings, but most often Bechamel is present in the composition. This simple sauce holds the layers together, gives the dish a richness and special taste.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce - general principles of preparation
Lasagna leaves are sold in stores. Usually they require preliminary boiling in boiling water, the process will take about two minutes. Sometimes the dough is just soaked in water. In any case, you need to prepare the sheets according to the instructions. The amount of dough depends on the size of the plates, as well as the number of layers. The more of them, the more interesting the casserole.
Bechamel sauce always starts the assembly and finishes. It can be prepared in different ways with milk or cream, with cheese and all kinds of spices, but for lasagna the simplest basic recipe is enough, a little more detailed below.
What is put between the layers:
• meat, poultry, often in the form of minced meat;
• fresh, canned vegetables;
• mushrooms;
• cheese.
The greens are welcomed, you can take Italian herbs: oregano, basil, tarragon, marjoram or just their dried mixture. You do not need to sprinkle the top layer with greens, as it can burn, the dish will lose its beautiful appearance. Baked lasagna in the oven. Since the filling is almost ready, the process takes about half an hour, sometimes 40 minutes. High temperature does not need to be done, 180 degrees is enough.
Bechamel Lasagna Sauce Recipe
Bechamel sauce is used in various dishes and not only Italian cuisine. Here is a basic recipe. But you can always change the taste with the help of spices and additional components. Classic butter is used only butter with a fat content of at least 70%.
Ingredients
• 50 g of oil;
• half a liter of milk;
• 50 g flour;
• salt and pepper.
Cooking
1. Heat the oil. This is convenient to do in a frying pan or in a saucepan with thick walls and a bottom. You don’t need to make a big fire, otherwise it will start to burn, a yellow tint will appear at the sauce.
2. Pour flour into the melted butter, stir, warm for a minute.
3. We begin to introduce milk, it must always be cold. First, pour 1-3 tablespoons, mix well with a spoon or whisk, then continue to inject in parts, pour in a thin stream, quickly stir.
4. Warm the sauce until all the flour has been brewed, the consistency of jelly should be obtained. After cooling, the bechamel will become even thicker.
5. At the end, salt, pepper, nutmeg is combined perfectly with this sauce. You can immediately add garlic, herbs, other spices to it, which will be used in climbing. In a liquid mass, it is easier to distribute them evenly than on vegetables, mushrooms or minced meat.
6. Bechamel can be stored for three days in the refrigerator in a closed container.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce and minced meat
Classic Lasagna recipe with bechamel sauce and ground beef. But you can use other meat or a mixture of different types.
Ingredients
• 0.6 kg of minced meat;
• 3 large tomatoes;
• lasagna leaves;
• 150 g of onion;
• 500 g of bechamel;
• 2 tbsp. l tomato paste;
• 50 g of parmesan;
• 1 tsp Basilica
• some oil, salt.
Cooking
1. Peel the onions, cut into cubes. Put in a frying pan, sauté in butter for a minute, then add ground beef to the onion, fry together until it is completely light.
2. Add tomato paste to the minced meat, in a minute we introduce the grated tomatoes and garlic. Stew together until the stuffing becomes a homogeneous, dense mass. Put salt, season the filling with basil.
3. Lubricate the bottom of the mold with bechamel sauce. We spread the first layer of lasagna leaves, grease with meat filling, pour a little sauce.
4. Repeat the layers until all the leaves and minced meat are gone.
5. Finish the assembly of the Italian casserole with lasagna sheets. Pour the sauce abundantly on top, sprinkle with parmesan.
6. Send the dish to the oven. It will take about 35 minutes to prepare.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce, chicken and cheese
Creamy Lasagna recipe with fabulous sauce and tender chicken fillet. You can take ready-made stuffing.
Ingredients
• 500 g of bechamel;
• 500 g of chicken;
• 120 g of cream or sour cream;
• two onion heads;
• two tomatoes;
• 120 g of any cheese;
• 30 g of parmesan;
• spices, dough, garlic.
Cooking
1. Grind the chicken. You can not use a meat grinder, but simply chop with a kitchen knife.
2. Cut the onion, lightly fry in a pan, add the chicken, cook until the meat is lightened, then pour in a little cream or sour cream, stir.
3. Scald the tomatoes, remove the skin, cut the flesh into cubes, add to the chicken. Put it out together until the filling is thick. Season with salt, chopped garlic clove. Cool.
4. Grate the cheese.
5. Prepare the dough for lasagna. Lubricate the form with two spoons of bechamel, put the first layer of sheets, lay on it half the filling. Distribute with a spoon, sprinkle with the third part of grated cheese. Repeat the same layer.
6. From above, we split the sheets of lasagna, pour with bechamel. We mix the remaining cheese with parmesan, we fill the dish.
7. We send the Italian casserole to the oven, bring to readiness.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce, mushrooms and tomatoes
Mushroom version of lasagna with bechamel sauce. Mushrooms and chanterelles are used here, but other species can be taken. It is better to mix different mushrooms, it will be much tastier.
Ingredients
• 0.3 kg of champignons;
• 500 g of bechamel;
• 130 g of hard cheese;
• 500 g of chanterelles;
• 50 g of oil;
• 150 g of onion;
• 350 g of tomatoes;
• garlic, spices, dough leaves.
Cooking
1. Enumerate, boil the chanterelles in boiling water for about twenty minutes, drain into a colander, let it cool. If the mushrooms are large, then they need to be cut.
2. Cut the mushrooms into slices, chop the onion with straws, put together in the heated oil, fry. After a few minutes, add the chanterelles and spices, bring almost to readiness, leave to cool.
3. We will deal with cheese, rub it coarsely, immediately prepare the dough leaflets. And also rub the pulp of tomatoes, discard the skins, mix with garlic.
4. Getting to the assembly of lasagna. On the greased form with the sauce we spread the dough, grease it with the sauce too, then the mushrooms, pour over the tomatoes and lightly sprinkle with cheese. Repeat the layers.
5. Finish with sheets of dough, pour in bechamelles, pour out the remaining cheese. Bake the dish for half an hour.
Lasagna with Lavash Bechamel Sauce
Thin Armenian pita bread is a great alternative to lasagna dough leaflets. If they could not be bought, then this recipe will help out.
Ingredients
• 2-3 pita leaves;
• 0.7 kg of minced meat;
• 150 g of tomato puree;
• 2 onions;
• 450-500 g of bechamel;
• spices, oil;
• 90 g of hard cheese.
Cooking
1. Cooking the filling. Fry onion with minced meat, pour in tomato puree or use just grated tomato. We evaporate water, season with spices.
2. Cook the usual bechamel sauce. Add spices to it.
3. Cut 3 sheets of pita bread, the size is slightly smaller than the shape.
4. Lubricate the mold, pour with bechamel. We put the first sheet of pita bread. On the inside, it also needs to be lubricated so that the pita bread is soft.
5. We spread the meat filling, lightly sprinkle with cheese so that the layers are held together, a little spread with bechamel, put the second pita bread and repeat.
6. Finish with pita bread, generously coat, sprinkle with grated cheese. Bake until golden brown.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce, minced meat and pickled mushrooms
For such lasagna you can take any pickled mushrooms. If they are small, for example, honey mushrooms, then just cut in half.
Ingredients
• 500 g of minced meat;
• 200 g of mushrooms;
• onion;
• 150 g grated tomatoes;
• 500 g of bechamel;
• 120 g of cheese;
• dough leaves.
Cooking
1. Fry minced meat with onions, pour tomatoes, stew for several minutes, add spices to taste. Cool the filling.
2. Cut the pickled mushrooms, add to the minced meat, stir.
3. We rub the cheese coarsely.
4. Collect the casserole: grease the bottom with sauce, put the dough, then the filling, spill it slightly with bechamel, sprinkle with grated cheese. We repeat.
5. Finish with sauce and cheese, bake until golden brown.
Lasagna with Bechamel sauce, vegetables and ham
The filling for such lasagna mainly consists of vegetables, for more satiety and taste, a little ham is added. Any meat, smoked or baked chicken, sausage or sausage will work, it will turn out delicious with them.
Ingredients
• 250 g of ham;
• 2 eggplants;
• 4 tomatoes;
• 2 peppers;
• 140 g of cheese;
• 2 onions;
• 500 g of bechamel;
• butter, seasonings, dough, garlic.
Cooking
1. Put the chopped onion in the pan, fry it until transparent, add the eggplant, cut into small cubes. After another two minutes, put the pepper, passer a little, season with garlic, salt the vegetables and turn them off.
2. Peel the tomatoes. The easiest way is to pour boiling water for a minute, cool. Cut the tomatoes into circles. Use a sharp knife.
3. We rub the cheese, remove a third for sprinkling. Mix everything else with cooled vegetables from the pan.
4. Cut the ham or any other product, mix into the filling.
5. Put a sheet of lasagna in a greased form of sauce, then a layer of vegetables with ham and cheese, pour with bechamel, scatter tomato circles. We repeat.
6. Close the casserole with dough, pour all the sauce that remains. Cover the top with cheese and put the dish in the oven.
Lasagne with Bechamel Sauce - Useful Tips and Tricks
• Bechamel turned out with lumps? The sauce can be whipped in a blender or simply filtered through a not-so-fine sieve.
• If the bechamel turned out to be a little liquid, then cheese will help to fix the situation. You need to add a little grated product, stir.
• Lasagna from all sides will be covered with a crisp, if it is well to rub the butter, then sprinkle with bread crumbs from white bread.
