One dish that you will find across the world and in many restaurants in the UK is Lasagne. It is one of those meals that is disliked by very few and can either be made by hand or bought as a ready meal, with it being so popular. However how much do you really know about this household favourite dish?
Lasagne originated in Italy, in the region of Emilia-Romagna. The Bolognese part of the meal is traditionally made by interleaving layers of pasta with layers of sauce, made with ragù, bechamel, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Around the world it is common to find lasagne made with ricotta or mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce, various meats and a range of vegetables (e.g., spinach, zucchini, mushrooms). In all cases the lasagne are oven-baked. Lasagne is typically flavoured with wine and garlic. The world ‘Lasagne’ itself can be derived from Ancient Greek.
It’s nice to know a brief history of Lasagne, but how do you make it? Well here are some instructions:
- First make the ragu and meat sauce. Heat the oil in a frying pan, then cook the beef in two batches for about 10 minutes until browned all over. Finely chop 4 slices of prosciutto, then stir through the meat mixture.
- Pour over the tomato sauce and stock, then season. Bring up to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins until the ragu looks rich and is well coated in sauce.
- Heat oven to 180C. To assemble lasagne, lightly oil an ovenproof serving dish (30 x 20cm). Spoon over a third of the ragu sauce, and then cover with lasagne sheets. Drizzle over about one quarter of the white sauce (a butter, flour and milk mixture). Repeat until you have 3 layers of pasta. Cover with the remaining half quantity of white sauce.
- Tear the mozzarella into thin strips, and then scatter over the top. Arrange the rest of the prosciutto on top. Bake for 45 mins until the top is bubbling and lightly browned.
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Lasagne
With the ingredients in place and a pinch of knowledge to go with it, what’s stopping you from making one of the world’s most popular dishes?
