The Simplest and Best Lasagne Recipe I’ve Ever Tried!
In the spirit of trying out new recipes from cooking books that I’ve bought, here we have Jamie Oliver’s Simple Baked Lasagne from his “Jamie’s Dinners: The Essential Family Cookbook”. I love lasagne, but haven’t cooked any since… hmmm 2006? That’s like 4 years ago. The last time I made lasagne, the white sauce recipe was from San Remo’s Dried Lasagne Box (there’s a really good recipe at the back of the box). The sauce recipe I got from my mom, which is kind of like a thicker version of a bolognaise sauce.
But this time, I wanted to follow JO’s recipe. I had to leave out some of the ingredients that he used such as panchetta/bacon/pork belly/red wine as I don’t eat any of that. In a way, I modified his recipe to be suitable for Muslims like me.
You can get the full recipe here.
Mine is the Halal-version. So here goes…
INGREDIENTS FOR LASAGNE:
Fresh Mushrooms, sliced (tin mushrooms would also do if you don’t have fresh ones)
A pinch of cinnamon
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 Carrot, finely chopped
2 cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
Herbs (sage, oregano, rosemary, thyme) - OR Mix Dried Spaghetti Bolognaise Herbs
Olive oil (or vegetable oil)
Minced Beef or Chicken
2 x 400g tins of Diced Tomatoes
Some dried chilli flakes or chilli powder
Salt & Pepper
400g Fresh Lasagne Sheets
400 g Mozarella
INGREDIENTS FOR WHITE SAUCE
1x500ml tub of Thick Cream / creme fraiche
3 anchovies finely chopped OR Anchovies Powder / Serbuk Perasa
2 handful of Parmesan Cheese
METHODS
1. Fry mushroom & cinnamon powder with oil.
2. Add onions, carrots, garlics, herbs and 4 tablespoons of olive oil
3. Mix together, then add in minced beef/chicken
4. Cook for 5 minutes
5. Add in tinned Tomatoes and bring to boil
6. Get greaseproof paper/baking paper, wet it and place it on top of the plan while it simmers and cooked
7. Season sauce with salt, pepper and chilli flakes
8. FOR WHITE SAUCE: in a bowl, mix thick cream, anchovy powder, parmesan, salt & pepper (if mixture is too thick, add some milk)
9. ASSEMBLE: Rub base with olive oil - lasagne sheets - meat sauce - white sauce & sprinkle parmesan - lasagne sheets - meat sauce - white sauce & parmesan - lasagne sheet - white sauce - the very top should be mozarella & parmesan.
10. Bake at 200C oven for 30-35 minutes.
I used minced chicken, instead of beef (coz that’s what I had in the fridge); used mixed spaghetti bolognaise herbs, instead of fresh ones though (sorry JO!); used diced peeled tomatoes in cans instead of plum tomatoes; didn’t use red wine nor add water because there’s liquid from the tomato cans already; didn’t manage to find bay leaves at the supermarket; opted out the butternut squash and coriander seeds; and for the sauce, used light thickened cream and “serbuk perisa ikan bilis” (dried Asian anchovies seasoning) instead of anchovies. And instead of frying panchetta with cinnamon at the beginning, I used mushrooms instead, because I love mushrooms and I know they give out great flavours in food.
So after everything was seasoned to taste and assembled, I popped in the baking dish in the microwave to cook for 30 minutes. And then here it is. I added some poached vegetables with a dash of olive oil, salt and pepper on the side.
The result: what a delicious lasagne! His recipe of not using bechamel sauce and used cream instead makes the lasagne less heavy, and I love the salty-cheesy crispy top. I think the combination of parmesan and anchovies seasoning in the cream blend in really well with the sauce mixture. My husband and I both loved it very much and we can’t help to just appreciate how great the lasagne tasted, although with some bits of adjustments. Thanks JO for such great and truly simple and easy recipe!
