You can make lasagna ahead of time and just heat them in the oven before your group gathering. That is why we made available for you below easy steps to follow on how many ingredients you should buy for your group size.
For sure, everyone in your large gather would love this classic Italian dish! We made sure that the recipe will give everyone a warm, comforting, and savory rich sauce that is made with addictive cheese and an al dente layer of noodles. You can also make vegetarian spinach lasagna - or lasagna roll ups for the kids.
Below are the measurements of ingredients and recipes that you can follow to cook a perfect lasagna for a large group.
How much does a tray of lasagna cost? A homemade lasagna will cost you between $10 and $90 per pan, depending on the quality of ingredients you use. The cheese and meat are the most pricey ingredients when you are making your own lasagna at home. Of course, making homemade dishes for large groups will take lots of your time and effort but it will surely save you financially. Rather than using cooked lasagna noodle, it is better to make the easy lasagna recipe below when you have a large group.
First, take note of the important ingredients that you should buy first before getting started in the kitchen.
The ingredients of a cheesy lasagna can include:
When cooking lasagna for 10 people, you need:
You need 12 pans or baking dish which are 19 x 9 in size to feed one hundred people with lasagna
Put your stove on high heat and place a large pot of salted pasta water. It may take a while, especially if you are cooking a huge amount of pasta. While waiting for the water to boil, prepare the sauce for the lasagna.
On another stove plate or burner with medium-high heat, place a large skillet and 2 teaspoons of oil then add the ground beef. Cook until it is lightly browned on all sides and transfer the beef to a bowl. Make sure to drain the excess fat.
Add the onions to the skillet and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until translucent. You can also add diced bell pepper but it is optional. Next, add the minced garlic and cook for half to one minute.
Return the lean ground beef to the pan. Combine the three ingredients and reduce the heat to low, and cook for another five minutes.
Transfer the beef to a medium-sized pot and pour the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and tomato paste into the pot.
Add the salt, Italian seasonings, and sprinkle with pepper to taste. Take note that you will be adding Parmesan cheese later on so, do not put too much salt.
Stir in sugar, one teaspoon or tablespoon at a time, tasting after each addition to taste. Take note that the amount of sugar may vary depending on how acidic the tomato you are using.
Bring the sauce to a simmer and lower the heat to maintain a low simmer that will not vaporize your sauce. Stir it often and slowly. Make sure to scrape all sides of the pot every now and then so nothing will scorch to the bottom and sticks.
Remove from the heat.
By now, the salted water should be boiling when you started heating in the first step. Add the uncooked lasagna noodles and cook them to al dente, check the package's directions to be sure. Note that there are lasagna noodles that are cooked in advance.
You have to ensure that the water remains at a full boiling point during the entire cooking to prevent the noodles from sticking to the pot.
After that, get a colander to drain and rinse the noodles with cool water, and gently separate any noodles that may be sticking together.
First, spread and brush a little amount of oil on a large rimmed baking sheet. Layout the cooked lasagna noodles on the sheet and turn them over so that all sides will get coated with oil to prevent sticking together.
Preheat the oven to 375°F or 190° C.
Form your lasagna in a 9x13-inch casserole or lasagna dish. Next, ladle a cup of sauce and spread it over the bottom of the dish.
Arrange one layer (about 3 long noodles that may overlap depending on your casserole) of lasagna noodles lengthwise over the sauce.
Ladle the last remaining sauce over the noodles.
Start sprinkling half of the ricotta cheese with the beaten egg so that it will bind the cheese and not ooze out the casserole when slicing. Make sure to fill every inch with cheese.
Sprinkle half of the grated parmesan cheese evenly on the top of the ricotta cheese. You may also add mozzarella cheese to make it more cheesy.
Next, place another layer of noodles and top it with the remaining sauce.
Again, add the other half of the ricotta cheese and another half of the parmesan cheese.
Finish the layer of noodles and spread the remaining sauce evenly on the noodles. You may sprinkle more cheese at the topmost layer if you want.
Before putting it inside the oven, cover the lasagna pan with aluminum foil. DO not tighten it, just enough that it doesn't touch the sauce or noodles.
Bake it at 375°F or 190° C for 45 minutes.
You can remove the aluminum foil in the last 10 minutes if you like a more crusty top or edges of your lasagna.
Allow the lasagna to cool first before serving. If not consumed at all, you may reheat it in a conventional oven or microwave with aluminum foil covered on top of it.
Leftovers can be kept for about 5 days.
Lasagna can be made a night before and even four days before the event. If you already assembled and baked the lasagna ahead of time, it should be consumed within 3 to 5 days from baking. If you want to keep it longer, refrigerate it, freeze it, and reheat when needed. Baked lasagna can be stored as a frozen lasagna well ahead of time. Best to make it a classic lasagna with nothing to fancy if you are going to freeze it. Vegetable lasagna can also be frozen - just choose vegetables that do not have much water in them. Do not make a lasagna roll if you are going to make it ahead of time. If you have remaining meat sauce - then keep it aside till the event, heat it up and offer it as a side for those who like extra pasta sauce.
You can also refrigerate it before baking if you made it a day ahead.
There's actually no standard of how many layers should a lasagna have. But mostly, it has 3 to 4 layers and you can freely add more layers if it can still be accommodated to a large pan. Also, a lasagna for a large group should be made with several layers for everyone to eat.
How many servings of lasagna are in a 9x13 pan, A 9x13 pan of lasagna can feed 6 to 8 adults assuming that each slice is big enough for an adult portion. If you will be cooking lasagna for a large group, get several 9x13 pans to accommodate everyone.
Make sure when you bake it that the top is covered - with foil - and drizzle a small quantity of olive oil or cottage cheese mixture on that top sheet.
What is a lasagna pan?
Using the wrong sauce mixture - or a spaghetti sauce or bolognese sauce instead of the real recipe may make your lasagna watery. Also using high moisture content vegetables will also result in a soupy result. Stick with the real lasagna sauce recipe and the correct ricotta mixture.
Yes it can be - but let it thaw before baking
Organic lasagna costs approximate 1.5 to 2 times the price of normal lasagna.
Most will use a mozzarella which is grated finely - also topping with parmesan cheese gives and extra flavor and if you use a mix of cheddar then you will have a 3 cheese lasagna.
It is much cheaper to make your own!
