Lasagna is a traditional Italian cuisine dish that can be enjoyed in many catering establishments in Russia. However, as practice shows, it can be done at home. Moreover, the process of preparing lasagna is quite simple and is even stronger for an inexperienced housewife. Next, we consider the main subtleties of cooking, as well as the classic version of creating this work of culinary art at home.
Recipe
In order to cook delicious lasagna according to the classic recipe with bechamel sauce, you need to take a couple of small onions, chop them and fry them in a hot pan until they get a golden color. As soon as this happens, 250 g of minced pork should be sent there (you can use pork and beef). Constantly mixing, the mass must be fried for 5 minutes. And then, adding a teaspoon of tomato paste and the same amount of sugar into it, continue the cooking process for a few more minutes. As soon as the frying is ready, grated tomato, as well as ground pepper and salt to taste, dried basil and other desired spices should be placed in it. After mixing, the mass should be removed from the fire.
Separately, you need to prepare pita bread, cut it into pieces, and also grate hard cheese (100 g). Next, begin the process of laying all the components. First of all, you need to grease the selected baking sheet or baking dish with oil and cover it with parchment paper, and then put pita bread on it. It is covered with a layer of minced meat, and then watered with a small amount of bechamel sauce. Next, you need to lay out another sheet of pita bread. The specified sequence is repeated 3-4 more times. After all the ingredients are laid out, it is necessary to sprinkle generously with the contents of the form grated cheese and send to the oven.
You need to bake lasagna at a temperature of 190 degrees for 10 minutes - only this way the finished dish will turn out to be incredibly juicy. Serve according to the classic recipe lasagna with bechamel sauce can be both hot and cold.
Bechamel sauce
For the preparation of lasagna in the classic version, two types of sauce are used: bechamel and bolognese. Consider the next step-by-step recipe for classic bechamel sauce.
To cook it, you need to put 25 g of butter on a hot frying pan or any heat-resistant dishes and melt it. In a liquid mass, pour a tablespoon of flour in small portions, which must first be sieved. Immediately after combining the ingredients, they must be mixed with a wooden spatula in a circular motion. Without stopping the stirring procedure, pour 250 ml of milk into the container. It is recommended to do this gradually, and the mixing process should be carried out until the moment when the mass begins to become thick. At the exit, the sauce should turn out to be quite liquid and homogeneous, without the presence of lumps.
In order to give the sauce the most vivid taste, at the final stage of its preparation it is necessary to pour a little salt and nutmeg into the total mass.
In reviews of the classic recipe for bechamel sauce for lasagna, it is often said that the mass prepared using the recommended technology can easily be used to give taste to many other dishes, especially those based on potatoes or meat.
Bolognese sauce
As you know, lasagna with bechamel and bolognese sauces is being prepared. The recipe for the second sauce is also quite simple and easily performed in ordinary home cooking.
To prepare it, you need to heat two types of oil in a hot frying pan - olive (30 g) and cream (40 g). As soon as the oily mass is heated, finely chopped onion and a couple of garlic cloves passed through a press should be fried on it. As soon as the onion becomes transparent, pre-prepared vegetables should be added to the pan: diced carrots and chopped celery (70 g). In this composition, stirring occasionally, the components must be fried for another five minutes.
When the vegetables are ready, they need to add 80 g of finely chopped bacon, mix again and fry for five minutes.
After the specified time, the total mass must be supplemented with ground beef (500 g) and continue the process of frying over medium heat until the meat acquires a brown tint. As soon as this happens, you need to pour half a glass of dry red wine. When the bulk of the alcohol has evaporated, add a glass of broth to the mass and, having covered the pan with a lid, continue the stewing process for an hour (over low heat).
How to make dough
Studying step-by-step recipes of lasagna with Bechemel sauce, you can see that almost all of them provide for cooking on the basis of ready-made pita bread or special sheets for lasagna, they can be purchased at any store. However, many housewives are still interested in how to prepare the basis of the dough for such a dish on their own. It should be noted that the process of its creation is quite simple, and the composition of the products is minimal.
To prepare a dough suitable for lasagna, you need to take 250 g of wheat flour and the same amount of durum (flour of the second grade). Both ingredients must be combined in one dish and sieved directly on the table so that a slide forms. In its middle, you need to make a small recess in which you need to break 4 chicken eggs (if they are small, then 5-6 pcs. Will be needed). Here you also need to add a little salt and a teaspoon of olive oil. From all should knead the dough.
The finished dough should be placed in a plastic wrap and, wrapped tightly, put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. After the specified time, it is necessary to form small balls from the dough, and then roll each of them so that the thickness of the formation does not exceed 1.5 mm.
Let us consider the main features of the preparation of lasagna (with Bechamel sauce) according to the classic recipe, which will help make the dish most delicious.
To make lasagna, you can use ready-made dough, which is sold in stores. Before using it, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with the instructions, as products from different manufacturers need various preparatory manipulations: one of them just needs to be thawed, and some must be boiled.
Which form to choose
The aesthetic qualities of a cooked dish to some extent depend on the shape of the dishes in which the cooking process is performed. So, to create the perfect lasagna, experienced chefs recommend taking even square shapes or, in extreme cases, rectangular ones - it is in them that all components fit perfectly.
As for the materials of utensils, heat-resistant glass and clay are considered ideal. In practice, cast iron and metal molds having a non-stick coating are often used for cooking. In any case, the dishes must be lubricated with butter or vegetable oil, and then covered with parchment.
What sauce to combine with
As the classic recipe says, lasagna mixes best with bechamel sauce. However, it should be noted that everything is not limited to them. So, this dish reveals its taste from a positive side if it is prepared with vegetable sauces, with the addition of broth, tomato paste. As noted in many recommendations, in addition to the recipe for classic bechamel sauce, for Italian lasagna you can consider sauces made on the basis of smoked meats or cream.
About meat filling
As you know, the standard Lasagna recipe provides for the use of minced meat as a filling. Practice shows that for this dish, both pork and beef products, as well as their combination, are perfect. As for minced chicken, it will be very dry.
Minced lasagna with bechamel sauce is usually prepared by stewing, with the addition of a small amount of tomato paste. To give it a special taste, sugar and spices are introduced.
Which cheese to choose
The classic Lasagna recipe with bechamel sauce for home cooking involves the use of cheese. Which product is best to choose?
If you follow the recommendations given by experienced chefs, the most suitable types of cheese for the dish in question are parmesan and mozzarella. According to the rules, they must be used separately. However, if there is a desire to give the dish an island flavor and a piquant aroma, both varieties can be combined.
Other filling options
For the preparation of lasagna, other filling options can be used. As practice shows, this dish will have excellent taste, if the filling will be stew made from seafood. Also a great option is chicken, combined with fried mushrooms, as well as chicken with vegetables and tomato.
In culinary practice, there is also sweet lasagna, which is no less successful with gourmets. The most suitable type of filling for her is cherry, which is prepared with the addition of chopped almonds, cinnamon and sugar. Also, cottage cheese is perfectly combined with cottage cheese with cream, vanilla, lemon juice and sugar. As a topping for sweet lasagna, chopped walnuts are most often used.