ItalyTwo decisions make this soup significantly better. First: cook the tomato paste until it darkens. Raw tomato paste tastes sharp and flat; 2 minutes of stirring over heat turns it sweet, concentrated, and complex. Second: serve the cheese mixture cold, dolloped on top, not stirred in during cooking. Cheese cooked into a soup becomes stringy and greasy. Dropped cold onto a hot bowl it melts slowly as you eat, creating streaks and pockets — exactly the experience of biting through a layer of cheese in a baked lasagna.
The noodle problem: lasagna noodles left in the soup overnight absorb most of the broth and swell into a starchy mass. If you plan to have leftovers, cook the noodles separately in salted water, store them tossed in a little oil, and add them to individual servings at serving time. The soup base without noodles keeps and freezes perfectly. The cheese topping should always be made fresh.
Lasagna Soup
By Sergei Martynov
All the flavours of a layered lasagna — rich meat ragù, herb-tomato broth, and three cheeses — cooked together in a single pot with lasagna noodles broken into pieces and simmered directly in the sauce. The noodles release starch into the broth as they cook, naturally thickening it into something between a soup and a sauce. The finishing move: a generous cold dollop of ricotta-mozzarella-Parmesan blended together, plopped into the centre of each hot bowl. It melts and streaks through the red broth as you eat. No layering, no béchamel, no baking dish.
What you'll need
Ingredients
- 500 g
See recipes with ground beef — or half beefground beef — or half beef, half Italian sausage for more flavour
i - 1
See recipes with oniononion, finely diced
i - 4
See recipes with garlic clovesgarlic cloves, minced
i - 2 tbsp
See recipes with olive oilolive oil
i - 2 tbsp
See recipes with tomato pastetomato paste
i - 400 g
See recipes with canned crushed tomatoescanned crushed tomatoes
i - 1 litre
See recipes with chicken or beef brothchicken or beef broth
i - 1 tsp
See recipes with dried oreganodried oregano
i - 1 tsp
See recipes with dried basildried basil
i - 0.5 tsp
See recipes with chilli flakeschilli flakes (optional)
i - 200 g
See recipes with lasagna noodleslasagna noodles, broken into 4 to 5 cm pieces
i - 150 g
See recipes with whole-milk ricottawhole-milk ricotta
i - 100 g
See recipes with mozzarellamozzarella, shredded
i - 50 g
See recipes with parmesanParmesan, finely grated
i - 1
See recipes with small bunch of fresh basil — tornsmall bunch of fresh basil — torn, for serving
i
How to make it
Instructions
- 1
Brown the meat. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until deeply browned and slightly caramelised in places — about 6 to 8 minutes. Do not rush this step; the browning builds the foundation of flavour. Season with salt and pepper. If using Italian sausage, add it halfway through.
- 2
Build the base. Add the diced onion to the browned meat and cook, stirring, for 4 to 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add the tomato paste and stir vigorously into the meat — cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the paste darkens slightly and smells sweet. This cooks out the raw tomato flavour.
- 3
Add the liquids and simmer. Pour in the crushed tomatoes and broth. Add the oregano, basil, and chilli flakes. Stir well. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a steady simmer. Taste the broth and adjust salt. The broth should taste well-seasoned and savoury before the noodles go in.
- 4
Cook the noodles in the soup. Add the broken lasagna noodle pieces directly to the simmering soup. Stir immediately and continue stirring every 2 to 3 minutes to prevent sticking. Simmer for 12 to 15 minutes until the noodles are cooked through — they should be soft with a slight chew. The soup will thicken considerably as the noodles release their starch. If it becomes too thick, add a splash of warm broth or water.
- 5
Make the cheese topping and serve. In a bowl, mix together the ricotta, shredded mozzarella, and half the Parmesan. Season with black pepper and a small pinch of salt. Ladle the soup into deep bowls, leaving space. Drop a generous spoonful of the cheese mixture into the centre of each bowl — it should sit on top of the hot soup. Scatter the remaining Parmesan and torn basil over the top. Serve immediately with crusty bread for dipping. As you eat, stir the cheese into the soup.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you use other pasta instead of lasagna noodles?
Yes. Any sturdy pasta shape works: rigatoni, penne, ziti, farfalle, or rotini. Smaller shapes cook faster — check at 8 to 10 minutes. The reason lasagna noodles are preferred is that their width and texture most closely mimic eating an actual lasagna noodle, and the flat surface releases more starch into the broth. No-boil lasagna noodles do not work well — they absorb liquid too aggressively and turn mushy.
How do you stop the noodles from sticking together?
Three techniques. First, bring the soup to a full boil before adding the noodles. Second, add the noodles in stages, stirring after each addition. Third, stir the soup every 2 to 3 minutes while the noodles cook — the motion keeps them in suspension. Adding a tablespoon of olive oil to the broth before the noodles also helps slightly, though less effective than stirring.
Can you make lasagna soup ahead of time?
Make the soup base (steps 1 through 3) up to 3 days ahead and refrigerate. Cook the noodles fresh just before serving. The cheese topping is also best made fresh — it takes 2 minutes to mix. If you have leftover noodles already in the soup, reheat over low heat with a splash of extra broth to loosen, and accept that the texture will be softer than fresh.
Can you freeze lasagna soup?
Freeze the soup base without noodles or cheese — both become unpleasant after freezing and thawing. The meat-tomato-broth base freezes excellently for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, reheat to a simmer, add fresh broken lasagna noodles, and cook until tender. The cheese topping is always made fresh.
What is the difference between Italian sausage and ground beef in this recipe?
Ground beef produces a leaner, cleaner meat flavour — the soup tastes tomato-forward with a straightforward beefy backbone. Italian sausage (pork-based, seasoned with fennel, garlic, and herbs) adds considerable depth: fennel seeds provide anise warmth, and the higher fat content creates a richer, more savoury broth. Half-and-half is the most popular combination. If using sausage, remove the casings and treat it the same as ground meat. Fully cooked or pre-spiced sausage can also be used — just slice or crumble and brown.
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Comments (1)
Made this on a rainy Sunday and it hit different. All the flavors of lasagna but way less work. I broke the noodles into rough pieces instead of using the fancy ones and honestly it was great. The ricotta dollops on top at the end are key — dont skip that part.