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Traditional Neapolitan Lasagna Recipe
Neapolitan Lasagna is a rich and succulent baked dish, typical of traditional Neapolitan sunday lunch, made with layers of durum wheat semolina noodles, stuffed with meat sauce (Neapolitan pork ragu), fried meatballs, ricotta, mozzarella and hard-boiled eggs.
Prep Time
40 mins
Cook Time
2 hrs 40 mins
Total Time
3 hrs 20 mins
Servings: 8
Calories: 1141 kcal
Course:
Main Course
Cuisine:
Italian
Ingredients
For the Meat Sauce
- 350 g pork ribs - ~12 oz
- 250 g sausage - ~9 oz
- 350 g pork - ~12 oz (pork neck)
- 100 ml red wine - ~½ cup
- 1 white onion -
- 1.5 liter tomato passata - 6 cups
- 4 tablespoons olive oil - extra virgin
- salt - to taste
For the Meatballs
- 400 g meat - ~1 pound. You must remove the meat from the meat sauce and use it to make meatballs.
- 2 tablespoons parsley - chopped
- 2 eggs
- 100 g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese - 1 cup, grated
- 100 g breadcrumbs - 1 cup + more for breading the meatballs
- 1 liter oil - 4 cups (for frying)
For the Filling
- 500 g ricotta cheese - 1.1 pound
- 200 g parmigiano reggiano - 2 cups, grated
- 400 g mozzarella cheese - 14 oz (hard mozzarella)
- 4 eggs
For the Lasagna Sheets
- 10 lasagna
Instructions
MAKE THE MEAT SAUCE
- Take the pork neck and the ribs and cut them into small pieces. Leave some meat on the bone, it will make the sauce tastier. Then remove the sausage skin. Put the meats and the sausage aside for the moment.
- Now peel the onion and slice it finely. Sautè it in a large pan with the extra virgin olive oil for a few minutes. Then add the sausage and the meats. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes on medium heat, sometime stirring.
- Pour the red wine, let it evaporate and then add the tomato passata. Add salt to taste, stir and cover with a lid.
- Let simmer over low heat for at least two hours. The sauce should not be too thick. If it seems to dry out too much during cooking, add a ladle or two of water. The sauce must be a little liquid to facilitate the cooking of the lasagna noodles afterwards. When ready, turn off the heat and let the pork meat sauce cool.
Cup of Yum
MAKE THE MEATBALLS
- With a slotted spoon, take about 400 g (~1 pound) of meat from the sauce, draining it very well from the tomato sauce. Place it in a bowl and add the grated Parmigiano, chopped parsley, 100 g (1 cup) of breadcrumbs and two whole eggs.
- Transfer the mixture in a food processor and finely mince, until homogeneous. With the mixture make small meatballs, no bigger than a hazelnut and bread them quickly in bread crumbs.
- Fry the meatballs in plenty of oil. With a slotted spoon, remove the meatballs from the oil, drain well the excess oil, then put them on a plate and set aside.
THE FILLING
- Boil 4 eggs for 10 minutes. Remove the shells while they are still hot. Let them cool then cut into thin slices. Set aside. Cut the hard mozzarella cheese into thin slices as well and set aside.
- Now place the ricotta in a bowl. Add two or three tablespoons of meat sauce and mix everything until you get a homogeneous reddish-cream.
MAKE THE LAYERS
- Take a lasagna pan measuring about 13x9 inches and spread a little meat sauce on the bottom. Then place the first layer of lasagna noodles.
- Cover the pasta sheets with the ricotta cream. Then place a few slices of hard-boiled egg, some fried meatballs and some slices of mozzarella.
- Finally spread the meat sauce and sprinkle with the grated Parmigiano cheese. Cover with another layer of lasagna sheets.
- Keep going with the layers until you run out of ingredients, taking care to make the final layer with only the sauce, mozzarella and grated Parmigiano.
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil so that the top does not dry out too much. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C (390°F) for about 25 minutes. Then remove the aluminum foil and keep cooking for another 5/10 minutes, depending on whether you like the surface more or less crunchy. Then take out the lasagna and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving. Now enjoy your Neapolitan Lasagna!
Nutrition Information
Serving
100g
Calories
1141kcal
(57%)
Carbohydrates
60g
(20%)
Protein
73g
(146%)
Fat
67g
(103%)
Saturated Fat
29g
(145%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
6g
Monounsaturated Fat
26g
Trans Fat
0.2g
Cholesterol
330mg
(110%)
Sodium
1473mg
(61%)
Potassium
1702mg
(49%)
Fiber
6g
(24%)
Sugar
14g
(28%)
Vitamin A
2272IU
(45%)
Vitamin C
25mg
(28%)
Calcium
934mg
(93%)
Iron
7mg
(39%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 8Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 1141
% Daily Value*
Serving | 100g | |
Calories | 1141kcal | 57% |
Carbohydrates | 60g | 20% |
Protein | 73g | 146% |
Fat | 67g | 103% |
Saturated Fat | 29g | 145% |
Polyunsaturated Fat | 6g | 35% |
Monounsaturated Fat | 26g | 130% |
Trans Fat | 0.2g | 10% |
Cholesterol | 330mg | 110% |
Sodium | 1473mg | 61% |
Potassium | 1702mg | 36% |
Fiber | 6g | 24% |
Sugar | 14g | 28% |
Vitamin A | 2272IU | 45% |
Vitamin C | 25mg | 28% |
Calcium | 934mg | 93% |
Iron | 7mg | 39% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.