This easy weeknight lasagna uses jarred sauce and skips the ricotta making it a fast and easy to assemble dinner! Even the pickiest of eaters will enjoy this classic, cheesy, casserole dish! See the notes section to make this in a smaller, 9×13 inch dish.

a slice of lasagna on a plate with a fork next to a casserole dish of lasagna

Servings: 8-12 (depending on size made)
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients:

salt
1 box of lasagna noodles
2 pounds lean ground beef
6 cups red pasta sauce (I use jarred Traditional Prego)
6 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Get the full printable instructions with measurements at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.

Step 1: Preheat oven to 375º F. Spread 1/2 cup of the sauce in bottom of an 11×15 inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add 1 tsp salt and entire package of lasagna noodles one at a time to pot. Cook according to package instructions. You won’t need all of the noodles, but they sometimes break during cooking, so it’s better to have extra.

Tomato sauce spread in a glass baking dish, ready for baking or cooking.

Step 2: While noodles are cooking, brown the ground beef in a large skillet. Drain fat and discard. Stir in the remaining red sauce and heat over low heat. Carefully drain noodles (the water and steam will be very hot!) and rinse with a bit of cold water. This will cool them down and make them easier to work with.

Step 3: Arrange 5 noodles over the sauce, slightly overlapping and place one more in the opposite direction at the end, cutting it to fit. Spread a third of the sauce over noodles. Sprinkle 2 cups of mozzarella and 1/3 cup of parmesan cheese over sauce. Arrange 6 more noodles like before (with 1 reserved for the end) and repeat process until all ingredients are used (3 layers).

lasagna noodles in a casserole dish with beef sauce spread over them in a glass baking dish.

Cheese-covered homemade baked lasagna in a glass dish.

Step 4: Place foil loosely over the top of the dish and slightly tented so it doesn’t touch the cheese. Bake at 375º F for 20 minutes. Remove foil using oven mitts (foil and pan will be hot) and bake another 10-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and lightly browned. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving. Enjoy with garlic bread or a side salad!

Aluminum foil wrapped casserole dish for baking.

Tips:

Use your favorite homemade red sauce in place of the jarred sauce.
Replace ground beef with Italian sausage or use both.
Substitute grated parmesan cheese in place of shredded, if desired.
Prefer ricotta? No worries! just spread your desired amount on top of the second noodle layer and continue to build your casserole.
Make ahead and store in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Add 20-30 minutes of cook time at 350º F with foil on.
This can be made in a 9×13 inch baking dish by reducing the servings to 8 in the recipe card. Follow the rest of the steps, except for step 3. Four noodles slightly overlapping will fit perfectly in a 9×13 inch dish.

Easy Weeknight Lasagna

This lasagna uses jarred sauce and skips the ricotta making it a fast and easy to assemble dinner! See the Tips section to make this in a smaller, 9×13 inch dish.

Beth

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 5

Servings

Ingredients

1 tsp salt
1 package lasagna noodles (you’ll need 18 noodles for the bigger size and 12 for the smaller)
2 lb lean ground beef
6 cups red pasta sauce (I use jarred Traditional Prego)
6 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375º F. Spread 1/2 cup of the sauce in bottom of an 11×15 inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add 1 tsp salt and entire package of lasagna noodles to pot. Cook according to package instructions. You won’t need all of the noodles, but they sometimes break during cooking, so it’s better to have extra.
While noodles are cooking, brown ground beef in a large skillet. Drain fat and discard. Stir in remaining red sauce and heat over low heat. Carefully drain noodles (water and steam will be very hot!) and rinse with a bit of cold water. This will cool them down and make them easier to work with.
Arrange 5 noodles over sauce, slightly overlapping and place one more in the opposite direction at the end, cutting it to fit. Spread a third of the sauce over noodles. Sprinkle 2 cups of mozzarella and 1/3 cup of parmesan cheese over sauce. Arrange 6 more noodles like before (with 1 reserved for the end) and repeat process until all ingredients are used (3 layers).
Place foil over top loosely and slightly tented so it doesn’t touch the cheese. Bake at 375º F for 20 minutes. Remove foil using oven mitts (foil and pan will be hot) and bake another 10-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and lightly browned. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before cutting and serving. Enjoy with garlic bread or a side salad!

Notes

See the tips in the blog post for substitution ideas!
This can be made in a 9×13 inch baking dish by reducing the servings to 8 in the recipe card. Follow the rest of the steps, except for step 3. Four noodles slightly overlapping will fit perfectly in a 9×13 inch dish.