Lasagna Soup (Stovetop or Slow Cooker)

My lasagna soup is a lasagne in a bowl: beef mince browned hard, a sauce of red wine, stock and tomatoes, broken lasagne sheets cooked right in it, and plenty of Parmigiano Reggiano on top. It makes 6 bowls in about 50 minutes, and it works in a slow cooker too.

How I make it: I sear the mince in one piece before breaking it up, brown the onion, carrot and celery, then simmer it all with stock, red wine, tomatoes, oregano, a small pinch of crumbled clove heads and cinnamon. The lasagne sheets go in for the last 10 minutes.

The useful bit: searing the mince in one piece gives it a proper brown crust. Break it up too early and it just goes grey in its own water.

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Lasagna Soup on the Stove or in the Slow Cooker

On the hob it is 20 minutes of prep and 30 of simmering. In a slow cooker it is the same start, then 3 hours on HIGH, with the pasta going in for the last half hour. Both make 6 big bowls.

A Closer Look at the Ingredients

Most of it is what goes into a lasagne. These are the ones that make the difference.

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• Beef mince The base of the soup, like the ragu in a lasagne. Good quality mince browns better. Instead: ask your butcher to mince steak for you, or use a meat-free mince for a vegetarian version.
• Lasagne sheets Dried sheets broken into pieces give the soup its lasagne feel. They cook right in the soup and thicken it as they go. Instead: any other dried pasta.
• Red wine Gives the sauce depth. It simmers for 30 minutes, so the raw alcohol taste cooks off. Instead: more stock.
• Onion, carrot and celery The usual base for a meat sauce, diced small so it melts into the soup.
• Cloves and cinnamon I break the heads off about 10 whole cloves and crumble them in my fingers, a small pinch, with a good pinch of cinnamon. A warm background note under the tomato. Instead: a very small pinch of ground cloves, or leave them out.
• Parmigiano Reggiano Grated over each bowl at the table, like the top of a lasagne. Instead: mozzarella or your favourite cheese.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Beef mince: half beef and 200 g of sliced Italian sausage for more flavour, or a meat-free mince for a vegetarian soup.
• Beef stock: vegetable stock, which you need for the vegetarian version anyway.
• Red wine: more stock.
• Lasagne sheets: any dried pasta you have.
• Parmigiano Reggiano: mozzarella or your favourite cheese.

Equipment You’ll Need

A wide frying pan for searing and a large pot, or a slow cooker.

How to Make Lasagna Soup, Step by Step

Full quantities are in the recipe card below.

1. Sear the Mince. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. When it is hot, put the 500 g of mince in as one flat piece, press it down and leave it alone until the underside is properly brown. Turn it over in pieces and brown the other side.Searing it in one piece is the trick of the whole recipe. Break mince up straight away and it lets out its water and goes grey in it; left alone in a hot pan, the underside gets a real brown crust, and that crust is where the deep, roasted taste comes from. More on this in my guide to browning meat.Pan: use a wide frying pan, not the soup pot. The mince needs space and a lot of heat to colour.
2. Break It Up. Once both sides are brown, break the mince into small pieces with a wooden spoon and cook it for another couple of minutes. Tip it into a large pot, or into the slow cooker if you are using one.You want brown crumbs all through it, not grey ones. If liquid comes out, keep cooking until it has boiled away, because the browning only starts once it has.
3. Brown the Vegetables. Put the frying pan back on a medium heat with the rest of the oil. Add the diced onion, carrot and celery, with the sliced garlic, and cook, stirring, until they soften and start to brown a little. Add them to the pot with the beef.The browned bits left by the mince flavour the vegetables as they cook. Keep the heat medium here: you want the vegetables soft and lightly coloured, and garlic burns quickly in a hot pan.Dice small: small pieces of onion, carrot and celery melt into the soup, so every spoonful gets a bit of each.
4. Simmer. Pour the 500 ml of beef stock, 500 ml of water, the 250 ml of red wine, the can of chopped tomatoes and the 250 g of passata into the pot. Add the oregano, a good pinch of cinnamon and a little sugar. For the cloves, I break the heads off about 10 whole cloves and crumble them in my fingers, just a small pinch. Bring it to the boil, then turn it down, cover with a lid and simmer for 30 minutes.The sugar is only there to balance the sharpness of the tomatoes, so start with a pinch and taste. Only the clove heads, never whole cloves: they are strong, and a small pinch is a background warmth, not a taste of cloves.Slow cooker: everything goes in the slow cooker at this point instead, on HIGH for 3 hours.
5. Add the Pasta. After 20 minutes of simmering, break the 225 g of lasagne sheets into pieces and stir them into the soup. Cook for the last 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the pasta is tender.Stir every few minutes so the pieces do not stick together or to the bottom of the pot. Any pasta works if you have no lasagne sheets; cook it until it is just tender. In the slow cooker, the pasta goes in after 2 and a half hours.
6. Season and Serve. Taste and season with salt and black pepper. If the soup is thicker than you like, loosen it with a splash of water. Ladle it into bowls and serve with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano and garlic bread, and a spoon of ricotta on top if you like it.The pasta keeps drinking up the liquid as the soup stands, so it thickens in the pot. Add water a little at a time until it is how you like it, and taste again after.Ricotta: an optional topping. I leave it out because my partner does not like it, but a spoonful melting into the hot soup is very lasagne.Cheese: mozzarella torn over the top is good too, or your favourite cheese.

Recipe Card for Lasagna Soup

Recipe Card

Lasagna Soup

My lasagna soup: beef mince seared in one piece, browned onion, carrot and celery, simmered with stock, red wine, tomatoes, oregano, crumbled clove heads and cinnamon, with broken lasagne sheets cooked in it. Serve with Parmesan, optional ricotta and garlic bread.

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Prep

20 min

Cook

30 min

Total

50 min

Serves

6

Per serving

530 kcal

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6 bowls

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Equipment I Use

Large Frying PanLarge Pot

Ingredients

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2 tbsp Olive Oil, divided 500 g Beef Mince, ground beef 150 g Onion, 1 medium, small dice 100 g Carrot, 1 small, small dice 50 g Celery, small dice 3 Garlic Cloves, sliced 500 ml Beef Stock, 2 cups; vegetable stock for a vegetarian version 250 ml Red Wine, 1 cup 400 g Chopped Tomatoes, 1 can, 14 oz 250 g Passata, sieved tomatoes, about 1 cup ½ tsp Dried Oregano, plus a little to garnish 10 Clove Heads, about 10, the round tops of whole cloves crumbled between your fingers, a small pinch 1 good pinch Ground Cinnamon Sugar, a little, to balance the tomatoes Salt and Black Pepper, to taste 225 g Lasagne Sheets, about 10 sheets, broken into pieces, 8 oz 500 ml Water, 2 cups, plus a splash more if needed Parmigiano Reggiano, freshly grated, to serve Ricotta, optional, a spoonful on top Garlic Bread, to serve

Instructions

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1

Sear the Mince

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a frying pan over a high heat. Add the mince in one flat piece and let it brown on both sides before breaking it up.

2

Break It Up

Break the browned mince into pieces and cook for another couple of minutes, then tip it into a large pot or a slow cooker.

3

Brown the Vegetables

Add the rest of the oil to the frying pan with the onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook on a medium heat until they start to brown, then add to the pot.

4

Simmer

Add the stock, water, red wine, chopped tomatoes, passata, oregano, crumbled clove heads, cinnamon and a little sugar. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

5

Add the Pasta

After 20 minutes of simmering, stir in the broken lasagne sheets and cook for the last 10 minutes, until tender. Stir now and then.

6

Season and Serve

Season with salt and pepper and add a splash of water if it is too thick. Serve with grated Parmigiano Reggiano, a spoon of ricotta if you like, and garlic bread.

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Chef’s notes＋

• Sear the mince in one piece before breaking it up. That brown crust is the flavour.
• Slow cooker: brown the mince and vegetables first, then HIGH for 3 hours; add the pasta after 2 and a half hours.
• The pasta keeps soaking up liquid. Loosen leftovers with water when reheating, until piping hot.
• Cloves: crumble the heads of about 10 whole cloves, a small pinch. Never whole cloves.
• Ricotta on top is optional.
• Keeps 2 days in the fridge. To freeze, freeze before the pasta goes in.

Nutrition per serving＋

530 kcalProtein 25.5 gCarbs 43.2 gFat 24.9 gSat fat 8.7 gFibre 4.4 gSugar 8.2 gSodium 716 mgServing 455 g

Lasagna Soup · https://chefsbinge.com/lasagna-soup/

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Storing and Reheating Lasagna Soup

Let it cool, then keep it covered in the fridge and eat it within 2 days. The pasta keeps soaking up the liquid, so the soup is much thicker the next day: add a splash of water or stock when you reheat it, and heat it until it is piping hot all the way through. My guide to reheating food safely has more on this. To freeze it, freeze the soup before the pasta goes in, then cook the pasta in it when you reheat; frozen with the pasta in, it goes soft.

What to Serve With Lasagna Soup

Garlic bread for dipping and more grated Parmigiano Reggiano at the table. A spoon of ricotta on top is optional; I leave it out because my partner does not like it. A simple green salad is enough on the side.

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FAQ for Lasagna Soup

A Few Words from the Chef

Everything good about a lasagne without the layering. Sear the mince properly, keep the pasta for the last 10 minutes, and put plenty of Parmigiano Reggiano on the table.