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Introducing the most amazing Moroccan lamb mince lasagne recipe with crumbly, creamy feta cheese. There is no doubt that this deliciously saucy, flavoursome and comforting lamb lasagne recipe is going to be your new family favourite.
Why we love lasagne
Lasagne must be one of if not the most popular family favourite meals that would make a regular appearance on the dinner table. It is a sublime mix of a ground meat sauce sandwiched between layers of soft sheets of pasta smothered with a buttery béchamel sauce all beautifully gratinated with bubbling, melting cheese. It is full of flavour, fun for kids and it is really easily put together. This “al forno” dish was created purely for sharing and it is so tasty, it can adorn dinner party tables, large outdoor tables for al-fresco feasts with family and friends or just simply the kitchen table for a cosy night in.
What meat to use in lasagne
With simple ingredients such as meat, cheese and pasta, these ingredients with so many different varieties available mean that with the simple construction of a lasagne you can however produce very different end results entirely. In fact there probably aren’t two identical recipes for a traditional lasagne anyway. Most families will have their own recipes that will have most likely been passed down through the generations with either secret ingredients or unique ways of building the dish. For the meat aspect for example, you can stick with ground beef or even change the cut used. A slow roasted and pulled topside of beef will bring a different flavour and texture than using the traditional mince.
Some recipes call for a mix of beef and pork or you can use solely pork. However any meat could be used, duck, venison, turkey, chicken or lamb will all change the dish entirely.
Seafood lasagnes are also amazing, especially made with crab. So what starts out at what we all know and love as lasagne can actually be very varied dishes entirely. To be fair the dish is seemingly named after the pasta used anyway. As long as this pasta is used and the construction method stays similar as does the cooking “al forno” (in the oven) then really the other ingredients can be interchangeable.
Moroccan lamb mince lasagne recipe
For this Moroccan inspired lasagne we have used lamb mince. Lamb is commonly used in North African cuisine such as in kebabs, merguez sausages and tagines and highly flavoured with beautiful herbs and spices particular to the regions.
A tagine of lamb is a rich stew that is slowly cooked to soften the lamb and intensify the flavours. This is a perfect substitute for our rich meat sauce or ragu. Spices such as sumac and the blend in Ras el Hanout offer a unique flavour of this region giving wonderful aromatics, spicy and fruity flavours. A rich tomato base laced with wine also intensifies the Meditteranean flavours and ties it neatly back into a traditional lasagne.
Crumbly, creamy feta cheese
Of course, when it comes to the cheese to gratinate on top of this full flavoured lasagne there are a few you could choose from but really the go-to has to be feta. Often paired with lamb in other Mediterranean cuisines and especially greek food, feta, which is a brined sheeps/ goats milk cheese brings a wonderful salty sharp taste to the dish. It bubbles down perfectly for a smooth texture and browns to perfection.
The origin for the name lasagne can be traced back to ancient Greece where a “lasanon” was used to stand a pot. The Romans took this word for themselves to name the cooking pot often used for baking pastas.
Foods are often named after the type of cookware it is served in and lasagne, which is the plural of the word lasagna (meaning one sheet of pasta) would have hence been named after this pot. Since the origin traces back to ancient Greece, it seems rather apt to include one of modern-day Greece’s most loved ingredients with feta.
There are three aspects to this dish which are prepared separately then combined all together before being baked in the oven “al forno”.
How to make Moroccan lamb mince lasagne
Firstly the ragu, or meat sauce. It is traditional to use ground meat so we use ground lamb mince for our lasagne. This gets browned in a hot pan once you have made a mirepoix of carrots, onion and celery slightly caramelised in butter and oil.
Then we introduce the spices. Ras el Hanout is a blend of cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, chilli, coriander and rose petals. Blends may vary with other ingredients and sometimes you may find it has saffron, but these flavours mingle together so wonderfully, it is the unmistakable flavour of north Africa. Sumac, which is a dried berry brings a perfumed sweetness and tartness all in one. As they start to infuse, add crushed tomatoes, white wine and a decent beef or lamb stock then just let the pot simmer and bubble away until the richness of the sauce intensifies and the texture becomes thick and luscious.
In another pan, prepare the Béchamel. Typically a Béchamel is flavoured with nutmeg and an onion studded with cloves. As this dish is so highly flavoured anyway, there is really no need to do this.
As long as the texture is correct, and that is smooth and silky so that the dried pasta sheets cook evenly we might as well keep it nice and simple. Melt the butter first, then whisk in the flour to cook out the flavour and to make sure there are no lumps, then simply add the milk and simmer and stir until the desired consistency is achieved. The saltiness of the feta will flavour this perfectly enough.
The third aspect is the pasta and dried pasta is the go to as it behaves better in the oven than fresh pasta. Just layer the dish up. Spoon in the thick, rich sauce and spread around the bottom of an oven-ready rectangular dish. Make sure the dish is wide enough for the size of the sheets as you don’t want to be cutting the pasta down to size. Place the sheets over the meat sauce making sure they do not overlap. Pour over a third of the bechamel and spread with a spoon so that all the pasta is covered and then crumble over some feta.
Repeat this process so that you end up with three layers. All that is left is to place this in a nice hot oven for about 25 minutes until nicely gratinated on top and bubbling away with tiny geysers of molten rich sauce.
Serve with a salad of leaves and red onions and some garlic bread and you’re ready to go. A dusting of grated fresh Parmesan wouldn’t go amiss either, and of course a nice bottle of wine.
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Moroccan lamb mince lasagne with feta cheese recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g lamb mince
- 1 carrot, diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 1 celery, diced
- 25 g of butter
- 1 garlic clove, chopped or crushed
- A dash of red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
- 125 ml (or ½ cup) of dry white wine
- 250 ml (or 1 cup) go crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon of tomato puree
- 400 ml (or just over 1 ½ cups) of lamb or beef stock
- 1 tablespoon Ras el Hanout
- ½ tablespoon sumac
- 9 sheets of lasagne
- 150 g of feta cheese
- Garnish (optional) fresh oregano and dried rose petals
For the Béchamel sauce
- 50 g of salted butter
- 50 g of all purpose flour
- 500 ml (or 2 cups) of milk preferably full fat
Instructions
Start with the meat sauce
- Place a large frying pan on a medium heat and add some olive oil. When hot, add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and fry for 4 minutes. Add the butter and vinegar and stir through. Caramelise the mix for another 1-2 minutes.
- Add the lamb mince and brown the surface and break up the mince and mix it into the vegetables.
- When the mince has all browned and there is no raw colour left add the Ras el Hanout, sumac, wine and crushed tomatoes. Simmer the sauce so that it reduces by up to half.
- Add the stock and tomato purée and cook for about 20 minutes or until the sauce has a thick consistency.
Whilst the meat sauce is cooking prepare the Béchamel sauce in a pan
- First melt the butter and when it is foaming add the flour and whisk to make smooth.
- Add the milk and continue to whisk slowly until the sauce thickens and will coat the back of a spoon. Take off the heat and (optionally) stir in some oregano and rose petals.
Make the lasagne
- To construct the lasagne, spoon a third of the meat sauce in a rectangular oven dish and spread evenly on the bottom.
- Place 3 lasagne sheets over the top side by side being careful that they do not overlap.
- Pour over a third of the bechamel sauce and spread it evenly to coat all of the pasta. Crumble over a third of the feta.
- Repeat this 3 times for a 3 layered lasagne.
- Place in a preheated oven at 200℃/ 392°F and bake for 25 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh oregano and dried rose petals and serve.
Dee
This looks wonderful! Can I use no boil lasagna and if so, how long do I bake in the oven? And can this be made the night before, but not baked, and if so, how long to sit out warming up to room temp before baking and how long to bake? Thank you for your gracious reply.
Dee
Flavourise
Hi Dee, we use dried lasagne sheets which don't need to be boiled beforehand. The bechamel sauce softens it and only needs about 20-25 minutes to bake in the oven. If you use fresh lasagne sheets, many recipes call for the sheets to be boiled for 30 seconds before assembling your dish. This will also take about 20-25 minutes to bake as it is the gratinated cheese top that needs also to cook.
You can make it in advance/24 hours before, just put cling film over in the fridge and remove the cling film half an hour to bring to room temperature before baking, adding 5-10 minutes on top will assure you of a well warmed dish. Also, lasagne always tastes better the next day anyway. x
Dee
Thank you so much for your gracious reply! All questions answered. Will be making this!