The BEST Skillet Lasagna

September 15, 2021

Skillet lasagna is the absolute best comfort food! It is so full of flavor that creates that authentic Italian taste. It is quick and easy and a family favorite that you MUST try!

This recipe is good for a meal any night of the week! Cook this up and add in an amazing salad, some rolls, and top it off with this cake for dessert and you will have yourself a meal your family will go crazy over!

What Makes Skillet Lasagna the BEST?

There are MANY reasons that I think this skillet lasagna is the best but my favorite one is… You cook it all in one pan! This not only makes the cooking part easy but cleanup is a breeze! Using just a skillet, you combine all of the ingredients together and cook them up! The flavor is soaked up and you get to taste just how delicious this combination of spices and ingredients is! I love it so much and want you to try it out too!

This recipe is simple and quick. It only takes about 30 minutes from start to finish! This means that this is a meal that you can whip up after a long day and not spend the whole evening cooking! In fact, try making this homemade marinara sauce ahead of time. That will make this recipe even easier…if that’s possible! You can toss this salad while your skillet lasagna is cooking and your meal will be ready in no time. I know that you will love this recipe!

Ingredients in Skillet Lasagna

If you have ever cooked a lasagna before, then it’s very likely that you already have all of these ingredients in your kitchen! They are simple yet they pack a punch of flavor! See the recipe card below for exact measurements!

Ground beef: Lean ground beef is waht I usually try to get for this recipe. You can use ground turkey if you prefer that instead!
Ground sausage: The sausage adds a distinct italian flavoring to the recipe!
Onion: Chop up your onion into pieces that are similar in size so that they can cook evenly.
Garlic: I used fresh garlic cloves but if you on’y have minced garlic on hand in your fridge, thats ok! ½ tsp equals about 1 clove of garlic.
Italian seasoning: This homemade italian seasoning is AMAZING. It’s great to make ahead and store with your spices!
Salt and pepper: Use this to season the dish.
Lasagna noodles: Break the noodles up when you get them out of the box!
Homemade marinara sauce: I love using any homemade sauces whenever I can!
Ricotta, parmesan and mozerella cheese: The 3 cheeses used are delicious and classic to this Italian dish!
Basil: Chop this up and garnish your skillet lasagna with it!

How to Make Skillet Lasagna

This is the easiest part! You have all of your ingredients, now it’s time to mix them all up to make this delicious skillet lasagna! The process is so simple that you may want to double the recipe to make sure that you have some to eat later!

Cook the meat: In a large skillet add the ground beef and sausage over medium high heat. Cook and crumble until almost cooked. Add in the diced onion, garlic, Italian seasoning salt and pepper and continue to cook until the meat is no longer pink and the onion starts to soften.
Add in noodles and cheese: Add in the broken lasagna noodles with the marinara sauce. Bring to a boil and then cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the noodles are tender. Drop the ricotta cheese on top and top with parmesan cheese and mozerella cheese.
Garnish and serve: Once the cheese has melted top with fresh chopped basil and serve.

4 pictures showing how to cook meat, onions, pasta and sauce in a skillet.

Variations to Try!

There are a few things that you can do to this skillet lasagna recipe to change it up! Then, you can make it work just for you! Here are a couple of ideas for you.

Meat: If you would rather, you can substitute the ground beef for ground turkey. This won’t change the taste and it will make it a bit healthier!
Noodles: If you don’t have any lasagna noodles on hand, use some bowtie pasta or another pasta of your choice! It will make it more like a skillet casserole and taste just as delicious!
Add veggies: You can add in carrots, spinach, zucchini or corn into the recipe! Chop them up and add them in when you are cooking up the meat and the onions so that they all cook evenly!

Skillet lasagna being served up with a large spoon.

Can I Make This Ahead of Time or Store Leftovers?

Yes! This skillet lasagna is a fantastic recipe to make ahead of time! Here is how you can cook it and store it for later!

Refrigerate: Once the skillet lasagna has cooled, put it in an airtight container. It can last in your fridge for 3-4 days
Freeze: If you want to freeze the entire meal for later, you can! let the lasagna cool and put it in a sealed, airtight container that you can write the date on. It can stay frozen for up to 2 months.
Reheat: If frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge. When you are ready to eat, place it in a skillet and bring it to a boil. Cover and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until heated through!