This delicious Skillet Lasagna is an awesome one pan dish – no need to dirty up every pot and pan. So easy and perfect for busy weeknights!
My mom sent me this Skillet Lasagna recipe and said, “Let me introduce you to your new best friend.” Lol. My mom gets me.
She found it on America’s Test Kitchen and I adapted it slightly. And she was right! It has become my new best friend.
Lasagna is just the best, no? Ultimate classic comfort food. BUT so much work with all the steps, and all the dirty pots and pans. This is basically lasagna, but without all that work and mess!
Tips for making skillet lasagna
- I use my homemade marinara in this dish, but you can certainly use store-bought sauce to save on time. You can also change up the flavor, by using a different type of pasta sauce.
- Italian sausage or ground turkey can easily be substituted for the ground beef.
- You can lighten it up and reduce the calories by using part-skim ricotta or whole grain pasta.
- Diced up vegetables can be added like red bell pepper, zucchini, eggplant, or mushrooms.
- Other pasta noodles can be used instead of broken up lasagna, but you might need to adjust your cooking time.
- Make sure the noodles are fully submerged in the liquid and you stir the mixture occasionally, so the ingredients don’t stick or burn.
Skillet Lasagna is one of my favorite easy, one-pot pasta dishes. I’ve made it so many times, I never refer to the recipe anymore.
Other one pot pasta dishes we love!
- One Pot Chili Mac and Cheese
- One Pot Beef Stroganoff Soup
- One Pan Broccoli and Bacon Angel Hair Pasta
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
How To Make This Skillet Lasagna Recipe

Skillet Lasagna
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 small sweet onion , diced
- 2 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/4 teaspoon cracked red pepper flakes
- salt and pepper
- 6 ounces lasagna noodles , broken into small pieces
- 3 cups homemade marinara sauce (or 26 ounce store bought jar)
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese , divided
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese , divided
- 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
- fresh chopped parsley , for serving
Instructions
- Warm the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef and onion; cook using a wooden spoon to break up the meat into small pieces, until fat renders and no pink remains, and the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Drain off fat.
- Stir in garlic, pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Sprinkle pasta into pan, then pour in sauce and water. Mix to combine, making sure the pasta is submerged in the liquid.
- After mixture begins to bubble, reduce heat to medium, cover and cook for about 15-17 minutes, stirring occasionally so mixture doesn’t stick or burn.
- Remove from heat and stir in half of the mozzarella and parmesan.
- Dot heaping tablespoons of the ricotta over the mixture.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheeses, cover and let stand for 5 more minutes.
- Serve with some fresh chopped parsley and enjoy!
Notes
- Italian sausage or ground turkey can easily be substituted for the ground beef.
- You can lighten it up and reduce the calories by using part-skim ricotta or whole grain pasta.
- Diced up vegetables can be added like red bell pepper, zucchini, eggplant, or mushrooms.
- Other pasta noodles can be used instead of broken up lasagna, but you might need to adjust your cooking time.
- Make sure the noodles are fully submerged in the liquid and you stir the mixture occasionally, so the ingredients don't stick or burn.
So good and so easy! My family loved it.
This is one of my family’s favorite recipes. My boys love it! So yummy! Just made it again tonight. Thanks so much.
Aaaah Shawn, that’s awesome! Thanks for hopping over to let me know. I love it :D
This was fantastic–very easy and delicious, and reheats great! I accidentally put in a little more than a 1/2 cup of mozz cheese but it still turned out awesome. I didn’t have pasta sauce on hand so I just put in a 29 oz. can of tomato sauce, sprinkled with some basil and 2 tblsp. of italian seasoning and it was done! Gotta love the one-pot meals. Thanks for sharing Amy!!
I made this and it was incredibly easy and good. I couldn’t find the mini lasagna noodles, so I used fusilli instead and just adjusted the cooking time accordingly.