If you don’t have time to make egg pasta sheets for classic lasagna, baked pasta with meat sauce and béchamel is a great alternative. A practical and quick first course, as I used semolina pasta instead of fresh egg pasta. In this case, rigatoni, seasoned with the same ingredients as lasagna, the béchamel and the meat sauce, the latter prepared in advance. To enjoy and share with family, perfect for any occasion.
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- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 3/4 people
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
Ingredients
- 14 oz meat sauce
- 11 oz rigatoni (or other shape)
- to taste Grana Padano PDO
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste fine salt
- to taste black pepper
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsps butter
- to taste nutmeg
- to taste fine salt
- to taste black pepper
Tools
- Kitchen Scale
- Pot
- Colander
- Spoon
- Grater
- Oven
- Baking Dish
- Spatula
- 2 Small Pots
- Hand Whisk
Preparation
To prepare baked pasta with meat sauce and béchamel…
In a pot, pour water to cook the pasta and heat it over high heat. When it boils, add the rigatoni or other shape and cook for the minutes stated on the package. While the pasta cooks, prepare the béchamel.
Take two small pots of the same size, pour the milk into one and heat it on the stove without boiling. In the other, melt the butter (be careful not to let it turn brown).
When the butter is well melted, remove it from the heat and add the flour gradually, stirring with a whisk to avoid lumps.
Now pour in the warm milk, continuing to stir with the whisk and return the pot to medium heat for a few minutes. The béchamel sauce will start to thicken. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
When the pasta is cooked, drain and rinse it under cold running water to stop the cooking, drain well again. Now you can finish the preparation of the baked pasta.
In a bowl, combine the meat sauce and béchamel, mixing the two ingredients well. Now also add the pasta, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Give it a final stir and transfer everything to a slightly greased baking dish. Sprinkle some grated Grana Padano on the pasta and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook it in convection mode for about 15 minutes. Serve hot.
Storage
Store in the refrigerator for 2 days. It can be frozen, provided all ingredients are freshly prepared (e.g. no thawing, refreezing of meat sauce).
