We Tested 5 Ways to Make Lasagna — the Winner Was Unanimous

Making lasagna typically means making a decision before you even start assembling it: What should you do with the noodles? Some cooks swear by boiling them until al dente, while others skip that pot of water entirely and layer standard dry noodles straight into the baking dish with an extra splash of water. Some cooks rely on oven-ready noodles for greater convenience, while others employ a popular technique of soaking dry pasta in hot water instead of boiling it. Then there’s a middle-ground approach: partially cooking the noodles before they go into the lasagna.

We wanted to know how much these methods actually affect the finished dish, so we put these five popular approaches to a side-by-side test, preparing each lasagna using the same basic recipe and keeping the meat, cheese, sauce, and other ingredients consistent so we could focus on what changed when we treated the noodles differently.

The differences were more pronounced than we expected. Some methods produced denser or thicker layers, while others affected how much sauce the noodles absorbed — and, consequently, how cohesive the lasagna tasted. Our two highest-rated methods both involved boiling the noodles first, but the winner came down to a surprisingly small difference in cooking time. Read on to learn what we discovered from our tests.

Melissa Gray-Streett tested all of the lasagna methods.

A word about our method

We turned to the Food & Wine Test Kitchen to develop an easy, straightforward lasagna recipe to use for all of these tests. Easy Classic Lasagna is a simple no-cutting-board recipe using full packages of ground beef, Italian sausage, marinara sauce, ricotta cheese, and lasagna noodles to simplify shopping and eliminate small amounts of leftover ingredients. We followed this recipe for all of our tests, using standard wavy lasagna noodles for all but one method (which used oven-ready noodles). The other ingredients and amounts remained constant, but additional water was used for a couple of methods.

The cook time varied slightly for some methods, but each lasagna baked covered for the majority of the time and then uncovered for a few minutes to brown the cheese on top. We tasted the lasagnas shortly after baking, then again after reheating them the next day. The final recipe for Easy Classic Lasagna uses our winning method.

Oven-ready noodles

Cook time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Rating: 3/10

Method: This method was the only one for which we strayed from traditional wavy lasagna noodles. Instead, we used an equal weight of oven-ready noodles, which are engineered to go into lasagna dry and hydrate as the lasagna bakes. We added 1/4 cup more water to the sauce just to ensure there was enough liquid to cover the noodles fully.

Results: This lasagna ended up with compressed layers that sank during baking. The noodles are designed to absorb liquid during baking, but the texture was noticeably dense in our side-by-side tasting. The noodles were springy, with an unpleasant starchy mouthfeel. 

Pros: Prep is easy since you don’t have to boil the noodles before assembling the lasagna.

Cons: The texture is dense, with compressed layers. The flavor was starchy, which detracted from the herby tomato sauce and creamy cheese.

Soaked noodles

Cook time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Rating: 5/10

Method: The first step in this method was to place standard dry lasagna noodles in a large, deep pan and cover them with hot water. We then let them soak for 20 minutes, at which point they were softened and flexible. After assembling the lasagna, we baked it covered for 45 minutes and uncovered for 15.

Results: Even though we soaked the noodles in a large pan to prevent overcrowding, they still stuck together and were difficult to separate when we went to assemble the lasagna. As a result, some noodles remained stuck together. They were tender in the finished dish, but some layers were thicker than we’d prefer.

Pros: Soaking is a bit easier than boiling, and the noodles get a jump start on softening.

Cons: The noodles stuck together and made assembling the lasagna more difficult. The finished lasagna had some thicker noodle layers because we couldn’t pry the pasta apart as we assembled the dish.

Uncooked noodles

Cook time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 55 minutes
Rating: 7/10

Method: Here, we used standard dry lasagna noodles without precooking them in any way. Because we were starting with uncooked pasta, we added 3/4 cup water to the sauce to help hydrate the noodles as the lasagna baked, and we made sure all of the noodles were fully coated with sauce before baking. The lasagna baked covered for 55 minutes and uncovered for 15.

Results: Overall, we were pleasantly surprised by the results. The noodles hydrated entirely from the sauce during baking, simplifying and shortening the initial prep. Though they were tender, the noodles had a sturdier, more toothsome texture. And because the noodles absorbed so much sauce, the flavor seemed slightly diluted. This method performed exceptionally well when we reheated the leftovers; if you want to bake a lasagna ahead of time, this is the method to try.

Pros: This is one of the easiest methods we tested, with no prep required for the noodles before assembly. The leftovers reheated very well. 

Cons: This one takes about 10 minutes longer to bake to tenderness, and the texture is less silky than the top two methods.

Boiled noodles

Cook time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Rating: 9/10

Method: This test followed the most traditional approach. We boiled the lasagna noodles in a large pot of salted water until al dente, about 9 minutes. We drained the noodles well and tossed them with a bit of oil to prevent sticking, then layered them with the other ingredients in the pan. This lasagna was covered and baked for 40 minutes, then uncovered and baked for 15 minutes.

Results: This lasagna’s texture was nearly identical to the winner — tender and cohesive. Because the noodles were fully hydrated before baking and therefore didn’t absorb much sauce, the lasagna was a bit saucier and looser than the winning method, and there was slightly less distinct layering than with our winning method.

Pros: This is a familiar method that makes for easy assembly of the lasagna and ensures the noodles are tender. Though you spend a bit more time initially boiling the noodles, you make up for that time by baking the lasagna for a few minutes less in the oven.

Cons: This method involves more initial prep. The finished lasagna develops less browning and crisping around the edges than the winning method, and the noodles don’t absorb as much flavor from the sauce.

Parboiled noodles

Cook time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Rating: 10/10

Method: For this method, we boiled the lasagna noodles in salted water for only 5 minutes, at which point they were only partially cooked, not yet al dente. We drained the noodles well and tossed them with a couple of teaspoons of olive oil to prevent them from sticking. They were somewhat flexible and easy to handle when building the lasagna. The lasagna baked covered for 45 minutes, then uncovered for about 15 minutes. 

Results: The first thing we noticed was a rim of alluringly crisp noodle edges on the perimeter of the pan; we all found ourselves pinching off bite after bite from the edge. Because the noodles were only partially cooked when they went into the lasagna, they were able to absorb some of the sauce’s flavor as they finished hydrating in the oven. The effect was a more cohesive flavor throughout, not separate flavor layers of starchy noodle and meaty sauce. The noodles ended up tender and silky, and the lasagna had distinct, pretty layers.

Pros: The crispy edges were a delight. The noodles absorbed the sauce’s flavor better with this method than with any other. The lasagna sliced cleanly, and the texture was silky. Overall, the flavor was deeper and more cohesive than with any other method.

Cons: This approach is more hands-on than some of the other methods, as you have to bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles briefly before assembling the lasagna.

Final takeaways

Parboiling the lasagna noodles was our clear winner. Cooking them for just 5 minutes before assembling the lasagna allowed them to absorb some of the sauce as they finished cooking in the oven, resulting in deeper flavor, silky noodles, distinct layers, and delightfully crisp edges.

Fully boiled noodles came in a close second, producing tender, cohesive results, while using standard uncooked noodles was our favorite low-effort option — and performed especially well when reheated the next day. Oven-ready noodles offered the easiest prep but produced the densest texture and starchiest flavor of the methods we tested. For the best overall lasagna, parboiling is worth the extra step.