Homemade Lasagne Topper
The Aussie hot box classic - lasagne topper!
There has been many arguments over the years between Aussies and Kiwis over what food and what famous human comes from where and the lasagne topper is no different. What we can both agree on is the soft innards with crunchy exoskeleton found in your local servo is shared between both great countries.
If you want to level this up one more notch, make your own pasta sheets or even spinach pasta sheets.
Homemade Lasagne Topper
Johnny “Cooked” Austin
12
45 minutes
2 hours
205
Australian
Snacks
Do you like lasagne?
Do you like crispy things?
BECAUSE YOU ANSWERED YES TO BOTH, YOU WILL LOVE A LASAGNE TOPPER!
Ingredients
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1x large onion diced
4x garlic cloves diced
2x tins of diced tomatoes
300ml red wine
10x torn basil leaves
1kg of pork mince or beef
Oz Dirt BBQ rub or salt and pepper
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50g unsalted butter
50g plain flour
small handful of grated cheese
550ml milk
salt
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no cook pasta sheets (one box will have leftovers)
3x eggs
1 tbsp Sriracha sauce
plan flour to dredge
2 tbs Italian herbs
3x cups panko breadcrumbs
3x large tbsp ricotta
1-2 cups of grated parmesan, cheddar and mozzarella (combined). Grated pizza cheese will do
Directions
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Bang in your mince into a medium-hot heat pan with some olive oil or butter and break it up. Season with Oz Dirt and don’t touch it until the bottom starts to brown and get crispy. Then turn the mince and brown the remainder.
clear a spot in the middle and cook onion and garlic until they start to darken slightly.
now add your red wine, tinned tommys and basil. Tour pan turn heat down to low, place a lid on your pan and simmer for approximately one hour or until the basil has almost completely broken down and has reduced the liquid mostly down (take off the heat with lid off once finished). In the last 15 or so mins start the béchamel sauce below…
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into a pot on low-medium heat heat, add your butter. once melted and slightly bubbling add your flour and mix. It should be like a thick paste with a slightly brown colour to it and smell slightly nutty.
then add your milk 50 odd ml at a time and slowly whisk it together. right at the end add your small handful of cheese, whisk until melted through and add salt as required. Chicken & Chips rub works well here too. It should have the consistency of cake batter or pancake batter.
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in a bread tin or baking tray (lined with greaseproof paper and a hit of spray oil) line the base with lasagne sheets, then add your pasta sauce in an even layer and same, same with the béchamel sauce. Repeat these layers 2-3 times until approximately 4-5cm in height. I actually full sent it and went full height of bread tin. The last layer will be grated cheeses and ricotta. Spread those as even as possible with cheese on top.
Pre-heat the oven to 180C/350F and bake for approximately one hour until the cheese is bubbly and golden on top.
Now allow to cool on the bench, then place baking paper over the top, place thick cardboard on that then some weights to keep it flat. Bang into the fridge overnight.
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set up 3x plates or bowls. First with flour and italian herbs. Second with beaten eggs and sriracha sauce. Third with panko breadcrumbs.
Remove lasagne from fridge and bread tin, then slice to desired size. Coat on all sides in flour mix, egg wash then panko shaking excess off in each step. Then repeat egg wash and panko so you have a thick crumb.
Heat veggie oil in deep fryer or pot to 140C, then carefully lower crumbed lasagne in and cook until slightly brown. Slowly raise temp over 10 mins or so until you reach 165C. The exterior should be a dark golden brown and internal temp 70C/158F.
