This Easy Skillet Lasagna is, hands down, one of the most requested dinners in our house. I'm not exaggerating when I say there are almost never leftovers. If I ask, "What should we have for dinner tonight?" this is usually one of the top 3 answers I hear. It has all the classic lasagna flavors we love … rich marinara, seasoned ground beef, tender noodles, and plenty of melty cheese, but without the time and layering commitment of traditional lasagna.
It all comes together in one pan, with a few simple ingredients, and about 30 minutes from start to finish. You sauté the beef, garlic and onions, stir in the sauce, water and noodles, let it simmer, and top it off with cheeses…dinner is basically done. No oven, no complicated steps, and no pile of dishes afterward. Sounds good, doesn't it!
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- You Will Love This Skillet Lasagna Recipe
- Listen To The Recipe
- Stovetop Lasagna Ingredients
- How to Make Skillet Lasagna
- What to Serve with Stove Top Lasagna
- Lasagna SKillet Storage
- More Delicious Lasagna Recipes
- Did you make this recipe?
- 30 Minute Skillet Lasagna with Cottage Cheese
- Leave a comment and rate this recipe!
You Will Love This Skillet Lasagna Recipe
It has all the lasagna flavors you love without all the work!
Super easy to make, perfect weeknight dinner.
Completely crave-worthy. This is the #1 requested dinner at my house.
Totally customizable with different flavors – sausage, pesto, cheese, spices, etc…
Listen To The Recipe
You can listen to this full recipe, all the tips and serving ideas on the podcast Let’s Make Dinner. There is an audio player right in the recipe card below.
This is a great comfort food recipe. It is super easy to make and full of flavor. My whole family devours it every time I make it!
-Elizabeth
Stovetop Lasagna Ingredients
- Ground Beef – Adds hearty, classic lasagna flavor. I like using 85/15 ground beef which has enough fat to be flavorful, but not so much that the sauce gets greasy.
- Onion and Garlic – Can't have "lasagna" without onion and garlic! They build flavor right from the start.
- Jarred Marinara – Use your family's favorite store bought marinara for this recipe. It keeps it quick and weeknight-friendly.
- Lasagna Noodles – Broken into pieces, these give you that classic lasagna feel without layering. Both traditional and oven-ready noodles work well.
- Cottage Cheese – Acts as the creamy "ricotta layer" in this skillet version. You can absolutely sub in ricotta if you like.
- Shredded Mozzarella – Melts over the top for that gooey, cheesy finish everyone loves. Freshly shredded melts way better than pre-shredded.
Lasagna Noodles
When I make this I buy either traditional lasagna noodles or mafaldine noodles, which are like if you took a lasagna noodle and broke it in half down the middle, lengthwise.
Oven ready, no-boil noodles will work too! However they are a little thinner than a traditional noodle so it may require a few more noodles.
How to Make Skillet Lasagna
Start with a large skillet that has a well fitting lid.
- Brown Beef & Soften Onions
- Add Sauce
- Nestle In The Noodles
- Add Cottage Cheese & Mozzarella
- Cook Another 10 Minutes
Over medium heat sauté the ground beef, crumbling while cooking. Add ½ cup diced onions and 2 chopped garlic cloves. Sauté for another 5 minutes until the ground beef is cooked and the onions are softened.
Pour in 2 cups of your favorite jarred marinara, 1 ½ cups water, and ½ teaspoon salt. Bring this to a boil.
Lower the heat to low and nestle all the broken lasagna noodles into the liquid. Pop the lid on and simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove the lid and scrape up any bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan. If the pan is looking dry add another ½ cup water (I usually do this). Stir in 1 cup cottage cheese and sprinkle the top with 4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese.
Pop the lid back on and simmer on low for another 10-12 minutes, until the noodles are tender and the cheese is melted.
Let the Skillet Lasagna sit off the heat for 5-10 minutes before serving.
What to Serve with Stove Top Lasagna
If it is a busy night then I highly recommend just having this with a bagged caesar salad. However if you have a little extra time add a salad and warm garlic bread or breadsticks.
Lasagna SKillet Storage
Let the lasagna skillet cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container. Store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Because the noodles continue to absorb sauce as it sits, you may notice it thickens over time, this is normal. When reheating, adding a small splash of water or marinara helps bring it back to a saucy texture.
More Delicious Lasagna Recipes
Did you make this recipe?
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I would love to hear your review, especially if you have tips and tricks to add! Pop down to the comment section and connect with me
30 Minute Skillet Lasagna with Cottage Cheese
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ lb 85/15 lean ground beef
- ½ cup diced yellow or white onion
- 2 fresh garlic cloves - chopped
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ tsp dried basil
- 2 cups jarred marinara
- 1 ½ cups water
- 8-10 dry lasagna noodles - See Note #1 – traditional or oven ready both work
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 4 oz block mozzarella cheese - shredded
Instructions
- In a large skillet (that has a lid), over medium heat start to brown and crumble the ground beef. Stir in the the onions and garlic. Sauté until the beef is cooked the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.Drain any excess grease.½ lb 85/15 lean ground beef, ½ cup diced yellow or white onion, 2 fresh garlic cloves
- Stir in the kosher salt, basil, 2 cups marinara and 1 ½ cups water, raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.½ teaspoon kosher salt, 2 cups jarred marinara, 1 ½ cups water, ½ teaspoon dried basil
- Once it boils turn the heat to low, nestle in broken up pieces of lasagna noodles.8-10 dry lasagna noodles
- Pop the lid on and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove the lid, scrape up any bits that have stuck to the bottom, if the pan is looking dry add another ¼-1/2 cup water.Nestle in the 1 cup cottage cheese, dotting it throughout the pan.1 cup cottage cheese, 4 oz block mozzarella cheese
- Sprinkle shredded mozzarella over top. Cover and simmer an additional 10-12 minutes, until the noodles are tender.
- Remove from the heat and let sit uncovered to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving!
Serving
- On a busy night serve as is!
- For a heartier dinner add a Caesar Salad and don't forget the garlic bread!
Recipe Tips and Notes:
LASAGNA NOODLES – Both traditional lasagna and oven ready noodles work. However we prefer the traditional noodles. They cook up a little thicker and heartier. If you choose the oven ready noodles add a few extra noodles to the pan. VARIATIONS:
- If you are not a fan of cottage cheese you can always stir in ricotta cheese in its place.
- Try stirring a little pesto with the marinara.
- Use ground turkey or sausage instead of ground beef.
Melanie says
I made this with ricotta cheese rather than cottage, added a little Italian seasoning, and Parmesan cheese. It was very simple and very good!
Laura says
This is a delicious, easy version of lasagna. We even used cottage cheese (I have always used ricotta when I have made other recipes). Very good, very easy. Even cooked it on a boat stove.
Janice says
Five stars for the delicious, easy recipe, but one shouldn’t have to enter an email address just to print the recipe. That’s ridiculous. I found a way around it though haha! Another note: I used 8 ounces of conchiglie pasta, and that was easier than breaking up lasagna noodles.
Melissa says
My kids love lasagna but they don’t care if it’s the skillet or traditional way so this is a win for me. It turned out great! I added in chopped fresh basil and pepperoni for fun.
Stephanie says
I just want to tell you how amazingly helpful it was to have the measurements within the directions. I don’t know why other people don’t do this, I hate scrolling up and down when reading recipes. Yours was so helpful and easy to go by!
lisa Martinez says
Yes!! I totally agree about how easy it is when the ingredient measurements are listed under the instruction step.
Chris says
This recipe is a keeper!! I couldn’t believe how easy it was to prepare. Great for a quick weeknight meal for a small family.
Helen says
Made this for a second time and just love it!
I added peppers and celery, fresh herbs from the garden and a combination of mozzarella and Monterey Jack cheese.
I didn’t have lasagna noodles so I used gemelli pasta.
Turned out perfectly!
Thank you so much for this delicious recipe.
Helen says
I added a Tbsp of Italian seasoning and a tsp black pepper. I also used veggie ground (tofu).
Added fresh herbs to the leftovers.
DeAnna says
I made this for dinner tonight and the family are it like they were starving lol. I made enough to have for the next night as well It was so much easier to make the regular layered lasagna and it tasted great.didnt take that long to put together and it definitely was an A+ from the family.so thank you for the recipe I plan to add this to my monthly schedule meals.
Lorene says
Simply yummy !my go to recipe . Comfort food at it’s best!
Monique S Croom says
My son was craving lasagne and I saw this receipe, it was a hit!! I did add more seasoning like Oregano, Italian seasoning and seasoned my meat (Ground Turkey). I did not have to add more water maybe because i don’t drain my Turkey after it cooks. I also added more yellow cheeses and had to cook it about 15 minutes longer. I will be making this again. Fast and simple, Thanks!!!
Colleen Baldwin says
I make this on a regular basis, as is. Family favorite and so easy. Great as leftovers for lunch the next day too! So good!
Kimberly Osmon says
I alternated ricotta cheese in place of the cottage cheese. I preboiled the broken up noodles for six minutes in the microwave in water. Fast quick meal!
Peewee Furman says
Looks excellent, much better than the H.H. stuff that comes in a box. I would use at least 80% lean ground beef since I don’t like to drain the flavor away with the grease.
Bethany says
This is my second time making this and it is a winner. My whole family LOVES this and it’s easy and brilliant.
Mark says
Nice Quick Fix Thank you
John says
I could eat this for weeks in a row. LOVE this recipe!!