Mapo Lasagna Recipe | Marion's Kitchen

Ingredients

• 250 g dried lasagna sheets (no-boil if available)
• 1/2 cup water or extra stock for the baking dish
• 3 spring onions, finely sliced, to serve
• Marion’s Kitchen Crispy chilli oil, to serves
• Mapo ragu
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 500 g pork mince
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp finely grated ginger
• 2 tbsp doubanjiang (Sichuan chilli bean paste)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 400 g firm tofu, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• 1 tbsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp cold water
• 1 tsp ground Sichuan peppercorns, to taste (optional)
• 2 tbsp Marion’s Kitchen Crispy Chilli Oil, plus extra to finish
• Sea salt and white pepper, to taste
• Cheesy layers
• 500 g ricotta
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups grated mozzarella, divided 1/2 cup for topping the final layer
• 1 cup finely grated parmesan, divided 1/2 cup for topping the final layer
• 1/4 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. 1

   Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook for 3-4 minutes, breaking it up until lightly browned.

2. 2

   Add the onion, garlic, ginger and doubanjiang and cook for 2-3 minutes until fragrant and softened.

3. 3

   Add the soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, and chicken stock. Bring to a simmer.

4. 4

   Gently slide in the tofu cubes. Simmer for 5 minutes so the flavours mingle. Stir the cornflour slurry, then drizzle it into the pan while stirring. Simmer for 1-2 minutes until the ragu is thick and saucy. Add the Sichuan peppercorns if using and season with salt and white pepper to taste. Stir through 2 tbsp Marion’s Kitchen Crispy Chilli Oil. Turn off the heat.

5. 5

   In a bowl, whisk the ricotta with the egg, ½ cup mozzarella, ¼ cup parmesan and the salt until smooth.

6. 6

   If using regular dried lasagna sheets, par-cook according to packet directions until just pliable. Drain well. If using no-boil sheets, skip this step.

7. 7

   Heat the oven to 190°C fan-forced. Spread 2-3 tablespoons of the mapo ragu over the base of a 22 cm x 30 cm baking dish. Pour in ½ cup water or stock around the base to keep the bottom layer steamy. Add a layer of pasta sheets. Spoon over a third of the ricotta mixture, then a quarter of the mapo ragu. Repeat the layers two more times. Finish with a final layer of pasta, the remaining ragu, then scatter over the remaining mozzarella and parmesan.

8. 8

   Cover loosely with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and golden and the pasta is tender.

9. 9

   Rest the lasagna for 10 minutes so it slices neatly. Spoon over more Marion’s Kitchen Crispy Chilli Oil to taste. Shower with spring onions and slice into generous squares.