Air Fryer Lasagne

Name: Air Fryer Lasagne
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: Cooking Spray; 1/2 Red Onion – Finely diced.; 1 Teaspoon Garlic Puree – or two cloves crushed garlic.; 1 Red Pepper – Deseeded and diced; 500g Beef Mince; 200ml Red Wine; 250ml Beef Stock – Made with one cube.; 400g Chopped Tomatoes; 2 Tablespoons Tomato Puree; 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano; 2 Teaspoons Paprika; Pinch Salt and Pepper + extra salt to blanch pasta.; 470ml White Sauce – Jarred. Or make your own.; 6 Lasagne Sheets – Or more to fit your dish.; 75g Cheddar Cheese – Grated

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Indulge in the ultimate comfort food with this easy Air Fryer Lasagne recipe. Enjoy layers of soft pasta, delicious meat sauce and creamy white sauce with a golden cheese top. Perfect for a delightful family meal.

*This post may contain affiliate links to products I find useful when making this recipe. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.*

Being able to air fry family dinners is a great way to save time or free up space in your oven if you have a lot going on!

I love lasagne. Pasta, meat, creamy sauce and tons of cheese, what else do you need?!

Air fryer lasagne is square foil tin. Garlic bread, salad and wine also on table.

Why I Love Air Fryer Lasagne

I love air fryer lasagne because:

Traditional Lasagna is an excellent comfort food.
It’s filling and delicious, a fantastic family midweek dinner.
Air frying is quick and easy. The cooking time is shorter than making it in the oven.
Warming an air fryer is cheaper than warming a whole oven.
Air frying means a perfectly golden brown cheesy top.

served square of lasagne and salad on white plate. Cooking dish, garlic bread and salad also on the table.

Ingredients For Air Fryer Lasagne

For my air fried lasagne, I use:

Cooking Spray – You can use olive oil or other cooking oils if you prefer.

Red Onion

Garlic Puree – I love using purees or pastes for an easy life, but if you prefer fresh garlic cloves, two crushed should do.

Red Pepper – Other colours are fine, too. Red is my favourite.

Beef Mince – I use 5% fat ground beef.

Red Wine

Beef Stock

Chopped Tomatoes

Tomato Puree

Dried Oregano

Paprika

Salt and Pepper

White Sauce – Make your own white sauce if you want to. I rarely do, if I’m honest!

Lasagne Sheets

Cheddar Cheese

ingredients for air fryer lasagne on table.

You’ll Also Need

The main thing that you need to make lasagne in an air fryer is a heatproof baking tin or dish that fits into your air fryer basket and leaves a little space for the air to circulate.

I prefer to bake lasagnas in a square or rectangular dish; it’s just easier to get the pasta sheets to fit.

But I’ve really had trouble finding a square tin that fits in my air fryer. It’s square but with rounded corners, which has proved difficult.

So, while I hate using disposables, I have bought some foil tins that fit my air fryer for anything I want to make square!

I use (affiliate links):

Sharp knife and chopping board.
Cast iron Dutch oven. A frying pan is fine, too.
Bowls to blanch the pasta.
Jug and whisk to prepare the stock.
Spatula and slotted spoon.
Square tins.
I recommend using a meat thermometer when cooking in the air fryer to make sure everything is at the right temperature.

How to Air Fry Lasagne– Step-by-Step Instructions

Full, easy-to-follow instructions and quantities are available in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

Step One – Blanch the Pasta

Chop your pasta sheets to fit your baking tin. For me, this means cutting six sheets in half, so I’ve got smaller squares. Get your tin out and measure, making sure it fits in your air fryer, too. It’s ok for the pasta to overlap slightly, but try to limit this.

Step Two

Place the pasta in a wide bowl and cover with boiled water, adding a teaspoon of salt. Do this in 2 or 3 batches (or bowls) to avoid overcrowding the pasta. I use two large pasta bowls.

lasagne sheets soaking in white bowl of water.

Step Three

Leave to soak for 10 minutes before removing with tongs and leave on greaseproof paper in a single layer until needed.

The saltwater should mean they don’t stick together, but if you are worried, separate them with tongs to check.

square of lasagne sheet on greaseproof paper.

Step Four

While the pasta is soaking, liberally mist a flameproof pan or dish with cooking spray and warm over medium heat on the hob. I use my cast iron Dutch oven. A non-stick frying pan is fine, too.

Step Five

Add the onions and fry for 10 minutes, stirring often until soft. Some recipes will tell you to soften the onions for 3 minutes, but I find you need at least 5 for them to really sweat, and ten is better.

Step Six

Stir in the garlic and peppers. If you are using fresh garlic, cook for a few minutes before moving on to the next step. If you are using puree, just stir in and move on.

Step Seven

Add the mince, break it up with a spatula and stir often until browned. This will take around 5 minutes.

mince, onion and red pepper cooking in cast iron dish.

Step Eight

Pour in the wine, stir and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping the bottom of the pan.

mince, red onion, red pepper and red wine cooking in cast iron dish.

Step Nine

Add the stock, chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, oregano, paprika and a pinch of salt and pepper, stir well and bring to a simmer.

Step Ten

Simmer for 30 minutes, reducing the temperature if necessary and stirring occasionally.

Step Eleven

Remove from the heat. Leaving it to cool a little helps the sauce to thicken and makes it easier to work with, but it should still be hot, so don’t leave it sitting for too long.

Step Twelve

Preheat the air fryer to 180 degrees C and set it for 20 minutes.

Step Thirteen

Add one-third of the meat sauce to a heatproof dish that fits into your air fryer. I use a square tin.

Step Fourteen

Top with one-third of the prepared pasta.

Step Fifteen

Add one-third of the white sauce and spread until all the pasta is covered.

Step Sixteen

Repeat with the remaining meat sauce, pasta and white sauce until you have three even layers, and the top is white sauce.

If you want more layers, prepare more pasta earlier on!

Step Seventeen

Sprinkle on the cheese.

uncooked lasagne topped with grated cheese.

Step Eighteen

Carefully place it in the preheated air fryer basket. My tin only just fits in my machine, so there’s a bit of dropping going on, but it works!

Step Nineteen

Air fry for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is golden brown and the pasta is cooked. Check after 15 minutes, and stab the middle to make sure the pasta is soft.

Step Twenty

If your pasta is still firm after 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 160 degrees C and cook for five more minutes.

If you are worried that the cheese is burning, you can cover it with foil, but make sure it’s wrapped tightly and secured so it can’t blow off and catch the element. There’s not really enough space in my air fryer to do this, but I’ve always found that 20 minutes is just right for golden brown cheese and well-cooked pasta.

Pro Tips for Perfect Air Fryer Lasagne

If you’ve made a lot of lasagne, you are probably set, but there are still a few things I recommend doing when cooking lasagne in an air fryer.

Blanch your lasagne sheets. I don’t do this when I cook lasagne slowly in the oven. But the air fryer isn’t as good at getting to the middle for a nice, even bake. Blanching your pasta with boiled water means it’s already softened when it goes in. You can blanch your pasta while preparing the meat and sauce, so it won’t take any longer, but it’s essential to avoid hard, uncooked pasta in the middle of your lasagne.
Cover each layer of pasta liberally in white sauce, making sure you get right to the edges. Again, this helps to make sure it’s soft.
Cover with foil if you can. This isn’t essential. But if after 15-20 minutes your pasta isn’t quite ready, covering it tightly with foil will help. Make sure the foil is secure and can’t blow about inside your machine. If your tin is a tight squeeze, this isn’t essential.

Serving Suggestions

Lasagne made in the air fryer is perfect with all your usual pasta sides. A side salad or some garlic bread are our favourites, and if I’m trying to make it go further, I might add some chips or bread and butter.

close up of square of cooked lasagne with salad and garlic bread on plate, cooking tray in the background.

Variations

There are a few things that you can do differently when you make lasagne in an air fryer.

Use Fresh Pasta

Fresh pasta is another option if you are worried about pasta not cooking. This is an excellent alternative to blanching. Fresh lasagna sheets are available in most supermarkets.

Prepare in Advance

You build your lasagne in the morning and put it in the fridge to air fry later on. I’d heat it to 150 degrees C for 30 minutes and then turn it to 180 for 5-10 to brown the cheese.

If you are doing this, make sure the meat in the middle is piping hot before serving.

Use Different Cheese

I typically use cheddar on lasagne, but mozzarella and parmesan, or a mix of all three, are great, too.

Skip the Wine

If you don’t want to use wine, skip and add 200ml extra stock to compensate.

close up of air fried lasagne in foil tin.

Leftovers

Leftover air fryer lasagna can be reheated in the air fryer at 150 degrees C or in the microwave. How long it takes will depend on how much you have left, but make sure the meat is piping hot throughout before you serve.

Storage

Let leftovers cool before covering and placing them in the fridge for up to two days.

FAQ

Can You Cook Lasagne in a Foil Tray in the Air Fryer?

Yes, any tins or trays that are suitable for cooking in the oven can also be used in the air fryer.

Can You Make Oven Ready Lasagne the Night Before?

Yes, just keep it in the fridge and cook for longer until it’s piping hot throughout. Cover tightly with foil, or reduce the temperature so the top doesn’t burn.

How Long Should You Air Fryer Lasagne?

About 20 minutes.

Other Air Fryer Recipes

If you like this air fryer lasagna, other air fryer dinner recipes you might like include: