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Dutch Oven Lasagna

Dutch oven lasagna made with browned ground beef, hearty spaghetti sauce, and a creamy ricotta layer baked until golden and bubbly. Layered with uncooked noodles in the Dutch oven for easy outdoor cooking and crowd-pleasing camping pasta.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Resting 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian-American
Calories: 520
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Ground beef sauce
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 24 oz spaghetti sauce
Cheese filling
  • 15 oz ricotta cheese
  • 2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 0.5 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
Lasagna
  • 9 lasagna noodles uncooked
  • 1 cooking spray

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch oven
  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Brown the meat and sauce
  1. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat and brown the ground beef until no longer pink, then stir in the spaghetti sauce until combined.
  2. Simmer the meat sauce for 5 minutes to thicken slightly, then remove from heat.
Mix the ricotta filling
  1. In a bowl, mix ricotta cheese with 1 cup mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, egg, and Italian seasoning until smooth and evenly combined.
Assemble in the Dutch oven
  1. Spray the Dutch oven with cooking spray, then spread a thin layer of meat sauce over the bottom.
  2. Layer 3 lasagna noodles (broken to fit) over the sauce, then spread half the ricotta mixture on top.
  3. Spoon half the remaining meat sauce over the ricotta layer to cover.
  4. Repeat the layers using the remaining noodles (broken to fit), the rest of the ricotta mixture, and the rest of the meat sauce.
  5. Top with the remaining mozzarella, keeping the cheese evenly distributed.
Cook outdoors
  1. Cover the Dutch oven and place it on campfire coals, with additional coals on the lid, and cook for 45-50 minutes until the top is golden and bubbling.
Rest and serve
  1. Let the lasagna rest for 10 minutes before serving so the layers set.

Notes

For clean layers, press down gently when spooning sauce and cheese so the uncooked noodles contact the sauce. Refrigerate leftovers up to 4 days; reheat covered until hot. Freezing is yes—freeze in portions up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat. For a lighter option, use lean ground beef or swap in part-skim ricotta without changing the layering method.