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Our Slow Cooker Lasagna recipe is the ultimate set-it-and-forget-it comfort food! All the rich, cheesy, meaty layers of classic homemade lasagna made effortlessly right in your crockpot.
The Slow Cooker Lasagna That Practically Makes Itself
Using your crockpot/slow cooker is without a doubt the easiest way to make lasagna! You don't even need to pre-cook the noodles! Regular lasagna noodles cook right in the slow cooker as everything simmers together. Just layer them in (break the noodles to fit, as needed) and they turn out perfectly tender every time. I love a good classic homemade lasagna, but when I'm in a time crunch or don't want to turn on the oven, this crockpot lasagna saves me every time!
I whip up a quick homemade pasta sauce using canned tomatoes, since it's way less expensive (and tastes better) than a jar of spaghetti sauce. Cook the ground beef and sausage ahead of time to make this meal even quicker.
Try more of my Italian recipes, like Instant Pot Spaghetti, Pink Sauce Pasta, Meatball Subs, or One Pan Chicken Alfredo!
How to make Slow Cooker Lasagna:
Brown the Meat: Cook ground beef (or Italian sausage) with onion and garlic until browned. Drain, then stir in your favorite marinara sauce and set aside.
Cheese Mixture: In a mixing bowl, combine mozzarella, cottage cheese, and parmesan cheese.
Assemble: Spread a thin layer of meat sauce on the bottom of the slow cooker, then layer in uncooked lasagna noodles (broken to fit), meat sauce, and ricotta cheese mixture. Repeat the layers.
Cook and Serve: Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours until noodles are tender. Add shredded mozzarella in the last 20 minutes, then serve this crockpot lasagna topped with fresh basil and parmesan. Make sure to try my Skillet Lasagna if you need something quicker.
Slow Cooker Lasagna
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 pound ground Italian sausage, or pork sausage
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large onion, , chopped*
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 6 ounce can tomato paste
- 29 ounces tomato sauce
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 8 ounces lasagna noodles, , uncooked
- 4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 1/2 cups cottage cheese, (or ricotta)
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Brown Meat: In a large skillet over medium heat brown the ground beef, Italian sausage and onion.½ pound lean ground beef, ½ pound ground Italian sausage, 1 large onion
- Make Red Sauce: Add salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, parsley, garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, tomato sauce, sugar, and water. Stir and simmer 15-20 minutes. (You could make the sauce in advance!)1 ½ teaspoons salt, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 6 ounce can tomato paste, 29 ounces tomato sauce, 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 ¼ cups water
- Assemble: Spread a fourth of the meat sauce into the bottom of your slow cooker. Arrange a third of the noodles over the sauce (break the noodles to fit, if necessary).8 ounces lasagna noodles
- Add Cheese Mixture: Combine the mozzarella, cottage cheese and parmesan cheese; spoon a third of the mixture over noodles. Repeat layers twice.4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, 1 ½ cups cottage cheese, ½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Finish Layers: Top with remaining meat sauce and sprinkle with extra mozzarella cheese, if desired.
- Cover and cook on low for about 4-5 hours or until noodles are tender.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I first shared this recipe February 2015. Updated March 2018, September 2023 and August 2026.
Can this recipe be cooked in the oven or do I need to reduce the water?
Hi Julie, this recipe was really built for the slow cooker–you would need to adjust the liquid for the oven. I would high suggest this oven lasagna recipe instead (you can read the great reviews for yourself 🙂 ) http://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/2016/02/classic-italian-lasagna.html
I just finished loading everything into the slow cooker – Hubby isn’t a huge fam of pasta and likes a ton of sauce so I added a can of diced tomatoes with the juice, and added 1 cup instead of 1.25 cups of water…. If it turns out to be a soup, I wont be disappointed lol. Will update the results later 🙂
Can you use oven ready lasagna noodles in your crock pot lasagna recipe?
Hi Christie, that should work fine!
I hate ricotta cheese and cottage cheese, is there a different substitute I could use?! Thanks!
Hi Kristi, You could make the easy white bechamel sauce from this recipe as a substitute: http://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/2016/02/classic-italian-lasagna.html
Great way to make lasagna! It was delicious! I used gluten free lasagna noodles and it turned out great. The one change I made: even before I added the water to the meat sauce, I felt that it was plenty watery enough. I saw other comments complaining about how it made lasagna soup, so I only added 1 cup of water, and it turned out perfect. Definitely wouldn’t have added any more than that!
My first time making it in the crockpot and I won’t go back! Delish! Just like in the oven.
Can I use traditional pasta sauce in place of tomato sauce? Started cooking and realized it’s in my fiance car 🙁
Sure, that would work fine!
I was so excited to find this recipe. My daughter is lactose intolerant and my son hates ricotta. Unfortunely.. The noodles kind of dissolved and it was very soupy. I’ll try again. We all loved the Flavors.
They have lactose free Cottage Cheese for anyone reading this in 2018!
Do I need to cook the noodles befor I put it in the slow cooker?
Hi Natalie, No, you add the noodles uncooked! Thats the beauty of doing it in the slow cooker :-)!
Unbelievable taste. Will make it again. The mix of beef and sausage made the difference.