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    Home » Pasta Recipes » Italian Baked Pasta

    Fish Lasagna Recipe. How to Make it Italian Style

    Published: Mar 12, 2021 · Modified: Aug 22, 2024 by Silvana Nava · This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe

    If you like Lasagna Bolognese and love Italian fish recipes, this is the right recipe for you: Fish Lasagna recipe. In this delicious baked recipe, the sauce between one layer and another of fresh egg pasta is made up of a fish ragu and a special Béchamel sauce.

    This béchamel is very light because it's without milk and without butter. It's made with a little oil and some fish broth in order to make the taste and scent of the sea even more intense. The flavor of this bechamel enhances that of the fish and makes the dish creamy and soft but very light.

    fish lasagna recipe

    Fish lasagna is a perfect first course to share with family or friends and you can make it even the day before. In Italy fish lasagna is often prepared for family Christmas dinner.

    So now try this Italian fish lasagna recipe. Your guests will be won over!

    Jump to:
    • Ingredients
    • Instructions
    • Storage
    • Recipe Card


    Ingredients

    • Prep Time: 30 Min
    • Cook Time:1 Hour and 30 Min
    • Servings: 8

    Doses for a 13x9 inch lasagna pan.

    For Fish Ragu

    NOTE: weight refers to the whole fish still to be cleaned

    • 150 g (5 oz) of Squid
    • 150 g (5 oz) of Cuttlefish
    • 1 whole sea bass of about 400 g (14 oz) or about 150 g (5 oz) of sea bass fillet
    • 200 g (7 oz) of Scampi
    • 150 g (5 oz) of Shrimps
    • 350 g (1 ⅗ cups) of tomato passata
    • 2 cloves of garlic
    • 1 small onion
    • a bunch of chopped fresh parsley
    • 60 ml (¼ cup) of dry white wine
    • 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

    The Fish Stock

    • 1 stalk of celery
    • 1 liter (~4 cups) of water
    • ½ tablespoon of coarse salt
    • 1 medium shallot
    • all fish waste (except the entrails) and the claws of crustaceans
    • 1 medium carrot

    For Lasagna

    • About 12 lasagna: you can make fresh homemade lasagna sheets following our step by step recipe
    • Or you can buy authentic Italian flat lasagna, oven ready (no cooking or boiling necessary), made with durum wheat (we recommend Tuscanini brand)

    For Fish Bèchamel Sauce

    • 750 ml (~3 cups) of fish stock
    • 100 g (3.5 oz) of "00" flour
    • 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
    • fine salt
    • fresh ground black pepper

    Instructions

    Make the Fish Ragu Sauce

    To make this exquisite and delicate Fish Lasagna recipe, first you have to make the main condiment which, together with the bechamel, will fill the lasagna layers: the fish ragu. This sauce is based on a mixture of crustaceans, molluscs, fish fillets and tomato passata. You can prepare the fish sauce even 1 or 2 days before and keep it in the refrigerator.

    We summarize below the basic steps to make the fish ragu. For more informations and the detailed recipe see our step by step Fish Ragu Recipe.

    fish lasagna step 1

    Step 1) - Clean the fish well and prepare a fish stock with the scraps, shells and claws, about a liter of water, a carrot, a piece of celery and a shallot. Boil all together for at least 40 minutes.

    This stock will be useful both for cooking the fish sauce and for preparing the bechamel (Step 4 - 5). If you use fish that is already cleaned and therefore have no waste, make with a vegetable broth; obviously the flavor will be less intense.

    fish ragu recipe step 8

    Step 2) - Make a soffritto with oil, garlic, onion and chopped parsley. Add the molluscs (squid and cuttlefish) cleaned and cut into small pieces and cook for about 5 minutes.

    Then blend with the white wine and add the tomato passata. Cook for about 40 minutes adding a little fish stock when necessary.

    fish ragu recipe step 9

    Step 3) - Now add the shellfish (shrimps and scampi) and the sea bass fillets, always cleaned and cut into pieces.

    Keep some shrimp whole. Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring well.

    For a successful fish ragu, cooking times are very important. Each type of fish has a different cooking time and you have to add it to the fish ragu based on that. Now the fish ragu is ready, keep it aside.

    Make the Fish Bechamel (without Butter and Milk)

    fish lasagna step 4

    Step 4) - In a small saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the flour all in one go. Mix with a whisk until the flour is completely soaked in oil.

    fish lasagna step 5

    Step 5) - Then pour in slowly the hot fish stock, keeping to mix to avoid lumps. Let it cook until you get a smooth and thickened - but still quite fluid - sauce. Finally add a pinch of salt and pepper.

    Make the Layers

    Now that you have all the main preparations, we can start assembling the layers of your fish lasagna.

    If you are using fresh pasta lasagna made with our recipe, DO NOT FORGET to dip them 1 minute in boiling salted water and let cool and dry on kitchen towels before using them for your lasagna recipe.

    If you are using the lasagna noodles that we have recommended in the ingredients, you do NOT NEED TO COOK them. They will cook in the oven thanks to the liquids of the fish ragu and bechamel.

    fish lasagna step 6

    Step 6) - Spread on the bottom of a baking dish two tablespoons of bechamel. Then put a lasagna noodle over it, trying to cover the entire bottom of the pan. If one lasagna is not enough for you, use another one, whole or in half, depending on the size of the lasagna.

    fish lasagna step 7

    Step 7) - Then layer on two tablespoons of fish ragu and two of fish bechamel sauce. With the help of a spoon, cover the entire surface.

    fish lasagna step 8

    Step 8) - Repeat these steps for about five layers (lasagna - fish ragu - bèchamel ), in any case up to fill your baking dish. To the last layer, add a little more sauce and béchamel to form, during cooking, a crispy crust on the surface of the lasagna.

    fish lasagna step 9

    Step 9) - Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 30 minutes. For the first 10 minutes it is better keep the fish lasagna covered with a sheet of aluminum foil so that the sauce and the pieces of fish on the surface do not dry out too much.

    Before serving, let the fish lasagna rest for about 10 minutes out of the oven. Serve with a little fresh chopped parsley or ground black pepper according to taste.

    YOU MUST ALSO TRY:

    • Vegetarian Lasagna with Pesto

    Storage

    Fish lasagna can be kept in the fridge covered with cling film for maximum of 1-2 days. You can even freeze fish lasagna, both raw and cooked.

    fish lasagna recipe

    Recipe Card

    STEP BY STEP PHOTOS ABOVE!Have a look at my step-by-step photo instructions, variations and tips. That way, you can get it perfect the first time you try it!
    fish lasagna recipe

    Fish Lasagna Recipe Italian-style

    Silvana Nava
    If you like Lasagna Bolognese and love Italian fish recipes, this is the right recipe for you: Fish Lasagna recipe. In this delicious baked recipe, the sauce between one layer and another of fresh egg pasta is made up of a fish ragu and a special Béchamel sauce.
    This béchamel is very light because it's without milk and without butter. It's made with a little oil and some fish broth in order to make the taste and scent of the sea even more intense. The flavor of this bechamel enhances that of the fish and makes the dish creamy and soft but very light.
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    Prep Time 30 minutes mins
    Cook Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 2 hours hrs
    Course Fish and Seafood, Lasagna
    Cuisine Italian
    Servings 8
    Calories 567 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    For the Fish Ragu

    • 150 g squid - 5 oz
    • 150 g cuttlefish - 5 oz
    • 1 sea bass - ~400 g (14 oz) or about 150 g (5 oz) of sea bass fillet
    • 200 g scampi - 7 oz
    • 150 g shrimps - 5 oz
    • 350 g tomato passata - 1 ⅗ cups
    • 2 cloves garlic
    • 1 onion - small size
    • 1 bunch parsley - fresh, chopped
    • 60 ml dry white wine - ¼ cup
    • 5 tablespoons olive oil - extra virgin

    For the Fish Stock

    • 1 stalk celery
    • 1 liter water - ~4 cups
    • ½ tablespoon coarse salt
    • 1 shallot - medium size
    • fish waste - except the entrails and the claws of crustaceans
    • 1 carrot - medium size

    For Lasagna

    • 12 lasagna sheets

    For Fish Bèchamel Sauce

    • 750 ml fish stock - ~3 cups
    • 100 g flour - 3.5 oz
    • 5 tablespoons olive oil - extra virgin
    • salt - to taste
    • black pepper - to taste

    Instructions
     

    Make the Fish Ragu Sauce

    • Clean the fish well and prepare a fish stock with the scraps, shells and claws, about a liter of water, a carrot, a piece of celery and a shallot. Boil all together for at least 40 minutes.
    • This stock will be useful both for cooking the fish sauce and for preparing the bechamel. If you use fish that is already cleaned and therefore have no waste, make with a vegetable broth; obviously the flavor will be less intense.
    • Make a soffritto with oil, garlic, onion and chopped parsley. Add the molluscs (squid and cuttlefish) cleaned and cut into small pieces and cook for about 5 minutes.
    • Then blend with the white wine and add the tomato passata. Cook for about 40 minutes adding a little fish stock when necessary.
    • Now add the shellfish (shrimps and scampi) and the sea bass fillets, always cleaned and cut into pieces.
    • Keep some shrimp whole. Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring well.
    • For a successful fish ragu, cooking times are very important. Each type of fish has a different cooking time and you have to add it to the fish ragu based on that. Now the fish ragu is ready, keep it aside.

    Make the Fish Bechamel

    • In a small saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the flour all in one go. Mix with a whisk until the flour is completely soaked in oil.
    • Then pour in slowly the hot fish stock, keeping to mix to avoid lumps. Let it cook until you get a smooth and thickened - but still quite fluid - sauce. Finally add a pinch of salt and pepper.

    Make the Layers

    • If you are using fresh pasta lasagna made with our recipe, DO NOT FORGET to dip them 1 minute in boiling salted water and let cool and dry on kitchen towels before using them for your lasagna recipe.
    • If you are using the lasagna noodles that we have recommended in the ingredients, you do NOT NEED TO COOK them. They will cook in the oven thanks to the liquids of the fish ragu and bechamel.
    • Spread on the bottom of a baking dish two tablespoons of bechamel. Then put a lasagna noodle over it, trying to cover the entire bottom of the pan. If one lasagna is not enough for you, use another one, whole or in half, depending on the size of the lasagna.
    • Then layer on two tablespoons of fish ragu and two of fish bechamel sauce. With the help of a spoon, cover the entire surface.
    • Repeat these steps for about five layers (lasagna - fish ragu - bèchamel ), in any case up to fill your baking dish. To the last layer, add a little more sauce and béchamel to form, during cooking, a crispy crust on the surface of the lasagna.
    • Step 9) - Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 30 minutes. For the first 10 minutes it is better keep the fish lasagna covered with a sheet of aluminum foil so that the sauce and the pieces of fish on the surface do not dry out too much.
    • Before serving, let the fish lasagna rest for about 10 minutes out of the oven. Serve with a little fresh chopped parsley or ground black pepper according to taste.

    Notes

    To make this exquisite and delicate Fish Lasagna recipe, first you have to make the main condiment which, together with the bechamel, will fill the lasagna layers: the fish ragu. This sauce is based on a mixture of crustaceans, molluscs, fish fillets and tomato passata. You can prepare the fish sauce even 1 or 2 days before and keep it in the refrigerator.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 100gCalories: 567kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 40gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0.001gCholesterol: 185mgSodium: 958mgPotassium: 948mgFiber: 3gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 2302IUVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 124mgIron: 5mg
    Keyword fish lasagna recipe
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    Barbara & Silvana

    CIAO! Barbara & Silvana here! We are the authors of these amazing Italian recipes. Living in Italy, they are part of our culture, tradition and everyday life. And we want to share them with you all, straight from Italy! Learn more about us! Read our story!

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