The Only Size Pan You Should Be Using For Lasagna, According To Michael Symon's Mom

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Lasagna can make any occasion feel special, and part of the fun is putting the layered Italian classic together. The delicate tiers of flat pasta, hearty sauce, creamy béchamel, and gooey cheese, all topped by those delicious crispy charred bits, is a thing of beauty, and many cooks, both professional and home, have their own way of making the dish. However, for all the modifications and culinary tricks it is subject to, there is one golden rule for every lasagna — it shouldn't fall apart. Expert advice on making lasagna hold its shape says to add only a single ingredient in each layer, alternating between cheese and sauce. Even more crucial is to use a baking pan that is the right size, and for that, we look to chef Michael Symon's mother.

The "Iron Chef" contestant and bestselling cookbook author has fond memories of his mother's cooking, and his restaurant, Angeline, is inspired by her style of Italian comfort food. One of chef Symon's signature dishes is Mom's Lasagna — a hearty, generously layered classic that is easy enough to recreate at home. Chef Symon told Food & Wine, that like his mother, he recommends using the classic 9x13-inch pan for lasagna, pointing out that a larger pan risks spreading the layers too thin. This is even more relevant when you want to make a smaller serving of lasagna since it may just not reach all the sides of a larger baking dish, which is essential for holding the lasagna together. A smaller dish that's deep enough to accommodate several layers is more versatile and can be used to make small or large lasagna servings.

While a 9x13-inch pan may seem small, especially if you're cooking for a large group, do not underestimate the importance of the pan's depth, which gives you flexibility in the number of lasagna layers. A regular 4-layer lasagna layered with a hearty sauce in a 9x13-inch dish makes about 8 servings. Restaurants often add more layers to their lasagna, so a deeper pan even gets you more impressive results. Just remember to keep the lasagna within the walls of the baking pan since overfilling the dish is a common lasagna mistake people make. Use dried pasta sheets instead of fresh ones when you're making a towering lasagna since they are not as delicate and hold up better to more layers.

When it comes to pan material, metal, glass, and ceramic all have their pros and cons. However, while the last two are better for serving presentation, a high-quality 9x13-inch stainless steel pan, like the HONGBAKE Nonstick Lasagna Pan, is durable, conducts heat well for even cooking, and gives your lasagna lots of delicious, crispy edges.

Since the size of lasagna noodles varies drastically depending on what kind you use, it's more important to know how to layer a lasagna than to buy a dish based on the dimensions of the noodles. In general, try to keep overlapping to a minimum, and a few narrow gaps between noodles are fine. You can also experiment with different lasagna formats, including Giada De Laurentiis' unbeatably crispy lasagna that consists of a single layer made in a sheet pan. No matter what, you'll love the results.