If you've run out of pasta, you can still make lasagne but with Doritos! This spicy Doritos lasagne is a real comfort food dish combining the minced meat (you can use meat or meat-free) and cheese sauce of lasagne but with a spicier filling too! Plus, if you have anyone in your family who doesn't like pasta, this lasagne is for you!
Some people may think it's strange but not everyone likes pasta! One of my children hates it and so we can't all enjoy the easy family friendly pasta dishes that so many people love. But, we all love Doritos. And that's how I ended up creating this dish.
It's not exactly the same as lasagne. The Doritos do have a different texture and of course they have more flavour than plain lasagne. I've added chillies to the minced meat filling but because I've used spicy Doritos, there's even more heat in the dish from the Doritos!
If you're wondering about the texture of the Doritos in the lasagne, let me tell you. The ones in the middle soak up the mince and are fairly soft, just like sheets of lasagne pasta would be. The ones on the top are a mixture of soft and crispy. We loved them!
So what do you need to make it?
Ingredient notes for lasagne pasta
To make this pasta you'll need:
- Vegetables - red onion, celery, carrot. If you don't have all these vegetables don't worry.
- Garlic - You can use fresh garlic or a paste or puree
- Mince - I used a plant-based mince for this but you can use pork or beef mince instead. Both work well.
- Herbs and spices - I use a generous amount of Italian dried herbs and chillli flakes. You can miss out the chilli flakes if you don't want it to be so spicy. You can also replace the chilli flakes with fresh chilli peppers.
- Tinned chopped tomatoes
- Tomato puree - This helps to make the sauce a little richer
- Seasoning - Add a little salt and pepper to taste. I haven't included exact quantities as you can decide for yourself.
- Doritos - I use chilli heatwave Doritos as we love spicy food but you can use the original or the cheese ones instead.
Ingredients for the cheese sauce:
- Butter - Use salted or unsalted and feel free to replace with a dairy free option.
- Plain flour
- Milk - I used semi-skimmed but whole milk or skimmed milk also works. You can also use a plant based milk.
- Mature cheddar - Mature cheddar is best for the cheese sauce as it has more flavour than a milder cheddar.
- Smoked paprika - I love the flavour that this adds. You can just add this and leave the mustard out or leave this out in favour of just mustard.
- English mustard - Like the smoked paprika. This is a great way of adding a little extra flavour to the cheese sauce. I only add a little as I want it to enhance the flavour not overpower it with mustard flavour!
How to make spicy Doritos lasagne
Do check out the recipe card further down the post too.
First prepare the mince. I cook the onion, celery and carrot gently till soft and then stir in the garlic.
Then add the mince and keep breaking it up with a spoon as it browns. You can use a plant-based mince or meat mince. Once the mince has browned add in the herbs, chilli flakes, tomato puree and tinned tomatoes. Bring to the boil and then simmer.
While the mince is simmering, make the cheese sauce. Melt the butter in a samll saucepan. Then stir in the flour. Keep stirring for a couple of minutes and then add the milk, a little at a time, stirring after each addition until it is properly incorporated.
Once all the milk has been added, keep stirring until the sauce thickens. Then take it off the heat and stir in the smoked paprika, mustard and most of the cheese. Reserve a little to top the lasagne with.
Grease a baking dish and layer the lasagne into the dish. I normally start with the mince, then a little cheese sauce, then the Doritos. Then more mince, more Doritos and top with cheese sauce and the extra cheese.
Bake in a preheated oven at 180C for about 20 minutes.
Can you prepare the lasagne in advance?
Yes you can but you will need to bake it a little longer if it is cold when it goes in the oven. I would bake it for at least 30 minutes if it is cold when it goes into the oven. Keep an eye on it as bakes and if the top seems to be browning too much, cover with a little aluminium foil.
Do you have to use Doritos?
No, you can use any brand of tortilla chips.
Can you use crisps instead?
Why not?! I think this would work really well with crisps as an alternative.
Can you adapt the recipe?
Yes of course. Feel free to just use this lasagne recipe for inspiration. If you have a favourite mince recipe, use that instead. Make it with chilli con carne instead of this bolognese style mince filling.
You can also adapt the herbs and spices. Add basil and oregano for example instead of the mixed Italian herbs.
You can also dial the spiciness down by not using spicy Doritos and by not adding any chilli flakes, chillies etc.
You can also make it spicier by adding extra chillies or a little hot sauce.
Storing and reheating the leftovers
If you have any Doritos lasagne leftovers they will keep well in the fridge for up to three days. You can reheat them in the oven or the microwave.
Can you freeze it?
Yes you can. It will freeze for up to three months. If you are planning to freeze it, wrap it up well to prevent freezer burn. You can use baking paper or cling film. Defrost before reheating and serving.
You can freeze it before baking it or just freeze leftovers.
Recipe
Spicy Doritos Lasagne
Ingredients
- 1 red onion finely diced
- 1 stick of celery finely diced
- 1 carrot finely diced or grated
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 350 g mince I used plant-based mince
- 2 teaspoon Italian herbs seasoning
- 2 teaspoon dried chillli flakes
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato puree
- salt and pepper to taste
- 180 g chilli heatwave Doritos
Ingredients for the Cheese Sauce
- 25 g butter
- 2 tablespoon plain flour
- 400 ml milk I used semi-skimmed but you can use a plant based milk
- 110 g mature cheddar
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon English mustard
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180℃
How to make the mince filling
- Heat a little oil in a large saucepan and then gently cook the diced onion, celery and carrot. After about 5 minutes, stir in the crushed garlic. Cook for a couple of minutes.
- Add the mince. Keep breaking it up with a wooden spoon and brown on the outside.
- Add the herbs, chilli flakes, tomato puree and tinned tomatoes. Also fill up the empty tinned tomatoes tin with water and add that too. Bring to the boil and then lower the heat to a simmer.
How to make the cheese sauce
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Then stir in the flour. It will form a paste. Stir over a medium heat for a couple of minutes.
- Add a little bit of milk at a time. Make sure the mixture is well combined before adding more. When all the milk has been added, keep stirring over the heat until it thickens.
- Take it off the heat and stir in the paprika, mustard and most of the cheese. Keep some aside to put on top of the lasagne.
Assembling and cooking the Doritos lasagne
- Taste the mince and add a little extra salt and pepper if necessary.
- Lightly grease a lasagne dish. Add mince, cheese sauce and Doritos. Then another layer of mince and Doritos. Top with cheese sauce and scatter on any reserved grated cheese.
- Bake in the oven at 180℃ for about 20 minutes if the sauces were still hot when assembling. If you've prepared it earlier then you may need to bake it for a little longer to make sure it is thorougly heated through.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
More recipes you might like
If you like this recipe, do check out my other recipes using Doritos:
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Corina Blum
This recipe is delicious! I love the spices in it as it's got a bit more flavour than a traditional lasagne. The Doritos make it a bit different too.