KETO LASAGNA tastes like the real deal without all of those carbs! The ‘noodles’ are actually layers of deli meat, making this low carb lasagna super easy to assemble.
Lasagna.
It’s a whole thing.
People FIGHT over lasagna…everyone has their special family recipe and how dare someone make it the WRONG way?!
Well, I’m going to risk your Italian grandma shouting at me here, because I just can’t not share this keto lasagna with you!
No noodles in this guy! Instead, we’re using deli meat…sounds strange, but just trust me!
I saw the idea for using deli meat in one of the many Facebook groups I’m in, so I can’t take credit for this genius idea. The recipe itself is one I created, but the idea to use deli meat came from someone more clever than me. 😉
Speaking of Facebook groups, have you joined mine yet? Everyone is so kind and supportive and there’s so many recipes shared each day. Join here!
How to make low carb lasagna:
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This recipe really comes together like a traditional lasagna with the exception of the noodles.
Just brown some beef and onion in a skillet. Stir in your favorite marinara.
I use and recommend Rao’s Marinara. It has no added sugars and the flavor is literally the best of any jarred sauce I’ve tried.
Next, you’ll want to whip up the creamy ricotta layer. (Yes, you can use cottage cheese if you prefer, but it will change the macros.)
Stir together ricotta, Parmesan, egg, parsley, garlic, and salt.
Start layering your lasagna, just like you would a traditional lasagna. Sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce, noodles, cheese, sauce, cheese. <—Easy peasy.
Keto lasagna noodles:
What could be simpler than using deli chicken (or turkey!) in place of lasagna noodles?
The deli meat doesn’t add a ton of flavor and it holds together pretty well.
There will be a bit more liquid in your lasagna, since the deli meat doesn’t soak it up quite the same as traditional noodles would.
The true test: What did my picky husband and kids think?
They LOVED this low carb lasagna!
My son didn’t realize he wasn’t eating regular lasagna, but my husband and daughter knew something different was going on. They all said it tasted amazing and would 100% eat it again. This dish is now on rotation in our house!
Of course, you can’t have lasagna without a side salad! Top it off with my low carb salad dressing!
More low carb Italian inspired recipes:
My keto chicken Alfredo is a hit with the husband and kids.
This keto chicken Parmesan and mozzarella stuffed meatballs both go great with my Italian cauliflower salad.
Follow me on social for more recipe ideas & inspiration!
Keto Lasagna
This lasagna skips out on the carb-heavy noodles and uses deli meat instead! So satisfying and filling and it tastes like a traditional lasagna!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ cup minced onion
- 24 ounces marinara sauce, such as Rao’s
- 8 ounces chicken deli meat
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the ground beef to a skillet over medium heat. Crumble the meat as it cooks. Once meat is about halfway through cooking, add the onion and continue cooking until meat is cooked through. Drain grease and return to the pan.
- Add the marinara to the beef and stir to combine. Spoon 1 cup of the meat sauce into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish to coat the bottom.
- Place a single layer of deli meat over the meat sauce.
- Add the ricotta cheese, egg, Parmesan, garlic, and parsley to a small bowl and stir to combine.
- Spread 1/2 of the ricotta mixture over the deli meat. Top with a ⅓ of the remaining meat sauce. Top with ⅓ of the mozzarella. Repeat layer once.
- Create a third layer of deli meat, meat sauce, and mozzarella.
- Cover dish tightly with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for 15 more minutes.
- Let set 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Sprinkle with additional parsely before serving, if desired.
Notes
The nutrition information is based on 6 servings. This is very hearty and filling and could easily serve 8 with a side salad and some veggies. Macros based on 8 servings would be 382 cal, 25g fat, 31g protein, 6g carbs, 1g fiber, and 5 net carbs.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 509Total Fat: 33gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 105mgSodium: 783mgCarbohydrates: 9gNet Carbohydrates: 8gFiber: 1gSugar: 5gProtein: 41g
So this turned out great! She’s not the prettiest girl at the ball, but it’s lasagna, it’s not supposed to be pretty. It IS very runny, as expected, but it held together reasonably well in the bowls we used. The flavor was awesome. I did use an extra pound of meat in it with the italian sausage I added (1 pound 80:20 beef an 1 pound bulk italian sausage), and the “noodles” were a little thick, I’ll have to use thinner deli meat next time, but honestly if you hadn’t told me it was not pasta, I wouldn’t have known. I also didn’t have fresh parsley on hand, so I used some dried italian seasoning mix instead, about 2-3 teaspoons (I just gave it a couple good shakes).
Has anyone double batched this and frozen the second pan? I had a 2lb frozen block of ground beef and thinking ahead…
I haven’t tried freezing this one, but hopefully someone else will chime in.
I did a double batch and froze one for several months and it turned out perfect…
Love to hear that! Thanks for sharing!
Wow, this was super delicious! My teenager and husband also loved it! Yes, a bit watery but the flavor was spot on. Thanks so much!
Thanks, Becky!
Very good. Seemed to have allot of liquid in the pan after cooking. water production? More eggs? Less ricotta?
The marinara sauce seemed to separate when I added it to the ground beef into tomatoes and water.
Perhaps I used too much ricotta? What can I do to cut down on the water production? How do I keep the Marinara from separating ? Should I add more eggs or use less ricotta?
Hi Gregory!
I’d try a different brand of marinara. It shouldn’t separate when cooking with beef.
This is a bit wetter than a traditional lasagna, because the deli meat doesn’t soak up liquid like pasta would.
There is a discrepancy between the carbs on the printed recipe and the nutritional info chart. Would you please clarify which is correct? Thank you in advance . looks tasty!
Hi Vanessa! There is no discrepancy. The notes are including nutrition info for 8 servings and the nutrition label is for 6 servings. We don’t normally include different serving sizes, but we though this was right on the edge, as far as serving sizes go, and could be a little bigger or smaller depending on the meal. 🙂
I really like your site because you make really approachable recipes! They just seem to fit for families. Thank you so much! Looked at a bunch of similar recipes but came back to yours. In the oven now! ❤️
Thanks, Nicole! I love to hear that – that’s my goal for the site!
I totally agree with this. This recipe was simple to follow and turned out fantastic! There weren’t any obscure ingredients that I had to mail off to Bangladesh for. 🙂 Yours is one of the few sites that is great for folks that don’t have a lot extra to spend.
Thanks so much, Ron! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipes! 🙂
Have you tried heart of palm lasagna sheets omg so good
I’ve been wanting to try those, but haven’t yet. Glad to hear they’re good!
Is there any reason why you cook on a hot plate??
Yep! I don’t have studio lighting in my kitchen and I don’t have a regular cooktop in my studio. 🙂
This was SO SO good!! My mother in law (of Italian descent) makes a killer lasagna and it’s an event in our house when she makes it. I made this tonight and was so impressed, thinking there was no way I could have a delicious low carb lasagna. I will be making this over and over again! My husband (who has been eating his moms lasagna all his life) had a second helping! And its sooo easy! Thank you!!!!
Yay!! I love that this was a hit!
This idea just BLEW MY MIND, I am sooooooo excited to make this for dinner tomorrow for the family. I think this has just solved my non lasagne eating keto life!
Hope you love it!!
So many of the Keto recipes seem to use ingredients that are high in sodium (i.e. deli meats). Would love to see that kept to a minimum along with lowering the carbs.
Keto tends to have a diuretic effect, so keeping your electrolytes in balance can be important. Many people on keto eat a higher level of sodium than those not on keto. If that doesn’t work for you, you can always use lower sodium products. 🙂
This is so strange, working on making up my meat for lasagna tonight plan on making it tomorrow using cauli rice. I don’t have any deli sliced chicken so unable to try this but pinned it so I can try it in the future. Might just freeze some of the cheese to save for making it with sliced deli chicken. Great minds . . .
Could keto pizza dough be used in the place of the deli turkey/chicken slices?
Assuming you mean fathead dough? It could work, but you’ll want to roll it very thin. I’m not sure if you’d need to bake it first…I haven’t tried it myself, but my gut says you’d want to parbake it.
My plan was to pre-bake for about 5-6 min. I just needed someone to say, why not, give it a try. haha If after step one it doesn’t look just right I will make a chicken pizza with the deli meat and sauce. Win/win.
Check out kirbiescravings
He has a cheese noodle base for his lasagna that is very good.
i’m just beginning keto. i am absolutely loving your recipes. thanx Karly
Funny that I saw this today…planning to make my low carb zucchini lasagna (long slices of zucchini instead of lasagna noodles), but maybe I’ll try part of it with deli meat…just happen to have some in the fridge! I love so many of your recipes…thank you!
I’ll be curious to hear how you like it compared to zucchini! Please come back to let us know! 🙂
Just curious, did you use presliced or have the deli cut the chicken?
I always get my deli meat from the deli, but I see no reason the pre-packaged kind wouldn’t work. 🙂
I believe this is where the inspiration originates!
https://mariamindbodyhealth.com/protein-noodle-lasagna/
Oh that could be! I’ve just seen people in groups trying it and thought they were all so smart! Haha!