Easy protein noodle low carb lasagna

Easy protein noodle low carb lasagna

When is chicken a noodle? When it's deli meat, thinly sliced and layered like pasta into this inspired take on low carb lasagna. The requisite flavors of sausage, onion, and marinara, stacked with the cheesy blend of ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan, make dinner a literal melting pot of Italian inspiration.
May 22 2017 recipe by , photo by , nutritional review by in Recipes, Dinner, Meal

Easy protein noodle low carb lasagna

When is chicken a noodle? When it's deli meat, thinly sliced and layered like pasta into this inspired take on low carb lasagna. The requisite flavors of sausage, onion, and marinara, stacked with the cheesy blend of ricotta, mozzarella, and parmesan, make dinner a literal melting pot of Italian inspiration.
USMetric
12 servingservings

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp 2 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ (2 oz.) ½ (55 g) yellow onion, choppedyellow onions, chopped
  • 2 2 garlic clove, mincedgarlic cloves, minced
  • 12 oz. 350 g fresh Italian sausage
  • 12 oz. 350 g ground beef or ground turkey
  • 2 cups (1 lb) 475 ml (500 g) ricotta cheese
  • 4¼ cups 1 liter unsweetened marinara sauce
  • 1 1 eggeggs
  • ½ tsp ½ tsp sea salt
  • 8 oz. 230 g sliced deli chicken breast
  • 12 oz. (3 cups) 350 g (750 ml) fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
  • 1½ cups (4 oz.) 350 ml (120 g) shredded Parmesan cheese
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Instructions

Instructions are for 12 servings. Please modify as needed.

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C).
  2. Warm the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until slightly tender and fragrant.
  3. Add the sausage and ground beef, and cook until the meat is browned. Stir in marinara sauce, and simmer over medium-low heat.
  4. In a mixing bowl, combine the ricotta cheese with egg and salt.
  5. To assemble, spread half of the meat sauce in the bottom of a 9 × 13" (20 x 30 cm) baking dish. Follow with layers of chicken breast slices, ricotta mixture, mozzarella-cheese slices, and parmesan.
  6. Repeat the layers until you have used up all the ingredients, finishing with a final layer of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
  7. Cover with foil. To prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 25 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Tip!

Make a double batch and pop one in the freezer. This recipe is part of a collaboration with Maria Emmerich, a best-selling American cookbook author. Check out her website for more keto inspiration and recipes.

Recommended special equipment

Baking dish 9 × 13" (20 x 30 cm)

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76 comments

  1. 1
    Roxanne
    May 21 2017
    Do you mean 1.5 CUPS of marinara sauce? I've never seen sauce measured in pounds before! Thanks!
    Reply: #29
  2. 2
    Matt
    May 22 2017
    Roxanne: This recipe listed on her website just says "1 jar no sugar added marinara sauce"
  3. 3
    BobM
    May 22 2017
    Here are more comments on the recipe:

    http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2013/04/maria-emmerichs-protein-noodle-...

    I may give this a try. I never thought of using chicken lunch meat/deli meat for noodles.

  4. 4
    steph
    May 22 2017
    Most jars of marinara sauce are 24 ounce containers.
  5. 5
    LaryL
    May 22 2017
    But jars of sauce are usually measured in fluid ounces, not by weight.
  6. 6
    William
    May 24 2017
    Difficult to find no sugar marinara sauce. Had to improvise by putting can of whole tomatoes with spices in blender. The lasagna was absolutely delicious. 3 grams of sugar per serving in can of whole tomatoes versus twice the amount found in jarred off the shelf marinara sauce.
  7. 7
    Debra
    May 24 2017
    The Classico brand of spaghetti sauces have a no sugar Spicy Red Pepper and Spicy Tomato and Basil that work really well in the recipe. They do have a Marinara with Plum Tomatoes..., but that DOES have added sugar.
  8. 8
    Lissa
    June 5 2017
    I use puréed tomatoes and season it up a bit. It is very low carb.
  9. 9
    JKH
    June 18 2017
    The measurements are'nt easy on the recipies.
  10. 10
    Bo
    June 29 2017
    Garlic is mentioned in a step in the instructions, but it is not shown in the ingredient list so I didn't pick any up when I was at the grocery store. I had some jarred garlic but wasn't sure how much to use -- I improvised, but I don't think I used enough because there was no garlic flavor. Would love if you could add the recommended garlic amounts to the ingredient list.
  11. 11
    Karen
    July 11 2017
    Wondering if the Parmesan cheese should be grated or shredded?
  12. 12
    Karen
    July 11 2017
    And also...not enough mozzarella for the top, so might need a bit more or am I missing something? Hoping it come out looking like the photo...Hahahaa!
  13. 13
    Rhoda
    September 4 2017
    Please use european measurements too. Many of the products used are not used over here!
    Reply: #14
  14. 14
    Reply to comment #13 by Rhoda
    Peter Biörck Team Diet Doctor
    September 4 2017
    Hi Rhoda!

    You can choose between "us" and "metric", look below "Ingredients".

    Please use european measurements too. Many of the products used are not used over here!

    Reply: #57
  15. 15
    Kimberley
    November 13 2017
    do you layer the chicken on each layer just like you would with the noodles? I am assuming so but just thought I would check.
  16. 1 comment removed
  17. 17
    Ann
    January 24 2018
    Make your own Marinara Sauce easy peasy, make a large pot and freeze in bags of recipe measurement ready to use :) Sugar - use Stevia / Xyilitol (from Plants)
  18. 18
    Debbie
    January 26 2018
    I made this for dinner tonight. Added a little Italian seasoning in place of garlic. It was scrumptious! My husband and i have been doing low carb for 3 months and have been missing pasta. This is a great substitute!
  19. 19
    Robin
    January 27 2018
    Great recipe!! Easy to make and delicious! Served with a nice green salad in the side...yum! Can someone help me understand the grams per serving? This seems like a very low carb meal to - maybe 3 or 4 grams max?
  20. 20
    Christine
    July 7 2018
    I made this for the first time, a bit messy but sooooo tasty. Where I live I couldn't find ricotta so substituted cottage cheese. Not sure about all the weights though as we are totally metric (in Spain), sometimes difficult to compare .
  21. 21
    Lyn Evans
    July 17 2018
    Amazon has sugar free marinara.
  22. 22
    Angela
    July 31 2018
    Raos marinara =5 carbs in a 1/2 cup. 24 oz jar perfect for this recipe!
  23. 23
    Annie
    August 7 2018
    This is THE best lasagna ever! You won't see the difference chicken deli vs wheat pasta. Very very good recipe for our family.
  24. 24
    Emily
    September 10 2018
    I love the recipe! My kids love it and don’t have to worry about gluten issues!
  25. 25
    Marion
    September 11 2018
    This didn’t really seem to fit in a 9X13 pan - there was barely one layer and I follow the directions exactly. Next time maybe I will use a 7X11 Pyrex pan. Maybe I did something wrong?
  26. 26
    Kari
    September 11 2018
    Delicious and so so filling! I accidentally used a 9x9 pan and it did bubble over a little, but I think a 9x13 might be too big. Will definitely make again.
    Reply: #30
  27. 27
    Carolyn
    September 17 2018
    Very Fatty. I have had my gall bladder removed so I have to be very careful.
  28. 28
    Lorie
    September 19 2018
    I doubled this recipe and put one in the freezer. The one we ate right away was very good. Lasagna is (was) my favorite food and with this recipe I feel like I now have a "go to" lasagna that tastes really good. Two months later I baked the one from the freezer. I don't think this freezes all that well, as we were left with lasagna soup. I just baked it (uncovered) a little longer to let some of the juices evaporate, but we still had to eat it with a spoon (still good). We ate it for dinner that night and it wasn't until the next day that I realized the lasagna I had eaten, didn't have noodles in it. I never noticed that it was different! Now that's progress and I have to tell you, lasagna soup is awesome! One thing I noticed -- I got good quality, no sugar added rotisserie chicken slices. They were very salty, so when I make this again, I will omit the added salt. GREAT recipe with a lot of room for doing it your own way.
  29. 29
    Reply to comment #1 by Roxanne
    Jill
    September 27 2018
    The family LOVED this recipe! No guilt, No bloat Lasagna!!
    Wooo!
  30. 30
    Reply to comment #26 by Kari
    Jill
    September 27 2018
    Actually I did it in a 9x13, and it was perfect. Had room in the pan for one more layer of everything, but followed directions exactly and it was perfect.
  31. 31
    Sabrena
    October 10 2018
    I did 12 servings recipe (which gets you to one egg), used a 9x13 pan and then cut up portions and froze several for later use. Makes for a quick and easy grab to take for lunch at work too.
  32. 32
    Nancy
    October 27 2018
    It would be great that ALL the recipes that can be freezed would be marked.
    I'm new to this site and doing il alone so alot of the recipes are tricky to mesure since you do only two portions.
  33. 33
    trina
    November 5 2018
    I altered this recipe a bit; I did not use the ground pork, I replaced it with ground beef. I also used thinly sliced zucchini in place of the deli chicken. It was delicious. My family loved it!!
    Reply: #48
  34. 34
    Chris
    February 14 2019
    The recipe is fantastic!!! I loved it. We are making it again. It will be a favorite.
  35. 35
    Star
    February 19 2019
    Do you freeze it after cooking or before cooking?
    Reply: #36
  36. 36
    Reply to comment #35 by Star
    Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor
    February 20 2019

    Do you freeze it after cooking or before cooking?

    You can freeze it after cooking.

  37. 37
    Kat
    March 1 2019
    I didn't care for this recipe at all. It came out like a big pile of mush, nothing to hold it up.
  38. 38
    Kirsten
    March 7 2019
    Can you freeze it after cooking and then reheat it? I didn't think it was good to reheat cooked chicken twice???
    Reply: #39
  39. 39
    Reply to comment #38 by Kirsten
    Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor
    March 8 2019

    Can you freeze it after cooking and then reheat it? I didn't think it was good to reheat cooked chicken twice???

    Yes, that's fine. With meat, you don't want to refreeze it after it has been thawed but still raw. Freezing cooked chicken dishes and reheating later is fine.

  40. 40
    Stacie
    March 11 2019
    Is this actual thinly sliced chicken breast or is this deli chicken lunch meat.
    Replies: #42, #44
  41. 1 comment removed
  42. 42
    Reply to comment #40 by Stacie
    linda
    April 10 2019
    Deli chicken (or turkey).
  43. 43
    Chantel
    April 18 2019
    I'm on week one but changed up the menu and included this. Absolutely fabulous! It looks, tastes and has the mouth feel of regular lasagna. Not to mention now that I'm not eating pasta/grains I'm realizing they make me feel bloated. Definitely don't have that feeling with this. I made the recipe splitting it between two 9" pie pans which made cutting portions weird so decided to cut each into 1/4th. I will have to work out a way to make it work better next time, but for now I have a dinner ready in the freezer for next time.
  44. 44
    Reply to comment #40 by Stacie
    Chantel
    April 18 2019
    I ended up using thin sliced package lunch meat and it turned out great; however, fresh sliced from the deli is probably better.
  45. 45
    Lyn
    April 25 2019
    Could you please explain for me in Australia what you mean by Italian sausage? Sausages seem to differ from area to area. I look on Google and this is what I find: "In North America, Italian sausage most often refers to a style of pork sausage. The sausage is often noted for being seasoned with fennel as the primary seasoning. In Italy, however, a wide variety of sausages are made, many of which are quite different from the aforementioned product."
    Reply: #46
  46. 46
    Reply to comment #45 by Lyn
    Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor
    April 26 2019

    Could you please explain for me in Australia what you mean by Italian sausage? Sausages seem to differ from area to area. I look on Google and this is what I find: "In North America, Italian sausage most often refers to a style of pork sausage. The sausage is often noted for being seasoned with fennel as the primary seasoning. In Italy, however, a wide variety of sausages are made, many of which are quite different from the aforementioned product."

    You can use the spices in this recipe and mix them with ground pork.
    https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/homemade-mild-italian-sausage-364...

  47. 47
    Kelli
    April 29 2019
    I made this as written in the recipe and it came out perfect! It was super easy and super delicious. Who needs the pasta. I will be definitely adding this to our regular rotation of meals.
  48. 48
    Reply to comment #33 by trina
    Steve
    May 5 2019
    This is what I was thinking about as a sub for the chicken, as I don't want chicken-flavored lasagna. Did you find that the zucchini made the recipe too "wet"? I'm guessing if I dry the slices out first then it would be perfect.
  49. 49
    Sara
    May 10 2019
    Hi Not sure what it means by Italian sausage? I'm in the uk so wondering if it means chorizo or something similar?
    Any advice please? Thanks
    Reply: #50
  50. 50
    Reply to comment #49 by Sara
    Kristin Parker Team Diet Doctor
    May 11 2019

    Hi Not sure what it means by Italian sausage? I'm in the uk so wondering if it means chorizo or something similar?
    Any advice please? Thanks

    Italian sausage is ground pork with seasonings added. If you can get ground pork, you can easily make your own!
    https://www.geniuskitchen.com/recipe/seasoning-for-ground-pork-italia...

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Reply to comment #49 by Sara

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