Does lasagna baking time scale linearly with dish volume?

October 10, 2022 12:53 PM

I made a mini-lasagna in a 4" x 8" baking dish. It's slightly shallower than my 9" x 9" and 9" x 13" pans. How long should I bake this?

The lasagna under discussion...

• is made using fresh pasta, not dried
• was frozen after assembly, but not baked before freezing
• will be thoroughly defrosted before baking
• will be baked in a convection oven - can use convection or not

I know the real answer is "bake it until it's done," but I'm looking for a ballpark. 1/3 the time as a 9" x 13" lasagna? Is it that simple?

posted by under_petticoat_rule to Food & Drink (4 answers total)

I checked a few different mini lasagna recipes and most say to bake 30 minutes. Be sure to cover with foil for the first 20-25 minutes.
posted by soelo at 1:18 PM on October 10, 2022

Best answer: broadly speaking, baking time mostly depends on the thinnest dimension, so given that you've said it's only a little bit shallower, I don't think you should expect it to take much less time to bake at all.
posted by Zalzidrax at 1:22 PM on October 10, 2022 [2 favorites]

I agree that if the depth is the same (or nearly) it may take just as long to cook. Perhaps check on it 10 minutes earlier.
posted by oneirodynia at 1:53 PM on October 10, 2022

Best answer: Same time, convection will be bottom, sides, top depending on container (thin foil like vs regular pan). Up to a large or small sized point... oven baking is independent of size. It takes the same amount of time to bake a small pizza as it takes to bake a large pizza. It also takes the same amount of time to bake one potato as it does to bake a dozen potatoes.

As long as it's just a smaller thing, the time doesn't change. Thickness probably matters, convection effects the surfaces, at best it would give crispier edge parts.

Cook the same way you would normally, imagine that it's just in different pans. Not much changes. Keep an eye on it, trust your nose.
posted by zengargoyle at 1:41 AM on October 11, 2022