my food falls apart

reehsetin

Whenever I make a vegetable pie or veggie lasagna the fillings don't seem to hold together, whenever you take a chunk out the insides just seem to go everywhere. I'm sure everyone elses sticks together pretty well, where am I going wrong?
Rough recipes
Pie
Saute onions, add garlic and green chilis
All vegetables I can find, i.e. spinach, peppers, sweetcorn, chick peas, tomatio, boiled carrots/ potato, little bit of chopped tomatoes
Add spices and cook veggies
Put in an oven tray and top with mash and cheese mix and cook in oven
I make sure no liquid goes in from the pan and all the veggies are squished down a little bit. I thought the veggies might be releasing water but there doesn't seem to be much when it comes out.

Lasagna (pretty much the same as above)
Onions, peppers, cougettes, tomato spices/garlic/chili
layer with lasagna sheets and top with sauce and cheese.

Do I need to make the fillings sauce based to make them stick together (dont really want to as these are nice because they don't just taste like veggies in tomato sauce?
Help

rosieben

I always put a little sauce or gravy in pies and I make a tomato/onion sauce and a white sauce for the layers in lasagne. I think your filling is too dry?

exlibris

Mine do too. I thought it was normal.
I like a soft filling for those kinds of dishes saves making gravy!

lilian1977

I know that with lasagne, cooking it twice helps it to firm up and improves the flavour - so cook it, let it cool overnight, then cover with foil and cook again.

pollyskettle

My lasagne is famously called 'Lasagne Soup' by anyone who experiences it! It tastes great, but just kind of collapses on serving.

Meatballs defy me too.

Can't help, just wanted you to know you are not alone!

ubamother

I agree with Lilian - the letting is cool thing helps solidify everything if that's what you want. If you want it really solid add a little flour to your meat mix so it 'sets' as it cools the way the white sauce will.

With the veggies, they probably are releasing water which is probably being absorbed by the mash. an egg mixed in with the cheesy mash might help this stay firm

ragz_2

Always leave lasagne to stand for at least 10 minutes before serving. Same with pies - the fillings then "congeal" a bit. Tastes better than it sounds!

janb5

reehsetin wrote: »

Whenever I make a vegetable pie or veggie lasagna the fillings don't seem to hold together, whenever you take a chunk out the insides just seem to go everywhere. I'm sure everyone elses sticks together pretty well, where am I going wrong?
Rough recipes
Pie
Saute onions, add garlic and green chilis
All vegetables I can find, i.e. spinach, peppers, sweetcorn, chick peas, tomatio, boiled carrots/ potato, little bit of chopped tomatoes
Add spices and cook veggies
Put in an oven tray and top with mash and cheese mix and cook in oven
I make sure no liquid goes in from the pan and all the veggies are squished down a little bit. I thought the veggies might be releasing water but there doesn't seem to be much when it comes out.

Lasagna (pretty much the same as above)
Onions, peppers, cougettes, tomato spices/garlic/chili
layer with lasagna sheets and top with sauce and cheese.

Do I need to make the fillings sauce based to make them stick together (dont really want to as these are nice because they don't just taste like veggies in tomato sauce?
Help

Would it help making a white sauce with/without cheese which would help with the problem. I think your recipes/ingredients are fine but maybe that is the problem. The white sauces/ragus arent as difficult as people make out particularly if you invest in a good whisk. I can always pm you if you like with some help?

Jan

reehsetin

Thanks for all the help
I'm ok with making sauces just I like these dishes as they don't taste tomatoy where as they probably would with a tomato sauce and not a fan of white sauce just use a little on top for the lasagna. Looks like I'll have to test them out with more sauce and hopefully they'll hold together a bit more. Glad to hear I'm not the only one though!

ciderwithrosie_2

pollyskettle wrote: »

My lasagne is famously called 'Lasagne Soup' by anyone who experiences it! It tastes great, but just kind of collapses on serving.

Meatballs defy me too.

Can't help, just wanted you to know you are not alone!

When the OH makes meatballs, he rolls up about a dozen at a time (about the size of a walnut in its shell) and microwaves them for a couple of minutes. This firms them up and removes some of the fat. He then decants them into whatever sauce he's using and heats them gently till fully cooked, they seem to stay together pretty well doing it that way and also not making them too big helps.

regards CWR

kunekune

When we do meatballs, we do something similar. I cook them in the oven and then add them into the sauce at the end. It isn't quite as nice, but it makes catering for a mix of meat and non-meat eaters easier.

With the lasagne, perhaps look at alternatives to a cheese sauce such as ricotta. I used to do a nice one with grated butternut squash and ricotta as the layer in between and no tomato at all.