What Is Pasta, cannelloni and How Can I Use It?
Here's everything worth knowing about pasta, cannelloni and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 3 recipes to cook tonight.
Key Points
- Cannelloni are wide pasta tubes filled with ricotta, spinach, or meat and baked.
- Pipe the filling in from both ends; bechamel and tomato sauce is the classic finish.
- Par-boil dried tubes only until they bend, around 6 to 8 minutes, or they tear.
- Bake covered at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 40 minutes, fully blanketed in sauce.
- Manicotti tubes are essentially the same product and swap in with no method change.
What is pasta, cannelloni?
Cannelloni are wide pasta tubes, usually around four inches long, designed to be filled and baked. The name means large reeds in Italian, and that is roughly the shape: smooth hollow cylinders ready for a soft stuffing.
In Italy cannelloni are often made from fresh pasta sheets rolled around the filling. The boxed dried tubes sold in most supermarkets are the convenient stand-in, and they bake the same way.
Filling and Baking
Cannelloni take the classic baked-pasta fillings: ricotta with spinach, ground meat in a tomato base, or the creamy chicken in Creamy Cannelloni with Chicken & Almonds. A piping bag fills the tubes from each end far more easily than a spoon.
The classic finish is a layer of bechamel and tomato sauce, the way Cannelloni with Cheese Sauce does it. Lay the filled tubes in a sauced dish, blanket them with more sauce so no pasta is exposed, and bake covered at 375°F (190°C) for 30 to 40 minutes.
Pairing and Common Mistakes
If you use dried tubes, par-boil them only until they bend, around 6 to 8 minutes, then cool them on an oiled tray. Boil them soft and they tear when you fill them.
The mistake that ruins a tray is skimping on sauce. Dried tubes drink up liquid as they finish in the oven, so any pasta left poking above the sauce turns hard and chewy. Cover every tube and bake covered to keep steam in.
Substitutes
Manicotti tubes are essentially the same product and swap in with no change to the method. Fresh lasagna sheets rolled around the filling are the traditional alternative and need no par-boiling at all.
When tubes are unavailable, jumbo pasta shells hold the same fillings, though you spoon rather than pipe.
Buying and Storage
Look for cannelloni near lasagna and other baking pasta; some brands label the identical tube as manicotti. Sealed and dry, it keeps a year or more in a cool, dark cupboard.
Check the box for an oven-ready or no-boil note if you want to skip par-cooking. Assembled, unbaked cannelloni freezes well, so build a tray ahead and bake it from frozen with extra time and extra sauce.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 意大利面，卷子
- British (UK) term
- Pasta, cannelloni
- en français
- pâtes, cannelloni
- en español
- pasta canelones
Recipes using pasta, cannelloni
There are 3 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Cannelloni with Cheese Sauce
Cannelloni stuffed with beef, Italian sausage, and marinara, blanketed in a cheddar cheese white sauce and baked until bubbling. Freezer-friendly for make-ahead weeknight wins.
Amazing Chilli Con Carne
Hearty three-bean chili con carne with lean beef, roasted peppers, and warm spices for crowd-pleasing game day dinners that serve 12 from one pot.
Creamy Cannelloni with Chicken & Almonds
Cannelloni stuffed with chicken, spinach, ricotta, and toasted almonds, blanketed in a Swiss cheese cream sauce and baked until bubbly. A showstopper for Sunday dinner or date night.
