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August 1, 2026Short & citedBlog
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Everyday Life • Food & Drink

Manicotti

Manicotti is a type of large, tubular pasta used in Italian-American cuisine, usually stuffed and baked with sauce.

Updated August 1, 20261 min readCited sources

Manicotti is a large tubular pasta used in Italian-American cuisine, typically stuffed and baked with sauce. The name refers both to the pasta itself and to the finished dish.

What it is

Manicotti is a stuffed pasta dish made with large tubular shells. It is commonly filled with ricotta cheese, meat, or vegetables, then topped with tomato sauce and baked until hot. The name comes from the Italian word for sleeve, reflecting its tube-like shape.

Italian-American cuisine

Manicotti is widely considered part of Italian-American cooking rather than a standard Italian pasta term. In Italy, similar preparations are called cannelloni. The dish is familiar in Canadian home cooking, restaurant menus, and grocery-store pasta products.

Key details

Manicotti is usually served hot after baking. Common fillings include ricotta cheese, herbs, meat, or spinach. It is distinct from cannelloni mainly in name and regional usage, though the two are often treated as interchangeable in North America.

In short

  • Manicotti refers to both the pasta tubes and the baked dish.
  • It is typically stuffed with ricotta or meat and baked with tomato sauce.
  • The name means 'sleeve' in Italian, and the dish is Italian-American.
  • In Italy, similar pasta is called cannelloni.
Canadian angle

Manicotti is familiar in Canadian Italian and Italian-American style home cooking, restaurant menus, and grocery-store pasta products.

Quick questions

What is manicotti?
Manicotti is a large tubular pasta, or a baked dish made from that pasta, usually stuffed and served with sauce.
Is manicotti Italian or Italian-American?
It is most often described as Italian-American cuisine, with related forms in Italy commonly identified as cannelloni.
What does the name manicotti mean?
The name is connected to the Italian word for sleeve, referring to the pasta’s tube-like shape.

Sources

  1. Merriam-Webster — https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/manicotti
    Supports: Definition as tubular pasta shells stuffed with ricotta or meat, and as a stuffed pasta dish with tomato sauce.
  2. Dictionary.com — https://www.dictionary.com/browse/manicotti
    Supports: Definition of manicotti as large tubular noodles stuffed and baked in tomato sauce.
  3. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manicotti
    Supports: Description as Italian-American stuffed pasta, etymology from Italian sleeve, and relation to cannelloni.
  4. Cambridge Dictionary — https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/manicotti
    Supports: Definition as large tubes of pasta filled with cheese or meat and covered with tomato sauce.
  5. CooksInfo — https://www.cooksinfo.com/manicotti
    Supports: Description of manicotti as stuffed, sauced, and baked pasta.
  6. San Giorgio — https://www.sangiorgio.com/product/manicotti/
    Supports: Derivation from 'manica' and preparation as stuffed, sauced, oven-baked pasta.
  7. The Pasta Project — https://www.the-pasta-project.com/cannelloni-or-manicotti/
    Supports: Notes on differing views and the common Italy/US naming distinction between cannelloni and manicotti.