What to use instead of tagliolini
Thin and delicate, so the sauce must be light and quick. Butter and truffle, a meat-roasting juice, a clear broth, a lemon butter. Anything with pieces overwhelms it.
The closest swap: tajarin
The Piedmontese yolk-rich version.
Tagliolini is ribbons, 250 to 300 mm long, 2 to 4 minutes in the pot. Tajarin sits in the ribbons family and cooks in 1 to 3 minutes. Match the cook time first. A swap that is right in shape and wrong in time still ends up wrong on the plate.
Every swap for tagliolini, ranked
A substitute must behave the same way with the sauce you are making. The ones marked as chosen are hand-picked. The rest score on family, cavity, surface, size, and shared sauces.
- 1
Tajarin
Ribbons · Piedmont
The Piedmontese yolk-rich version (chosen)
- 2
Capellini
Long strands · Campania
A dried thin strand for the same sauces (chosen)
- 3
Fettuccine
Ribbons · Lazio
Wider, for a heavier dressing (chosen)
- 4
Maccheroncini di Campofilone
Ribbons · Marche
Same family, also solid, also smooth, shares 1 sauce, close in size
- 5
Tagliatelle
Ribbons · Emilia-Romagna
Same family, also solid, also smooth, shares 2 sauces
- 6
Maltagliati
Ribbons · Emilia-Romagna
Same family, also solid, also smooth, shares 1 sauce
- 7
Pappardelle
Ribbons · Tuscany
Same family, also solid, also smooth, shares 1 sauce
- 8
Stringozzi
Ribbons · Umbria
Same family, also solid, shares 1 sauce, close in size
Match the sauce, not the look
Tagliolini is listed against 4 sauces. Pick the swap that holds the one you are cooking.
- Best pasta for butter and sage: Brown butter with crisped sage leaves. The filled-pasta sauce. It stays out of the way of the filling.
- Best pasta for in brodo: A clear meat or chicken broth. Pastina or filled pasta, cooked and served in the liquid.
- Best pasta for lemon and butter: Butter, lemon zest and juice, parmesan, pasta water. Light and bright. Thin strands and delicate ribbons.
- Best pasta for porcini: Fresh or dried porcini with butter, garlic, parsley, sometimes cream. Egg ribbons, tajarin, pappardelle.
Side by side
The measured difference between tagliolini and each swap.