Pairings | Vegetarian lasagne

The best wine pairings for lasagna

Posted by Fiona Beckett on May 2 2024 at 07:38

A traditional lasagna or lasagne, however you like to spell it, is the ultimate comfort food, a multi-layered pasta dish that traditionally combines silky pasta, savoury meats, creamy sauces, and bubbling cheese into one irresistible dish.

It’s generally a dish with which I like a glass of red wine but with so many variations on the basic recipe these days, there’s no single one-size-fits-all pairing.

In this brief guide, I’ll explore the best wines to pair with different styles of lasagna, some of which may surprise you!

Top wine pairings for lasagna

Classic meat lasagna

Basically you can go for the same type of wines as you would for a spaghetti bolognese though as the cheese sauce tends to make the dish a bit richer you might want to go for slightly more full-bodied reds. Maybe a modern style Tuscan red rather than a classic Chianti or a southern Italian or Sicilian red like Nero d’Avola or Primitivo. Barbera is a good pairing too as are Italian grape varieties such as sangiovese from elsewhere.

Outside Italy, I found this saperavi to be a great match with lasagna. A rioja crianza, a medium-bodied cabernet sauvignon or a zinfandel would be a great pairing too as with this ox cheek lasagna.

Vegetable lasagna

It makes sense to choose a wine pairing for vegetable lasagna that suits the vegetables that are in it. If it includes roasted Mediterranean vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers and courgettes a gutsy Languedoc or Roussillon red would be a good match.

If it includes spinach or chard, a dry Italian white like a Gavi might be a better pairing while a pumpkin or butternut squash lasagna would suit a richer white such as a viognier or oak-aged chardonnay.

Mushroom lasagna works well with either white or red wines such as pinot noir. With a lasagne vincigrassi, a particularly opulent recipe made with porcini and cream (yes, it is as delicious as it sounds!) I’d drink a creamy white burgundy or other chardonnay (see for example my Match of the Week: Vincigrassi and Saint-Aubin).

Seafood lasagna

Choosing a wine for a seafood lasagna is similar to picking a wine for fish pie as you can see from this recipe for a smoked salmon and spinach lasagna. Try a smooth creamy chardonnay, chenin blanc or a fuller Italian white such as a Soave.

Wines to match different pasta sauces

Image by Panerai from Pixabay

Tags: pasta lasagna Italian reds drink:red wine Chianti Classico fish lasagne mushroom lasagne vincigrassi roast vegetable lasagne vegetarian lasagne meat lasagne lasagne food:pasta, rice & noodles noshow:highlight
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6 things you need to think about when pairing wine and vegetarian food

Posted by Fiona Beckett on May 11 2021 at 07:40

If you think it’s difficult to pair wine and vegetarian food, think again. It’s no trickier than it is for those who eat meat or fish.

True, vegetarian dishes tend to include more ingredients than a simple steak or piece of fish but if you focus on the style of the dish and the way it’s cooked it’s not hard to come up with a delicious wine match.

Here are six things to think about:

How the food is cooked

Is the dish a light dish like a salad or a hot dish like a casserole. The former will call for a lighter wine (generally a crisp dry white or rosé) than the latter which is more likely to go with a medium to full-bodied red. Fried foods like fritters always pair well with sparkling wine.

Which wine pairs best with salad

Does one vegetable e.g. mushrooms or asparagus dominate?

If so match that ingredient. Mushroom dishes for example generally work well with pinot noir, butternut squash with a rich white like a chardonnay and asparagus - contrary to the general wisdom - with all kinds of different wines.

Which wines and beers pair best with mushrooms

Top wine pairings with asparagus

Does it contain a meat substitute?

Veggie sausages and burgers or soy mince behave very much like their equivalent meat-based versions with wine so check the website for recipes and ingredients like sausages or spaghetti bolognese.

Top wine matches for sausages

6 of the best matches for spaghetti bolognese

Does it come from a particular country or region e.g. Italy or the middle-east

In which case match the wine to that style of food - a southern Italian red works well with baked pasta dishes such as lasagne for example and a crisp dry white or rosé with mezze

What to drink with lasagne

Lebanese mezze and Côtes de Provence rosé

Is the dish spicy?

Spicy food tends to benefit from wines with a touch of sweetness like riesling and pinot gris. Full bodied fruity rosés also work well. But remember there are different kinds of spice - a zesty Thai green curry pairs better with an aromatic white like pinot gris or a punchy New Zealand sauvignon blanc while a rich aubergine curry would work better with a red.

What wine to drink with curry: my top 5 picks

Are pulses involved?

If so, good news! As they’d tell you in Tuscany pulses like beans and chickpeas are an excellent foil for a fine red wine like a good Chianti Classico or Brunello di Montalcino.

The best wine pairings with beans

The only other thing that need concern you is whether the wine is suitable for vegetarians i.e. whether any animal products are used in the fining process. Most supermarket own brand wines will give this information on the back label otherwise you’ll need to check with the producer or shop you buy from.

For more insights and ideas see this post I wrote for Decanter on which wines to drink with vegetarian food

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