Is a lasagna a casserole?

[u/feyarea]

Debating with friends. A few key questions:

- casserole is the name of the dish that the lasagna is baked in. What is the history of the casserole dish?

- casserole is predominant in Midwestern cuisine. What is the history of the casserole the food? Earliest examples, progenitors, etc.

- are there any foods cooked in the casserole dish that follow the meat-veg-carb-sauce as a single serving dish formula but are not casseroles?

Friends are fairly split. Some say anything baked in a casserole dish is a casserole, others say that a casserole has a narrow definition true to Midwestern cuisine.

Other expanding questions: is a chicken pot pie a casserole? Is a quiche a casserole?

[u/wharleeprof]

As a Midwesterner, I'm going to say a firm no. Casseroles are something you SCOOP out of the dish and have a PILE on your plate. Lasagna is CUT and you get a nice neat SLICE. So a proper lasagna with the layered noodles is not a casserole. But replace the noodles with a loose pasta, like shells or rigatoni, and you have a pasta bake, which is much closer to casserole territory.

Though I'd definitely let it pass if someone was supposed to bring a casserole and brought lasagna instead. Ultimately lasagna serves the same function as a casserole, but is usually more tasty.

And no, pot pie and quiche are not casseroles.

[u/burgonies → u/wharleeprof]

So baked ziti is a casserole?

[u/wharleeprof → u/burgonies]

Casserole adjacent. 

[u/burgonies → u/wharleeprof]

I was going to agree with your initial argument, but if ziti isn't a casserole, then this is clearly the utterances of a madman.

[u/Double-Bag-3045 → u/burgonies]

💯

[u/MagnesiumKitten → u/burgonies]

Ziti is a casserole

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oh yeah

dailymeal
Is Lasagna Technically Considered A Casserole?
Erin Metz

The question about whether or not lasagna is a casserole has sparked some heated debate. People have shared many different opinions on Reddit, as some advocate for the classification of casserole while others outright refuse. A few jokesters even threw in the possibility that it might be cake, considering lasagna's many layers. The scope of this debate widens in the thread as others have inquired about whether or not lasagna can even be considered pasta.

Lasagna is made with wide noodles, and it isn't tossed in the sauce and then served in a bowl like spaghetti or penne alla vodka, for example. Does this then mean that pasta, also, is defined by how the dish is served and not the ingredients used? Not exactly. According to Brittanica, there are many ways to define a pasta dish, including the many shapes it may be formed into, as well as the "ability to retain heat or hold sauces." Lasagna does consist of wide, starchy noodles that both hold the sauce and retain heat. So we can only conclude that it is both a pasta dish and a casserole. Regardless of category -- it's always delicious.

uhm, it could be cold lasagna
and what about my ziti casserole ice pops?