What Is a Substitute for Ricotta Cheese?

What's the best ricotta substitute?

Cottage cheese is the closest 1-to-1 ricotta substitute, but it needs preparation. Blend 1 cup of full-fat cottage cheese in a food processor or blender for 30 seconds until smooth but still slightly chunky. The result has texture and flavor very close to ricotta.

For best results, use small-curd cottage cheese (the curds break down more easily) and full-fat versions (the higher fat matches ricotta's richness). Drain any excess liquid first by placing the cottage cheese in a fine-mesh strainer for 5 minutes before blending.

Can you use mascarpone or cream cheese?

Mascarpone substitutes 1-to-1 for ricotta in sweet recipes (cannoli, certain Italian desserts, cheesecake). The texture is creamier and the flavor is richer than ricotta, which works well in dessert applications but produces noticeably different savory results.

For cream cheese substitution: mix 1 cup of softened cream cheese with 1/4 cup of milk to thin it to ricotta's texture. The result works in savory applications (lasagna, stuffed shells) but tastes slightly different from real ricotta. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice for closer ricotta tang.

What about Greek yogurt or goat cheese?

Drained Greek yogurt makes a good ricotta substitute, especially for lower-fat versions. Place 1 1/2 cups of full-fat plain Greek yogurt in a cheesecloth-lined strainer over a bowl. Drain for 1 hour at room temperature or overnight in the refrigerator. The drained yogurt (about 1 cup) substitutes 1-to-1 for ricotta.

Goat cheese works as a substitute in some applications, particularly savory ones where its distinct tang fits (Mediterranean stuffed peppers, certain galettes). Use 1 cup of soft goat cheese for 1 cup of ricotta. The flavor is more assertive than ricotta, so use in recipes where this is welcome rather than as a direct swap in all recipes.

When does the ricotta substitute fail?

For Italian ricotta-forward desserts (Italian cheesecake, cannoli filling, sfogliatelle), ricotta's specific texture and mild flavor are central to the recipe. Mascarpone produces noticeably richer results; cottage cheese has the right texture but slightly different flavor. For these specific recipes, real ricotta is hard to fully replace.

For lasagna and other savory baked dishes, any of the substitutes work because they get baked into the recipe alongside other strong flavors (tomato sauce, meat, herbs). For ricotta gnocchi and ricotta-stuffed pasta where the cheese is the main filling, blended cottage cheese is the closest functional substitute. For pancakes that use ricotta for fluffiness (ricotta pancakes), blended cottage cheese or drained Greek yogurt both work well.