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Filled and finished ravioli lying in a row on parchment paper.

How to Make Homemade Ravioli- Italian Recipe

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5 from 12 reviews

How to Make Homemade Ravioli- an authentic Italian Recipe every home needs! This recipe makes the ravioli process easy to follow and completely achievable for everyone.

  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 4-6 servings 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the pasta dough (click link to see recipe):

  • 400 grams flour Caputo "00" Flour (also use all purpose flour)
  • 4 eggs
  • Semolina flour for dusting

For the filling (enough for about 50 small ravioli):

  • 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 10 ounces spinach, cleaned and trimmed
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup grated Parmigiano/Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • Salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Equipment

Ravioli Wheel or Pasta Wheel, or Ravioli Mold, or Ravioli Stamp 

Rolling pin

 

Instructions

  1. Preparing the Homemade Pasta Recipe. Let the dough rest and make the ravioli filling.

Make the spinach and ricotta filling:

  1. Drain the ricotta to remove the liquid. Set a fine-mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth or a couple of paper towels over a bowl. Add the ricotta and allow it to strain out excess liquid for 30 minutes (up to overnight covered in the fridge) as you continue with the prep.
  2. Steam or blanch the spinach and remove liquid. Finely chop the spinach.
  3. In a medium bowl, combine the chopped spinach with ricotta cheese, egg, Parmigiano cheese, and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Set aside.

Ravioli Maker Method (easiest for beginners)

  1. After the pasta dough rests and you've made the filling. Divide the dough into four parts. Roll each piece in pasta machine to 6-7 setting or desired thickness (not too thin).
  2. TIP: Only roll dough one section at a time and cover the rest of the dough with plastic wrap as you fill the pasta sheets with filling- or the dough will dry.
  3. Place your prepared pasta sheet on top of the ravioli maker a single layer. The dough will hang over the edges.
  4. Place the plastic holder with indent over the pasta sheet. Using light pressure press down on the dough. This creates little pockets for the filling.
  5. Fill the ravioli with a small mound of filling- 1 heaping teaspoon per ravioli. Do not overfill or they will be hard to seal and spill out the sides.
  6. Place the second sheet dough directly over the first. Get rid of air pockets by pressing down gently on the dough. With a rolling pin press down gently and roll on top of the second pasta sheet to cut and seal the edges.
  7. When done- turn over the ravioli maker and the individual ravioli will pop out sealed and cut! If they don't come out- gently wiggle them until they come off from the mold.
  8. Place the uncooked ravioli on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper and semolina flour. Cover with a clean and light kitchen towel until ready to cook.
  9. Make sauce of choice and boil ravioli in a large pot salted water for about 3-5 minutes until they float to the top. Cook in batches. Coat with desired sauce and extra cheese. Mangia! (eat)

Notes

Sauce suggestions: Classic Italian Tomato Sauce (Sugo al Pomodoro) (see more in recipe post)

Top Tips:

  • Make sure to have plenty of semolina flour to stop the ravioli sticking as you're making them.
  • Filling- do not overfill or stuff the ravioli centers. It is tempting to overfill ravioli! Don't do it. More isn't better here. It will lead to a messy explosion.
  • Filling- not too wet or rough. Drain filling when using ricotta and make sure it is not too rough or it will break through the pasta dough.
  • Use a pasta machine. It’s a bit easier to get the dough at the right thinness.
  • Cook the ravioli in batches. Too many raviolis will lower the temperature, causing them to cook unevenly. Crowding will also cause them to stick to each other. (see recipe post for more details on cooking ravioli). Use a large pot of boiling salted water. 
  • Seal the ravioli well! This prevents the filling from bursting out in the boiling water.
  • Author: Elena
  • Prep Time: 45 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Category: Savory
  • Method: Italian
  • Cuisine: Italian