When I talked about making a chicken ravioli recipe, some members of my very Italian family were a little taken aback. They’re all about a meat ravioli —to them, meat means beef. However, they ate more than their words as they gobbled down bowlfuls of this super flavorful chicken rav.

Tuck some of this moist chicken mixture inside my foolproof ravioli dough to make some of the lightest, most delicate flavored ravioli ever.

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Ravioli made for spring

This chicken ravioli recipe is light in both flavor and texture making it a perfect spring main course. I found in my recipe testing that using shallots, instead of onion, result in a light, sweet flavor as does cooking them in a bit of white wine.

I also used my grandma’s technique of adding stiffly whipped egg whites to the filling for a fluffier texture and binder of the filling. It works wonders!

Rosemary, garlic and a little lemon also dd so much to this chicken and spinach ravioli filling. A little brown butter, pesto or a buttery cream sauce make this a spring Sunday supper to gather the family around.

The secret ingredient (and it’s easy)

If you’ve gotten this far in the post (and haven’t jumped to the recipe yet), you may have guessed that ground chicken thighs are the magic ingredient since they’re the secret to my super juicy chicken meatballs.

I visit my local Fresh Market butcher counter to grind the chicken thighs for me. Not all grocery store butchers have the capacity to grind chicken. I’m sure they need a specialty grinder to avoid cross-contamination so ask around to find one who will near you.

Also check the packaging labels because some stores, like Whole Foods, carry ground chicken from leg meat, saving precious time.

How to make a really moist chicken ravioli filling

Filling and cooking chicken ravioli

Here is a quick tutorial on filling and cooking ravioli.

For filling:

1. Lay a piece of ravioli dough on floured cutting board or counter lightly sprinkled with flour.
2. If using a ravioli cutter, lightly press a template or outline of each ravioli down the length of dough. This helps so you’ll know where to cut.
3. Use a small cookie scoop to evenly space mounds of ravioli filling down the length of one side of the dough. Place in the center of each “ravioli”. I typically use 1 1/2- 2 Tablespoons of filling per ravioli. You may use less or more depending on your ravioli.
4. Dip your fingertip or a brush into some water. Draw a square of water around the edge of each ravioli.
5. Fold the dough over the filling then press out all the air around the filling. This is so important so the ravioli doesn’t burst as they cook.
6. Use a pastry cutter or ravioli stamp to first cut the ravioli. Next, place each onto a floured baking sheet or cutting board. Sprinkle over some flour.

Check out my simple video series on filling and cutting ravioli for a complete tutorial.

Cooking

Bring a stockpot of water to boil. Once the water is at a rolling boil, add a handful of kosher salt. Gently use a handheld strainer to place the ravioli (a couple at a time) in the boiling water.

Cook for about 4 minutes until the pasta is al dente and to your preference as the filling is already cooked. Use the same handheld strainer to remove a few at a time to a larger strainer to avoid ravioli breakage.