Why is it that ordering ravioli in a restaurant can make you feel like a kid again? Is it just me? And why is it that the idea of making homemade ravioli (especially beef ravioli) feels like a challenge only a real Italian chef can handle?
No worries! Making ravioli for Christmas is a family activity and watching my grandma and her sisters make ravioli when I was younger is a memory I’ll have forever.
Making meat ravioli at home is not only a simple process and it doesn’t take all day either! Follow these easy tips and you could be scarfing down homemade meat ravioli in about an hour.
➠ If you’re not into meat ravioli but looove vegetable or cheese ravioli, you might really like this ricotta ravioli filling or this yummy roasted butternut squash ravioli filling. And don’t forget the ravioli dough!
This post contains links to affiliate websites including Amazon. I make a small commission for any purchases made using these links. Thank you!
Let’s demystify homemade beef ravioli…what’s in it?
Here’s what you need to make an amazing classic meat ravioli filling that’s layered with lots of flavor.
Beef ravioli filling ingredients
Basics
- Ground beef. I prefer 80-85% for the most flavor.
- Ground pork.
- Egg. My grandma Josie’s recipe (or more likely, her sister, Aunt Rosie’s recipe) had egg whites in it and it makes the filling so light!
- Greens like Swiss chard or spinach (or a combo of both!)
Flavor makers
- White wine. A little bit will do it and adds the right amount of acid and flavor!
- Cheese. Pecorino Romano is the cheese of choice here. Grated fresh. Always
- Garlic. Gram used powdered garlic believe it or not but you can use fresh garlic for sure especially if your mincing the meat.
Grandma’s Secret Ravioli Tip
Folding whipped egg whites into the filling binds the meat filling while making it light at the same time!
Techniques to make really good beef ravioli filling
The goal is to make a beef ravioli with a filling that is moist, rich, light and stays inside when you boil it.
Easy, right? YESSS!
There are a couple of schools of thoughts on making meat ravioli filling.
- Method #1. You can cook all the ingredients first, then blend into a smooth tight paste in a food processor before filling the ravioli.
- Method #2. You blend everything together first (in a bowl), fill the ravioli and then the filling cooks while the pasta cooks.
For this meat ravioli filling recipe, we’ll use Method #1.
Equipment Needed
For the meat filling
Two options:
- Food processor. You can use a food processor fitted with a smaller bowl (like 4-6 cups) (but not as small as the mini prep processors). The one shown here is the Magimix 14 cup food processor and it comes with 3 different sized bowls.
- If you don’t have a food processor, you’re going to want to use a really sharp knife and a cutting board to mince the meat as finely as possible.
For the ravioli dough
The equipment we’re using to make meat ravioli is:
- a stand mixer. My tried and true is the KitchenAid Pro-Line 7 qt. Stand Mixer.
- a pasta machine or pasta roller attachment for your mixern (shown above). I use the pasta attachment for the KitchenAid mixer.
GIFT IDEA: Either of those pasta accessories make a beautiful gift for the avid pasta maker (or baker) in your life.
To cook the ravioli
How to make Italian beef ravioli
Alrighty…let’s get to handcrafting some ravioli!
- In a large skillet, saute onion in a combination of butter and olive oil. Add in garlic and saute for about 30 seconds (far left).
- Add in ground meats and brown until completely cooked, about 8 minutes or so (middle). Add in a handful of greens and cook down for a couple of minutes.
- Process the beef ravioli filling in a food processor until crumbly, about 15 pulses. Add in the slices of bread/breadcrumbs, Romano cheese, and seasoning.
- Gently fold in egg whites and pulse 2 times.
Don’t have a food processor?
Two tips:
- Finely mince the meat as you brown it by using a flat wooden paddle or edge of a wooden spoon.
- Use breadcrumbs as opposed to slices of white bread so you get a filling with a finer texture.
How to fill meat ravioli so it doesn’t burst
- Use a ravioli stamp to space out where the filling will go along the strip of dough
- Place a teaspoon of dough in the center of each ravioli. You don’t want too much filling so the ravioli doesn’t burst.
- Seal around each ravioli with water using a brush (or a clean finger) to help insure that the ravioli won’t split.
- Fold over the dough to cover the filling and press around the filling to seal off any air pockets.
- Sealing. Whether you use a ravioli stamp or a ravioli mold (a tool that lets you make, seal and cut 12 ravioli at a time), make sure to press firmly to seal the meat ravioli.
Ravioli Cooking Tips
- Add ravioli to boiling water that has been generously seasoned with kosher salt.
- Once the ravioli floats to the top again a second time, cook it in bubbling water for 3-5 minutes.
- Remove the ravioli carefully with a chinese spider or large slotted spoon to a warmed bowl.
- Don’t pour ravioli into a strainer as you risk the ravioli breaking.
Ravioli dough options
Make your own easy ravioli dough.
- This ravioli dough recipe is a tried and true dough that isn’t too thick and allows the meat filling to shine through.
- Or make a batch of this homemade pasta dough recipe (the main difference between the two is there is semolina flour along with “00” flour (pasta/pizza flour) in the homemade pasta dough recipe.
NOTE: you can use store-bought pasta dough to make ravioli.
How long does it take to boil fresh ravioli?
3-5 minutes! Yup that’s it!
-Josie + Nina
Simple sauces for beef ravioli
Some of the best sauces for beef ravioli are the simplest:
Serving, Storage and Freezing
Make ravioli the same day you plan to cook it. Lay the ravioli on a floured baking sheet and refrigerated covered with plastic wrap for a few hours
Freeze ravioli. Lay the ravioli on a floured baking sheet in a single layer and freeze until firm. Transfer to a freezer safe plastic bag. Can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Thaw. No need to thaw before cooking!
Made this recipe?
I’d love it if you’d share your review and leave a star rating and comment!
How to Make Italian Beef Ravioli, Step by Step
Equipment
- food processor I use the Magimix 14 cup processor
- ravioli mold optional
Ingredients
For Filling
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 Tablespoons butter
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- ½ cup white wine
- ¼ lb ground beef, 80-85%
- ¼ lb ground pork
- 4 egg whites, beaten stiff
- 1 cup fresh baby spinach leaves
- 1 cup soft breadcrumbs, equal to 2 slices soft white bread
- ½ cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
For ravioli dough
- 4 cups flour
- 1 ½ cup water, start with 1 ¼ cup
- 1 egg
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
For the Ravioli Filling
- Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Saute chopped onion until translucent about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds or until you can smell it.1 Tablespoon olive oil, 1 Tablespoons butter, 1 cup chopped onion, 2 cloves garlic
- Deglaze the pan with the white wine, stirring up any brown bits at the bottom. Cook for 2 minutes.½ cup white wine
- Brown ground beef and pork until cooked approximately 8 minutes.¼ lb ground beef, ¼ lb ground pork
- Sprinkle in a big handful of spinach (about 1 cup).1 cup fresh baby spinach leaves
- Blend the meat mix in a food processor and then add the breadcrumbs (or slices of soft white bread). Add romano cheese,and garlic salt, kosher salt and nutmeg.1 cup soft breadcrumbs, ½ cup Pecorino Romano cheese, 1 teaspoon garlic salt, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Gently fold in egg whites until fully incorporated.4 egg whites
Mixing and assembling ravioli dough
- Pour the flour tossed with the salt on a wooden cutting board or clean countertop and make a well in the middle. Add the whole eggs along with the egg yolks to the center. Use a fork to gently mix the eggs pulling in flour a little at a time. Work your way around the middle pulling flour in until most of the flour is incorporated. Start by adding ¼ cup of water to the flour. Now add a little more flour. Keep adding water and flour until a ball is made. It’s ok if you don’t use all the flour and water.4 cups flour, 1 ½ cup water, 1 egg, 2 egg yolks, 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Using either a hand crank pasta machine or a mixer attachment, roll out pasta dough until you get to setting #5 or 6. For more information on rolling the dough and using the book method as described, follow my Homemade Ravioli Dough recipe.
Fill and Roll the Ravioli
- Lay the length of dough onto a floured surface (clean table, board or countertop).Find the center of the long side of the dough. You’ll fill one half and use the other half to cover the filled ravioli. Lightly mark the dough using the ravioli stamp (loooove this one especially). Another option: lay the short side of a sheet of ravioli dough at the top of a ravioli mold and let the rest hang over the bottom, ensuring that the remaining dough is long enough to cover the mold.This will help you to know where to place the filling.
- Using a small spoon, place up to 1 tablespoon of the ravioli filling in the center of each ravioli "stamp". Use a pastry brush to brush water around the outside edge of each ravioli. Pull the half of the dough over the filled side. Use two fingers to pat the dough firmly and gently around the filling sealing the ravioli as you go, pressing the air pockets out at the same time. Don't skip this step to avoid the ravioli from bursting open.
Cook meat ravioli
- Remove prepped ravioli to a floured baking sheet or clean surface. Cover with a dish towel and refrigerate if cooking later in the day. Add the ravioli to lightly boiling, heavily salted water (I use kosher salt). The ravioli might float immediately and then will sink down. Cook the ravioli for 3-5 minutes after the ravioli floats a second time. Test for doneness to your preference.
Notes
Make ravioli dough the same day you plan to use it. Sprinkle flour over ravioli dough and wrap in plastic. Store the whole thing in a plastic bag until ready to use. Freeze. Freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet until frozen solid. Remove to a freezer safe bag or container. Freeze up to 3 months. Two great ravioli pasta sauces are my homemade Italian red sauce or three ingredient tomato sauce.
First of all these were absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe and had almost half the dough left. I did not roll them out on #2. I thought that was too thick for my taste. I used #5 and a ravioli mold. They did not break while cooking and came out perfect. I will make sheets for lasagna with the leftover dough.
Also this took me several hours not an hour. But it was so worth it!
Hi Maryanne! After all this time, I didn’t realize I had a typo in this beef filling recipe card for the dough setting! You are correct that setting #2 would be far too thick. The linked ravioli dough recipe calls for rolling the dough to setting #6. I so appreciate your letting me know and apologize for the confusion. I am so glad that you loved the recipe though! Thank you!
Is this using metric or US cup sizes?
Hi James! It is in US cup sizes but I have the option there when you go to print the recipe for you to select to convert to metric if that’s your preference. Let me know if you have any questions about making that happen! Thank you!
I made this for dinner this weekend and my family was blown away. I can’t believe I made homemade ravioli DOUGH. This was a huge success. Thank you so much.
Susie! Thank YOU so much! So happy to hear you’re a homemade ravioli dough convert 😊 Now that you’ve mastered beef ravioli, making the cheese or butternut squash ravioli recipes will be a breeze!
I’m planning on making this recipe-it looks great. You have -makes 4 servings. How many ravioli is that per serving, approx?
Hi Allan and thanks for the question! It really depends on the size of your ravioli stamp/mold or if you’re cutting them by hand as well as how thin you roll your dough. I can usually get about 40-50 ravioli out of a batch of dough which I know is a broad range. Hope you enjoy them!
Hi…I’m planning to try your meat Ravioli recipe. Sounds delicious!! Question for you: ravioli recipes always say to cook to till they float -typically 3-5 minutes. However, my ravioli floats almost immediately, so there’s no way they’re cooked. I usually find it takes about 9 minutes for the pasta to be cooked to my liking (a nice chew). I roll the dough to a 6 on my Kitchenaid attachment, and I use 00 flour. So…not sure why my pasta takes so much longer to cook than what recipes suggest. Advice??
Hi Janice! And I totally agree cooking times can be confusing when it comes to filled pastas. I do mention in the post that once the ravioli floats to the top the second time to cook it for 3-5 minutes. I have added that to the recipe card – thank you for asking as it helps everyone and I’m always so eager to get the posts up, I sometimes miss things 😊. If the ravioli is homemade, excess air in the pocket holding the filling will lead to more float so as much as you can press out that air the better. Side note: I also think that everyone has different definitions of “al dente”. I was taught you should see a little white center of the pasta when you bite it for a true al dente but that is usually too firm for my hubby so we adjust. Hope that helps and please reach out anytime! And let me know how the filling works out for you!!
Thank you for replying so quickly. My husband would agree with yours…so I do as you do, “adjust”. I do my utmost to ensure no air pockets remain; so I’m at a loss to explain as to why my ravioli float and stay afloat. Guess it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. I’ll just cook till we deem ready. Lol. I will definitely try your filling recipe, and report back. In the meantime, one more question if I may: do you re-roll scraps of dough? I haven’t been, in case they produce a tough ravioli, but I hate the waste.
Such a great question Janice! Yes definitely always re-roll the scraps – my grandma Nina would call things like that “dear” meaning expensive and both my grandmas used every bit of everything. Use ’em up until you’re all done…I’d even just boil the pasta if you run out of filing..cut them into little noodles 😊 Enjoy!
Hi!!! I have FINALLY tried your recipe. And all I can say is: Oh. My. God. I had previously tried a different meat filling, which I found tasty but “gritty”. Your recipe is so much tastier and so much lighter. Best recipe ever. The only problem I had (through no fault of your own) is that the filling was a little on the “loose” side once I folded in the egg whites. Next time, I’ll make the filling a few hours before I’m ready to fill my ravioli, to give it time to firm up a little. This is definitely a make-again recipe!! Thank you for sharing, Lori.
Hi Janice! So happy you liked it! Yes letting it sit in the fridge for a few minutes is a great solution – thanks again for trying the ravioli filling😊