One Pot Ravioli in a Creamy Tomato Beef Sauce

4.89 from 9 votes

One Pot Ravioli in a Creamy Tomato Beef Sauce

A one-pot, rich. tomato based cream sauce simmered to creamy perfection, cooked with ravioli inside the sauce for extra richness and flavour. Topped with crunchy grilled cheese croutons, there were no complaints happening around the dinner table over here.

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Dinner, Main, Pasta

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Beef Sauce, one pot, One Pot Ravioli in Creamy Tomato Beef Sauce, Ravioli

Servings:

Author: Karina Carrel

Ingredients

1 medium brown onion diced
4 cloves garlic crushed
1 pound extra lean ground beef
15 ounce can condensed tomato soup/crushed tomatoes
2 cups of water + 2 teaspoons vegetable stock powder or 2 cups stock of choice
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
1/2 teaspoon crushed red chilli/pepper flakes
1 tablespoon garlic and herb tomato paste or plain
2 pinches salt and ground black pepper to taste
12 ounce package refrigerated beef ravioli
1 tub extra light Philly cream for cooking (or any cream of your choice)
1/2 cup freshly grated mozzarella cheese
2 grilled cheese sandwiches , crusts removed and cut into bite sized cubes/croutons

US - Metric

Instructions

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat with a little cooking oil spray. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until onion has softened and garlic is fragrant. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, while breaking up any large pieces with the tip of your wooden spoon.
Pour in the tomato soup (or crushed tomatoes), water, stock powder (or stock), sugar, parsley, red chilli/pepper flakes and tomato paste; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Bring to a boil and stir in ravioli. Reduce heat and simmer until ravioli is soft and cooked through.
While ravioli is simmering, prepare grilled cheese sandwiches; fry them in a nonstick pan until browned on both sides and cheese has melted. Remove from heat; allow to cool slightly; cut off crusts; and cut into bite sized cube/crouton pieces.
Return to the ravioli; stir in cream and mozzarella cheese until well combined, cheese has melted and heated through the sauce.
Serve immediately, garnished with the grilled cheese croutons and (extra) fresh parsley.

Notes

I keep any leftover ravioli in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. The pasta continues to absorb liquid while it sits in the cold sauce, so it will be much thicker the next day.

Reheating: When I warm up portions, I prefer using a small pan on the stove over low heat. Since the sauce thickens up overnight, I stir in a tablespoon or two of water or beef stock to loosen it back up. You can use a microwave, but heat it in short bursts and stir often so the cheese does not separate and get greasy.
Freezing: I do not recommend freezing the finished dish. Heavy cream splits in the freezer, and fully cooked ravioli turns to mush when it thaws.
Make Ahead: If you want to prep this in advance, make the tomato beef base, let it cool completely, and freeze it. When you need a fast dinner, thaw the base in a pot on the stove, bring it to a boil, and drop in the fresh ravioli and cream just like the regular instructions.

Happy cooking! Xx

Keep your leftover grilled cheese croutons in a dry zip-top bag on the counter, not in the fridge with the pasta. The cold moisture turns the toasted bread soggy. Toss them in a hot, dry pan for 60 seconds to get the crunch back before you serve your leftovers.

Nutrition