Toasted Ravioli is a delicious appetizer or quick finger food dinner. Done in less than 20 minutes, this recipe is quick and easy to make! Usually deep fried, this guilt free recipe is crispy and delicious! Dip them in warm marinara sauce and enjoy! Includes step by step directions for the oven, air fryer, or deep fried raviolis.
Cheese or sausage ravioli toasted crispy and coated in breadcrumbs, and then dipped in marinara sauce is a divine treat. It’s crispy and crunchy, super savory and cheesy, hot and fresh. That favorite appetizer, in a lighter, healthier recipe!
These baked raviolis are perfect for parties (these are a great Super Bowl appetizer) because they’re the perfect size. Just grab, dip, and pop in your mouth! I usually bake them in batches because they seem to go so fast and they are best when hot and fresh.
It’s everything you could want in an appetizer without having to pull out the deep fryer!
What You Will Need
Here is an overview of the ingredients you will need to make the stuffed pasta shells, with notes below on exact ingredients and appropriate substitutions.
Ravioli – Use fresh rather than frozen ravioli. Cheese filled ravioli is the most popular flavor, but mushroom, sausage, and lobster varieties are all delicious.
Breadcrumbs -Italian breadcrumbs are the easiest or you can add ¼ teaspoon each basil, oregano, and parsley to plain breadcrumbs as an easy to substitute with a little more flavor.
Marinara – Use any marinara or tomato sauce you prefer. I admit that I am a bit partial to a sweet spaghetti sauce like Ragu Garden Combination, but the marinara dip is up to you.
Parmesan Cheese – Store bought, finely grated like this is best since you will coat the ravioli in the breadcrumbs and cheese.
Oil or Cooking Spray – To get a really crispy outside, you will need a cooking spray, any flavor that you prefer. I list several cooking methods below (baked, air fried, and deep fried). For a deep fryer, you will need vegetable oil rather than cooking spray. You can use a store-bought cooking spray, or you can use a reusable oil mister like this one.
Spices- I keep it simple with just garlic powder and cheese since the marinara is flavorful and the breadcrumbs have Italian seasonings in them.
How to Make Toasted Ravioli
Toasted raviolis are really easy to make in a variety of methods, so we are going with the choose you own adventure style! You can bake them, air fry them, or deep fry them like restaurants.
In the recipe card at the bottom, I have included the oven baked method because it is the easiest, cleanest, and healthiest method that I usually do. However, the other methods are included in the notes and will print with the recipe card too.
For all methods, first, you will want to:
Make an assembly line: setup whisked egg mixture and breadcrumb mixture next to each other. Turn on the oven or cooking method.
Prepare the ravioli: Then boil the ravioli for 2-3 minutes, drain, and then set them aside to allow the excess water to evaporate for a few minutes.
Oven Baked Method
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Place wire rack on top of rimmed baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Place ravioli on greased wire rack. Give at least 1-inch space between each ravioli for even browning. Spray tops of ravioli with cooking spray.
- Bake 10-12 minutes or until tops are golden brown and crisp — check about 6 minutes in. If raviolis are browning too quickly, cover with foil.
- Sprinkle extra parmesan cheese on top if desired. Serve immediately with warmed marinara sauce.
Air Fryer Method
- Fill the basket of your air fryer with a single layer of ravioli.
- You do not have to use a cooking spray, but I find that all air fryer recipes work best with a slight coating of spray oil after you put them in.
- Set to 350 degrees and 9-11 minutes.
- Remove from fryer and serve hot with a sprinkle of extra parmesan cheese on top. Serve immediately with warmed marinara sauce.
Deep Fried Ravioli Method
The original deep-fried ravioli, St. Louis style! I tested and preferred these to be boiled first for 2-3 minutes, but I have seen recipes that skip that step.
- Place the breaded ravioli in the freezer for about 30 minutes or until firm. Meanwhile, fill a deep pot with 2 inches of oil and heat to 350 degrees F.
- Working in batches, place several raviolis in the oil but you don’t want them to stick together. Cook for 4-5 minutes, flipping halfway, until golden.
- Remove from the oil and place on a paper towel lined plate or pan. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve warm with marinara sauce for dipping.
Recipe Tips from Our Kitchen
- The cooking spray or oil is what gives these raviolis their golden appearance. They will taste fine if they don’t brown, but you can try adding a bit more spray to get them to brown to a golden color.
- For the baking and air fryer methods, its best to setup your assembly line while the water is boiling.
- The raviolis are best served right out of the oven, hot and fresh.
- These toasted raviolis are great prepared ahead of time if you’re planning to serve them at a party. Boil the raviolis to package directions and bake them just before serving.
- Don’t skimp on the water for a boiling pasta pot. Too little water causes pasta to stick and changes the temperature when the pasta is added so they may not cook evenly.
- If you don’t want to wait for a whole pot to boil, you can boil a smaller bowl in the microwave in a few minutes. Drop the raviolis in the hot water for a few minutes before battering.
- Since these need to be hot and fresh, I don’t recommend storing them for later or freezing after baking.
More Great Appetizer Recipes
- Buffalo Chicken Dip (so good!)
- Supreme Chicken Nachos
- Corn and Black Bean Salsa
- Mexican Queso Blanco Dip
- Crowd Pleasing Super Bowl Snacks
Frequently asked questions
The breadcrumbs have a lovely Italian flavor to them, but a good dipping sauce really completes this recipe. Marinara sauce is the usual go-to for serving with these, but you have other options such as Garlic Alfredo or the ever-popular ranch would be a good alternative.
Toasted Ravioli is just like regular ravioli, but with a crunchy savory breadcrumb coating and traditionally deep fried, although it can be baked. This tasty app was invented in St. Louis, at The Hill Restaurant.
I’ve used and prefer the pre-made raviolis that you can find in the refrigerated section of your local grocery store. You can use the frozen raviolis if you thaw them out first so that the breading adheres and reduce moisture.
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Toasted Ravioli
Ingredients
- 1 lb Fresh Ravioli not frozen
- 2 Large Eggs
- 2 tablespoon Milk
- 1 cup Italian Breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup Grated Parmesan
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- Cooking spray
- 1 cup Marinara
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Fill a dutch oven or large sauce pan about ⅔ of the way with water. Bring to a boil.
- Place wire rack on top of rimmed baking sheet and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a bowl, hand-whisk the eggs and milk until fully incorporated.
- In another bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, parmesan, garlic powder, and salt. Stir to combine well.
- Add the raviolis to the boiling water. Allow to boil about 2-3 minutes. Set aside on a plate in a single layer so that the raviolis do not touch. Allow excess water to evaporate for a few minutes.
- Working one ravioli at a time, coat ravioli with egg mixture. Let excess drip off and coat generously with breadcrumb mixture. Press crumb mixture to adhere on both sides of ravioli. Repeat step if ravioli is not fully coated.
- Place ravioli on greased wire rack. Give at least 1-inch space between each ravioli for even browning. Spray tops of ravioli with cooking spray.
- Bake 10-12 minutes or until tops are golden brown and crisp — check about 6 minutes in. If raviolis are browning too quickly, cover with foil. The bake time will depend on the size of your ravioli.
- Sprinkle extra parmesan cheese on top if desired. Serve immediately with warmed marinara sauce.
Notes
- Fill the basket of your air fryer with a single layer of ravioli.
- You do not have to use a cooking spray, but I find that all air fryer recipes work best with a slight coating of spray oil after you put them in.
- Set to 350 degrees and 9-11 minutes.
- Remove from fryer and serve hot with a sprinkle of extra parmesan cheese on top. Serve immediately with warmed marinara sauce.
- Place the breaded ravioli in the freezer for about 30 minutes or until firm. Meanwhile, fill a deep pot with 2 inches of oil and heat to 350 degrees F.
- Working in batches, place several ravioli in the oil but you don’t want them to stick together. Cook for 4-5 minutes, flipping halfway, until golden.
- Remove from the oil and place on a paper towel lined plate or pan. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve warm with marinara sauce for dipping.
Roxanne says
These look SO delicious!
Chinazor says
These ravoli are so evenly baked. Mine gets brown too quickly. Thanks for the foil suggestion.