This 5 minute and 4 ingredient ravioli sauce will make you believe you are eating out in the best of restaurants. Creamy sauce flavoured with sun-dried tomato pesto, garlic and basil comes together in a flash!
If you are looking for an even easier recipe, check out my basic pasta cream sauce.
If you are anything like me, you rely on quick and filling pasta dishes on busy weeknights. They are delicious, always popular with kids and adults alike. They are also economical.
Filled pasta like ravioli and tortellini is even better since they are packed with flavour. Still it’s nice to have a sauce to smother over, especially when it snowing or raining outside.
What kind of sauce goes with ravioli?
It really depends on your personal preference as well as the stuffing inside your ravioli.
For cheese stuffed ravioli like spinach and ricotta, that happens to be my son’s favourite, I go for a simple cream sauce. 3 ingredients and everyone is thrilled with the result.
For meat stuffed ravioli, like bolognese ravioli, I usually make a quick tomato and basil sauce. Even cheaper and healthier.
But what about those times when you can’t decide and you want both. You want it creamy but not bland. You want a nice tomato, basil and garlic sauce but you still want it to be smooth and luxurious!
For those times I developed my favourite ravioli sauce. It combines the best of two worlds.
How do you make 5 minute ravioli sauce?
As you might’ve guessed this sauce combines two classic sauces. Cream sauce and tomato sauce.
But to intensify the flavour even more, instead of using regular diced tomatoes I opted for a few tablespoons of sun-dried tomato pesto.
The beauty of this sauce is in its creamy yet slightly tangy flavour, perked up by a touch of garlic and fresh basil.
What is even more enticing about this sauce is how quick it is to make! No longer than 5 minutes. Just how long you need to cook your fresh ravioli. Winner.
It is, of course suitable for any kind of filled pasta like tortellini, tortelloni, mezzelune, etc.
Suitable substitutions for the 5 minute ravioli sauce recipe
- You can use plain tomato paste or sun-dried tomato paste instead of sun-dried tomato pesto.
- Dried basil can be used in place of fresh basil
- I’ve used light/single cream but you can successfully use heavy cream, creme fraiche or even Greek yogurt. If using creme fraiche or Greek yogurt, make sure to add them over very low heat to prevent the dairy from splitting.
How do I serve my ravioli restaurant style?
You can always dress up your plate a little not only to increase the visual appeal but also to intensify the taste and flavour.
You can do something very simple like grating fresh Parmesan cheese and adding fresh basil to each bowl of ravioli with some black pepper.
Or you can add a sprinkling of herb and garlic breadcrumbs, which elevate this dish to another level. Who doesn’t love breadcrumbs in general but in this case, they add more flavour and texture!
More quick pasta recipes:
- Pasta with smoked salmon
- Creamy pasta with pancetta and peas
- Mediterranean pasta with zucchini
- Broccoli and sun-dried tomato pasta
- Creamy tagliatelle with bacon, mushrooms and truffle oil
- Tagliatelle with pancetta, basil and mozzarella
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp sun-dried tomato pesto I used Scala brand or Delallo in the US
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 3-4 fresh basil leaves sliced
- 125ml/1/2 cup light/single cream
- 125ml/1/2cup reserved pasta water
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- Parmesan cheese to serve
Instructions
- Cook the ravioli according to package directions.
- Start the sauce immediately after you add the ravioli to the boiling water. Add sun-dried tomato pesto and garlic to a frying pan over low heat, stir, then add sliced basil leaves and cream, let it simmer for 1-2 minutes.
- When the ravioli is cooked, drain but reserve 1/2 cup of water. Add the ravioli with half of the water directly to the pan with the sauce. Toss to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the rest of the water only if the sauce is too dry. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
John Friedman says
regarding your 5 min. Ravioli Sauce, what is ‘light cream’? The same as 1/2 and 1/2? a half-fat free cream [shudder if this is possible] Is this an English or European thing? My results using .5+.5 were tasty. I eventually tweaked it adding some pine nuts, some drops of Meyer lemon on serving with a sprinkle of grated Parmesan to guild this lily.
vikalinka says
Hi John, we have single and double cream in the UK. Single cream that the recipe calls for is 18% fat content, which I believe is higher than half and half. I hope this helps! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Debbie M says
OMG this is so easy and delicious. I added some julienned sun dried tomatoes for fun but my son kept raving about how yummy it was!
vikalinka says
I sometimes add extra sun-dried tomatoes as well! So pleased you and your son loved it, Debbie!
Connie says
Recipe appears easy and quick,however I am lactose can I substitute cream with any other ingredient
vikalinka says
Hi Connie, you can use soy single cream. I am not sure where you are located by in the UK soy and oat single creams are available.
Colleen says
I could not find the tomato Pesto could I use basil pesto l and add Sun dried tomatoes to it would that work?
vikalinka says
Ho Colleen, you can use basil pesto but the taste will be quite different.
Terri says
I got my sun-dried tomato pesto from Amazon.
charlotte says
Best pasta I made!!! I skipped the reserved water and used half and half tho. I will make this next time with linguine and shrimp!!
Christine Byrne says
Julia this sauce is devine, thank you for sharing it.
vikalinka says
My pleasure! I am so glad to hear it, Christine!
Bret b says
I made this for my 1 year old grandson and he loved it. Over cheese ravioli
Lainey Hoepner says
I made your recipe exactly how it was written. It had amazing flavor, but was extremely runny. It was more of soup than a sauce. Did I miss something? I really loved dipping my garlic bread in it, the flavor just explodes!!!
vikalinka says
Hi Lainey, the consistency of the sauce depends on the fat content in the cream you used. Single cream in the UK contains 19g of fat. If you used cream with lower fat than that, it will result in a thinner sauce. That being said the sun-dried pesto should help to thicken it out. You can also reduce it a bit. I also want to mention that authentic Italian sauces are lighter than American ones as they add no thickeners like flour or corn starch.
TYANN JACKSON says
Probably not enough parmesan cheese to pasta water ratio. I would use less water and more cheese or vice versa <3.
Christine Hazlett says
OMG, I love pasta a la vodka, but this seemed easy and fast, so I tried it. I am not a huge fan of basil, so I cut it back. I am a huge fan of garlic, but I wanted to stay truer to the original; I am very glad that I followed the directions on that. Meanwhile, I read what some folks said about the consistency and opted to omit the pasta water. What I did do was add a half cup of Chardonnay while cooking the pesto and garlic… OMG! This is fabulous! So easy and extraordinarily delicious!, Thank you, V!
Steffanie says
I have been disappointed in some cream sauce recipes, but WOW, this was delicious! I am definitely planning on making this for my family when they come to visit!
vikalinka says
Thrilled to hear that, Steffanie. This sauce is one of my go to as well for a variety of pasta dishes.
Crissy says
This was delicious and so easy! I have an artichoke pesto that would work great here too! Such a fast dinner, definitely will make again! Thanks for the recipe!
vikalinka says
Thank you for trying our this recipe, Crissy and an artichoke pesto sounds like it could be an amazing option as well!
Deb says
An this be frozen successfully after adding cooked ravioli to the sauce
vikalinka says
Theoretically yes but not without sacrifice to the taste, Deb. I am very fussy about my pasta. It has to be al dente for me and I find it impossible to maintain after freezing and defrosting it. If you do decide to freeze it, I would put it in individual portions and also be prepared to add some water to the sauce when you are bring it back to life, otherwise it will be too stodgy.
TODD says
Can you pre-make and freeze the sauce to add to fresh pasta at a later date?
vikalinka says
Hi Todd, since it literally takes 5 minutes to make this sauce and I mean this without an exaggeration, it seems a bit counterproductive. It will take you longer to defrost it and make it the right consistency again than making it from scratch. No sauces freeze brilliantly as they need to be slowly reheated in a pan, not microwave to preserve the texture. In my opinion, it makes sense to freeze a labour intensive sauce but not this one. You can easily half the recipe if this one makes too much.
TODD says
Thanks, I’m just preparing for a relatively big party and was keen to do as much prior as possible. I’ll probably make this earlier in the day and then gently reheat. Thanks again.
vikalinka says
Sounds like a great idea, Todd. I love being able to relax when people arrive instead of running around!
PJ says
This looks devine, can’t wait to try it!
I love adding a dollop of cream sauce ( such as Alfredo) on top of pasta w/red sauce…the combo is wonderful! This sounds like a great combo!
I already call it a winner!
I need to look for the tomato pesto, never noticed it in my store!
vikalinka says
Let me know how you like it!
Maria says
What size package of ravioli did you use?
vikalinka says
Hi Maria, this recipe is for the sauce that serves 4 and usually covers about a pound of any pasta.
Patricia says
Thank you for asking, I w curious about this as well. I can’t wait to try this.
Susan Diebold says
Would it work with mushroom ravioli? It sounds so good but I’m used to Marsala cream sauce.
vikalinka says
I would say this ravioli sauce is pretty versatile and goes with almost any filling, Susan. Try it and see if you like it, the only way to find out.
Christine says
This was so good and so easy! Will definitely be on rotation now 🙂
vikalinka says
So happy to hear that, Christine! It’s on a regular rotation at our house! A quick dinner that tastes amazing.
Kat says
I always try to have ravioli on hand whether in the fridge or freezer for quick meals, mostly for my kids. But I never thought of adding a sauce. I so need to try this next time. I mean 5 minutes and all those flavors?! Yum!
Dee says
I love the use of sundried tomato pesto in this ravioli sauce. Such an easy and delicious recipe!
NT says
Darling, you bring me back to Italy with your food. I love the creamy ravioli sauce, my mouth is watering right now! I am so excited to pair this sauce with our favorite local lobster ravioli we get at the store.
Ashlee Glanville says
Julia,
I have no words! Not only was this dish super easy to make it is the absolute best pasta dish I’ve ever made! That sauce is to die for! And then adding cheese ravioli, I’m truly in awe! Thank you for such an amazing recipe that I’ll more than likely be making every week xx
vikalinka says
So glad you thought so, Ashlee!
Michelle says
Delicious! I bought the ravioli at Venda Ravioli. Very easy to make and oh so good! Thanks for sharing!
vikalinka says
I am so happy to hear that, Michelle! Thank you for your lovely feedback.