How do you keep ravioli from sticking?

Question

When I make homemade ravioli, the ravioli stick to each other or the pan I place them in after I assemble them and before I cook them. They always come out as a big lump. I've read that cornmeal on wax paper works, is this true? Does anyone have any other suggestions?
Thanks.

Answer 1

Yes, corn meal is a good solution
Or flour the surface well, but I like the cornmeal idea better.
You could try greasing waxed paper or plastic wrap - that might work.

Answer 2

I come from a long line of Italian cooks. I too ran into the same problem one time. Trust me, you only make this mistake once. This is what you need to do. After you make your ravioli place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet with a fine dusting of flour. Place the separated ravioli (if you are using a form) on the flour dusted parchment paper and place the parchment lined cookie sheet in the freezer until the ravioli are completely hardened. Now you can safely pack them in a plastic freezer bag without fear of them sticking together. If you do find one or two are stuck together when you remove them from the plastic bag to cook them, by all means do not pull them apart. Place them in your salted boiling water and they will come apart on their own. You even come across this in commercially prepared raviolis. Good luck.

Answer 3

I make 100 ravioli to split between Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I make them, I lay them out on a clean white towel to dry for a bit. After that, I place them in cake pans for freezing with wax paper between each layer to keep them from sticking to each other. When you get ready to cook them, cook them frozen (I stuff them with already-cooked meat) and drizzle olive oil in the boiling water. I've never had them stick together doing this. Now you've made me hungry.

Answer 4

They stick, yes, because of moisture, does your recipe say to refidgerate for any lenght of time? This allows for a drying time that also lets the glutins in the dough to set up (that's the lump). If you can dry them a bit before you cook them it will help, also use some Olive oil on them and in the water when you finish cook them. In the future you may want to make your dough a little more on the dry side. Let it rest and few times

Answer 5

Never heard the cornmeal....but also don't forget Pam - non stick cooking spray for the pan. But any kind of oil in the water works too.

Answer 6

Cover the cookie sheet or pan that you are going to rest them on with cornmeal. Then place the ravioli in one layer only on pan. Do not stack them.

Answer 7

Why are there so many "answers" that are about how to keep pasta from sticking when you cook it?

The answers to the actual question, about how to keep homemade ravioli from sticking together after you make them but prior to cooking, are:

1) dust them with corn meal or other flour;
and/or
2) keep them separate with wax paper and then freeze them, and then you can put them in boiling water to cook them straight from frozen.

Answer 8

Dust them with corn starch. Oil in the water does nothing becasue the oil just floats at the top. A little kosher salt in the water helps. You can drizzle olive oil on them when they're done but that can prevent your sauce from coating the pasta.

Answer 9

Add a little bit of olive oil, after cooking so they won't stick.

Answer 10

or you can add the tablespoon of olive oil to the boiling water.
Also don't put the ravioli (or any pasta) in until the water is boiling.
Then gently put it in and gently stir.