Patrick Oconnell
Cheese ravioli is a delicious, hearty meal, but it's even better when served with a tasty side dish. There are many options to choose from, including salads, vegetables, and bread. A light side salad is a perfect pairing for cheese ravioli, especially if it's an Italian-inspired salad like a classic Caesar salad or a Caprese salad with mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and basil. If you're looking for something more filling, roasted vegetables like carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, or eggplant are a great choice.
For a true Italian experience, serve your cheese ravioli with a side of traditional Italian bread such as rosemary focaccia, crusty garlic bread, or bruschetta. These sides will complement the cheese ravioli perfectly and make your meal even more enjoyable.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Salads | Mixed greens, Panzanella, Strawberry Caprese, Caesar, Italian Fennel, Citrus, Pomegranate, Pears, Walnuts, and Gorgonzola, Prosciutto Melon Arugula, Lemony Asparagus and Potato, King Crab, Arugula, Apple, and Pistachio, Spring, Seasonal Fruit, Crunchy Wedge |
| Breads | Focaccia, Ciabatta, Garlic Bread, Cheesy Garlic Bread, No-Kneed Bread, Sourdough Rolls |
| Vegetable Side Dishes | Crispy Brussels Sprouts, Green Bean Casserole, Pan-fried Asparagus, Spiced Roasted Butternut Squash, Crispy Air Fryer Eggplant, Quick-grilled Cherry Tomatoes, Roasted Vegetables, Charred Broccoli, Pan-fried Mushrooms, Charred Zucchini, Steamed Spinach, Parmesan Green Beans |
| Appetizers | Italian Zucchini Fritters, Italian Stuffed Zucchini, Hot Mascarpone Spinach Artichoke Dip, Bruschetta, Easy Italian Style Nachos, Ratatouille Tartine, Panzanella Stuffed Mozzarella, Italian Oven Roasted Fennel, Charcuterie Board |
| Drinks | Aperol and Grapefruit Cocktail, Coffee Martini, Italian Red Wine, White Wine |
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What You'll Learn
Salads
Mixed Greens Salad
A peppery arugula salad with a simple lemon and olive oil dressing. Add some cucumber and tomatoes or pomegranate for a pop of colour and freshness. This salad is light and tangy, making it a perfect side to balance out the richness of the cheese ravioli.
Panzanella
A classic Italian bread and tomato salad, Panzanella is a great option if you want to use up any leftover bread. It adds bulk and brightness to your meal. To make it, combine stale bread (such as focaccia or any other crusty bread) with fresh tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, capers, basil, and a vinaigrette dressing.
Strawberry Caprese Salad
A springtime twist on the classic Caprese salad, this salad features ripe strawberries along with the traditional mozzarella and basil. The sweet and salty combination is a fun and refreshing pairing for your ravioli. You can also swap in peaches or tomatoes for the strawberries.
Caesar Salad
A classic Caesar salad is always a good option to serve alongside ravioli. The creamy dressing, crisp romaine lettuce, and Parmesan cheese complement the flavours of the pasta. You can also add protein, such as chicken or shrimp, to make it a heartier dish.
Italian Fennel, Citrus, and Pomegranate Salad
This salad is a tasty and refreshing option, especially during the winter months. The combination of fennel, citrus, and pomegranate seeds adds a unique flavour and texture to your meal.
Italian Salad with Pears, Walnuts, and Gorgonzola
This salad combines sweet and savoury flavours with a variety of textures. The pears, walnuts, and gorgonzola cheese create an elegant and satisfying side dish that is perfect for a dinner party or special occasion.
Spring Salad
A spring salad featuring asparagus, cherry tomatoes, sweet peas, radishes, herbs, and goat or feta cheese is a wonderful way to add freshness and colour to your meal. It's a light and healthy contrast to the heartiness of the ravioli.
In addition to these specific salad suggestions, you can also create your own combinations by mixing and matching various ingredients such as arugula, apples, pistachios, berries, goat cheese, and more. These salads will provide a delicious and nutritious complement to your cheese ravioli.
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Breads
Bread is a classic side to serve with ravioli. Here are some of the best bread options to accompany your cheese ravioli:
Focaccia
A no-knead Italian focaccia bread is a popular choice. This soft and fluffy bread has a crusty exterior and is often seasoned with rosemary, flakey salt, or other herbs and spices. It pairs well with garlic or herb oils, or marinara sauce for dipping.
Ciabatta
A fast Italian no-knead ciabatta bread can be ready in just four hours from start to finish. It has a bakery-style crusty exterior and a soft interior.
Cheesy Garlic Bread
Cheesy garlic bread is a show-stopping side that will be a crowd-pleaser. This bread is loaded with fresh garlic and is often served with butter or olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping.
Bruschetta
Bruschetta is a fun side dish or appetizer. It features a crostini topped with melted cheese and a rich marinated mix of ripe tomatoes, fresh basil, and seasonings.
Garlic Bread Baguette
A garlic bread baguette is another delicious option, packed with fresh garlic and Parmesan cheese.
In addition to these specific types of bread, you can also serve simple Italian bread, sourdough rolls, or breadsticks with your cheese ravioli. These breads can be served with butter, olive oil, or balsamic vinegar for dipping, or topped with simple Italian combinations like tomato and basil or Italian sausage and cheese.
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Vegetable side dishes
Roasted Vegetables
Sweet potatoes, bell peppers, and broccoli are a wonderful combination of flavors. You can also throw in some Cipollini onions to the baking sheet for added sweetness.
Blistered Cherry Tomatoes
This simple recipe is a good choice if you're looking for what to eat with ravioli. You can also serve these over ravioli, coating them in a light tomato sauce.
Roasted Carrots and Mushrooms
Roasting carrots and mushrooms gives them sweet flavors while garlic and thyme pair perfectly with the veggies and boost their savory flavors.
Pan-fried Oyster Mushrooms
These mushrooms are crispy, meaty, and buttery. They are sautéed until golden-brown, then tossed in rosemary butter. You will want to dip your ravioli into the butter sauce!
Roasted Asparagus
This side dish is a perfect pairing for al dente ravioli. It is so simple that you will have time to get ambitious and make your own homemade ravioli.
Charred Broccoli or Broccoli Rabe
Toss broccoli florets in olive oil and char them in a skillet. Squeeze over some fresh lemon juice and red pepper flakes and serve.
Spiced Roasted Butternut Squash
This is a perfect fall dish. Top it with goat’s milk cheese or extra Parmesan and toasted walnuts.
Crispy Air Fryer Eggplant
This is an easy side or topping for any veggie pasta dish. This eggplant recipe takes 20 minutes to whip up thanks to your trusty air fryer.
Quick-grilled Cherry Tomatoes
Toss bright red cherry tomatoes in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and seasoning, and flash them under the grill until they pop and blister.
Steamed Spinach
To steam spinach, wash and drain the leaves, then place them in a steamer over boiling water for about 2 minutes until wilted.
Pan-fried Mushrooms
This is an easy 5-minute side dish. Pan-fry sliced (or whole) mushrooms with garlic. Season them well, and serve them with crumbled feta cheese and brown butter sauce over pumpkin ravioli.
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Meat and fish
In Italy, ravioli is traditionally a "primo piatto", a light, starchy course that precedes a "secondo piatto", or a protein-based main course like fish or beef. Here are some meat and fish options to serve as a main course alongside your cheese ravioli:
- Tuscan Chicken – a creamy, tomatoey chicken dish that will elevate your ravioli and act as a sauce and protein all in one.
- Harissa Roasted Chicken – a spicy chicken dish that adds some heat to your ravioli.
- Veal Shanks – a Mediterranean dish that involves slow-cooking veal shanks for about two hours until they are tender. It is served with a topping of gremolata, which consists of garlic, parsley, and lemon.
- Grilled Beef Tri-Tip Steak – a lean steak cut from the sirloin, seasoned and grilled to perfection. You can also make a homemade steak seasoning with rock salt, peppercorns, dried garlic, onion, fennel, and red pepper flakes.
- Beef Ribs – a secret family recipe for the best beef ribs on the BBQ!
- Sage Garlic Honey Lemon Grilled Chicken – a perfect combination of flavours for grilled chicken.
- Seafood with Creamy Sauce – use a creamy seafood pasta sauce as inspiration and swap the angel hair pasta for ravioli.
- Crispy Baked Chicken Parmesan – baked parmesan chicken with an easy garlicky tomato sauce, perfect to pop on top of ravioli.
- Crispy Air Fryer Salmon – a light and healthy portion of salmon cooked with basic seasonings in an air fryer.
These meat and fish options can be served as a main course alongside your cheese ravioli, providing a well-rounded and satisfying meal.
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Drinks
When it comes to drinks to pair with cheese ravioli, wine is a popular choice. A nice red wine goes well with ravioli in a red sauce, complementing the acidity of the tomatoes. Chianti is a particularly good match for ravioli with a marinara sauce.
If you're serving seafood or vegetable ravioli, a dry white wine can be a great choice to stimulate the taste buds. A Chardonnay, for example, would work well.
For a palate cleanser between courses, a dry (brut) sparkling wine is ideal, and this style of wine also pairs well with cheese ravioli.
For a refreshing, citrus-based, bubbly drink, try an Aperol Spritz. This cocktail is made with Aperol (a bitter liqueur), soda water, Prosecco, and orange slices. It's a good choice for a pre-dinner drink as it's lower in alcohol than many other cocktails.
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Frequently asked questions
Some vegetable side dishes that go with cheese ravioli include roasted vegetables, such as broccoli, eggplant, asparagus, and butternut squash.
Some salad side dishes that go with cheese ravioli are the classic Caesar salad, Italian Panzanella salad, and a spring salad with asparagus, cherry tomatoes, sweet peas, radish, and herbs.
Some bread side dishes that go with cheese ravioli are rosemary focaccia, garlic bread, bruschetta, and Parmesan bread bites.
