Chopped Cheese Ravioli
The classic NYC bodega sandwich, chopped cheese, stuffed into a ravioli and served in a creamy alfredo sauce! Chopped cheese is one of my favorite sandwiches, and it works great as a ravioli filling! You might just think, it’s ground beef and cheese in a ravioli, why is it different? Well, the specific flavors that make it chopped cheese aren’t as obvious. One is American cheese. It melts and crates a creamy sauce. The others are sazon, adobo, and garlic powder. They combine and create that tasty chopped cheese magic!
The inspiration behind this recipe
I was recently looking at my cheeseburger steamed bun recipe and was thinking about other burger adjacent ideas I could put in a dumpling. You may also notice that these ravioli look a little funny. I have been obsessed with the idea of doing a seamless ravioli, and this chopped cheese filling was the perfect texture to try. They came out good, but some parts were too thick with overlapping dough. My seamless ravioli concept still needs a little work but the filling, sauce, and pasta combination did not – it was completely amazing!
Make the chopped cheese mixture
I like using a cast iron griddle or skillet for this. Add the meat, season it, then add the onions. Keep chopping it up in the pan until it is all fully cooked, chopped, and browned.
Next add the seasonings. Adobo, garlic powder, and sazon. Then toss it to coat and transfer to a bowl.
Finally, stir in some worcestershire, red wine vinegar, mayo, ketchup, and american cheese. Chop this up more so that the chunks of cheese get broken up and mixed evenly.
Make the pasta
I actually made the pasta dough first. Then after you make the filling, start rolling it out. I went a little thicken than I usually do on this pasta, going to the 4th thinnest setting on the roller.
Make the chopped cheese ravioli
I mentioned that the chopped cheese filling was conducive to my plan for making a seamless ravioli. This is because after it cooled it was pretty thick and solid! The fat and cheese cooled hard, but would soften when it cooked again.
Form a puck out of the filling, then wrap the pasta around it. You could also do this more like a traditional ravioli! The key to the seamless ravioli is making the pasta thick on one side, but using your fingers to pinch it thinner at the spots where it will overlap. then use your fingers to smooth out any seams so it looks like one smooth ball of pasta!
Make the alfredo sauce
Garlic, butter, and oil in the pan first, then some flour. Add in the cream and let it boil to thicken, then add in parmesan cheese. Finally once the cheese is melted in the sauce, add some oregano, black pepper, and pepper flakes.
And now I am going to do something that might be highly controversial. Add ketchup and mayo to the cream sauce! To keep with the theme of chopped cheese, I wanted the sauce for these ravioli to have the flavors as well as the filling. A hint of condiments in the sauce went a long way!
Serve the chopped cheese ravioli
Get the chopped cheese ravioli on the plate with plenty of sauce! Then top with sesame seed, and chopped pickles and tomatoes. I served three ravioli per person.
These were so flavorful! The filling ended up being so soft compared to how hard it was when it was cold. The oils were exploding out when you cut into it. The American cheese melted into a perfect sauce for inside the ravioli.
So good!
Twists on chopped cheese ravioli
If you want to put chopped cheese into a regular ravioli shape, go ahead! It doesn’t have to be my weird seamless method. If you have never made ravioli, this is a great guide!
If you want more fun ravioli ideas, check out my everything bagel ravioli, or this Cincinnati chili ravioli!
Chopped Cheese Ravioli
Equipment
Ingredients
Pasta
- 3 cups flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs
Filling
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small onion sliced thin
- 1 tablspoon adobo seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sazon seasoning
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons mayo
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 6 ounces yellow American cheese slices chopped
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon flour
- 2 cups light cream
- 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- oregano, red pepper flakes, black pepper
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoon mustard
- 2 tablespoons mayo
Garnish
- toasted sesame seeds
- chopped tomato
- chopped pickles
Instructions
Make the pasta
- Put the flour in a large bowl and season with salt. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the flour. Bring the mixture together at first with a spoon and then with your hands. Knead 3 minutes until smooth. Wrap tightly in plastic and set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
Make the filling
- Preheat a pan or cast iron griddle with some oil and add the meat. Season with salt. USe a spatula to chop up the meat and spread it out. Add the onions on top and add a little more salt.
- Continue to cook and chop until the onions are chopped up, and the meat is browned on all sides. Season with adobo, garlic powder, and sazon. Remove from heat.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then stir in the vinegar, worcestershire, mayo, and ketchup. Stir in the cheese, and chop it up with a wooden spoon, stirring and chopping until the cheese is in smaller pieces and some has slightly melted into the sauce. Allow to cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before using.
Stuff the pasta
- Use a pasta maker to roll out the dough. If you have never done this, refer to the link I posted above the recipe. Roll it out to the 4th thinnest setting on the pasta roller.
- Cut the pasta sheets into squares. Squeeze about 1/4 cup of the filling into a tight patty in your palm. Place the filling onto the pasta square. Wrap the pasta around the filling, using your fingers to make the edges of the pasta thinner where they might overlap. If too much pasta overlaps it will be hard and chewy in the final dish.
- Use water to seal the pasta shut, and use your fingers to smooth out some of the seams and edges. Dust with flour and repeat to make 12 large ravioli, 3 per person.
Make the sauce
- Add the butter and oil to a hot pan and add in the garlic. Stir and cook 3 minutes.
- Stir in the flour and stir until there are no clumps. Whisk in the cream.
- Bring to a simmer and remove from heat.
- Stir in the cheese, then the spices. Next stir in the mayo, mustard, and ketchup. Turn heat back on, as low as possible.
Bring it together
- Bring a salted pot of water to a simmer. Add in the ravioli. Stir occasionally and Cook about 5 minutes until they float in the water.
- Add the pasta to the sauce, and toss gently in the pan to coat fully.
- Serve 3 on each plate with plenty of extra sauce. Top with the sesame seeds, pickles, and tomatoes.