This easy ravioli sauce is so easy to make with refrigerated or frozen ravioli. It has a thick and flavorful cream sauce with a hint of tomato flavor, simple seasonings, and fresh or canned diced tomatoes. Your family will love this 30-minute meal.
Be sure to serve this with a side of my Garlic Bread with Cheese!
Easy Ravioli Sauce
Nothing beats a gourmet-style ravioli sauce that you can have on the dinner table in 30 minutes flat.
The 4-cheese ravioli that I use for this recipe is filled with a combination of ricotta, Romano, mozzarella, and gorgonzola. So I chose to use cream cheese and Parmesan cheese in the sauce- because that gives us a 6-cheese combination!
SIX! CHEESES! 🤯
Scroll down to see how to make it, read through my PRO tips, storage information, and more.
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Melt the butter in a large high-walled skillet and add minced garlic. Cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in the flour and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the tomato paste, onion powder, basil, oregano, and mustard powder. Stir to combine.
Add the chicken broth in splashes, stirring continuously. Slowly stir in the half and half. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.
Stir in the softened cream cheese and drained diced tomatoes. (Optional, reserve some of the tomato juice in case you’d like to thin the sauce out at the end.) Cook the pasta according to package instructions, drain. Reduce heat to low and stir in the Parmesan cheese.
Add the ravioli and use a silicone spatula to gently stir until combined. Garnish with Parsley and red pepper flakes and serve!
Pro Tips
- Freshly diced Roma tomatoes or regular diced tomatoes can be used instead of Rotel if preferred.
- A teaspoon of hot sauce makes a nice addition to the sauce and won’t make it too spicy.
- Optional additions include: Fresh spinach or fresh basil.
- I use Rana refrigerated 4-cheese Ravioli with this recipe.
- To soften the cream cheese quickly: Heat 2 cups of water in the microwave. Place 3 Tbsp. cream cheese in the microwave and close the door. Let it soften for 5 minutes.
- Grate the Parmesan cheese from a block, it will melt and taste much better than packaged grated cheese.
- 20 oz. tortellini can be used in this recipe as well. (Or try my easy Tortellini Sauce recipe!)
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 144!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- While you can freeze leftovers, ravioli doesn’t hold up quite as well after being frozen and reheated.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- This is the Le Creuset skillet I used in this recipe, (and in 90% of my recipes). It’s pricey, but it conducts heat really well and is oven safe. The size is perfect and the quality is great.
- Pasta Strainer– This is the one I have and love.
- Box Cheese Grater– Always shred cheese from a block, it melts and tastes much better. Bagged shredded cheese contains cellulose which prevents it from melting as well.
- Silicone Spatula– I use these every time I cook. It makes it easy to carefully toss the ravioli into the sauce.
Try These Next
Get My Free Meal Plan
I’ve got a Free Meal Plan with 7 of my super popular recipes (complete with grocery list)! Sign up for my email list and I’ll send it over now along with weekly dinner recipes!
And follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Easy Ravioli Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons salted butter, I use Land O' Lakes
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- ½ teaspoon EACH: onion powder, dried basil, dried oregano, mustard powder
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 1 ½ cups half and half, half light cream/half milk
- 10 oz. Rotel tomatoes with green chilies, juices reserved
- 3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 20 oz. refrigerated ravioli
- 1 pinch Red Pepper Flakes, optional
Instructions
- Prep Work: Measure out all ingredients prior to beginning.
- Melt the butter in a large high-walled skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring continuously. Add the flour and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the tomato paste, onion powder, basil, oregano, and mustard powder. Stir to combine.
- Add the chicken broth in small splashes, stirring continuously. Add the half and half in the same manner. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.
- Add the softened cream cheese and drained diced tomatoes. (Pro Tip: Reserve the tomato juice in case you’d like to thin the sauce out at the end.)
- Cook the ravioli according to package instructions, drain.
- Reduce heat of the sauce to low. Gradually sprinkle in the Parmesan cheese and stir until combined. Add the red pepper flakes, if using.
- Add the ravioli and use a silicone spatula to gently stir until combined. Add any of the reserved tomato juice if desired. Serve!
Notes
- Freshly diced Roma tomatoes or regular diced tomatoes can be used instead of Rotel if preferred.
- A teaspoon of hot sauce makes a nice addition to the sauce and won’t make it too spicy.
- Optional additions include: Fresh spinach or fresh basil.
- I use Rana refrigerated 4-cheese Ravioli with this recipe.
- To soften the cream cheese quickly: Heat 2 cups of water in the microwave. Place 3 Tbsp. cream cheese in the microwave and close the door. Let it soften for 5 minutes.
- Grate the Parmesan cheese from a block, it will melt and taste much better than packaged grated cheese.
- 20 oz. tortellini can be used in this recipe as well.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 144!
Storage:
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- While you can freeze leftovers, ravioli doesn't hold up quite as well after being frozen and reheated.
I made this tonight and it was delicious. Followed the recipe exact except for omitting the cream cheese because I simply didn’t have any. It was so good, I’m not sure I missed anything without it. Definitely will make again.
I’m so happy you liked the ravioli sauce Christy! Great to know it worked out for you without the cream cheese, thanks so much for the feedback!❤️
Can you use 2percent milk in place of half and half?
You can! 🙂 The sauce will just be a little bit thinner.
Y’all!! This sauce is sooooo flavorful! I too added a little brown sugar (about 1/2 tbsp) but it didn’t make it a sweet sauce, it just countered some of the acidity. We are in South Louisiana, and we like it spicy. So, I added a smidge of cayenne and DAMN!! It was perfect! Thank you so much for my new go-to creamy tomato sauce! 🤌
I’m so happy you enjoyed this Renee and were able to adapt it, nice work!👏 Thanks so much for the great review!
Delicious!
Excellent! I’m so happy you thought so, thanks so much for the great review!❤️
Very tasty! I used 2T butter & FF half & half to ease up on the calorie count & it was still very decadent. Also had some fresh tomatoes that needed to be used so subbed those plus Calabrian chilis for Rotel.
I’m so happy you liked this one Sarah, so yummy with fresh tomatoes! Thanks so much for the great review!❤️
This is my first time commenting on a recipe but omg this was so good! I will never use store bought sauces again after this. Can’t wait to try it with other recipes as well. Only thing I did different because I didn’t have rotel, was diced Roma tomatoes and the 1 tbsp of brown sugar I saw another Comment say. So good 👏 😋
Hey Kels!! Thank you so much for taking the time to comment on this recipe! You made my day and I’m so happy that you enjoyed it!! -Stephanie
Simple and easy! But the best sauce ever!
Wahooo! So happy you liked it Nina, thanks so much for the great review!❤️
This recipe turned out phenomenally!! It was also beautifully customizable! I didn’t have tomato paste, so I used tomato sauce. I also had heavy cream instead of half and half. I added a touch more onion powder and mustard and it was delicious!! Thanks for the great recipe!
You’re very welcome Tanya! I’m so happy you enjoyed it with your tweaks, thanks so much for the great comments and review!💗
Tastes absolutely amazing! So easy to make. My daughter is a picky eater and she loved it! Will definitely be making it again.
Yayyy! I’m so happy the picky eater enjoyed this Marie, nice work! Thanks so much for the great review!💗
This was amazing! I don’t think I’ll ever eat a different sauce!
That’s what I love to hear Brandin, thanks so much!💗
Made this recipe . Loved it .
Yayyyy! So happy to hear that Angie, thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment!❤️