Wonton Skins for Ravioli??

[ClaireWalter]

Has anyone tried this? Success? Did you boil or steam? Any other observations. Thank you.

[Mapett]

I made Asian dumplings in a pressure cooker last night, and I think this will work great for ravioli. 3/4 cup water in the bottom. Oil a trivette or steamer basket, so it sits above the water. Once pressure builds,bsteam on high heat for 2 minutes, then med-high for 3 minutes, then take cooker off the heat, let it sit for 5 minutes. Decompress it, and there you go. They stick to each other a bit, but if you are putting sauce over them, who cares. I used a raw pork filling made from a tenderloin that I pulsed through a food processor, so this would work with ground sausage for sure.

[michaeljc70]

This post is old, but I tried wonton wrappers and they are too thin. They did not fall apart, and they tasted good, but no one that every had a ravioli would be fooled. They also don't hold their shape as well (they can flop over on themselves which ravioli won't do). They don't have the bite and texture of ravioli. You'll never get a Wonton wrapper al Dente.

I've made ravioli dough myself many times and the wonton shell ones I made were way thinner. They were also way thinner than store bought ravioli or ravioli I've had at any restaurant.

They wrappers are so thin, the shell can easily become overcooked before the filling is cooked (or melted).

There may be thicker wonton wrappers. I think I may have actually used gyoza wrappers.

As others said, wontons are fried, so it is a completely different preparation than boiling.

[maria lorraine]

I've made ravioli innumerable times, but I love using wontons also.

You bought the wrong wontons for ravioli. They come in many thicknesses and sizes.
The ones you purchased were too thin. Because of that, you don't think wontons can be cooked al dente. Of course they can.

Wontons brands also vary in flavor a bit. Try to find a good producer.

Don't throw out the idea of using wontons for ravioli just because you purchased
the wrong thickness. Give it another go -- get some recs from a good Italian cook
near you who uses them.

[justints]

I know this is an old post but I just did a wonton ravioli tonight. Roasted butternut squash with onion, parma cheese and chili pepper as the stuffing, sage butter for the sauce. It was a grand success. The trick is finding round wrappers that are made of simply flour and water with nothing else in them. Its not a traditional ravioli pasta but it is a very light alternative for a primi.

This is the second time I've done this and I'm sold. I've done the home made in the pasta machine - very good of course but soooooo time consuming. I've tried the fresh lasagne sheets with terrible results - they always fall apart.

I think that the wonton wrapper is a perfect solution. Its light, perfectly rolled and I've found that they stay together very well - I boiled them all at once and I only lost one in 16 tonight.

[skippybog]

I made ravioli with square wonton skins and they were very very good. It is definitely a different kind of entree (you won't fool anyone that they aren't wonton skins), but I found the experience nice and light and an interesting alternative.

I pretty much used a garlic mashed potato filling (boiled potatoes with garlic powder, fresh parsley, dried basil/oregano/thyme, salt, pepper), and I placed a heaping teaspoon or so in the middle of a wrapper, wet the edges and put a second wrapper on top, squeezing out all the air along the way. Boiled them for 2-3 minutes only a few at a time so they weren't touching/sticking to each other. Then I added them to a saute pan with fresh minced garlic, diced red onion, butter, and fresh parmesan cheese for another 2-4 minutes to act as a kind of sauce and give some color.

Serve with a little extra fresh parsley and grated parmesan and hope there are enough for round 2!

[theSauce]

It's fine. just use two pieces of wonton skins, one for top and one for bottom. Wet the sides and cut it with a cookie cutter. The restaurant I use to work at use this method and they fill it with chicken mousse.

[GretchenS]

Wonton skins work great in aushak (Afghan leek ravioli or dumplings). Pei has good stuffing/sealing tips as well as a recipe in this link.

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/358934

[chowser]

I've used them and boiled. I use a 3" sautee pan filled with water and boil them in a single layer, rather than a pasta pot. Put them in the boiling water gently and take them out w/ a pasta strainer. They cook in no time. They're much thinner and lighter than ravioli I make myself and work better with lighter fillings.

[emu48]

I use egg roll skins. Bigger, square sheets. Put on the filling, moisten two contiguous edges, fold the other two edges over, making a triangular ravioli. Folded in half diagonally, in other words.

Truly boiling water makes raviolis of any kind break up. The gentlest simmer is the way to go except maybe for ruggedized, all-terrain raviolis such as Chinese dumplings, aka jaozi (potstickers that are simmered in water rather than fried).

[MagnumWino]

99.9% of the time I make my own pasta dough. But I have on occasion used wonton wrappers to make agnollotti after seeing a recipe in a special Tuscany issue of Bon Appetite from about 2000 or maybe earlier. Never had a problem with them busting open and have had success freezing them as well. It's a nice short cut if pressed for time, but I'll concede it's not the same as fresh pasta dough.

[Pamela]

I have used wonton skins for ravioli, but this is because I don't have a pasta machine to make fresh ravioli pasta.

When I made pumpkin and cheese ravioli, I first stuffed the wonton square, wrapped it like a hat, and sealed the edges with water. I then boiled the raviolis for a few minutes, then pan-fried them, then baked them.

In terms of taste, it turned out just fine, but wonton skin is a poor substitute for ravioli. It's too thin, and the taste differs from ravioli pasta. But it's a good substitute, I suppose, for people without access to ravioli pasta.

[ClaireWalter]

Here's my promised report -- confirming many on-target opinions expressed here. I knew I wouldn't have or make the time to do my own pasta dough last night, which is why I posed this question in the first place.

I used Denver Tofu brand wonton skins, and one package was just right for a filling of 2 cups of ricotta, 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes, reconstituted and chopped, and seasonings. I assembled the ravioli 8 at a time, used water (not egg wash) and pinched down the edges by hand and further sealed them down w/ a fork.

I steamed them in a Chinese steamer. That would have worked fine if I had put must a single layer in each steamer basket, but I was excessively optimistic and overlapped them slightly. Mistake, because some of the edges were "floury" and dry. I separated them gingerly and dunked them quickly into the hot water remaining in the bottom of the steamer and lifted them our w/ a slotted spoon. No one was the wiser.

This particular brand of wonton skins seems sturdy enough to have survived boiling -- which I had initially decided against because I wasn't sure that I would have completely sealed each ravioli. I served them w/ home-made pesto, which was strong enough (IMHO) opinion to overcome the "wrong" taste of the wonton skins rather than true pasta dough.

Bottom line is that guests and even husband praised the result. People even commented on the interesting combo of flavors and textures (delicate filling, robust texture of dough, nap of pesto). What to some is a cultural clash to others worked well.

My conclusion: I would be willing to use wonton skins again, especially with a "stronger" filling than ricotta -- and I would definitely boil rather than steam. Perhaps next time I'll have time to make the dough -- or I might experiment with packaged fresh lasagna "noodles," cut into squares and assembled into ravioli.

Thanks to all for weighing in.

[ChefJune]

Lots of people like them, but I didn't... at ALL! The ravioli tasted like..... (surprise!) WONTONS!!! The texture is wrong. For me, it's worth the time and trouble to make the dough.

I'll be interested in how you like them.

[Melanie Wong]

There are many kinds of wonton wrappers sold commercially. Most of what's out there is formulated for frying, not boiling or steaming, so the results will be poor if you use them for ravioli . . . unless you're making deep-fried ravioli.

[dancingTimmy]

I claim wonton too thin for good ravioli!
That said, they are of value for some other wrong recipe: "vegetable cups".
Basic recipe was quick fry of chop/mixed veg (diced onuon, diced carrot, peas,corn, some sort of seasoning), then quickly bake wanton skins in cupcake thingy's until slightly browned, dump goat chesse in bottom, add prepared veg mix and heat a little in oven.
Remove & serve now.
Wanton was very crispy & dry, veg was tasty, goat cheese was awesome.
What's ravioli?

[Louise]

Ravioli is two squares of pasta, put a bit of filling on one then put the other on top and press the edges to seal. Boil and serve with sauce. Size of each is 1/2 mouthful.

[MaspethMaven]

I think he's being sarcastic, Louise.

[maria lorraine]

Wonton come in various thicknesses. In the SF Bay Area, Ranch 99 sells all sorts of brands with varying thicknesses. I've used medium weight wonton with great success. Favorite fillings are chicken/ground almond/parm; butternut squash/sage/parm; goat cheese/herb; and gorgonzola/walnut. I use a soft-boil, and allow them to cook 2 minutes at the the top of the pot (after they've floated up) before removing them. The butternut/sage/parm ravioli is finished with a brown butter sauce. Very tasty. I think I'll try steaming soon. Thanks for the tip.

[Emme]

Yup. Spinach and ricotta stuffed ones, but as others have said, be careful they don't stick together, and be sure that you grease the pan.

[Sam Fujisaka]

With no access to wonton skins, I use a pasta machine and regular pasta dougn to make wonton/dimsum skins.

[chef chicklet]

So these machines can get the dough thin enough? Will definitely try it if it does!

[suse]

I find the texture of steamed wonton skins kind of yucky. Has anyone ever tried using gyoza/dumpling skins for ravioli? I've always wanted to try that.

[violabratsche]

I've been wracking my brains and trying to jog the dusty memory, and can't find out who it was, but I recall seeing some chef on tv, using store-bought sheets of fresh lasagne pasta for ravioli.

I've tried to use wonton skins that way, without the best results. Dumpling skins were ok for texture.... I prefer to use the wonton skins pre-baked in mini muffin tins and filled with... just about anything.

I've not got around to trying to use the fresh lasagne noodles yet. Has anyone tried that, and had any success with it?

AnnieG

[hala]

the take out chef did that. i tried to do it from lasagne sheets, but when i boiled them they broke apart. Worked much better when i cut up the sheets, cooked them, THEN filled them with his pumpkin puree and served with his brown butter and sage. mmm.

but seriously, if anyone knows how to make ravioli from ready made pasta sheets, please share.

[digkv]

I've never done this but I saw Michael Chiarello do this on the Foodnetwork: http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recip...

[chef chicklet]

I've tried ravioli and a large stuffed giant tortellini. I don't know if it's just me, but I find them too tough for this type of use. So I'll be making my own pasta.
They are ok to steam when making shu mei.

[wayne keyser]

Single wonton skin + your choice of filling (Italo or not), twisted closed in the recular wonton way, steamed = giant tortellini.

[purple goddess]

the key is not to overstuff, and to steam.. making sure they're not touching each other.

Works a treat every time.

[ClaireWalter]

Thanks all. I'm making them tomorrow and will try steaming. I'll report back.

[Tehama]

Hi Claire- what type of ravioli are you making? I have a package of Wonton skins that I need to use... I like your idea. Can you share the recipe? Thanks!

[Meesch70]

I frequently make ravioli with wonton skins, I find they are very convenient. I brush the edges with water or egg; put a scoop of filling in the middle, and a second wonton skin over that. Then I seal the edges with a fork. To cook them, I boil them for 2-3 minutes. I find that they break easily if overfilled, so steaming them (which I have never tried) might be a a better method. They are eay to freeze also!

[katiepie]

I have... I boiled them.

They were a little messy, but turned out pretty good. I was surprised.

I didn't think to steam them... that probably would have been a better idea. I haven't tried them since because of the mess factor.

[jimesh1]

may I suggest sealing edges with cornstarch/water mix....then they stay together boiling, perfectly. Also...only boil for 2 or 3 minutes and pre or par cook meat fillers.