STL And The Fried Pasta Pocket
As a lifetime Brewer fan, this will hurt a little to say…the St. Louis Cardinals (and St. Louis as a whole) will always have a special spot in my heart! Especially because of FRIED RAVIOLI! STORY TIME!
Towards the end of last year, the ol’ fiancé and I decided, “Hey! Let’s take a road trip!” After perusing all the interwebs, the industrial city of St. Louis wound up on the docket. A mere 5-hour drive, which is nothing for anyone in the Midwest where statements such as, “Ope! It’s only an 18-hour drive! Might as well skip the flight.” are not all that uncommon.
To STL We Go
Anyway, after a couple of long shifts we were off! We did all of the things we were told to do and all of the things we wanted to do. From breweries (including Anheuser-Busch…which was super cool!) to local eateries to the BEST ZOO EVER to one of the best ideas of them all…a Wild-Card Race MLB game between the Cards and Dodgers! Honest to god, one of the coolest sporting events I’ve been apart of! The tickets: five bucks a piece (FOR THREE ROWS BEHIND THE DODGERS BULLPEN IN LEFT). The pitchers: THE Clayton Kershaw vs. Gomber. With no horse in the race, it was so hard to not cheer for the home town Cards. So, that’s what we did! Also, at the time, a Cards victory helped the Brew Crew. Win-Win! The Cards disappointed with a loss but, the game and atmosphere didn’t!
But, Why Ravioli?
Annnnnnd, now that I’ve lost you with all things not to do with Ravioli (or its Fried cousin), what the hell does Fried Ravioli have to do with literally anything St. Louis?? Welp, after all the research we did prior to going to the Show Me State, turns out frying up some ravioli with a side of dipable marinara is not only a big thing, it is kind of what the St. Louis is known for. After being down there for 5 days, WE NEVER HAD THEM, well, in the classic form. At a little place called Salt+Smoke, we had Burnt End Toasted Ravioli which were ungodly. Seriously, a life alerting art form, however, it wasn’t the classic.
The Now Times
Enter the 2019 MLB season. From April 22-24, Yeli and the Brew Crew are trying to upend the ever-so hot Cards. I figured, now more than ever, I would whip up some of the BEST Fried Ravioli, ever! And on top of that, why not make my own dipable Marinara and some Parm/Garlic Sauce that rivals that of BWW’s. Here. We. Go.
How to do the Damn Thing!
Set up your dredging station. Season your flour, always. Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Oregano, Salt, and Black Pepper. Switch up the seasoning based on what you are making. Mixing 1/3 Buttermilk with 3 Egg Yolks is the perfect combo. Place Panko in a bowl. DONE! Panko is perfect.
Now for the Best Part…the FRIED RAVIOLI
Fried Ravioli
Ingredients
- 24 Spinach/Artichoke Ravioli’s
First Dredge Bowl:
- 1/2 c. All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp. Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp. Onion Powder
- 1 tsp. Oregano
- 1 tsp. Salt
- 1 tsp. Black Pepper
Second Dredge Bowl:
- 1/3 c. Buttermilk
- 3 Egg Yolks
Third Dredge Bowl:
- 1/2 c. Panko Breadcrumbs (Italian)
For Frying:
- 1 c. Olive Oil
Instructions
- Place hard bottom pan onto burner set to medium.
- Place Olive Oil into pan and heat until 350F.
- Once to temp, put Ravioli through dredging station. Coat with flour (shake off excess). Place in Buttermilk mixture (coat and shake off excess). Cover in Panko, then place in oil.
- Fry until golden brown.
- Try not to eat literally all of them…
Notes
If you buy raviolis that have a bulge on one side, place that side down first for frying. Don’t heat oil up too much as Olive Oil has a fairly low smoke point. Don’t just dip with marinara or parm garlic, do it up with some pesto!
