This Lobster Ravioli Sauce Recipe is the perfect way to make your special occasion extra special and memorable, whether it's a holiday, date night, or Valentine's Day. This recipe comes together with minimal effort. This decadent, creamy sauce is loaded with chunks of butter poached lobster tails and pairs perfectly with lobster ravioli for a filling main course.
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This flavorful sauce infuses lobster shells into white wine and finishes it with a simple creamy tomato-based sauce. Since there's plenty of succulent fresh lobster meat in the sauce itself, it's hearty and filling with an abundance of lobster flavor.
Looking for more delicious seafood recipes? Be sure to try our lobster pasta, this creamy salmon pasta, this chicken and shrimp carbonara, or this steak and lobster surf and turf dinner!
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❤️Why we love this recipe
- Perfect for special occasions. This lobster ravioli sauce recipe is ideal for special occasions like holiday gatherings, dinner parties, date nights, birthdays, or Valentine's Day. It's sophisticated and elegant, with a stunning presentation. Rival local Italian restaurants with this luxurious sauce. It looks and tastes impressive, so you're sure to wow your guests!
- Comfort food. This recipe is indulgent, deeply satisfying, and comforting, making it perfect for cozy evenings at home, you don't need a special occasion!
- Delicious. The creamy lobster ravioli sauce is rich and flavorful, perfectly complementing the sweet and succulent lobster filling in the ravioli.
- Easy to make. This delicious sauce is quick and easy to prepare, and we paired it with store-bought lobster ravioli. It's a great option for those who are short on time but still want to create a gourmet meal. The simple ingredients needed can be found at most grocery stores.
- Versatile. The sauce can be used with a variety of pasta dishes, not just ravioli, so it's a great recipe to have in your toolkit.
🦞Ingredients
Here are the ingredients we used for this recipe. You can find more information for substitutions below.
- Cooked lobster meat - You can prepare the lobster up to 1-2 days in advance. We love using our butter poached lobster, but you can cook lobster according to your preferred method.
- White wine - Use something citrusy and crisp like sauvignon blanc, or pinot grigio. Avoid oaky chardonnays.
- Lobster shells - Technically optional, but adds an incredible depth of flavor to the sauce.
- Unsalted butter - For the best sauce, use butter. Olive oil can also be used.
- Shallots
- Kosher salt & black pepper
- Garlic
- Tomato paste
- Dried thyme & fresh thyme
- Heavy cream
- Parmesan cheese - It's important that it's freshly grated so that it melts properly into the sauce. Pre-shredded cheese has trouble melting down properly because it has anti-caking additives in it.
- Lobster ravioli - We buy our ravioli prepared ahead of time, and don't have a homemade ravioli recipe just yet. Costco, Aldi, and Trader Joe's all have delicious varieties that we can recommend!
- Reserved pasta water - From cooking the ravioli. This starchy water helps create a smooth, luxurious sauce so be sure to save some!
- Fresh lemon juice & lemon zest
- Serve with lemon wedges and fresh herbs of your choice. We love using fresh parsley and thyme. Fresh basil is also an excellent choice.
Visit the recipe card for the full quantities and nutritional information.
✨Substitutions & variations
Here are a few suggestions on additional flavors to try, or simple variations to this sauce.
- No lobster shells - No big deal. You can use the shells of shrimp if you have them, seafood stock, clam juice, or if you have none of these, just use chicken broth or stock.
- Use onions - If you don't have shallots, just use sweet onions or yellow onions. Red onions will also do in a pinch.
- Lighter version - Substitute heavy cream with half-and-half, or whole milk. The sauce will not be quite as creamy, however.
- Dairy free - Swap butter for olive oil, the heavy cream for full-fat coconut milk, and the parmesan cheese for a dairy free parmesan cheese.
- Different cheese - For a slightly different flavor, you can substitute Parmesan cheese with grated Pecorino Romano cheese or a blend of grated Asiago and Parmesan cheeses.
- Spicy - Add seasonings like red pepper flakes and cayenne pepper to make the sauce spicier.
- No wine - If you don't have white wine or prefer not to use it, you can substitute it with chicken or seafood stock.
- No tomato paste - If you don't have tomato paste, you can use a small amount of tomato sauce.
- More seafood - You can always add different types of protein, like shrimp even crab.
🔪Prep work
- Cook the lobster according to your preference first, and save the shells. Butter poached lobster is a really easy preparation method that always tastes fantastic. Once the lobster is cooked, cut it up into small pieces.
- Mince garlic and shallots.
- Grate parmesan cheese.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Measure out all remaining ingredients.
📋Instructions
Skip to step 4 if you don't have lobster shells.
Add lobster shells and white wine to a large skillet over medium heat. (Image 1)
Bring wine to a slight boil, then reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, until the wine has reduced by about half, and the shells are bright red. (Image 2)
Strain the shells through a metal sieve, into a small bowl or container. Discard shells and reserve the wine. Set aside. (Image 3)
To the same skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute, stirring often to prevent burning. (Image 4)
Then, add shallots, thyme, and tomato paste with a pinch of salt. (Image 5)
Continue cooking until the tomato paste has deepened in color, and the shallots have begun to soften about 3 minutes. (Image 6)
Deglaze the pan with the reserved lobster white wine stock from steps 1-3. Add in lemon zest. (Image 7)
*If you skipped making the lobster wine stock, add the wine and simmer for about 5 minutes to cook out the alcohol.
Reduce the heat to low, then gently stream in the heavy cream. (Image 8)
Allow the mixture to simmer gently for about 10 minutes or so until the cream thickens and reduces by about half, then slowly sprinkle in the parmesan cheese, stirring constantly to melt. (Image 9)
Continue adding cheese until all of it is added, and the sauce is smooth. (Image 10)
Meanwhile, while the sauce is simmering, cook the ravioli. Once the water is boiling, add lots of salt to it, (about 2 tablespoons) then add the uncooked ravioli and cook according to package instructions.
Once al dente, remove the ravioli with a slotted spoon and place them directly into the sauce. (Make sure to save some of the pasta water for reheating later!)
Finally, add the cooked lobster meat, lemon juice, and pasta water, stirring gently to combine. Continue adding pasta water until the sauce clings to the ravioli. (Image 11)
Adjust seasonings to taste, plate, and serve immediately. Serve with lemon wedges, freshly grated parmesan, fresh thyme, salt, and pepper. Enjoy!
✨Tips & tricks
- Cook the lobster meat beforehand. For the best flavor and texture, cook the lobster meat before using it in the sauce.
- Once the cream is added, keep the heat on low. Do not allow the cream to boil, or the sauce will curdle.
- Use a flavorful, non-oaky wine. Choose a good quality, flavorful, citrusy white wine for the sauce. Avoid any hints of oakiness (like you may find in chardonnays). You don't need to spend a lot of money on a bottle, but make sure it's something you actually want to drink on its own.
- Cook the ravioli al dente. As it will continue to cook in the sauce. Overcooking will lead to mushy ravioli that falls apart.
- Heavily salt the water the ravioli cooks in. This infuses flavor into the ravioli. You will want to use about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt per every 16 ounces of ravioli.
- Reserve pasta water. This is key! Before dumping the water used to cook the ravioli, make sure to reserve a few cups of it. This starchy water helps create the sauce, and helps the sauce cling to the ravioli. It's also helps to have some on hand if you have leftovers. Reheating the ravioli with the pasta water will loosen the ravioli when they inevitably stick together, and helps bring the sauce back to life.
- Cook the tomato paste until it deepens in color. This intensifies both the natural sweetness, and savory flavors. It also ensures there is no raw tomato taste.
- Serve immediately. The sauce is best served immediately. The sauce will thicken as it cools, and the ravioli will begin to stick together. Add pasta water as needed to fix the texture.
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💭Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Do not freeze.
If possible, store the sauce separately from the ravioli, to prevent the ravioli from getting soggy.
Gently reheat on the stovetop over low heat, being careful to not let the cream sauce boil. Add pasta water and stir often to separate the ravioli, and prevent the sauce from separating.
Yes, the sauce can be served with any type of pasta, not just ravioli. Fettuccine, linguine, or pappardelle will all hold up well to this hearty, creamy sauce.
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📖 Recipe
Lobster Ravioli Sauce
Equipment
- stockpot
Ingredients
- lobster shells
- 8 ounces white wine (Like pinot grigio or sauvginon blanc. You can use seafood stock or chicken broth instead.)
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 medium shallots, minced
- 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon black pepper, divided
- 1 medium lemon, zest
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 6 ounces parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- 26 ounces lobster ravioli (about 2 packages, store bought)
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- 1 pound butter poached lobster (can cook lobster according to your favorite recipe)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (juice of 1 lemon)
- fresh thyme, lemon wedges, and parmesan for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the lobster according to your preference first, and save the shells. Butter poached lobster is a really easy preparation method that always tastes fantastic. Once the lobster is cooked, cut it up into small pieces. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Add lobster shells and white wine to a large skillet over medium heat. Bring wine to a slight boil, then reduce heat to low, and cover. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, until the wine has reduced by about half, and the shells are bright red. Strain the shells through a metal sieve, into a small bowl or container. Discard shells and reserve the wine. Set aside.
- To the same skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute, stirring often to prevent burning. Then, add shallots, thyme, and tomato paste with a pinch of salt. Continue cooking until the tomato paste has deepened in color, and shallots have begun to soften, about 3 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with the reserved lobster white wine stock from earlier. Add in lemon zest. *If you skipped making the lobster wine stock, add the wine and simmer for about 5 minutes to cook out the alcohol.
- Reduce the heat to low, then gently stream in the heavy cream. Allow the mixture to simmer gently for about 10 minutes or so until the cream thickens and reduces by about half, then slowly sprinkle in the parmesan cheese, stirring constantly to melt. Continue adding cheese until all of it is added, and the sauce is smooth.
- Meanwhile, while the sauce is simmering, cook the ravioli. Once the water is boiling, add lots of salt to it, (about 2 tablespoons) then add the uncooked ravioli and cook according to package instructions. Once al dente, remove the ravioli with a slotted spoon and place them directly into the sauce.
- Finally, add the cooked lobster meat, lemon juice, and pasta water, stirring gently to combine. Continue adding pasta water until the sauce clings to the ravioli.
- Adjust seasonings to taste, plate, and serve immediately. Serve with lemon wedges, freshly grated parmesan, fresh thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Do not freeze. If possible, store the sauce separately from the ravioli, to prevent the ravioli from getting soggy.
Save This Recipe! 💌
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Notes
- Cook the lobster meat beforehand. For the best flavor and texture, cook the lobster meat before using it in the sauce.
- Once the cream is added, keep the heat on low. Do not allow the cream to boil, or the sauce will curdle.
- Use a flavorful, non-oaky wine. Choose a good quality, flavorful, citrusy white wine that you'd also enjoy drinking a glass of for the sauce. Avoid any hints of oakiness (like you may find in chardonnays).
- Cook the ravioli al dente. Overcooking will lead to mushy ravioli that falls apart.
- Heavily salt the water the ravioli cooks in. This infuses flavor into the ravioli. You will want to use about 2 tablespoons of kosher salt for every 16 ounces of ravioli.
- Reserve pasta water. This is key! Before dumping the water used to cook the ravioli, make sure to reserve a few cups of it. This starchy water helps create the sauce and helps the sauce cling to the ravioli. It also helps to have some on hand if you have leftovers. Reheating the ravioli with the pasta water will loosen the ravioli when they inevitably stick together.
- Serve immediately. The sauce is best served immediately. The sauce will thicken as it cools, and the ravioli will begin to stick together.
Alyssa says
Made this for valentines day and it was delicious! Full of flavor and we did the butter poached lobster method and used the leftover butter in the sauce.
Briana says
Hey Alyssa! That's so awesome to hear, we're so happy you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Ariel says
Amazing sauce! And an amazing recipe!
Briana says
We're so glad you enjoyed Ariel, thank you so much for your comment! 🙂