# Cannelloni



## Kevin86 (Dec 13, 2017)

So I have cannelloni and want to know the best way to stuff it, cook it, and what to stuff it with please. 
I’m thinking a ragu stuffing maybe. I’ve tried it before but the noodles always come out torn up and kinda not so good. 

Thanks


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## Aunt Bea (Dec 13, 2017)

It's a little messy but a plastic bag works pretty well.  I usually make stuffed shells because it is a little easier for me to stuff those with a spoon.  I cook the tubes in salted water until they are still quite firm and then finish cooking them after they have been filled and topped with sauce.

I use cheese and spinach or chopped broccoli, a loose raw meatball mix or chopped cooked chicken and cream cheese.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iosP3cb0wnM


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## GotGarlic (Dec 13, 2017)

Check your thread on favorite pasta recipes. Di Reston posted a couple for cannelloni


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## caseydog (Dec 13, 2017)

As GG mentioned, Di Reston posted a couple good recipes. He rolled flat pasta around his stuffings, but I've only used the tubes, myself. I use the zip-lock bag with a corner cut off method to make a cheap man's pastry bag. It works. 

CD


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## CraigC (Dec 14, 2017)

We also make flat sheets and roll the filling in them. Last time we used Barilla manicotti tubes, we used a plastic bag and one of the tubes that came with our sausage stuffer. It did a really good job.


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## di reston (Dec 14, 2017)

Of course - and I failed to mention this - if you're using lasagna sheets, you have to parboil them first, so that rolling them up is very easy - goes without saying, but I should have mentioned that with the recipes. I give myself 3 out of ten for that failure.

Cheers!

di reston


Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## tenspeed (Dec 14, 2017)

di reston said:


> Of course - and I failed to mention this - if you're using lasagna sheets, you have to parboil them first, so that rolling them up is very easy - goes without saying, but I should have mentioned that with the recipes. I give myself 3 out of ten for that failure.
> 
> Cheers!
> 
> ...


  I just looked up your recipes on the pasta thread and a light bulb went off.  I have a Philips pasta machine (extrusion type), and it has a die for lasagna sheets.  The sheets are 3-1/2" wide (87 mm for those in metric land), but are a little thick for my liking for lasagna.  I think they would be perfect for cannelloni, though.  As long as I roll them before the pasta dries and gets brittle, I think it would be a breeze to make them.  Thanks for the post.


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## tenspeed (Dec 14, 2017)

Do you cook fresh pasta sheets before filling?  I asked Mr. Google and some say you need to cook first, 15 - 30 seconds or as much as 2 - 3 minutes.  Others say you don't need to.  Fresh pasta cooks so fast I wouldn't think you need to cook first, as long as you they are covered with a bit of sauce.  For those that make it with fresh pasta, what do you do?


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## di reston (Dec 14, 2017)

If you're using fresh lasagna sheets, you won't need to parboil them before rolling the cannelloni. If they're dry tubes, parboiling will be necessary, but you will have to ensure that they don't get too soft, otherwise it's a disaster. The amount of ricotta, meat - anything that has moisture in it will cause the pasta to go limp insted of being al dente. That's you have to avoid. I usually parboil - if I'm doing them that way - until the sheets are flexible - just. The moisture in everything else will finish the job and the cannelloni will come out fine. Here, there are pasta shops evrywhere, so I usually get mine from one or other of those. Saves the hastle!


di reston


Enough is never as good as a feast     Oscar Wilde


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## trkendall1 (Dec 15, 2017)

I only cook the shells half way and I stuff with a spoon. I make 6 to 8 times a year and no tears. Just be gentle.  I usually make with a ground or shredded chicken mixture.  Good luck


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## brasato (Feb 2, 2018)

Hi Here is a video of the traditional italian recipe (it's also traditional the veg recipe with ricotta and spinach instead of the meat).
If you can't do home made pasta buy the fresh sheets for lasagne and wrap them. Those tubes (they don't exist here) don't convince me. They look as dry pasta, but cannelloni require fresh pasta.
I recomend to home making the besciamelle sauce, it's easy and much better tasting than the industrial one.
As you can see the guy doesn't mince the garlic to make the sauce. That is very typical here. We use the entire clove and at the end of the process we remove it because in our cooking idea we just want to feel the scent of the garlic, if you mince it its taste will predominate on the dish and the dish will be unbalanced.
Hope this helps.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBTvFGGK65c


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