Is there a faster/less messy way to stuff manicotti/canneloni?

Question

I've had all the ingredients for stuffed manicotti sitting around in my kitchen for the past 2 days but keep putting it off because I absolutely dread the whole stuffing process.

I usually start off using a spoon but quickly give up on that and resort to my hands instead. It usually makes a mess of my hands and the counter top, and every so often I have to throw one out because it broke.

I keep thinking that surely a fancy Italian restaurant is not going to have a cook sitting there stuffing individual tubes. I actually thought of using a piping bag but I'm pretty sure that the stuffing is just too thick and heterogeneous (it's usually a cold mixture of ricotta, shredded cheeses, onions, herbs, and an egg). That's about the limit of my imagination with respect to stuffing techniques.

So, does anyone know one or more ways to reduce the tedium or mess?

Answer 1

Piping bag is your answer. You just don't use a tip on it.

Answer 2

As roux said, and you alluded to, you want a piping bag of some kind.

Where I find a piping bag doesn't always work the best, I've been able to steal the concept and slightly modify it by "making my own at home". Put all the filling into a large ziploc bag (I use gallon sized cause I make manicotti in bulk, but quart sized works just as well). Edit: as noted in Aaronut's comment, regular ziplocs may become too soggy; I recommend freezer ziplocs, as they're significantly thicker.

Cut off one corner, a little smaller than the size of the manicotti opening, and you have your own piping bag on the cheap! Once you get used to using this, you'll be amazed how fast you can fill them.

Patting the manicotti dry with a paper towel after cooking but before stuffing also seems to really help keep them in my hand, because trying to fill a slippery manicotti shell is the WORST.

Also, if you can, let the manicotti shells cool completely after cooking - that really helps keep it from tearing.

Answer 3

As both roux and stephenmcdonald mentioned, a piping bag is the way to go, as you assumed, but you often need to fill from each side, rather than just one side. (it depends on your filling ... also, it'll give you a prettier canneloni)

... but for manicotti, many places don't use tubes. They use crepes, so you don't have the trouble filling them. I've also seen recipes that call for using the 'no bake' lasagne noodles, softening them up first, and using them.

My only other idea for dealing with tubes would be to use some sort of a narrow syringe with no end, where it's durable enough to pack well, then can use that to inject the filling. You might need to keep a finger over the opposite end and intentionally pack it in to fill any extra air space between the syringe diameter and tube diameter.

Answer 4

There are shells available that can be stuffed before cooking, then are baked in the sauce. Your mileage may vary. Haven't tried it myself.

Answer 5

Another option would be to simply switch to giant shells instead of manicotti. Then you can just open them right up and spoon the filling in easily.