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How to make Italian Gnocchi
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📋 How To Make Italian Gnocchi

This authentic Italian gnocchi recipe is made with only 2 ingredients: boiled potatoes and flour, no eggs. Gnocchi are classic Italian dumplings served as a pasta dish primo piatto. While you can buy them already made, try making them from scratch without eggs to really appreciate the taste of the potatoes.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Keyword gnocchi, Italian dumpling, potato
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
resting time 2 hours
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 227kcal

Ingredients

For the gnocchi

For the cherry tomato sauce

Instructions

Making the gnocchi dough

  • Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes
    4 old medium potatoes
  • Pierce with a knife to check that they are done and drain them
  • Peel immediately and mash the potatoes while still warm
  • Set aside and let them cool down COMPLETELY

Make the gnocchi sauce

  • Stir fry the garlic cloves
    2 cloves peeled garlic cloves, 2 tablespoon Olive oil
  • Remove the cloves from the pan
  • Add the chopped cherry tomatoes
    3 cups cherry tomatoes
  • Add the basil leaves and the salt
    3 leaves Chopped basil leaves, 1 teaspoon salt
  • Let it simmer covered, turning from times to times

How to make gnocchi dough

  • Once the potatoes are cold, mix them with the flours and the salt
    ½ cup semolina flour, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon salt
  • Mix the dough by hand until smooth

How to shape the gnocchi

  • Take a small amount of dough, enough to fill your palm
  • Roll it and make a long thick string
  • Cut the gnocchi into shape
  • Repeat until all the dough is shaped into gnocchi
  • To indent the chunky gnocchi you can use a gnocchi board or the back of a fork.
  • Apply a small pressure on the gnocchi against the fork while pushing them down.
  • Lay the gnocchi on a floured tray
  • Keep the gnocchi separate otherwise they stick to each other
  • Dust with more flour

How To Cook Gnocchi

  • Bring a pot of salted water to boil, same as for cooking pasta
    1 tablespoon salt
  • Drop some gnocchi into the boiling water, not too many. Just enough to cover the bottom of the pan.
  • Once the gnocchi start to float, remove them with a skimmer and place them directly in the pan where you have your gnocchi sauce.
  • Stir gently into the sauce
  • Once they are all removed, add the next batch of gnocchi until they are all cooked

How To Serve Gnocchi

  • Serve the gnocchi still warm adding plenty of Parmesan cheese
    6 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan

Video

Notes

  • Peel and strain the potatoes while still warm
  • DON'T peel the potatoes before boiling them or your gnocchi will be soggy.
  • If you don't have a ricer, use a fork but do not use a blender as it will make them waxy.
  • Wait until they are completely cold/room temperature before mixing them with the flour
  • Do not add flour, as the best gnocchi are made with a minimal amount of flour. If you add too much flour you will have tough gnocchi
  • Once the gnocchi are shaped lay them on a tray full of flour.  Keep the gnocchi separate otherwise, they stick to each other.
  • You can dust more flour as it will wash away when the gnocchi are cooked, but do not mix it into the dough

Nutrition

Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 878mg | Potassium: 774mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 415IU | Vitamin C: 33.5mg | Calcium: 114mg | Iron: 6mg