Homemade Potato Gnocchi
Published July 8, 2020
As an Italian-American, homemade pasta is something I've always wanted to make. If I make my sauce from scratch, my pasta should be too, right?
I've watched pasta videos made by Gordon Ramsay (who I can't take seriously if he's not screaming), a private chef on LinkedIn, and at-home cooks. I watched for consistent techniques and ingredients before I convinced myself to make my own pasta.
I don't have a pasta machine, so I'm going to delay making linguine or angel hair. So this week, I'm going to share another pasta dish: gnocchi.
The History of Gnocchi
Gnocchi (pronounced N’YAW-kee) dates as far back as the 14th and 15th century.
These little dumplings are pillowy and filling, which is why they were traditionally peasant food (inexpensive but great). The dough can be made with various starches/vegetables and flavored with herbs and cheeses.
What Ingredients go with Gnocchi?
Gnocchi is like any other pasta. You can use any type of sauce you want.
In restaurants, I've seen brown butter, mushroom, and squash gnocchi. Gnocchi with pesto or a light red sauce.
I prefer to have my gnocchi with richer, fall foods like squash and mushrooms. Unfortunately, my mushrooms were in bad shape, so I improvised and used peas in my sauce/topping. You can use whatever you like best!
My Homemade Potato Gnocchi
Thoughts & Notes
My research showed me that the potatoes were optional. You could make the dough with just flour and eggs. Since this was my first time making homemade gnocchi I used the potatoes.
In hindsight, I would've liked to add some more water/dairy/herbs along with the potato mixture, to give it more flavor.
Frying the gnocchi did make them into a pierogi texture (crispy outside, lighter inside). You don't have to fry the gnocchi to eat them. Boiling them cooks them through.
For my first time, I was happy that the homemade gnocchi didn't disintegrate in the boiling water. As a perfectionist and creative-sort, I know I can create something even more amazing (so stay tuned as this recipe evolves!).
K. Martinelli Homemade Gnocchi Recipe
The ingredient list (for the dough) can be whatever you want. Here is the base that you can build upon.
I've also included the list of ingredients I used to make the "sauce" for on top of the fried gnocchi. I eyeballed most of the ingredients based on my taste, so I don't have an exact measurement. Use your intuition and preferences.
The process for creating the gnocchi is more detailed:
The Final Product
I'm happy with how the homemade potato gnocchi came out. Frying the crispy, golden outside provides a great crunch. The peas are light and sweet. I love garlic so that was a must.
I added generous amounts of black pepper and Parmesan cheese at the end, plus some salt. Fresh basil on top and sautéed herbs in the chicken stock also built the flavor.
K. Martinelli Makes Homemade Potato Gnocchi
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