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Gnocchi recipe – original Italian
Italian gnocchi are traditionally made from potatoes, flour and egg. The small Italian dumplings offer you a wonderfully soft texture and are very filling. As a side dish, as a main course, baked or as a salad: gnocchi are super versatile. They taste best when homemade!
- Potato ricer
- Grooved board (alternatively fork)
Schritt für Schritt durch´s Rezept
- Step 1Boil the potatoes, peel them and press them through a potato ricer while still warm.
- Step 2Sieve the flour onto a work surface. Add the mashed potatoes, the whole egg and a little salt.
- Step 3Knead everything together until you have a compact, malleable dough.
- Step 4Cut the dough into quarters and shape each piece into a finger-thick roll.
- Step 5Now cut the rolls into 2 cm pieces.
- Step 6To create the typical ridges, roll the dough pieces over the back of a fork or pull them over a ridging board.
- Step 7Cook the gnocchi in a large pan of gently simmering salted water. They are ready when they float to the surface.
The right potatoes
In Italy, every detail of the preparation – from the choice of potato variety to the consistency of the dough – is carefully considered to achieve the perfect texture and ideal taste. It is extremely important to use floury potatoes. These develop a soft and fluffy texture when cooked. Floury potatoes have a higher starch content and less moisture than waxy varieties, which means that they fall apart easily when cooked. This gives the dough the tender consistency that makes gnocchi so special. If you use waxy potatoes, the texture often becomes rubbery. Typical varieties that are classified as floury are, for example, Adretta and Bintje.
The grooves are for the sauce
To give your gnocchi the typical ridges, take a piece of dough and roll it lightly over the tines of a fork or a special board. Press gently to form the ridges, which not only look nice but also absorb more sauce.
Gnocchi recipe: Italian variations
Gnocchi have a long tradition in Italy and can be found in different regional variations. They are not always made from potatoes; some versions are made from ricotta, bread or semolina. Each region has its own preferences and recipes, which differ in terms of the sauces used:
- alla Sorrentina: served in a tomato and mozzarella sauce and baked in the oven.
- al Burro di Salvia: tossed in melted butter with fresh sage
- al Pesto: with Pesto Genovese or Pesto Rosso
- al Gorgonzola: creamy sauce, sometimes with spinach leaves
- al Ragù: with the famous Bolognese meat sauce
That’s gnocchi in German
The word comes from Italian and is the plural form of “gnocco”, which means “little dumpling”. It is derived from the word “nocca”, which means “knot”, and refers to the knot-like or tuberous shape.
“Gnocchi” is pronounced [ˈɲɔkki]. The “gn” is pronounced similarly to the Spanish “ñ” or the “gn” in the French “champagne”, i.e. with a soft, nasal sound. The vowel “o” sounds like in “Tor”, and the ending “kki” is pronounced with a clear and short “k”.
Do gnocchi count as pasta?
Although they are used in a similar way to pasta, Italians do not classify gnocchi classically as pasta, but rather as a separate category of pasta dish. Pasta is mainly made from durum wheat semolina or flour and water. Gnocchi, on the other hand, are based on potatoes and have a different texture. In the Italian menu, however, gnocchi are served in a similar way to pasta. They are usually served as the “primo piatto” or first main course.
Make your own gnocchi – step by step
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