by Diana Rattray
This easy gnocchi is a made with a combination of hot riced potatoes, an egg, salt, and flour. Even if you don’t have a special gnocchi board, the gnocchi is easily shaped. Just gently roll each piece over the back of a fork. Gnocchi cooks in about 2 minutes, and they can be frozen and cooked later.
PrintBasic Gnocchi
This homemade potato gnocchi is easier than you might think! Add a simple tomato or cream sauce and salad for a fabulous meal.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Pasta
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 1/2 to 2 pounds baking potatoes (about 2 large potatoes), preferably a starchy potato, such as russets
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, and more for the board
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400 F.
- Scrub the potatoes and pierce them in several places with a fork. Place the potatoes on the oven rack and bake for about 45 minutes or until they are tender when pierced with a fork.
- Meanwhile, flour a pastry mat or board or the countertop.
- Beat the egg in a small bowl; set aside.
- Lightly flour a baking sheet.
- As soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle but still hot, peel them and put them through a potato ricer (or food mill). Measure 2 cups of potatoes and spread them out on the floured surface. Let them cool just slightly. If too hot, they could cook the egg; they should be quite warm.
- Scoop the warm potatoes into a mound and drizzle the beaten egg over them. Sprinkle the potatoes with 1 cup of flour and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. With a pastry scraper or your hands, mix the dough, folding it over until you have a soft but slightly rough dough forms. If the dough is sticking, add more flour, but don’t overwork the dough.
- Divide the dough into about six portions.
- Roll each portion to form a rope about 1/2 inch thick.
- With a sharp knife, cut the rope into 3/4-inch lengths. Gently roll each piece of dough over a gnocchi board or the back of a fork to make the classic gnocchi ridges. If you don’t get perfect ridges, they will get better with a little practice.
- Arrange the shaped gnocchi in a single layer on the lightly floured baking sheet while you work on the remaining dough.
- If you are cooking the gnocchi immediately, bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add about two dozen gnocchi and cook for about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes after they float to the top.
- To freeze, put the baking sheet with gnocchi in the freezer for a few hours, or until they are solid. Transfer the frozen gnocchi to a freezer bag; seal it, label it with the name and date, and store it in the freezer.
- Cook the frozen gnocchi in boiling salted water as above.
