Gnocchi

My friends Jan & Sush were supposed to visit me in March and all that we had planned to do was eat good food (mostly home bound) and catch up with each other and play with the kids (Sush & I have 1 kid each). My plan was to let Jan do all the kids watching/ playing while I could cook loads and loads of food for them! Jan is a vegan and so I would have had to be mindful of the dishes I made for her but it would have been so nice to make this home made gnocchi & serve it to both of them. For those of you who do not what gnocchi is, it’s a pasta typically in a dumpling form made using potatoes & flour. While I always always loved gnocchi and ate it at restaurants, I never bothered making it until last year. D was the one who pushed me to do it infact saying its something I will surely be able to make. So one day I just looked up a few recipes & made it. I did not have maida/ all purpose flour at that time & used whole wheat flour. While it turned out nice, it was not as nice as in restaurants. A few weeks back I made a small batch of gnocchi for D with All purpose flour and it came out so so well and of course I had to blog it. I made the creamy tomato sauce to go with where in I tested the roasting of tomatoes on open flame instead of microwaving them and it turned out perfect. Gnocchi is pretty simple to make and does not require much of kneading, doesn’t need any special equipment. So one of the best kinds of pasta to start making on your own.

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Gnocchi

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

10 mins

 

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 2 cups

Ingredients

• 2 medium boiled potatoes 1 cup when mashed
• 1 cup All purpose flour/ maida
• 3/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. In a wide bowl, add boiled potatoes (skin removed) and mash it well (use your hands or the back of a ladle).

2. Add 1/2c all purpose flour, pepper, salt.

3. Start kneading with hand into a smooth pliable dough.

4. If you find the dough sticky, add the rest of the all purpose flour bit by bit as needed.

5. Once the dough comes together, divide the dough into 4 equal portions.

6. Dust some flour on a flat surface.

7. Roll out each dough portion using your palm to form a snake/ tube like shape.

8. Cut into small pieces using a knife (roughly 1/2 inch each).

9. Press each gnocchi (dough pieces) lightly on both sides with a fork (optional step and can be omitted).

10. While you are working on the dough, bring a wide pot filled with water to a boil.

11. Drop gnocchi into the water (in batches so as to not overcrowd).

12. The uncooked gnocchi will be at the bottom of the vessel. As they cook, they will start floating to the top.

13. Drain the gnocchi out of the water once they are cooked & float to the top.

14. Use it immediately by adding it to any sauce of your choice or let it cool down & refrigerate (for max 3 days).

Recipe Notes

1. You can pressure cook potatoes for 5-6 whistles and remove skin. You can also just boil the potatoes in a pan of water & cook till it gets soft. 
2. Silpat works better as a flat surface than anything else I have and I am realising this as I am working more and more with different kinds of dough. 
3. You do not need to add the entire 1C all purpose flour. Use it as required by adding bit by bit. The dough that you have should be similar to that of a pizza dough (slightly stickier than standard chapathi dough).  
4. If you want, you can make a big batch of gnocchi and freeze it uncooked as soon as they are shaped. When you want to use them, thaw it and then cook it in boiling water. 

 

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