Simple Vegan Gnocchi
Ingredients
Instructions
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1Boil the potatoes in salted water until fork-tender. Drain and place the pot back over low heat to dry it. Turn off the heat and put the potatoes in the pot for a few minutes so that they dry as well. Peel the potatoes once cool enough to handle.
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2Mash the potatoes until smooth or run them through a potato ricer. Transfer the potatoes to a floured working surface and flatten them out into a pancake-like shape. Sprinkle the salt over the potatoes, followed by some of the flour. Gently fold the flour and salt into the potatoes using a bench scraper, spatula, and/or your hands (floured). Keep adding flour, until you have a smooth dough that doesn't stick too much to your hands. Go by feel and look, different kinds of potatoes will require different amounts of flour. Avoid over-mixing or kneading too much, which could make for tough gnocchi.
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3Divide the dough into eighths. Roll each piece into a rope on a floured surface. The thickness of your rope will determine the size of your gnocchi. Cut the rope into small pieces, which will be your gnocchi. Flour the cut sides of your gnocchi by twisting each end on your floured surface and place them on a floured towel. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Optionally, roll each piece on a gnocchi board, back of a fork, or another ridged surface like a mandoline to give the gnocchi ridges.
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4Prepare a pot of well-salted boiling water. Boil the gnocchi, stirring gently, until they float up to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon into a pan with whatever sauce you're using. Mix gently with the sauce and serve.
We’ve been making lots of gnocchi. The simplest kind, made of just three ingredients: potatoes, flour, salt. I’ve forgotten how delicious and pillowy they can be, worlds away from anything you can buy pre-made at the store. They are arguably the easiest kind of pasta to try making at home, too. The dough is very forgiving and doesn’t require any precision or kneading. Shaping the gnocchi takes some time, but many of us have more of that right now, and this is a fun, rewarding way to spend it. It’s also great to involve little ones in the process, or any idle hands that are around.
We documented all the dough mixing and shaping steps in photos below, to show the straightforward process. We hope you’ll give the these a try, they’re a true delight.
Simple Vegan Gnocchi
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Serves: 3-4
Ingredients
- about 6 medium potatoes (about 1.4 lbs/650 g)
- ½ tsp sea salt, plus more for salting the water
- 1-2 cups all purpose flour (about 4.25-8.5 oz/120-250g)
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes in salted water until fork-tender. Drain and place the pot back over low heat to dry it. Turn off the heat and put the potatoes in the pot for a few minutes so that they dry as well. Peel the potatoes once cool enough to handle.
- Mash the potatoes until smooth or run them through a potato ricer. Transfer the potatoes to a floured working surface and flatten them out into a pancake-like shape. Sprinkle the salt over the potatoes, followed by some of the flour. Gently fold the flour and salt into the potatoes using a bench scraper, spatula, and/or your hands (floured). Keep adding flour, until you have a smooth dough that doesn't stick too much to your hands. Go by feel and look, different kinds of potatoes will require different amounts of flour. Avoid over-mixing or kneading too much, which could make for tough gnocchi.
- Divide the dough into eighths. Roll each piece into a rope on a floured surface. The thickness of your rope will determine the size of your gnocchi. Cut the rope into small pieces, which will be your gnocchi. Flour the cut sides of your gnocchi by twisting each end on your floured surface and place them on a floured towel. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Optionally, roll each piece on a gnocchi board, back of a fork, or another ridged surface like a mandoline to give the gnocchi ridges.
- Prepare a pot of well-salted boiling water. Boil the gnocchi, stirring gently, until they float up to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon into a pan with whatever sauce you're using. Mix gently with the sauce and serve.
Notes
Potatoes: Traditionally, fluffy potatoes like Russet are called for in gnocchi recipes. I've made them with both fluffy and waxy potatoes and both turned out tender and delicious, so I don't think the kind of potatoes you use matters very much.
Gluten-Free: I've tried making these with an all-purpose gluten-free flour and it worked well. I haven't tried any other GF flour yet. There are a lot of great, dedicated gluten-free gnocchi recipes that use all different types of flour on the internet.
Eggs: Most gnocchi recipes have eggs as a fourth ingredient, but we aren't just excluding the eggs because we are a plant-based blog. We actually think that the gnocchi come out fluffier and more tender without eggs - they are just not needed in our opinion. But you could definitely include eggs if you'd like.
Sauce: Gnocchi are delicious with all kinds of sauces - pesto (pictured), tomato sauce, fried sage and Miyoko's butter, etc. etc.
Gluten-Free: I've tried making these with an all-purpose gluten-free flour and it worked well. I haven't tried any other GF flour yet. There are a lot of great, dedicated gluten-free gnocchi recipes that use all different types of flour on the internet.
Eggs: Most gnocchi recipes have eggs as a fourth ingredient, but we aren't just excluding the eggs because we are a plant-based blog. We actually think that the gnocchi come out fluffier and more tender without eggs - they are just not needed in our opinion. But you could definitely include eggs if you'd like.
Sauce: Gnocchi are delicious with all kinds of sauces - pesto (pictured), tomato sauce, fried sage and Miyoko's butter, etc. etc.
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