Easy Ricotta Gnocchi

Super simple, soft pillowy ricotta gnocchi.

Course Main, Main Course

Cuisine Australian, Modern Australian

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 286kcal

Author Lee-Ann Grace

Ingredients

375 g smooth ricotta see note
1 egg
90 g finely grated parmesan about 1 cup
150 g / 1 cup plain/all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon fine salt
1 tablespoon salted butter - optional

Instructions

In medium bowl, combine ricotta, egg, parmesan & salt - mix well until completely combined.
Add approximately ½ cup of flour to ricotta, and mix very lightly to just combine. The mixture should look like under mixed biscuit dough.
Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured work surface, and sprinkle the top of the dough with about 1 tablespoon of flour. Very lightly bring the dough together, sprinkling with another tablespoon of flour on to any spots where the dough still feels wet & sticky (see notes).
At this point I usually have ¼ cup of flour left.
Using a sharp knife, cut the dough into 2 roughly even portions (see notes).
Take one portion, and divide it roughly in half to make a quarter.
Lightly roll this quarter of dough in a long log - about 30 cm / 12 inches long and 2 cm / ¾ inches in diameter, then repeat for second quarter lightly sprinkling with flour as needed.
Repeat for remaining dough portion.
Dip the point of your sharp knife into the remaining flour, and cut gnocchi into 1 ½ cm / ⅗ inch pieces, re-flouring your knife point as you go.
If you are going to pan fry your gnocchi, place the butter into a non-stick fry pan over medium high heat.
Carefully place your gnocchi into boiling water (see note) - the gnocchi will rise to the surface when they are cooked, this should take around 2-3 mins (see notes).
Remove gnocchi from boiling water with a slotted spoon and allow them to drain slightly, before adding them to the hot-buttered fry pan & frying for 1 - 11/2 mins to colour slightly then adding them to a sauce of your choice, or add directly without frying (see notes).
Serve immediately.

Notes

The ricotta I have used is just plain, non-fancy (supermarket brand actually) full fat ricotta. The package says that it's smooth ricotta. Cheap & cheerful.

You are trying to add as little flour as you can to the dough, while still having it hold together as it cooks. The more flour, the more dense & tough the gnocchi. A good rule of thumb is to feel the dough as you go rather than relying on measurements, only adding more flour if it is still sticky. This is also why I don't divide the dough into four quarters straight away, because I find that the dough will absorb the surface flour while sitting on the bench waiting to be rolled (even for that short time), so I try to have as less surface area as possible until I need to cut it & flour it for rolling.

You also don't want to knead the dough too much, this will also make your gnocchi tougher. This is why you will notice that I said "bring the dough together" rather than knead the dough. The dough evens out pretty well when you roll it, so you really don't have to "knead" it very much at all. It also helps to give you a soft result. Don't worry if you have some flour left over when you are done, I usually have about 1 tablespoon left.

Be careful when placing your gnocchi into the boiling water, they really "plop" in and can splash a lot! If you don't get them all in at the exact same millisecond that's ok, because the little darlings obediently rise to the surface when they are cooked. Just fish them out & add them to your pot of sauce as they come to the top.

I like food fried off in butter as much or more than the next person, but just beware that you will get a slightly chewier, firmer texture to your gnocchi if you decide to pan fry them. Still good though!

These need to be served straight away - as soon as they start to cool they will get tougher.

*Please note that the amount of calories per serve is provided as a guide only, as ingredients and cooking methods can vary greatly*

Nutrition