When I found one lone russet potato at the bottom of the bin, I decided to make a small batch of gnocchi--the perfect thing to do with one potato. I like a very potato-y gnocchi, so I go with just enough flour to form the dough. Other people prefer a denser, more pasta-like dumpling, and use much more flour. I know many of you hate it when I say this, but you'll just have to figure it out as you go.
Chef John's Potato Gnocchi Ingredients
- 1 large russet potato
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
- 1 cup marinara sauce, heated, or more as needed, divided
- Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for serving
Chef John's Potato Gnocchi Cook Instructions
Prep40m
Cook10m
Ready In60m
Servings2 servings
- Place potato in microwave and cook on high setting until cooked through, about 7 minutes depending on the size of the potato.
- Split potato and remove flesh. Push flesh through strainer using the back of a wooden spoon in order to achieve a granular texture. Add a pinch of salt and let cool for about 10 minutes. Pour in beaten egg and stir, using the tines of a fork and trying not to mash the potato. Add about 1/3 cup flour and continue gently stirring gently with the tines of a fork until mixture starts to come together. You may need another pinch or two of flour. Fold mixture with a spatula until dough forms a mass, adding flour as needed. Using your fingers, knead dough gently to form ball, about 10 seconds.
- Shape dough into a fat log shape on a floured surface. Cut into 4 pieces. Gently roll each piece using your fingertips to form the "snake" or a long rope of dough, starting from the center and rolling toward the end until dough is about 1/2 inch thick. Cut each rope of dough into 1/2-inch pieces.
- Roll each 1/2-inch piece quickly down the back of a fork's tines to form ridges.
- Heat sauce in a skillet while you cook the gnocchi.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Reduce heat so water continues to simmer. Add gnocchi to water. As soon as they float to the surface after half a minute or so, cook for an additional 14 seconds. Transfer cooked gnocchi with a slotted spoon to the pan with the sauce. Stir until coated.
- Serve topped with grated cheese.
Chef John's Potato Gnocchi Nutritions
- Calories: 411.1 calories
- Carbohydrate: 73.6 g
- Cholesterol: 97.7 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Fiber: 8.2 g
- Protein: 13.3 g
- SaturatedFat: 2.2 g
- Sodium: 597.4 mg
- Sugar: 12.8 g
