Gnocchi with Brown Butter
Dinner | Italian
Homemade gnocchi is something I'll make every few months for a special occasion or on a weekend when I have a little more time to prepare it. It's really easy to make and you can change the sauce to whatever you like. I've made it with a brown butter and sage sauce as it's a simple sauce to pair with your gnocchi. With this recipe, we'll boil and pan fry the gnocchi so it's soft and pillowy with a bit of texture and browning on the outside.
Gnocchi Explained
Bake the potatoes
Boiling potatoes soaks them in water, and water in the dough means you need more flour to hold it together, and more flour means heavier gnocchi. Baking the potatoes on a bed of rock salt that pulls out even more moisture gives you the driest possible flesh, which means less flour and lighter gnocchi. Prick the skins so steam can escape, then 180°C for at least an hour and 20 minutes. You want them completely soft, no give when you press them.
Don’t overwork the dough
Gnocchi dough is the opposite of bread dough. With bread we stretch the gluten so it can hold its shape. With gnocchi we want to barely activate it so the dough stays tender. Fold the riced potato, egg and flour together with a bench scraper rather than kneading. Stop the second the dough holds in a pillowy mass. Overworking is what turns light gnocchi into chewy ones.
Use your instincts with the flour
The 120g of flour in this recipe is a starting amount. How much you actually need depends on how dry your baked potatoes ended up, the time of year, and the hydration of your specific flour. Start with about half the flour, mix it through, then add more in small pinches only until the dough just holds together. Most of the time I don’t need more than what’s listed, but some days the potatoes are wetter and the dough needs a bit more help.
Ingredients
- 6 large russet potatoes (or other floury variety)
- rock salt, enough to cover the base of a tray
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp olive oil (for the dough), plus extra for tossing and frying
- 120g plain flour, plus extra for dusting (you may need a touch more)
- sea salt, to taste
- 12 to 15 fresh sage leaves
- 50g unsalted butter
- parmesan, to serve
Directions
MAKE THE GNOCCHI
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F).
- Wash the potatoes and pat them dry. Prick each potato 5 or 6 times all over with the tip of a sharp knife to let steam escape during the bake.
- Cover the base of a roasting tray with a shallow even layer of rock salt. Sit the potatoes on top of the salt and transfer to the oven for 1 hour 20 to 1 hour 40 minutes, until completely soft all the way through. They should give easily with no resistance when pressed.
- Remove from the oven and rest for 10 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.
- Cut the potatoes in half and scoop the flesh out onto a clean wooden board. Pass through a ricer or mash until smooth.
- Beat the egg in a small bowl with a pinch of sea salt and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
- Season the riced potato with a pinch of salt. Add the egg mixture and about half the flour. Cut everything together with a bench scraper until it just starts to come together. Add the rest of the flour in small amounts only if the dough still feels sticky and won’t hold its shape.
- Lightly knead the dough with your hands just until it holds together and feels pillowy. Stop as soon as it’s smooth. Don’t overwork it.
- Dust the work surface with extra flour. Cut the dough into pieces and roll each into a long rope about 1.5 to 2cm thick. Cut each rope into 2cm pieces. If you have a gnocchi paddle, roll each piece over it to press a ripple pattern into the dough.
- Transfer the shaped gnocchi to a floured tray as you work.
COOK THE GNOCCHI
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a rolling boil.
- Working in batches, lower the gnocchi into the boiling water. Stir gently to stop them sticking to the bottom.
- Once the gnocchi float to the surface, give them another 30 seconds. Scoop out with a slotted spoon onto a lightly oiled tray. Drizzle with a little more oil and toss to stop them sticking together.
FRY AND SERVE
- Heat a medium frying pan over medium heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the sage leaves and fry for 10 to 15 seconds, until they just crisp. Remove to paper towel to drain.
- Add a portion of the gnocchi to the same pan and fry for 2 to 3 minutes without moving them so they pick up colour underneath. Add the butter and let it foam around the gnocchi.
- Once the gnocchi lifts cleanly from the pan, flip each piece over. Keep cooking until the gnocchi is golden brown and the butter has gone past foaming. You’ll see brown specks at the base of the pan and smell something nutty.
- Transfer to warm bowls. Top with the crispy sage, a spoonful of brown butter from the pan, and a generous grating of parmesan. Cook the remaining gnocchi in the same way (in batches or across two pans). Any uncooked gnocchi can be kept refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Recipe notes
Russet potatoes:
A high-starch, floury potato is the only way to get pillowy gnocchi. Russet is my pick. In Australia they’re available at most specialty grocers and fresh produce stores. Agria, Kennebec, Maris Piper and King Edward all work as substitutes. Avoid waxy varieties like Charlotte or Kipfler. They have too much moisture and not enough starch, and your gnocchi will end up dense.
Plain flour:
Plain (all-purpose) flour. The amount listed is a starting point. Start with half the flour, mix, and only add more if the dough won’t hold together. Less flour is always better than more for light gnocchi. Don’t reach for 00 or bread flour here.
Sage:
Fresh sage leaves only, not dried. Look for plump, soft leaves in good colour. The crispy fried sage is the textural counterpoint to the soft gnocchi.