Crispy Gnocchi With Burst Tomatoes and Mozzarella

Crispy Gnocchi With Burst Tomatoes and Mozzarella
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Total Time
25 minutes
Rating
5(10,010)
Notes
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Pan-fried gnocchi is like a faster version of baked pasta. Store-bought gnocchi can simply be browned in a pan for an exciting mix of crispy outsides and chewy middles, no boiling required. This dish is studded with juicy tomatoes and melty pockets of mozzarella. Cherry tomatoes are reliably more flavorful year-round than larger, more watery varieties like beefsteak and heirloom. (That said, taste yours, and if they’re more tart than sweet, add ½ teaspoon sugar in Step 2.) Toss the tomatoes with browned butter, red-pepper flakes and garlic, then hit them with a little heat, and they’ll burst into a bright sauce. Stir in the gnocchi, dot with mozzarella, then broil until the cheese is molten and the tomatoes are blistered in spots.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
  • 2(12- to 18-ounce) packages shelf-stable or refrigerated potato gnocchi
  • ¼cup unsalted butter
  • 4garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • ¼teaspoon red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 2pints small tomatoes, such as cherry, grape or Sungold
  • ¼cup thinly sliced or torn basil leaves (optional), plus more for serving
  • 8ounces fresh mozzarella, cut or torn into ½-inch pieces
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

750 calories; 33 grams fat; 17 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 12 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 93 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 21 grams sugars; 24 grams protein; 1047 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat the broiler with a rack about 6 inches from the heat source.

  2. Step 2

    In a large (12-inch) skillet on the stovetop, heat enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of the pan (about 1 tablespoon) over medium-high. Add half the gnocchi to the pan, breaking up any that are stuck together. Cover with a lid or baking sheet and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown on one side, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl. Repeat with the remaining gnocchi and olive oil.

  3. Step 3

    Add the butter to the skillet and cook over medium-high, stirring often, until golden-brown and toasty, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the garlic, red-pepper flakes, 1½ teaspoons salt and a few grinds of pepper, reducing the heat slightly if necessary to avoid scorching. Add the tomatoes and 3 tablespoons water and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until the tomatoes have softened and the liquid has slightly thickened, 4 to 6 minutes. Smash the tomatoes as they burst to help them along.

  4. Step 4

    Add the seared gnocchi and ¼ cup basil (if using), stir to coat, then shake into an even layer. Top with the mozzarella and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Broil until the cheese is melted and browned in spots, 2 to 4 minutes. Top with more basil, red-pepper flakes and black pepper as desired.

Ratings

5 out of 5
10,010 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

The best refrigerated gnocchi are by Rana. Always keep a packet of them around in case rice or potatoes won’t do as starch. Their ravioli are also excellent.

Use chicken broth instead of water, add your favorite nut for texture (I suggest pine nuts), and a light honey drizzle! It helps the tomato flavor to pop and contrast nicely with the crushed red pepper. Lastly, it mentions garlic in the recipe but does not note it in the ingredients, a tablespoon of minced garlic really will marinate nicely with the tomatoes.

Broil gnocchi on a sheet pan with olive oil, can do them all at once while starting the sauce

I've made this. Here are some tips. Do NOT sear the gnocchi as directed. They will burn. Leave them uncovered and constantly toss them while searing to achieve the "golden brown" color. Take the pan OFF the heat when browning the butter. The residual heat will ensure that you don't scorch the butter and the thinly sliced garlic. You can put it back on the heat once the residual heat in the pan abates a bit. Otherwise, a simply stellar dish that is easy and delicious. A "go-to" dish.

I'd already come up with a burst tomato version, based on the crispy gnocchi and Brussels Sprout recipe published earlier, we liked it so much, and need to mix up the veg we were using (try also blistered green beans, caramelized cabbage... Never thought to add mozzerella and broil! Woo hoo!

Terrific recipe! Halved it for the two of us but won't make that mistake again - will look forward to leftovers next time, if I don't cook it for company, whenever that can happen again. Used grape toms, 5 cloves of garlic and all 8 ounces of mozzarella. The burst toms made such a flavorful sauce! My wife says it's perfect but requested more toms and it might do well with some capers and maybe some olives. I'll update this note next time. MAKE THIS RECIPE!

doesn't this need to say "in an oven-proof 12-inch skillet?"

First of all great recipe! I have made this 3 times in 2 1/2 weeks per my wife’s request! I have modified each time slightly (except for the first time). Toast gnocchi in butter, 2 tablespoons per batch. Extra garlic, think 6-8 cloves depending on size as others have mentioned. Fontina and Parmesan cheese instead of the fresh mozzarella (it is less chewy and seems to go with rest of the dish better). I added previously grilled and sliced Italian sausage and was awesome!

Delicious, and so fast and easy! Definitely a weeknight winner. Pine nuts, walnuts or hazelnuts would have been a nice addition, which I’ll try and remember to add next time! I used slightly less butter and used chicken broth to make up for lost liquid. Will definitely make again!

I placed it in a 400 degree oven for about 5 minutes instead of the broiler and it worked really well.

Have to say, we love all these ingredients and have happily cooked with shelf-stable gnocchi before. However, I have a quibble: cooking the gnocchi on but one side as the directions dictate left them a bit gummy within the final dish. Did anyone else share my experience?

Add a splash of white wine in when you add the water. Maybe replace a tablespoon of it. Takes it to the next level!

We try to follow the recipes here verbatim to see what the author was aiming for, but there are times when you just don't have the ingredients. I had no cherry toms, nor basil, but a friend who's opening a new restaurant in the next town stopped by to gift us a quart of his drop dead pasta sauce. So, after the garlic and pepper flakes went into the frying pan, so did a half pint of the sauce. Added back the gnocchi two minutes later, followed with the mozz under the broiler. Quick! Delish! Thx!

Seared gnocchi draped in broiled cheese? Stay out of my daydreams. If you’re not into nightshade this is endlessly adaptable. I did it with butternut squash, celeriac, basil oil.

Perfect. Don't skimp the basil.

Delicious recipe! The only changes I made were I doubled the garlic, used a tablespoon of white wine with the water, and used smoked mozzarella rather than plain, which really added a lot!

Not sure what happened, but the gnocchi were dry and flavorless. The dish didn't come together well for us. Wouldn't make again.

This was so much better than I was anticipating! Truly so yummy, you can’t go wrong with this recipe. I added 1 1/2 tsp onion powder to the tomatoes and 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar and it was so good. I was going to do honey like someone else suggested, but wanted the tang of vinegar and I think the balsamic added just the right amount of sweetness and tang. Will definitely cook again!

I added mini turkey meatballs before finishing under the broiler. May cut the gnocchi in half (one package) and add Brussel sprouts or such. Good, quick dinner though

I make this recipe regularly, especially in the summer months. I use all types of pastas with it, and fusilli has been my favorite. I highly recommend doubling the sauce amount because it’s so delicious! I usually use the extras on homemade pizza.

Is there a way to do this without a broiler?

Love this simple dinner! Definitely do the gnocchi and sliced cooked sausage under the broiler while making the sauce - great time saver.

I thought the brown butter clashed with the burst tomato sauce. I would just use olive oil next time for cleaner flavor. I also reserved some of the crispy gnocchi for the top so they didn’t all get soft. Otherwise quite delicious!

Use nonstick pan for best results

Made it last night, wow. I agree with other readers regarding broiling the gnocchi while making the sauce. I nearly burned an entire package, I set that batch aside while searing another package. I only had a small container of tomatoes so I added a half can of diced tomatoes and skipped the water. I used fresh marinated mozzarella I had in the fridge. It was so good that my husband added the burned(ish) gnocchi back into the pan with the remaining diced tomatoes for leftovers it was that good.

Loved this recipe, didn’t change the portions, but decided to chop about 1/4-1/2 C of sun dried tomatoes and added it to the gnocchi bowl. I would suggest going with less sun dried tomatoes because it over powered the delicate herbs and blistered tomatoes. Also, broiler wasn’t broiling, so I torched the cheese after the oven.

Made this exactly as written. I have been a home chef for 20 years and love NYT recipes. This was inedible.

Ditto for me.

Trying this with ground pork added in!

Absolutely delicious!!! Made exactly as instructed & would definitely serve for a casual dinner party. I had to be careful with the last step - I have a commercial oven & the broiler gets extraordinarily hot very quickly…was under the broiler 1 minute..was a bit more browned than photo but it was just perfect for us. Thank you to all for the tips - will try a few as I make it again!

This really does turn out amazing. Recommend using a non-stick pan so the gnocchi doesn't stick.

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Credits

By Ali Slagle

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