This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This ground beef gnocchi recipe has a creamy tomato sauce and turns store-bought gnocchi into pillowy deliciousness. This one pan meal is quick and tastes gourmet!
You may also enjoy my Italian Sausage Gnocchi, Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce, or Creamy Mushroom and Spinach Gnocchi next.
Why you’ll love it
I have a ridiculous number of one pan gnocchi recipes on here, but this one might be my favorite. Beef and gnocchi is such a good combo! There’s also no need to pre-cook the gnocchi. It cooks right in the sauce, which is convenient and helps with cleanup.
This hamburger gnocchi recipe makes plenty of delicious sauce. The meaty tomato sauce sort of reminds me of a creamy Bolognese. Add in a splash of cream and freshly grated parmesan, and it’s a comforting yet simple meal that’s sure to go on repeat.
What you’ll need
- Ground beef – we’re using lean
- Onion and garlic – I like sweet (Vidalia) onions
- Italian seasoning – it’s my favorite blend of dried herbs to infuse flavor and comes in a single jar
- Canned diced tomatoes – they’re canned at the peak of ripeness for best taste
- Broth – I use chicken broth, but beef works too
- Heavy cream – to give the sauce that luxurious texture and taste
- Gnocchi – I use the shelf stable gnocchi that you can find in the dry pasta aisle. You can use the refrigerated kind as well.
- Parmesan – the final cheesy touch! Always freshly grate your own from a block.
Helpful tips
- Can I use homemade gnocchi? I don’t recommend it. The one pan method seems to be too much for the delicate pasta.
- Do I cook the gnocchi first/separately? Nope! It cooks right in the sauce. In fact, the starch releases and thickens up the sauce.
- Why isn’t the sauce thickening up? Just give it a little more time. On the other hand, if your stove runs hot, cook it over a lower heat.
How to make ground beef gnocchi
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Cook the onions and ground beef in a pan until browned, breaking it up with a spoon as you go along. Discard the excess fat if there’s a lot. Stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning, and cook until fragrant.
Stir the tomatoes, broth, heavy cream, and gnocchi into the pan. Let it bubble, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes. Uncover, stir, then simmer until the sauce has thickened. Stir in the parmesan, and season with salt & pepper.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- I mince garlic easily with this garlic press (no need to peel the cloves first), and I store the rest in this cute garlic saver.
- A Microplane zester is perfect to grate the parmesan. It comes in several colors!
- Here’s my favorite cutting board for chopping the onion.
Substitutions and variations
- I’d be cautious substituting the cream for something lower fat because the tomatoes and heat are likely to curdle the sauce or at least make it grainy if you don’t use cream.
- Try swapping the chicken broth with white wine (e.g., sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio) for an elegant touch.
- Many of my readers like adding spinach in at the end for some greens.
- If you sub the parmesan with cheddar, you can give this dish Hamburger Helper vibes, or make my Homemade Hamburger Helper instead.
What to serve with ground beef gnocchi
- For a salad, I like to dress one up with this homemade Olive Garden Salad Dressing. You could also make my Creamy Cucumber Salad or Beet and Spinach Salad for a delicious change.
- A dinner roll or slice of Cheesy Garlic Bread nicely rounds it out.
Leftovers and storage
- Store leftover gnocchi for 3-4 days in the fridge in a covered container.
- Reheat over a low heat until warmed through. It’ll thicken up over time, so add a splash of broth or cream to revive the sauce if needed.
- I don’t recommend freezing this one.
More ground beef recipes
If you made this one pan gnocchi with ground beef, please leave me a star rating and review below! You can also tag me on Instagram if you made any Salt & Lavender recipes.
Ground Beef Gnocchi
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning or to taste
- 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- 1/3 cup chicken or beef broth
- 3/4 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 pound uncooked potato gnocchi
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef and onion in a skillet over medium-high heat for 7-10 minutes. If there's lots of excess fat, spoon most of it out.
- Stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning.
- Add the diced tomatoes, chicken broth, cream, and gnocchi to the pan, and give it a good stir. Once the sauce starts to bubble again, cover the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 5 minutes.
- Uncover the pan, stir it, and let it cook for another few minutes, or until the gnocchi has cooked through and is nice and soft and the sauce has thickened to your liking.
- Stir in the parmesan cheese and salt & pepper as needed. Serve immediately.
Notes
- There is no need to pre-cook the gnocchi. It’ll cook right in the sauce.
- This dish would be excellent with fresh basil stirred in at the end.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on January 4, 2020. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
This is a great recipe! Easy to make and super delicious! We will have this again!
Awesome!! So glad to hear it!
Can I use a different pasta if gnocchi is heavy for me? Thx!
Hi! Gnocchi isn’t really the same as other pasta because it’s made from potatoes. You’d need way more water if you wanted to do this as a one pot meal (it would be a different recipe basically). You could maybe make the sauce separately and just add it to cooked pasta.
I have to say that the recipe is very forgiving even though I had to make a lot of substitutions! Couldn’t find heavy whipping cream or regular diced tomatoes as supply chains continue to be affected by the […]
I instead used regular whole milk instead of cream, added another cup of broth, and two heaping spoonfuls of tomato paste. To get my veggies in I also added some fresh green beans when I put in the gnocchi and finished with some leftover sour cream.
I’m the end I’m sure it’s nothing like the original, but it was delicious! I can’t wait to try it again when I have all the ingredients and encourage people to try the recipe as is or experiment.
So glad you were able to make it based on what you had on-hand. Yup, I love how forgiving these one pan gnocchi recipes are. 🙂 (I edited your comment to take out a buzzword associated w. current events since that apparently could impact my search rankings and I’m not taking any chances). Thanks for commenting!!
This sounds so good! I just printed it out! Will have to bake some of my Crusty Italian Bread to go with it!
I hope you like it, Elaine! I want some of your bread now… 😉
Do you have a side with it, like salad or a veggie? Trying to get complimentary ideas for a veggie side.
Hi! I would do a salad with a light dressing. Or since it’s summer, maybe grill up some veggies (corn, zucchini, peppers, etc.) and just serve it on the side.
Loved it
Yay!!
My husband won’t eat anything with chunks of tomato in it. Could I use tomato paste or sauce to get that flavor?
Yes, that would be fine 🙂
I used white wine instead of broth like you mentioned and it was awesome! Gives it that twist.
Wonderful!
I haven’t made this yet but am wondering if it would get messed up if I used ground turkey. I’m not a huge fan of ground beef. Has anyone tried it with ground turkey? Is it worth it or should I just go for beef?
Hi! I don’t think it would necessarily mess it up, but it wouldn’t be as flavorful. I do eat a lot of ground turkey (I cook it for myself in tacos often), and I add a lot of seasoning to make it less bland. So you may need to experiment with seasonings. Let me know if you do try!
Great recipe with great balance. Personally, I up the seasoning on any recipe, including this one. My personal spin added some parsley flakes, Greek seasoning (Cavanders), garlic salt and black pepper. Overall I have to say this is the most balanced flavor profile meal I have made all year and its May!! You must try this recipe!!
That’s great! So pleased you like it. Yes, it definitely a recipe that lends itself to little tweaks.