This one pan creamy gnocchi with sausage recipe is an easy, quick, and incredibly delicious comfort food meal. Ready in 30 minutes!
It's time for another simple gnocchi recipe! My creamy spinach and mushroom gnocchi recipe has been doing really well (it is delicious), so I made a creamy tomato gnocchi recipe recently as well.
Those two recipes are vegetarian, so I decided to make one for the meat lovers out there.
I'm super excited about this one too!
What kind of gnocchi to use?
I buy the shelf-stable potato gnocchi found in the pasta aisle of most major grocery stores.
Like the other gnocchi recipes, this Italian sausage gnocchi is a one pan wonder as well. No need to boil the gnocchi in a separate pan because it all cooks in the sauce.
Fewer dishes!
And this sauce is lip-smackingly good. It's tomato-based, creamy, garlicky, and the pieces of Italian sausage take the flavor to the next level. Total comfort food.
You know me... I love me some creamy sauces every now and then. 😉
Pro tip: If you can't use white wine for whatever reason, try replacing it with chicken broth + 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard.
Have you tried my Sausage, Kale, and Gnocchi Soup or my Easy Chicken Gnocchi Soup?
This creamy gnocchi recipe has received a lot of love since I first posted it - one sweet reader said: "This was fantastic and my family loved it!"
More one-pan gnocchi recipes you may like:
- Chicken Bacon Gnocchi
- Ground Beef Gnocchi
- Spinach and Artichoke Gnocchi
- 15 Minute Creamy Alfredo Gnocchi
- One Pan Gnocchi alla Vodka
- 15 Minute One Pan Creamy Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Gnocchi
Hope you love this easy gnocchi recipe!
Questions? Don't hesitate to ask.

One Pan Creamy Gnocchi with Sausage
Ingredients
- 8.8 ounces Italian sausages see recipe notes
- 1/2 small onion chopped finely
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1/3 cup dry white wine (e.g. sauvignon blanc)
- 1 (14 fluid ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 pound uncooked potato gnocchi
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- Handful fresh basil torn
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Prep your sausage and onion. Feel free to take the sausage meat out of the casing if that's easier than cutting it.
- Sauté the sausage pieces and onion in a skillet on on medium-high heat for 7-10 minutes, or until the sausage and onions are lightly browned.
- Add the garlic to the pan and sauté for 30 seconds, or until fragrant.
- Add the wine and let it cook for about a minute.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, cream, and gnocchi. Once the sauce starts to bubble again, cover the pan and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 5 minutes.
- Uncover the pan, give it a good stir, 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, basil, and salt & pepper, to taste. Serve immediately.
Notes
- There is no need to pre-cook the gnocchi. It'll cook right in the sauce.
- I bought a pack of 5 mild Italian sausages (Johnsonville brand) and used half of it for this recipe. Anything around the 8-10 ounce or so mark would work. Feel free to substitute with spicy Italian or another similar variety of sausage.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Sam says
Obsessed with these flavors!!! Holy moly, so comforting and GOOD!
Natasha says
I'm so glad you liked it, Sam!!
Teresa Angel says
I screwed up and put a can of diced tomatoes with green chillis in…my husband LOVED it!
Miranda @ Salt & Lavender says
Haha well that worked out ok then!! Thanks for trying the recipe 🙂
Marie says
Easy and delicious! No need to tweak.
Natasha says
Thanks so much! 🙂
Anna says
Love this recipe!! Do you have a lighter suggestion/replacement for the heavy whipping cream that doesn’t affect the flavor too much?
Natasha says
I'm so happy you like it, Anna! I think in this one you could probably get away with using half-and-half since the gnocchi releases a lot of starch to thicken the sauce. You could also try reading through the comments to see if readers have done anything other than that.
Sheilah says
We’ve made this about three times, and my husband, who is a fussy eater, loves it!
Natasha says
That's great to hear!! 😀
oliver Merrill says
Made it last night, Absolutely Delicious. No tweeks or add ons needed. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us. 🙂
Natasha says
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Oliver! 🙂
Terri says
Yummy! I add some fresh mushrooms with the sausage and throw in some fresh spinach at the end just to get a few more veggies into my meal.
Natasha says
Good idea! Glad you enjoyed it, Terri!
Susan Neilan says
Made tonight. Used shallots instead of onion. Added curly kale before wine or cream. Absolutely delicious. Gnocchi cooked perfectly. Also omitted tomatoes. So good! Thanks for the inspiration S&L❤
Natasha says
You're very welcome!! 🙂
Sandeep Cavill says
Lovely flavours! This creamy dish was ready in about 30 mins - an ideal mid week meal.
Natasha says
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed it, Sandeep! 🙂
Austin says
Add spinach. Adds good color and little nutrients!
Natasha says
Sure
Chandler R says
I've made this recipe so many times and it is my go to! I usually use spanish/white/yellow onions but i only have red on hand right now. Will that work out the same?
Natasha says
Hi!! I'm so glad you like this recipe, Chandler. Yes, red onions will work. I find red onions don't look as nice when cooked as raw (the red/purple color fades), but it'll taste just fine.
Rebekah says
This was DELICIOUS! I did a combo of this recipe and your spinach/mushroom gnocchi-I just couldn’t decide. I used garlic chicken sausage and coconut milk, the flavors were fantastic. I will be making some version of this again!
Natasha says
So happy you liked it!! 🙂 Love your tweaks.
Garrett says
Would this work in a Dutch oven? My skillets are fairly shallow.
Natasha says
Yes, that would be fine. 🙂
Dency says
I made this yesterday and it was a hit! My husband devoured it. Restaurant quality food at home! Thank you!
Natasha says
I’m thrilled to hear that!! ♥️
Angela says
Hi! This recipe looks delicious, but I have a child who won’t eat tomatoes. If I leave them out but add some spinach would I need to increase the liquid to compensate for the tomatoes and juices?
Natasha says
Hi! Yes, you would need to add more liquid... there is quite a bit of juice in those 14 ounce cans of tomatoes. I am not sure it's exactly 14 oz worth of liquid by itself, though, so you could probably add a bit less... just keep an eye on it so that it doesn't absorb all the liquid and leave a nasty baked on mess in your pan. You could probably compensate by adding more broth and/or a combo of broth and cream. The tomatoes do give this dish more flavor, though. Would your kid mind if you used tomato sauce (all blended up)?
Angela says
Yes, it’s a texture issue. I can try the tomato sauce instead. Thanks!
Sophia says
Is the gnocchi supposed to be frozen or fresh?
Natasha says
I explain under the heading "What kind of gnocchi to use" within the blog post. 🙂 You want the shelf stable kind. Homemade gnocchi is likely to fall apart. The refrigerated kind (found in the refrigerated pasta section of some grocery stores) is fine too.
Kristin says
Made this for dinner tonight. It was amazing! I threw some handfuls of baby spinach in at the end because I had some to use up. Delicious!
Natasha says
Yay!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Denise says
Delicious!
Natasha says
Thank you, Denise!!
Kim says
One of my family's favorites! Thank you for sharing this recipe. 😋
Natasha says
Yay!! You're very welcome, Kim!
Diane Van Der Meer says
This was amazing, I did add more tomatoes and Parmasan, but that was my choice. Thank you.
Natasha says
Sounds delicious to me! You're welcome!!
Allie says
This was so good!
I made a few alterations:
I substituted the heavy cream for creme fraiche, added 200g of bacon lardons, used Cumberland sausages, added a little Italian seasoning and just used a sprinkling of parmesan.
Absolute winner of a dinner 👌
Natasha says
So happy you liked it and that the tweaks worked for you. Sounds delicious! 🙂
K. Lees says
My husband and I LOVE this recipe. We typically make it three times a month during the winter. We add two large handfuls of spinach near the end of preparation and it just makes this great recipe even better.
Natasha says
That is awesome!! I love adding fresh spinach to dishes too. 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to review my recipe.
Laura Foist @mealswithafoodscientist says
This was delicious! I took out the onion (my husband gets migraines from onions) and added in some spinach. And even though my family isn’t typically fond of cooked spinach they loved it in this dish! Thanks for a great recipe!
Natasha says
I'm so glad you were able to adapt it and you guys enjoyed it!! 🙂 You're welcome!
Kelly says
I love this recipe! I am planning on doubling when family comes. Can I do one can of diced tomatoes and one can of tomato sauce? Thanks!
Natasha says
I think that should be fine 🙂
Nikole says
Great recipe! Excellent flavor. Would definitely make again!
Natasha says
Glad to hear it, Nikole! Thanks for commenting! 🙂
Payton says
I am so addicted, this is amazing! Will be making again very soon ❤️
Natasha says
I'm so happy to hear that, Payton! Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Katelyn says
Super simple recipe that packs a lot of flavor. Made for my boyfriend and he loved it and requests it all the time. Thank you!
Natasha says
So glad to hear that! You're welcome! 🙂
Ana says
I’m not a fan of sausage. Is there another meat substitute I can use instead?
Natasha says
Hmmm... it's really the star of the dish. I'm not really sure what else you could straight sub it with without having to tweak a few things. Maybe just try a different one of my gnocchi recipes? This one has chicken and bacon: https://bit.ly/3th815z or type "gnocchi" into any of the search bars on my website and all my one pan gnocchi recipes will come up for you. 🙂
Barb says
I use diced pancetta all the time. Many grocery stores now carry it pre-diced and packaged. Saute it till crisp.
Allison Guckert says
Can I use a different pasta??
Natasha says
I don't think that will work. Gnocchi is pretty soft and cooks fast, and it releases a lot of starch. It's made of potatoes. Pasta will take longer, so the one pan method won't work the same. You could try making it separately though and adding sauce + pasta together at the end.
Neyam says
I’m making this for dinner tonight. If I don’t have white wine on hand, what can I use instead? Or can it be left out? Thank you!
Natasha says
You could use chicken broth. 🙂
F sethman says
Made ths added spinach and no cheese. Absolutely delicious!
Natasha says
So happy you liked it!
Diana says
As good as any restaurant meal! The best!
Natasha says
Thanks so much, Diana!!
Carol says
Everyone loved it! I made it with sweet Italian chicken sausage (Adelles) and added Italian seasoning to the cream and tomatoes because it’s what I had on hand. Super delicious! Great recipe!
Natasha says
Excellent!! So pleased you enjoyed it. 🙂
K France says
Made it tonight and it was wonderful. I’m going to make it with more sausage and add some spinach. Great sauce!!
Natasha says
Excellent! I'm so pleased you liked the recipe.