Name: Homemade Potato Gnocchi Recipe: Dough, Shaping & Cooking
Total time: 3 h
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 700 g cooked, peeled, riced floury potatoes (from roughly 1–1.2 kg raw potatoes); 160–220 g plain/all-purpose flour (start with 160 g; reserve up to 60 g extra); 1 large egg, beaten (about 50 g without shell); 6 g fine salt for the dough; Extra flour for dusting; 3 L water for boiling; 15 g fine salt for the boiling water; 85 g unsalted butter; 12–16 fresh sage leaves; Up to 120 ml reserved gnocchi cooking water; 30 g finely grated Parmesan, optional; Black pepper to taste, optional

Small ridged potato gnocchi in a dark green ceramic bowl, lightly glossed with sage butter and sprinkled with grated Parmesan.

Homemade potato gnocchi are tender Italian dumplings that should taste of potato, not flour. Roll the dough into small pillows, give them fork ridges if you like, then serve them with golden sage butter and Parmesan. The ridges catch the sauce, but plain gnocchi are just as good.

Baking floury potatoes keeps the cooked flesh relatively dry, so you can use less flour in the dough. Weigh the prepared potato, fold everything together with a light hand, and cook two or three samples before shaping the rest.

Need a quick answer while cooking? Start cooking · Check the dough · Cook a test piece · Fix a problem · Freeze a batch.

Homemade Potato Gnocchi Recipe

Yield: About 4 moderate main-course or 6 side servings; roughly 900 g–1 kg (2–2.2 lb) of uncooked gnocchi, before dusting flour.
Time: Plan on about 2–3 hours from preheating to serving, including 45–75 minutes or longer to bake the potatoes. Hands-on work is roughly 50–75 minutes, depending on shaping speed.
Oven: 220°C / 425°F conventional, or 200°C / 390°F fan.
Boiling: Fresh pieces commonly take about 2–4 minutes per batch; check that one is tender through the center before lifting the rest.

Ingredients for the potato gnocchi

700 g (about 25 oz) cooked, peeled, riced floury potato. Buy roughly 1–1.2 kg (2.2–2.6 lb) raw potatoes, such as russets, with a little extra to allow for peel and moisture loss. Measure the cooked flesh, not the raw potatoes.
160–220 g plain/all-purpose flour. Start with 160 g (about 1⅓ cups) and reserve up to 60 g (about ½ cup) for adjustments. Use a scale if possible.
1 large egg, beaten: about 50 g (1¾ oz) without the shell.
6 g fine salt (about 1 teaspoon) for the dough.
Extra flour for dusting the counter, fork and tray; do not count it toward the dough flour.
3 L (about 3.2 US quarts) water and 15 g fine salt (approximately 2½ teaspoons, depending on the salt) for boiling.

Simple sage-butter finish

85 g (6 tablespoons / 3 oz) unsalted butter, for a light sage-butter coating.
12–16 fresh sage leaves, or omit for a plain butter finish.
Up to 120 ml (½ cup) gnocchi cooking water, reserved from the pot; use only as much as needed to lightly coat the gnocchi.
30 g (about 1 oz) finely grated Parmesan, optional, plus black pepper to taste.

Equipment: You need a scale, baking tray, knife, large pot, slotted spoon, wide skillet and serving platter. For a fluffier potato texture, use a ricer or food mill; a sturdy sieve or fork works too. A bench scraper makes mixing easier, while a gnocchi board remains optional. Reuse the cooled baking tray to spread the riced potato, then clear and dry it for the shaped pieces. Keep a small heatproof bowl ready for the sage butter.

Blue ingredient board with bowls of cooked potato, starting flour, reserved flour, an uncracked egg and salt; labels give 700 g, 160 g, up to 60 g, about 50 g and 6 g. — Think of these bowls as a starting ratio, not five ingredients to empty in at once. The 60 g flour is a reserve for wet dough; the whole egg is pictured for identification, but beat it before mixing.

Bake the potatoes and make the dough

Bake the potatoes. Heat the oven to 220°C / 425°F (200°C / 390°F fan). Choose potatoes of similar size if possible. Scrub, dry and prick them a few times, then place them unwrapped on a tray. Medium potatoes usually take 45–60 minutes; large ones can take 60–75 minutes or longer. They are ready when a skewer slips all the way through without resistance. No oil is needed.

Four whole baked potatoes surround a fifth potato split open, with steam rising from its fluffy pale flesh on a dark wooden surface. — Don’t judge by skin color alone. The split potato should fall into light flakes when touched; a firm middle needs more oven time. That matters before the flour ever reaches the board.

From baked potatoes to a soft dough

Peel, rice and weigh. Split the hot potatoes to release steam. Once safe to handle, scoop out the flesh and rice it onto the clean, cooled tray. Spread it briefly to let more steam escape, then weigh 700 g (about 25 oz). Transfer the measured potato to a clean, dry work surface for mixing. Clear and dry the tray for the shaped gnocchi. No ricer? Press the warm potato through a sturdy sieve or mash it with a fork until no firm lumps remain.

Hands squeeze cooked potato through a metal ricer onto a tray; beside them, a bowl of riced potato rests on a scale displaying 700 g. — Tare the container before weighing; the 700 g target is for cooked potato alone, not the bowl holding it.

Mix the dough. Let the riced potatoes cool until just warm to the touch. Scatter over 160 g flour and 6 g fine salt, then add the 50 g beaten egg. Cut and fold with a bench scraper until the loose mixture gathers into a soft mound. Stop once a small piece rolls into a rope that holds its shape; slight tackiness is fine.

Hands use a metal bench scraper to fold fluffy riced potato, flour and yellow beaten egg into dough on a burgundy surface. — The scraper should lift and fold the potato mixture without pulling it into elastic strands. A soft, slightly uneven mound is preferable to dough repeatedly kneaded smooth.

If the dough needs adjusting: First dust the counter when only the surface feels sticky. Dough that smears or spreads after mixing evenly may need reserved flour about 10 g at a time. Cracking is different: check that the egg and flour are distributed before changing anything. See the dough texture guide if you are unsure.

Cook a test batch, then shape the gnocchi

Shape two or three samples. Bring 3 L water to the boil in a large pot. Meanwhile, roll a little dough on a floured counter into a rope about 1.5–2 cm (⅝–¾ in) thick. Cut it into 2 cm (¾ in) pillows. Leave these first samples plain.

Hands roll a potato-dough rope beside a ruler and cut plain gnocchi pillows with a bench scraper; labels show a 1.5–2 cm rope and 2 cm cuts. — Keep one cut pillow beside the ruler as a reference; the goal is even cooking, not factory-straight edges.

Cook and taste them. Salt the boiling water with 15 g fine salt, then lower in the samples. Maintain a gentle boil with steady bubbles, not a rolling churn. Once they float, lift one out, let it cool briefly and taste or cut through the center. Most pieces take about 2–4 minutes in total, depending on size. A fully cooked middle feels tender and tastes neither raw nor floury.

Two plain gnocchi pillows sit in a gently bubbling saucepan while a third is raised above the water on a round perforated skimmer. — The lifted test piece is still intact—a useful sign that this gnocchi dough can survive gentle handling. Check its center as well; a piece that stays together is not necessarily cooked through.

Ready to shape the rest? A sample that holds together, tastes of potato and has a tender center means the dough is ready. Go ahead and shape the remaining gnocchi.

If a sample fails: Calm the water first and cook another. Should it still break apart while the unshaped dough feels wet, fold in a little reserved flour and retest. A doughy center needs longer cooking; a piece that is cooked through but heavy or chewy will not improve with more flour. See troubleshooting for persistent problems.

Shape the full batch once the samples pass

Shape the rest. When the samples cook well, turn off the heat under the pot while you work. Divide the dough into four or five portions and keep the unused portions loosely covered. Roll and cut the ropes. Leave the pieces plain or add ridges or dimples, then space them apart on a lightly floured tray.

Three sets of uncooked potato gnocchi on a floured table, labeled plain pillows, thumb-dimpled gnocchi and fork-ridged gnocchi. — Plain pillows need the least handling. Thumb dimples and fork ridges provide more surface detail, but use gentle pressure so the soft pieces remain plump.

Boil in batches and coat with sage butter

Make the sage butter. Melt 85 g butter in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add the sage as it foams and swirl until the milk solids turn golden and smell nutty, roughly 2–4 minutes. Remove the pan immediately, before the flecks turn very dark. Pour the butter and sage leaves into a small heatproof bowl; keep the skillet ready to coat each cooked batch.

Sage leaves sizzle in foaming amber butter in a skillet, with a small inset labeled 'Too Dark' showing much darker browned butter. — Foam hides the important change. Tip the pan slightly to inspect the milk solids beneath it. Golden is the target; the ‘Too Dark’ inset shows the stage to avoid.

Lift and coat the cooked gnocchi in batches

Boil the first batch. Bring the salted water back to a gentle boil. Add a manageable portion of gnocchi, leaving room for them to move, and stir if any catch on the bottom. Once they float, lift one out, let it cool briefly, then taste or cut it open. Cook the batch a little longer if the center is still doughy. Before lifting the first batch, reserve up to 120 ml (½ cup) cooking water. Lift the cooked pieces with a spider or slotted spoon and let the excess water drip off.

A perforated skimmer lifts ridged gnocchi from a steaming black pot; a small ceramic cup on the table holds cloudy reserved cooking water and a wooden spoon. — Cloudy gnocchi cooking water is useful precisely because it contains starch. If the sage butter looks oily instead of lightly coating the pillows, add a small splash of that water and fold gently before adding more.

Coat each batch and serve. Warm a little browned butter with a few sage leaves in the skillet over low heat, saving some for the remaining gnocchi. Add the just-cooked batch and fold carefully. A splash of reserved cooking water can help the butter cling instead of pooling in the skillet. Transfer to a warm serving platter and cover loosely. Repeat the boiling and coating with the remaining gnocchi, working in three or four batches altogether. Serve as soon as the last batch is ready, with Parmesan and black pepper. The centers should be tender, with fragrant sage butter lightly coating the hot pillows.

Fork-ridged potato gnocchi and sage leaves in a skillet with browned butter; a wooden spoon rests among the pieces. — Use the wooden spoon to guide the gnocchi through sage butter, not to stir them hard. If butter forms a shiny ring at the edge, loosen the sauce with a little starchy water rather than tossing the pillows more.

Finish, vary and serve

Finishing with Parmesan: Keep the cheese an accent to the potato and sage rather than turning it into another sauce. Finely grate a little over the warm plate just before serving, so it softens against the gnocchi instead of clumping in the skillet.

Hands grate a wedge of Parmesan across a narrow grater above a plate of gnocchi with sage leaves; fine cheese falls onto the ridges. — Fine Parmesan shavings settle into the ridges without hiding the shape of the finished gnocchi.

Prefer crisp edges? Drain the boiled gnocchi, then sauté them in a wide skillet with a little butter or oil over medium heat. Give the pieces room and let one side turn golden before gently turning them. Pan-crisping is an optional second step; it is not needed for the tender sage-butter version.

Split photograph of pale boiled gnocchi on the left and gnocchi with golden pan-crisped patches on the right, sharing a green serving bowl. — The golden patches on the right come from a second, optional cooking step, not a longer boil. Drain boiled gnocchi first; then let one side sit against the skillet long enough to brown instead of steam.

Serving homemade gnocchi family-style: Spread the finished pillows loosely across a warm, shallow serving platter rather than stacking them in a deep bowl. That leaves room for everyone to lift a portion without crushing the soft pieces; bring the platter to the table as soon as the last batch is coated.

People sharing a meal around a dark green tablecloth, with plates of potato gnocchi and a large plate of gnocchi being passed in the foreground. — Pass the gnocchi platter while the sage-butter coating is still glossy. Serve loose, modest portions so the soft pillows stay intact.

Best Potatoes for Homemade Gnocchi

Floury, relatively dry potatoes are best for homemade potato gnocchi. Look for russets, Maris Piper, King Edward or other potatoes sold locally for fluffy baking or mashing. Their cooked flesh breaks into light pieces that need less flour to bind. Yukon Gold also works but may need a different flour adjustment; very waxy salad potatoes are less suitable.

Cut floury and waxy potatoes on a dark board, labeled 'Floury: high starch' and 'Waxy: low starch'; one crumbles and one has a smooth cut face. — For gnocchi, the fluffy, mealy cut face matters more than skin color; potatoes sold for baking or mashing usually offer a better starting point.

Should you bake, boil or steam the potatoes?

Baking helps limit added moisture, making it easier to keep the dough light. Our baked potato guide covers the tenderness check; for gnocchi, skip the oil and toppings.

Boiling is traditional too. Put whole, scrubbed potatoes in their skins into cool water, bring to a simmer and cook until a skewer slips through—often 30–45 minutes, longer for large potatoes. Drain, peel while warm and let the steam escape before ricing. For another established approach, see Lidia Bastianich’s potato gnocchi recipe.

Steaming is a faster alternative. Peel the potatoes and cut them into roughly 2.5 cm (1-inch) slices. Set them in a covered steamer basket above simmering water for about 15–20 minutes, or until a fork slides through easily. Rice while warm, let excess steam escape and weigh the prepared flesh.

Three stacked panels compare whole potatoes on a baking tray, skin-on potatoes simmering in a pot and peeled potato slices inside a steamer basket. — These three methods do not share one cooking clock: whole potatoes and thin slices soften at different rates. Instead, check the thickest part for tenderness before ricing, regardless of which method you choose.

Boiled or steamed potatoes can retain more moisture than baked ones. Start with the same 700 g of prepared flesh, then judge whether the mixed dough needs any reserved flour.

Can you make gnocchi without a potato ricer?

Yes. The main recipe works with potato pressed through a sturdy sieve or thoroughly mashed with a fork. A ricer or food mill is faster for 700 g and leaves fewer lumps. For a comparison of the tools, see our mashed potatoes guide. Leave milk and butter out of the gnocchi dough, and avoid a blender or food processor, which can make potatoes gluey.

Side-by-side potato preparation: warm cooked potato pressed through a mesh sieve on the left and mashed with a fork in a bowl on the right. — If you’re mashing without a ricer, work in small batches and look for stubborn lumps around the edges of the bowl. A sieve gives a finer result with less repeated pressing, especially for a full batch of gnocchi.

Making a smaller batch? For 350 g prepared potato, use 25 g beaten egg, 3 g fine salt and 80–110 g flour. Begin with 80 g and keep up to 30 g in reserve for a wet dough. Weigh the beaten egg rather than guessing at half an egg.

What Should Homemade Gnocchi Dough Feel Like?

Press the dough lightly: it should yield under your fingers, gather into a soft mound and roll into a short rope without spreading. A little tackiness is normal. Very wet dough smears across the board; overworked or flour-heavy dough can become stiff and springy.

Before cooking, the dough…	What to do
Feels soft, a little tacky and holds a rope	Dust the board lightly, shape two samples and cook them.
Smears or spreads across the board	Check that the ingredients are combined, then fold in reserved flour a little at a time if it remains wet.
Cracks or crumbles	Gather and fold briefly to distribute the egg and flour; don’t automatically add more flour.
Feels stiff, springy or elastic	Stop mixing and cook a sample. Further kneading is unlikely to help.

A little flour on the board prevents sticking; flour folded into the dough changes its texture. If you still cannot tell whether the dough is ready, cook two or three test pieces before shaping the whole batch.

Three examples of gnocchi dough labeled too wet and spreading, correct soft and shape-holding, and too stiff or over-floured. — Aim for the soft center example, not a perfectly polished dough ball; small surface irregularities are less troublesome than stiffness from trying to knead them away.

How to Shape Gnocchi with a Fork or Board

Roll the dough into ropes 1.5–2 cm (⅝–¾ in) thick and cut pieces about 2 cm (¾ in) long. Leaving the pieces plain is quickest; ridges and dimples give butter or sauce places to cling.

Plain pillows: Leave the cut pieces as they are.
Thumb dimples: Press a shallow indentation into each piece.
Fork ridges: Hold a lightly floured fork at an angle with the back of the tines facing you. Place a pillow near the top, press gently with your thumb and roll it down toward the tips. The tines leave ridges outside; your thumb leaves a shallow hollow on the other side. A gnocchi board works the same way.

Use just enough pressure to leave a pattern without squashing the piece. Lightly dust the fork if the dough catches on the tines. Arrange the shaped gnocchi in a single layer on a floured tray so they keep their shape. Making them ahead? Freeze the shaped pieces uncooked rather than leaving them on the counter.

A three-step illustrated photo guide shows a plain gnocchi pillow placed on fork tines, rolled toward the tips, and finished with shallow grooves and a small hollow. — Look for shallow, continuous grooves rather than deep cuts. One controlled roll over the fork is enough; pressing repeatedly to make sharper ridges can flatten a soft gnocchi pillow.

How to Tell When Potato Gnocchi Are Done

Fresh homemade potato gnocchi usually cook in about 2–4 minutes for pieces this size. They tend to sink at first and then float. Once they rise, lift out one piece and check that the middle is tender and cooked through; floating alone does not guarantee doneness.

Two-panel guide: gnocchi floating in simmering water on the left; on the right, one cooked gnocco is split open to check its tender center. — Check one of the thickest pillows after it floats; smaller gnocchi can taste ready while a large center remains floury.

Check the cooked center: Break open one of the larger gnocchi and let it cool briefly. The middle should be tender and cohesive, without a raw floury taste. If it is still doughy, return the batch to a gentle boil and check again. Lift finished pieces with a spider or slotted spoon to keep them intact.

Close-up of a potato gnocco broken open on a fork, showing its pale interior beneath a light butter coating. — A moist center isn’t automatically gummy. Let a test piece cool enough to taste: it should be tender and cohesive, not paste that clings to your teeth. Appearance alone won’t tell you.

Have the sauce warm and ready as the gnocchi finish. They are less likely to clump when lifted directly from the pot into butter or warm homemade marinara than when left sitting in a dry colander. For the main recipe, return to the sage-butter coating step.

Eggs, Flour and Other Gnocchi Doughs

Do you need eggs to make potato gnocchi?

No. Some traditional potato gnocchi use only potatoes, flour and salt. This recipe includes an egg for a little more structure; leaving it out without adjusting the formula can make this particular dough fragile. Other recipes use yolks rather than a whole egg.

Which flour works best?

Plain/all-purpose flour works well here. Italian 00 flour is another option, but “00” describes how finely it is milled, not its protein content. Gluten-free blends vary enough that a formula developed for the specific blend is a better starting point than a direct swap.

Changing the egg or flour is one kind of adjustment; using mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes or ricotta creates a different dough. Their moisture and richness call for different flour and egg proportions.

What Sauce Goes with Potato Gnocchi?

Browned sage butter lets the potato flavor stand out, with nutty butter and fragrant leaves coating the hot pillows. Tomato sauce brings brightness, while basil pesto gives the gnocchi a fresh herbal finish. Butter and Parmesan is the simplest option. Making the main version now? Return to the sage-butter method.

Four bowls of gnocchi labeled sage butter, butter and Parmesan, marinara, and basil pesto, each with a different-colored coating. — Homemade potato gnocchi have a delicate flavor that heavy sauce can easily cover. Dress a few pillows, taste one, and only then decide whether the marinara or pesto needs another spoonful.

Why Homemade Gnocchi Go Wrong

Before boiling: wet dough, cracks and flat shapes

The potato flesh is wet or lumpy. Lumps usually mean the potatoes were not fully tender or were not riced finely. Excess moisture is a separate problem: split hot potatoes, allow steam to escape and drain boiled potatoes thoroughly before making the dough.
The dough smears when you try to shape it. First check that the egg and flour are evenly mixed. If the dough still spreads, fold in reserved flour a little at a time and test again. After using all 60 g of reserved flour, a dough that still will not hold its shape may be too wet for light gnocchi. More flour might bind it, but the result will be heavier; cook a small sample before shaping the rest.
Ropes crack or crumble. Check that the flour and egg have been evenly distributed. Gently gather and fold before making a change; extra flour may worsen dry cracking.
Ridges disappear or pieces flatten. Faint ridges may simply need firmer, but still gentle, thumb pressure. If entire pillows spread flat, the dough may be too wet; use the dough table before shaping more.
Shaped pieces stick to the tray. Dust the tray lightly, separate the pieces and lift with a scraper. If the dough itself is sound, there is no reason to change its flour ratio.

Two dough-comparison photos: a rounded mound under 'Sticks to the counter?' and a flatter spreading mound under 'Dough spreads?', with remedies printed below. — Lift the dough once with a scraper. A mound that holds its shape may need only a dusting of flour on the board; if it spreads again, reassess moisture before changing the dough.

In the water: pieces dissolve, float early or turn gummy

Why do gnocchi fall apart in water? Vigorous boiling can break delicate pieces; very wet or poorly combined dough can also lose its shape. Calm the water first. If another sample still breaks apart and the unshaped dough is wet, fold in a little reserved flour and test again.

Two pots side by side compare steady, small bubbles around gnocchi with a violent rolling boil agitating the pieces. — The bubbling may subside when cold gnocchi enter the pot. Let it return to a steady, gentle boil rather than turning the heat up so far that the water throws the tender pillows around.

They float but the center is floury. Floating signals that it is time to check one. Keep the batch at a gentle boil a little longer if its center tastes raw.
Cooked gnocchi are dense or chewy. Excess flour or prolonged mixing can make cooked-through gnocchi heavy. With the dough you already have, stop kneading and shape the rest gently; earlier overworking cannot be undone. Next time, begin with drier potatoes and add only the flour needed for a cohesive dough.
They are sticky, gummy or unusually soft. Potatoes that became stretchy or gluey during mashing can produce gummy gnocchi. Pieces that start tender but soften excessively while boiling are more likely to have cooked too long or absorbed too much water. Lift finished batches promptly and keep the water at a gentle boil.

Two stacked close-ups compare cooked gnocchi with a compact, dense center above and gnocchi broken into loose, soft fragments below. — A compact center and a collapsing one are different results, even when both look pale. Let a cooked sample cool briefly, then assess the bite; the photograph cannot identify the cause of either texture on its own.

After cooking: clumping and breaking

Cooked pieces clump. Move each batch straight into warm sauce or a buttered serving bowl instead of leaving the pieces in a pile.
They break when you add sauce. Use a broad pan and fold gently with a spoon or spatula. A hard toss can damage delicate homemade gnocchi.

For another attempt, return to the test-batch instructions before shaping the remaining dough.

How to Freeze and Make Gnocchi Ahead

Freezing uncooked gnocchi

Freeze homemade gnocchi uncooked for the best texture. Cook the shaped pieces directly from frozen; no thawing is needed.

Arrange the shaped gnocchi apart in one layer on a parchment-lined, lightly floured freezer-safe tray.
Freeze the tray flat until every piece is solid, usually around 1–2 hours depending on its size and your freezer.
Transfer the fully frozen pieces to a labeled freezer bag or sealed container.
For the best texture, aim to use within 1–2 months.
Cook straight from frozen. Do not thaw first. Boil in small batches, allow the water to recover and taste one after it rises; frozen pieces may take longer than fresh.

Three-stage guide shows uncooked gnocchi spaced on a tray, frozen pieces being packed in a zip bag, and frozen gnocchi lifted from simmering water. — Once the gnocchi are frozen solid, press excess air from the storage bag without squeezing the pieces themselves. That small step reduces exposed surfaces while leaving individual pillows easy to portion straight into boiling water.

Frozen homemade gnocchi can also go into chicken gnocchi soup. Add them near the end, keep the broth at a gentle simmer and check one for doneness; cooking time may differ from packaged gnocchi.

Holding gnocchi for a meal and reheating leftovers

For the same-day meal, cook shaped gnocchi soon after cutting. If plans change, arrange them on trays and freeze promptly instead of leaving an egg-containing potato dough on the counter for hours.

Transfer cooked leftovers to shallow covered containers and refrigerate promptly at 4°C / 40°F or below. The USDA’s leftover guidance gives 3–4 days in the fridge; the texture of gnocchi is often best sooner. Reheat gently with a little sauce or water until the food reaches 74°C / 165°F throughout.

Refrigerate or freeze perishable leftovers within 2 hours, or 1 hour if the surrounding temperature exceeds 32°C / 90°F.

Three-panel cooked-gnocchi safety guide: refrigerate at 4°C/40°F or below for 3–4 days; chill within 2 hours, or 1 hour above 32°C/90°F; reheat throughout to 74°C/165°F. — Date the container before refrigerating leftovers; a written date makes the three-to-four-day limit easier to honor than memory or appearance.

Back to the recipe and ingredients

Homemade Potato Gnocchi Questions

Should the dough rest before shaping?

No lengthy rest is necessary. Once the dough holds a rope and the sample cooks well, roll and shape the rest.

Can I microwave potatoes for homemade gnocchi?

Yes. Prick medium potatoes and microwave on high, turning halfway through; begin checking at about 8–12 minutes for one or two medium potatoes, allowing longer for large potatoes or a full batch. A skewer should pass through the center without resistance. Split the potatoes to release steam before ricing. Microwaves vary, so tenderness matters more than the clock.

Can I freeze gnocchi after cooking them?

Yes, although previously cooked gnocchi tend to soften after freezing and reheating. Cool them promptly, freeze them separated on a tray and pack once firm. Reheat from frozen in a little warm sauce until hot throughout. Freezing uncooked pieces generally gives you a better fresh-cooked texture.

Which potatoes did you use, and how did your gnocchi turn out? Tell us what sauce you served—or what gave you trouble along the way.