My easy gnocchi bolognese recipe is the ultimate comfort food; rich, satisfying and packed with flavour.
This fuss-free dinner is loved by all the family!
This gnocchi with bolognese recipe is a super easy weeknight dinner, perfect for hungry kids and teens. A thick homemade bolognese sauce is stirred into cooked gnocchi and heated through to allow the gnocchi to absorb all the rich and delicious bolognese flavour.
Just like my beef chow mein, beef rissoles, or the always popular spaghetti bolognese, this gnocchi bolognese is one of my family's favourite easy beef recipes.
Why You're Going To Love This Recipe
- Family friendly - from fussy toddlers to hungry teens, this gnocchi bolognese recipe is popular with everyone!
- Comfort food - this is the ultimate comfort food! Pillowy ricotta absorbs the flavour from the ground beef sauce, meaning you have delicious rich bolognese flavour in every mouthful!
- Prefect for meal prep - the sauce can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for up to 3 days, then just reheat, cook the gnocchi and serve for an easy fuss-free dinner.
- Feeds a crowd - the bolognese sauce makes a very big batch! You will have plenty of the sauce (at least half) leftover, and it's very useful to freeze.
- Freezer friendly - store the leftover bolognese sauce in the freezer for up to 3 months, then defrost for the easiest family dinner!
What You Need
Bolognese with gnocchi is the ultimate comfort food!
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredients quantities and full detailed method.
- Butter and olive oil - for sautéing the vegetables.
- Celery and carrots - these vegetables are both diced and add flavour to the bolognese sauce.
- Brown onion - or yellow onion.
- Pancetta - I like to ask the deli for a 200g slab of pancetta and then chop it into small 2cm pieces. Thinly sliced packaged pancetta is fine to use but you won't have the delicious chunks that you get if you chop it yourself. Alternatively you can use diced bacon.
- Beef mince and pork mince - this combination provides the best flavour in this delicious bolognese.
- Rosemary and thyme - you can use fresh or dried herbs.
- Wine - either white wine or red wine, both work equally well in this recipe.
- Tomato paste - adds the rich flavour and makes the sauce a deep red colour.
- Milk - I recommend using full cream or whole milk.
- Chicken stock liquid - use a store-bought liquid chicken stock or make your own by adding 1 teaspoon of chicken stock powder to every 1 cup of water.
- Bay leaves - add extra flavour to the bolognese sauce, discard them before serving.
- Salt and pepper - to season.
- Gnocchi - I highly recommend making your own homemade ricotta gnocchi using my recipe that you can find here. However, you can also use store-bought fresh gnocchi for convenience.
- Grated parmesan - to serve.
Equipment Required
- Two saucepans - one for cooking the bolognese in, and one for cooking the gnocchi.
- Large frying pan - to heat the bolognese sauce with the gnocchi.
Step By Step Instructions
It takes just 20 minutes to prepare my simple bolognese sauce, but the longer it simmers, the better the flavour!
Note: Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom for the ingredients quantities and full detailed method.
Step 1 - Make The Bolognese Sauce
Heat the butter and oil in a large pot over medium heat on the stovetop. Add the diced celery, carrot, onion and pancetta and sauté until the vegetables have softened.
Turn the heat up to high and add the pork mince and beef mince. Stir occasionally (avoid stirring too much or you'll end up with a lot of liquid released). Cook until the mince has browned and all of the liquid has evaporated.
TIP: To check if all of the liquid has evaporated - using a wooden spoon, make a gap in the base of the pot and see if there is any liquid there after a few seconds.
Add the rosemary and thyme sprigs.
Pour in the wine and cook until the liquid has evaporated.
Stir through the tomato paste.
Add the milk and stir through.
Pour in the chicken stock liquid.
Add the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Turn the heat down to low.
Cover with a lid and allow to cook slowly for a minimum of 1 hour (up to 2-3 hours). TIP: The longer you cook the bolognese sauce, the better the flavour.
Stir occasionally during the cooking time.
Remove the rosemary sprigs and bay leaves.
Remove half of the bolognese sauce from the pot and place into a large frying pan.
The remainder of bolognese sauce can be stored in the fridge or frozen for later use.
Step 2 - Boil The Gnocchi
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the gnocchi and cook. As the gnocchi rise to the surface (approximately 1-2 minutes), remove the pieces with a slotted spoon.
Step 3 - Combine Gnocchi & Bolognese Sauce
Place the gnocchi straight into the frying pan with the bolognese sauce. Toss to coat the gnocchi in the sauce.
Serve gnocchi bolognese immediately with grated parmesan cheese.
Expert Tips
- For maximum flavour - it is best to cook the bolognese for longer (up to 2-3 hours) as the flavour develops and intensifies beautifully with this extended cooking time.
- My bolognese sauce recipe makes a BIG batch! You will have plenty of the sauce (at least half) leftover to freeze.
- Storing - store any leftover bolognese sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat thoroughly before consuming.
- Freezing - bolognese sauce freezes, defrosts and reheats perfectly making it a great option for a quick midweek freezer dinner. Freeze bolognese sauce in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Defrost and reheat before consuming. However gnocchi, once cooked, should not be frozen.
FAQs
Adding milk makes a richer flavoured bolognese sauce and gives it a lovely silky texture.
The gnocchi will float to the surface when they are cooked.
Yes, you can overcook gnocchi. If gnocchi overcook, they become heavy and dense.
Related Recipes
For more budget friendly beef mince dinners like my gnocchi bolognese, here are some of our most popular recipes:
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Gnocchi Bolognese
Ingredients
For The Bolognese Sauce
- 2 tbs butter
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 3 sticks celery diced
- 2 carrots large, diced
- 1 brown onion or yellow, diced
- 200 g pancetta chopped into small chunks (see notes)
- 500 g beef mince
- 500 g pork mince
- rosemary and thyme fresh or dried
- 500 ml (2 cups) wine white or red
- 300 g tomato paste
- 250 ml (1 cup) milk full cream or whole milk
- 500 ml (2 cups) chicken stock liquid
- 2 bay leaves
- salt and pepper
For The Gnocchi
- 500 g gnocchi homemade or store-bought
- grated parmesan to serve
Instructions
To Make The Bolognese
- Heat the butter and oil in a large pot over medium heat on the stovetop. Add the diced celery, carrot, onion and pancetta and sauté until the vegetables have softened (approximately 5 minutes).
- Turn the heat up to high and add the pork mince and beef mince. Stir occasionally (avoid stirring too much or you'll end up with a lot of liquid). Cook until the mince has browned and all of the liquid has evaporated. Note: To check if all of the liquid has evaporated, use a wooden spoon to make a gap in the base of the pot and see if there is any liquid there after a few seconds.
- Add the rosemary sprigs and thyme.Add the wine and cook until the liquid has evaporated. Stir through the tomato paste. Add the milk and stir through.
- Pour in the chicken stock liquid, add the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine.Turn the heat down to low.
- Cover with a lid and allow to cook slowly for a minimum of 1 hour (up to 2-3 hours... the longer the better as the flavour develops beautifully as it cooks). Stir occasionally during the cooking time.
- Remove the rosemary sprigs and bay leaves.
- Remove half of the bolognese sauce from the pot and place into a large frying pan. (The rest can be stored or frozen).
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the gnocchi and cook. As the gnocchi rise to the surface (approximately 1-2 minutes), remove the pieces with a slotted spoon and place into the frying pan with the bolognese sauce.Toss to coat the gnocchi in the sauce.
- Serve immediately with extra grated parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Gnocchi - I highly recommend making your own homemade ricotta gnocchi using my recipe that you can find here. However, you can use store-bought fresh gnocchi for convenience, or if you prefer.
- Bolognese sauce - my bolognese sauce recipe makes a BIG batch! You will have plenty of the sauce (at least half) leftover to freeze.
- Pancetta - I like to ask the deli for a 200g slab of pancetta and then chop it into small 2cm pieces. Thinly sliced packaged pancetta is fine to use. but you won't have the delicious chunks that you get if you chop it yourself. Alternatively you can use diced bacon.
- Gnocchi are cooked - when they rise to the surface.
- Storing - store any leftover bolognese in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat thoroughly before consuming.
- Freezing - bolognese sauce freezes, defrosts and reheats perfectly making it a great option for a quick midweek freezer dinner. Freeze bolognese sauce in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Defrost and reheat before consuming. Once cooked, gnocchi should not be frozen.
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