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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.

a bowl with ground beef gnocchi

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.
ingredients for ground beef gnocchi in prep bowls

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.

cooking ground beef and onions in a pan and adding garlic and seasoning

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.

adding gnocchi and tomatoes and parmesan to a pan of ground beef gnocchi

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

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.
a pan with ground beef gnocchi and a serving spoon

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.

a bowl with ground beef gnocchi
4.85 from 157 votes

Ground Beef Gnocchi

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!
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Servings: 4

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

Calories: 574kcal, Carbohydrates: 48g, Protein: 36g, Fat: 27g, Saturated Fat: 15g, Cholesterol: 142mg, Sodium: 882mg, Potassium: 673mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 880IU, Vitamin C: 13mg, Calcium: 243mg, Iron: 8mg

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.

Leave a star rating and comment below!

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!


Hi! Iโ€™m Natasha.

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4.85 from 157 votes (12 ratings without comment)

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455 Comments

  1. JH says:

    5 stars
    Made this tonight, a definite go to for a quick delicious meal! Looking forward to the leftovers for lunch.

    1. Natasha says:

      Awesome!! Thanks for your review!

  2. Mary Jo Zykan says:

    5 stars
    My kids love it

    1. Natasha says:

      I’m so happy to hear it, Mary Jo!

  3. Maria says:

    Just made this for dinner and loved it. I didnt have the regular can of tomatoes but I had tomatoes with green chiles, so I improvised and made it Mexican style. Instead of Italian seasoning I used taco seasoning. Turned out awesome and will definitely make again, but the way the recipe reads this time.

    1. Natasha says:

      I love that idea!!

  4. Molly martin says:

    5 stars
    I made this tonight and it was awesome. So so quick, easy and delicious.

    1. Natasha says:

      Yay!! Glad you liked it, Molly! ๐Ÿ˜€

  5. Anna Martin says:

    5 stars
    Can this be made ahead of time and frozen? Sorry if thatโ€™s been answered already!

    1. Natasha says:

      Hi Anna! I haven’t tried freezing this one. You could experiment with freezing a portion or two of leftovers to see if you like the results without freezing the entire batch. In general, creamy recipes don’t tend to freeze so well, and it’s possible the gnocchi could change texture a bit. When thawing/reheating, the gnocchi will release even more starch and it could get a bit gloopy.

  6. Sheila Crockett says:

    I made this and it was delicious โค๏ธ

    1. Natasha says:

      Thanks, Sheila!!

  7. Edie Daubert says:

    I didnโ€™t have heavy cream so added a can of cream of mushroom soup instead. Delicious!

    1. Natasha says:

      Excellent!

      1. Raven says:

        Can I use dairy free heavy cream instead because I canโ€™t have dairy

        1. Natasha says:

          Sure! I know readers have made the swap in various recipes of mine. You could read thru the comments here to see if anyone tried it with this one. Let me know if you try! ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Andrea says:

    Could you omit the tomatoes? We are not fans of crushed/diced tomatoes. Any substitute suggestions?

    1. Natasha says:

      Hi! Hmmm… I am not sure what else I’d put. It’s kind of a big component since it’s a tomato cream sauce. The liquid is important to the recipe as it’s a one pot meal. If you just use beef broth, that could be an idea, but I don’t really know what the sauce will turn out like since I haven’t tested.

  9. Lynn den Dulk says:

    5 stars
    Fast, easy and delicious!

    1. Natasha says:

      Thank you so much, Lynn!

  10. Bob says:

    Why use store bought gnocchi. Nasty. Make you own in less than 15 minutes. So easy to make gnomes

    1. Natasha says:

      Feel free to make your own, Bob!!

    2. laurie says:

      i would love to know how to make gnomes!! please share your recipe!!