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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.
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!
Super easy to make. We didn’t love the ground beef in it, I would make again with ground Italian sausage. And would add fresh spinach at the end
Hi! Give my Italian sausage gnocchi a try – it’s essentially what you describe: https://bit.ly/42UHkH5
Has anyone ever made this with the frozen Trader Joe’s cauliflower gnocchi?
Hi! I think some readers have, but be aware that it may not release as much starch as potato gnocchi so the sauce may need some help thickening (like a cornstarch slurry).
Thanks Natasha. I did add a teaspoon of cornstarch mixed with a couple of tablespoons of beef broth. Thickened the sauce right up. This recipe was fast, easy and so yummy.
I made it tonight, was real good, my husband loved it. I used garlic tomatoes and extra Italian spice. Love that it is easy and inexpensive.
Excellent! Glad it was a hit, Lori!
I freaking love this recipe. I have made it twice now— once for just my husband and I, and then just last night when I quintupled the recipe for a group gathering (I made way too much) because I loved it so much the first time I had it and it was sooooo easy. I am incredibly grateful for it.
The hardest part for me has nothing to do with the recipe, but with the website. There are so many ads, it’s dang near impossible to have the recipe open for an extended amount of time (or use it) without it spazzing out and causing some ad to jump out at me or cause the whole page to reload. It’s incredibly frustrating and honestly made me not keep looking for more recipes on the site because it’s just frustrating to have to fight the platform you’re on while you’re trying to do research and/or cook. I feel like I’m just putting my cell provider to the test to protect my phone from spam and viruses and what not. More than once I tried to close an invasive ad and accidentally clicked on it instead, which opened up a new window and yada yada. Just super frustrating. ANYway. Tldr; Love the recipe; would love to keep exploring more on this site, but really hard to fall in love when you have to fight through truckloads of ads!
Hi JB! I’m glad you like this one! Re: the ads, I have been working with my ad company to identify, report, and block those invasive ads. I agree they are incredibly frustrating, and I am doing everything I can to ensure that they are removed. Three people work on this site full-time and it’s our livelihood, so there will always be ads, however. I actually have a lower ad density than many other websites, and user experience is of course very important to me. A couple suggestions – you can always print the recipe or open it up on your laptop.
Made tonite for first time, delish!! Easy and fast!
Thank you, Diane!!
Creamy goodness! Everything about this recipe is perfect! I add spinach at the end as noted! So great! I’ll be making it again for a girls weekend at the lake next week! Love this recipe! Simple perfection! Restaurant quality! ❤️
Aww thank you, Laura!!
I made this for the first time today and it was a hit! Hearty, delicious and SO easy to make. Thanks for sharing- we’ll definitely be adding this one to the rotation!
You are very welcome, Michelle!! 😀 I’m thrilled to hear that!
Good basic recipe! I didn’t know what to make with ground beef wr had in thr fridge one night. Found this recipe and had gnocchi on hand! Plus all the other ingredients, a score in my book! I did add more spices and some red pepper flakes for a little kick. Instead of regular diced tomatoes I did smoked garlic diced tomatoes.
Was a good filling meal for my family.
Definitely a recipe I would do again!
Thank you, Stephanie!
While the meal was decent and filling it’s just really lacking in spices, it was pretty bland and needed something more flavorful to be added. I do appreciate how affordable the meal was for the amount of servings but I probably wouldn’t make this again without adding a bunch of additional ingredients.
I have made this twice now and it is a hit with my family. Very filling and quick to make. Does is freeze well? I am hoping to make it for a friend.
Hi Becca! I’m so glad it’s a new favorite. 🙂 I am generally not one for freezing cooked gnocchi or dairy – it can change texture. But you could always test with leftovers and see if you like the results. Warm slowly over a low heat.