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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!
Hi! If I’m making this dish as a make ahead for camping, should I just cook the sauce and then add the gnocchi when we are ready to eat at campsite? Thank you for your help!
Hi! I think that might be the best idea, yes!
Thank you! I will let you know how it goes.
Delicious! Added some fresh mushrooms in as well! Easy and a big hit with the kids!
So glad to hear that, Jen!
Delicious and easy. Added some frozen spinach at the end to incorporate more veggies. Definitely will make again.
So glad you enjoyed it, Ashlee! Thanks for leaving me a review. XO
Now I’m gonna try this with ground sausage. Very good recipe, thank-you!
Good idea!! Yum!
I haven’t tried this yet as I’ve got to calculate the nutritional value of each ingredient – I’m on a restricted diet & need that info before I decide if I can make it heart friendly. It would be nice if your recipes included complete nutritional values! They all look so good!
Hi! I do include the nutrition info on select recipes (most of my newer ones, and I’m slowly going back and doing some older recipes), but please keep in mind that any online recipe’s nutrition info is just an estimate, and ingredients can vary a lot depending on what you actually use/if you weigh it out or not (I am sure you know this!). I just plug it into a program like everyone else does, and it can definitely be off. I am not a trained nutritionist. With that said, I just added it for you… hope this helps!
Absolutely loved this recipe, thanks for sharing! I did grate a carrot, sliced 3 baby bellas and a few slices of serrano pepper(had to use from garden) to cook with the sauce. Also, added broccoli when adding the gnocchi, all to get my veggies in. Had to sub the heavy cream for milk…still turned out delicious! Our apartment “smelled sooo good” when my boyfriend walked in too.
That’s great! Love your additions!
Pretty good. I ended up adding way more Italian seasoning..wish this had a bit more flavour depth but otherwise still good! Thank you!
Yup, definitely one of those recipes that are easy to tweak to your own preferences. 😊
Made this last night for dinner. It was delicious! I used Penne noodle as I didn’t have any gnocchi and used onion powder as I didn’t have any onions. It was still SO yummy even with those substitutions. I’m loving your recipes because they are so quick and easy and taste so good. Thank you so much for sharing. I can’t wait to try some more.
So pleased you liked it! 🙂 Thank you!! Let me know if you make anything else!
Loved this! Super easy and delicious. It reminded me of goulash but easier and better bc I prefer the gnocchi over macaroni noodles. Thanks, love your recipes! I subbed cheddar for parmesan.
Wonderful! I’m so glad you liked it. 🙂 XO
This was quick, easy & delicious! All the things I’m looking for in a weeknight dinner. Will definitely make it again. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes – they all look so good!
Wonderful!! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, and I’m so glad you’re going to try more recipes. 🙂 XO