This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
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!
I just made this gnocchi and it’s so good, give it a try.
Thanks, Kim!
This was quite yummy! Next time I will double everything for leftovers!
Fabulous!!
I tried a variation this recipe. Instead of using ground beef I used smoked sausage and I added smoked paprika and turmeric in addition to the seasonings in this recipe. And loads of garlic and onions. It turned out super delicious.
Sounds good to me!!
What use instead of cream. Need non dairy
I haven’t tested it with anything besides cream. You could see if anyone else in the comments tried an alternative. Silk brand makes a dairy-free whipping cream that some readers use.
I used a can of coconut cream and thought it was fantastic! Just use the thick part, not the watery part at the bottom.
Fabulous!!
This was so good! I added red pepper flakes. Delicious!
So happy to hear that, Melanie! 🙂
The recipe says serve immediately. I like to fix meals like this for some of our church elderly, but I deliver them cold, to be reheated as they need throughout the week. Would this work for this recipe, or would the gnocchi absorb all of the sauciness? I’m new to gnocchi.
Hi! That’s so sweet of you. I’m a bit worried that the sauce may get a bit gloopy as the gnocchi continues to release starch. I think it would probably be ok, but probably not as good as when it’s freshly made.
Love this recipe! I was generous on onions and garlic and used organic half and half. Came out delicious ♥️.
So happy you liked it!! 😀
I made the recipe to the tee and mine came out an odd pink color… thoughts on what I did wrong?
Hi! Well, the tomatoes + cream do create a sort of pinkish color (like a rosé sauce), so that would not be unusual. I just looked at the photos in my blog post and they do have a bit of pinkish tint, but I’m not sure if that’s what you mean? Uncooked ground beef can also look pink, but after browning it for 7-10 minutes as per the instructions, it definitely should not be pink anymore. Assuming everything was fully cooked, I don’t think you did anything wrong.
mine was pink too. made like the recipe. tasted good though.
I just made this for dinner tonight! It was amazingly easy and very tasty!!! I will make it again and again! Definitely a keeper!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks for letting me know!
Busy mom’s dream recipe! Easy, fast, few dishes to clean, and toddler approved! Thank you we loved it.
That makes me so happy!! You’re very welcome. Thanks for taking the time to write me a review, Alli!