Published: | By Emilie Pullar
Jump to Recipe·5 from 3 reviews
Crispy pan fried gnocchi in brown butter is pretty much heaven on a plate. Homemade potato gnocchi is taken to new delicious levels when crisped up in a pan and covered in a foamy brown butter with sage. It's a 10 minute sauce perfect for a cosy week night meal. Feel free to use store-bought or homemade gnocchi. Delicious comfort food!
Hello! I am writing up this irresistible crispy gnocchi in brown butter as it's the perfect first recipe to make with my easy homemade potato gnocchi. Pan frying fresh gnocchi really is my favourite way to eat it. It creates a lovely textural contrast between the crispy edges and soft pillowy inside.
This foamy brown butter is the same method as my 10 minute brown butter for pasta. The potato gnocchi, which is boiled and fried BEFORE making the butter sauce, is so easy to make from scratch so definitely give it a try! The perfect main dish for any night of the week or equally a great recipe to cook for guests.
Ingredients
- Potato gnocchi - I really recommend fresh homemade gnocchi but store-bought gnocchi is also great and makes it an easy midweek meal. Bonus! At the grocery store you'll find it either in the refrigerated pasta section (best as it will be fresh) or pasta aisle.
- Olive oil - I pan fry the gnocchi in olive oil (plus a little knob of butter)
- Butter - I normally recommend unsalted butter but I actually prefer salted here as the gnocchi can always use some salt.
- Sage - Nothing makes a brown butter better than some crispy sage. It really takes it up a level.
How to pan fry gnocchi
You might think you could add the gnocchi to the brown butter and it will crisp up in that but it actually needs longer. This is the reason you boil and pan fry the gnocchi BEFORE making the brown butter.
- Boil the gnocchi in a large pot of salted water. Do it in two batches if cooking for four people.
- When the gnocchi has floated to the top, give it another 30 seconds then pull them out. I like to use a spider strainer for this (a slotted spoon will work) so I can keep the water boiling for more batches.
- Place them on a tray while you finish the rest and heat up the oil to fry.
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil and a little knob of butter in a large frying pan over medium - high heat.
- Fry the gnocchi for 5 - 6 minutes in a single layer, turning often until golden brown and crisp on the outside.
- Turn the heat down if they get dark too quick.
- Pop them on a paper towel when done.
- You could make the brown butter at the same time so they are ready together.
What is brown butter?
It's simple! Brown butter is the result of melting butter until the milk solids in the butter separate and brown. It also evaporates some of the water so you'll often end up with less than you started with. It's a really simple process and creates a rich, nutty taste that is PERFECT for pasta and gnocchi! Most commonly you might have browned butter when baking (The Cloudy KitchenBrown Butter Choc Chip Cookiesare a staple in my house). There are very clear stages when browning butter which you will get to know really well.
Firstly the butter will melt and then start to sizzle. It will get quite loud and crackly with bigger bubbles. Then it will quieten down considerably and that is when the top starts to foam. This is the stage you need to keep a really good eye on it. It's often quite hard to see what is going on under all that foam so swirl the pan or use a spatula to check those brown bits aren't getting too dark!
How to make the foamy brown butter
Full ingredient list and method is in the recipe card below! If this is your first time making brown butter, don't worry it is so easy! Making the butter sauce separately really is the best way.
- Melt butter in a large skillet over a medium-high heat.
2. When the butter starts to get a good sizzle going, throw in the fresh sage leaves.
3. Continue cooking, swirling the pan.
4. The butter will crackle quite loudly, keep swirling the pan so it cooks and browns evenly.
5. It will quieten down and the big bubbles will turn into a foam and will start to smell nutty. Turn the heat down to a medium heat if you are worried it will burn.
6. Continue to swirl so you can see under the foam and take it off the heat when the milk solids have turned into brown bits NOT black. The whole process will take 4 - 5 minutes.
Substitutions and variations
You could use this method of boiling and pan frying gnocchi for any sauce you can think of! It would be delicious with a simple basil pesto or a tomato sauce. I would serve this as a main meal but you could also have it as a side dish with some meat or vegetables of your choice.
Next time you could try my fall inspired Pan Fried Gnocchi with Pumpkin and Brown Butter. It has blobs of balsamic vinegar glaze on top of the dish which is truly delicious. Some toasted pine nuts would be a great addition.
Recipe FAQs
Do I have to boil the gnocchi before pan frying?
Yes! Boil until they float to the top then give them an extra 30 seconds before draining.
Is gnocchi gluten free?
My homemade potato gnocchi is made with plain flour but you could substitute with a GF blend. There are plenty of amazing store bought gluten free gnocchi available.
What butter is best for making brown butter?
I generally always use unsalted so I can season it myself but I find potato gnocchi can always do with quite a lot of seasoning so feel free to use salted butter here.
What pan is best for browning butter?
I always use a light coloured pan. Anything dark will make it impossible to see what is going on with the milk solids. I love stainless steel pans for this reason.
Want some other recipes to try?
If you loved this crispy gnocchi in a brown butter then check out my recipe section for all sorts of pasta guides and sauces. For more buttery goodness check out my Easy White Wine and Butter Pasta. For a spicy kick you could try my 3 Ingredient Nduja Butter Pasta or my Lemon Butter Pasta, both of these would be perfect with pan fried gnocchi too!
Made this recipe and loved it?
I would love love LOVE if you could leave me a review down below and let me know what you thought! I love to hear any changes or adaptions you have made too. Also if you put a photo oninstagram, please tag me so I can see, it makes my day!
Recipe
Crispy Pan Fried Gnocchi with Brown Butter
5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star
5 from 3 reviews
- Author: Emilie Pullar
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 people
Description
Crispy gnocchi in brown butter is one of the best things ever. This foamy brown butter with sage and golden gnocchi will become a go-to.
Ingredients
1 x batch easy homemade potato gnocchi
1 tablespoon olive oil
150g butter, cubed
20 - 25 sage leaves
Instructions
For the crispy gnocchi
- Boil the gnocchi in well salted boiling water. Do it in two batches if cooking for four people.
- When the gnocchi has floated to the top, give it another 30 seconds then pull them out. I like to use a spider strainer for this so I can keep the water boiling for more batches.
- Place them on a tray while you finish the rest and heat up the oil to fry.
- Heat a tablespoon of olive oil and a little knob of butter in a fry pan over medium - high heat.
- Fry the gnocchi for 5 - 6 minutes, turning often until golden and crisp on the outside.
- Turn the heat down if they get dark too quickly.
- You could make the brown butter at the same time so they are ready together.
For the brown butter
- Melt the butter in a fry pan over medium heat.
- Continue cooking, swirling the pan so it browns evenly.
- It will sizzle then get quite loud and create big bubbles.
- At this stage add the sage leaves and continue swirling the pan.
- It will foam and the milk solids will start to brown and the leaves crisp up. You want it lightly browned, not black so take it off the heat when just nicely browned and foamy.
- It should smell nutty and only take 3 - 4 minutes.
- Spoon over the pan fried gnocchi and divide the sage leaves between the plates.
- Serve with freshly grated parmesan and some lemon zest would also be delish.
Notes
- Depending on how many portions you are making you can pan fry the gnocchi in batches or use two pans. The butter sauce will take around four minutes so either try and do it at the same time or pan fry the gnocchi first and keep it in a warm oven while browning the butter.
- I find the butter stays nice and foamy if you spoon it over the gnocchi but if you aren't worried about that add the gnocchi straight to the butter sauce then serve.
- Cook Time: 20 minutes (not including making the gnocchi)
- Category: Vegetarian
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Jen says
This is yummy! I added a bit of Parmesan at the end to serve, and I used the store bought gnocchi so that I didn’t have to boil. So good!
Reply
Arantza AC says
Una auténtica delicia...ha sido mi comida de hoy y me ha encantado. Repetiré seguro.
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Jas says
Sooo good, made fresh gnocchi and it pan fried perfectly, the brown butter was ready in a couple of minutes and I added a touch of lemon zest to mine it adds a touch of flavour which helps balance out the butter
Reply
Emilie Pullar says
Lemon zest is always the right move! Thanks so much for making it 🙂
Reply
