Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi
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This creamy chicken and gnocchi is packed with soft-pillowy gnocchi, a garlicky cream sauce, tender, juicy chicken, and sneaked-in greens!
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Absolutely delicious! I love that this recipe is quick to whip up, and can easily be changed also. We didn’t have kale, so I added a can of cannelini beans. Next time I’ll add some anchovies, some greenery, and use better wine. Whole family loved it!
Why you’ll love this Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi
- Restaurant-quality comfort food. If you need one of those nights in with a tall glass of white wine (that you can also use in this recipe) and the best kind of comfort food you can eat in the most comfortable sweatpants, this is for you. It’s hearty, it’s cozy, and it’s super easy to whip up.
- Incredibly flexible recipe. You can use store-bought potato gnocchi or you can go that extra mile and use homemade gnocchi instead. You can also sub breasts for thighs, or spinach for kale. The recipe is so giving with what you have on hand!
- The cream sauce is pure gold. The cream sauce is velvety, garlicky and completely irresistible, and the gnocchi soaks up every single drop of flavor.
How to make creamy chicken and gnocchi
- Prep the gnocchi. Cook the gnocchi first in a large pot of boiling water, removing the gnocchi with a slotted spoon as soon as they rise to the top. Pro tip: avoid overcooking the gnocchi or they will get mushy.
- Sear the chicken. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Then melt the butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat, searing the chicken in batches until a crust is formed and releases easily from the pan. Set aside and keep warm.
- Sauté the aromatics. Melt the remaining butter and sauté the shallot until tender before stirring in the garlic and thyme until fragrant.
- Whisk in the flour. Stir in the flour until lightly browned to remove the raw flour taste and to build a deep, nutty flavor for the sauce.
- Deglaze the pan. Stir in the wine, lifting up the caramelized browned bits (fond) stuck to the bottom.
- Build the cream sauce. Stir in the chicken broth, then half and half until thickened, seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Combine. Stir in the cooked gnocchi and kale (or desired leafy greens) until wilted.
- Finish. Return the chicken to the Dutch oven and sprinkle with Parmesan. Place into the oven and bake until the chicken is completely cooked through (internal temperature of the chicken should read 165°F).
- Serve. Serve warm with crusty bread for sopping.
variations and substitutions
- Gnocchi: fresh, dried, or frozen gnocchi will work here
- Chicken: use boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts
- White wine: substitute additional chicken broth
- Half and half: whole milk will yield a lighter cream sauce whereas heavy cream will be a richer consistency
- Greens: kale, spinach, cabbage, swiss chard, and collard greens are all excellent options
- For serving: serve with crusty bread or dinner rolls
what to serve with chicken and gnocchi
Tools For This Recipe
Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi: Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use chicken breasts?
Yes, chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken.
Do I have to use white wine?
Additional chicken broth can be used for white wine as a non-alcoholic substitute.
What is half and half?
Half and half is equal parts of whole milk and cream. For 1 cup half and half, you can substitute 3/4 cup whole milk + 1/4 cup heavy cream or 2/3 cup skim or low-fat milk + 1/3 cup heavy cream.
What can I substitute for the kale?
Spinach, cabbage, swiss chard and collard greens are all excellent swaps.
How can I store leftovers?
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Is this freezer-friendly?
Unfortunately cream-based sauces do not freeze well as they become grainy upon thawing.
Creamy Chicken and Gnocchi
This creamy chicken and gnocchi is packed with soft-pillowy gnocchi, a garlicky cream sauce, tender, juicy chicken, and sneaked-in greens!
Video
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce)package cauliflower potato gnocchi
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 medium shallot, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 1 ¼ cup chicken broth
- ½ cup half and half
- 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves torn into bite-sized pieces
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan, about 2 ounces
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven of boiling salted water, cook gnocchi according to package instructions; drain well.
- Season chicken with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large oven-proof skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Working in batches, add chicken to the skillet in a single layer and sear both sides until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side; set aside.
- Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter. Add shallot, and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in garlic and thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven.
- Stir in chicken broth, and cook, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in half and half until thickened, about 1-2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Stir in gnocchi and kale until the kale has wilted, about 1-2 minutes.
- Return chicken to the skillet; sprinkle with Parmesan.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place into oven and bake until bubbly and the chicken is cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 10-12 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Equipment
Notes
- Cook the chicken in batches. Sear the chicken in batches to prevent an overcrowded pan which will cause the chicken to steam instead of yielding a crisp, golden-brown crust.
- Make it lighter. Cauliflower potato gnocchi is a great option as it is slightly lighter and less dense than traditional gnocchi.
- Homemade gnocchi goes a long way. In a pinch, we love using cauliflower potato gnocchi but we also highly recommend using homemade gnocchi if you have the time. It makes all of the difference!
- Choose a wine you will drink. A dry white wine (pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc) is great here – it does not have to be anything fancy or overpriced. Just something you don’t mind sipping on since you will have an open bottle.
- Deglaze the pan. This will allow you to lift up the caramelized food bits (fond) while adding a deep flavor base to the cream sauce.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in all the greens (kale, spinach, cabbage, swiss chard or collard greens) for those picky eaters.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
Did you make this recipe?
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This is a really good meal- fast and easy to prepare. I made a couple of substitutions with spinach instead of kale and I also used regular 2% milk. I didn’t have a Dutch oven so what I did was use a iron skillet so that I could put it in the oven. I’ve been topped it with grated Parmesan cheese to let it get nice and bubbly in the oven. Really really yummy.!
I have not been able to buy cauliflower gnocchi for about a year now at Whole Foods. Where can I get it these day?
Excellent recipe, clear instructions! I was suspicious of just thyme for seasoning, but it was great. I subbed spinach for kale and it was excellent. Will make this again.
This was a fantastic recipe. My wife, who hates kale, said it was very good! Success.
Absolutely delicious! I love that this recipe is quick to whip up, and can easily be changed also. We didn’t have kale, so I added a can of cannelini beans. Next time I’ll add some anchovies, some greenery, and use better wine. Whole family loved it!
My husband loved this!! So fricken good- added spinach instead of kale and a bunch more pepper/garlic but it was divine!
Tastiest dish I have made in awhile! Can’t wait to make it for others Need to check out other recipes on this site.
Not a fan of Kale so I switched it up to Spinach. Recipe was delicious, and my husband made homemade spatzle that his mom used in Chicken Paprikash vs Gnocchi !! Simply delicious!
Great recipe, but I wish you would also put quantities in metric
Delicious! I added a little bit of Creole seasoning and broiled the dish at the end for about 5 minutes. I also swapped the kale out for baby spinach officially my new favorite dish! Thanks!
Add one more 5 star review! This was SO good.
Made this jan 2025…..used spinach as its what I had in, and extra stock, so no wine, again I had no white wine in that day, delicious……..will definitely have again, tasty, creamy, soft to chew dinner. Definitely give it a go!!
I read something awhile back about lemon juice and water being a substitute for wine in recipes like this.
Fantastic. My husband and I liked it so much that we ate until we were stuffed.
Delicious. I used truffle cheese gnocchi and it made it next level!
Sooo delicious! Super easy to add or substitute ingredients. I used spinach instead of kale and added sun dried tomatoes. I also made it a second time with tortellini instead of gnocchi and added mushrooms. My very picky husband loves it so this will definitely be a new staple in the house. Thank you for the great recipe!
Can I make this through all of the steps, refrigerate and bake the following day?
Yumbo! I’ve made it several times and everyone loves it. It’s a regular now
Delicious and easy recipe. We used spinach not kale.
Make this recipe on repeat! Use GF flour and GF gnocchi for my daughter!! Delish!
What a phenomenal recipe! The cream sauce is SO delicious. I substituted chicken breasts for the thighs, because I just can’t stomach chicken thighs. Also, the kale was subbed with baby spinach. Everything else was exactly what your recipe called for. And it was such a great dinner. My family was singing its praises as well. This is absolutely one for the regular dinner rotation. Thanks so much for sharing it.