Sun Dried Tomato Chicken and Gnocchi
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Tender, juicy chicken thighs in an AMAZING garlicky sun dried tomato cream sauce. So simple, so good.
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My kind of comfort meal. Wine, soft-pillowy gnocchi, juicy chicken thighs, and a light, garlicky sun dried tomato cream sauce with all the crusty bread to sop up that goodness. What more could you need?
reasons to make sun dried tomato chicken and gnocchi
- Quick and easy but also company-worthy. This dish comes together very quickly and easily, perfect to impress even last-minute guests! It is truly a fancy meal without ever leaving the house.
- Best kind of cream sauce. Luscious, velvety and rich, this sun dried tomato cream sauce is sure to be an absolute hit. Perfect to coat chicken, gnocchi, leafy greens, or anything else that needs some dreamy, creamy goodness.
- Flexible recipe. This is a great recipe to use your favorite gnocchi variety, or make it homemade. Prefer white meat? Sub chicken thighs. Not a fan of kale? Use spinach. It is all good. There’s only winning here!
tips and tricks for success
- Use a heavy pot. A heavy bottom pot, such as a Dutch oven, is ideal here for even heat distribution and a better sear.
- Tomato paste adds so much flavor. Tomato paste is a key ingredient, adding body and richness in small amounts without adding too much liquid to the cream sauce. Opt for tomato paste in a tube, using up only what you need at a time without having to open up a whole can.
- 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.
- Use heavy cream for more richness. Heavy cream will have a higher fat content than half and half, yielding a thicker, more velvety smooth consistency. On the flipside, use milk over half and half for a lighter cream sauce.
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Spinach, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with sun dried tomato chicken and gnocchi
Tools For This Recipe
Dutch oven
Sun Dried Tomato Chicken and Gnocchi: Frequently Asked Questions
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.
Absolutely! But because dried herbs are often more potent/concentrated than fresh herbs, you need less when using dry. The correct ratio is 1 tablespoon fresh herbs to 1 teaspoon dried herbs.
Additional chicken broth can be used for white wine as a non-alcoholic substitute.
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.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Sun Dried Tomato Chicken and Gnocchi
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) package cauliflower potato gnocchi
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 1 medium shallot, diced
- ½ cup sun dried tomatoes halves
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ¾ cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup dry white wine*
- 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
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a large pot 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 Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Working in batches, add chicken to the skillet in a single layer and cook until golden brown and cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 4-5 minutes per side; set aside.
- Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Add shallot, and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in sun dried tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic and thyme, until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.
- Gradually whisk in chicken broth and wine, 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.
- Place into oven and bake until bubbly, about 10-12 minutes.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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So delicious and easy. I love that it’s made in one pan. Recipe is good for 3-4 people. I will add a
Pinch of red pepper flakes next time to add some spice. I will definitely make this again!
Very yummy and easy to make! I followed the recipe exactly but used chicken stock instead of wine. I would add a pinch of red pepper flakes next time to add to the flavour. So delicious! I will definitely make it again!
Made this last night, I used spinach instead of kale because it’s what I had. Chicken breasts instead of thighs because it’s what I had. I did cut them thinner so it would be more like cooking with thighs. I also seared the chicken and cooked it most of the way through but didn’t finish cooking it knowing I was putting it in a 400 degree oven for 12 min. The sauce was truly delightful. I saw that someone on faceboook found it bland and added other spices. I strongly recommend you pay attention to the salt you are putting in. Gnocchi is going to require you use more salt than you think you need. You can add the whole spice cabinet but if you don’t get the salt right everything tastes poorly seasoned. I was planning on adding more spices as well but wanted to see what the base flavors were like before I messed with it and it was great. The whole family loved it. I’ve been told I need to add this into semi regular rotation.
I can’t believe anyone would find this bland! I thought it had plenty of flavor, and I didn’t add anything extra to it.
This was so delicious! Truly restaurant quality!
I read notes & didn’t cook gnocchi in advance, just put in before putting in oven. I used herbs de provence & some red pepper flakes. Spinach instead of Kale. It is the cauliflower gnocchi that blew me away. Use Racconoto brand. Imported & organic & shelf stable!!!! We will be making this for many years to come!!!
Fantastic recipe! I always follow the recipe exactly the first time I make it- more of a spinach than kale person, other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing. It not only tasted great, the presentation made me feel ( and look) like I know how to cook! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
It is damn delicious. I will be making this regularly!!!
Has anyone tried substituting chicken breasts instead of thighs? We’ve tried but just can’t do thighs in our family.
Another Great comfort recipe for the winter months. Used Gluten Free gnocchi since I have not been able to find the cauliflower gnocchi and GF AP Flour (Cup4Cup). Also used spinach instead of kale. Wonderful one dish complete meal.
My family loves this meal! We’re not big fans of gnocchi though, so I roasted some baby gold potatoes and subbed those for the gnocchi. It was so good!
Super delicious, especially with homemade gnocchi. Thanks for sharing.
This was absolutely delicious! I substituted the Gnocchi with Spiral Pasta and it worked just fine. A great meal to serve when you want to make something ahead of time and with just one skillet. I did set the chicken aside to have plenty of room to stir and make the sauce. Then added the chicken back in and placed it
in the oven to complete the process. We’ll make this for years to come YUM!
I rate this as DELICIOUS 5*, relatively easy to prepare too, with the assist of my hubby.
I precooked the chicken thighs an hour before making the dish and added them last to the sauce, then in to the oven.
** I also had 2 changes I made; Herbs de Provence instead of thyme, and spinach for the kale…DAMN DELICIOUS indeed, a keeper for any occasion, or to impress guests, like you were slaving away at the stove a long time, when you weren’t .
Really delicious recipe. I love it yummy!!! It’s really awesome
I plan to leave this
recipe in my cookbook
for future use. Before
I can bake it I will
need all
the ingredients
Any Suggestions as to
What type of wine
to use?
Another great recipe! I didn’t precook the gnocchi. I tossed it in the pan with the kale and let it cook for two minutes.
This is a keeper. We will definitely make again.
This is my first time ever feeling compelled to leave a rating on a recipe. This was sooooo tasty. My boyfriend rated it a 10 out of 10 and said it was restaurant-worthy. Looking forward to making it again. Added some red chili pepper flakes but I do that with most things! PS – love your corgis!
This recipe was fantastic! Even though I misread the amount of tomato paste, 1 can vs 1 tablespoon. (Yikes) I added more liquid to thin it out a bit and added a second package of gnocchi to help offset the extra sauce.
This was delicious! I ate it straight off the stove top because I didn’t want to bother with the oven, and I guesstimated most of the measurements. It still turned out wonderfully. I was surprised at how good it was. Can’t wait to make it again!
Can this be made the day before please.
Versatile and tasty! I had to substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth, but otherwise followed the recipe. Convenient way to prepare the Trader Joe’s cauliflower gnocchi…It would also be nice with fresh basil (along with the thyme) over pasta.
Thanks for sharing this recipe with us.