Gnocci

[100folds]

does anyone know the tricks behind gnocci? The do's and dont's while making it? Any advice would be appreciated.

[Mangilao30]

There are many recipes out there, you can make them with potato or semolina, these are the two main kinds. For the kind with potato you can add eggs or not. I don't add eggs because I like them really light and I don't boil them either, I bake them and this helps them become drier and less soggy also with better potato flavor.

After you mix the flour and riced potatoes together mix them well but do not over mix, when they are blended, the consistancy should be like super soft playdough. They should not be stiff, hard or firm in any way whatsoever, if they are you have added to much flour. The ratio of potato to flour is: 2 parts potato and 1 part flour, by weight not by measure.

You can use a gnocchi board or just a fork, it's hard to describe online. The gnocchi should taste light a delicate. The best sauce is a simple tomato sauce with basil on top or light cream sauce. Hope this helps! Good luck! Also if you err on the side of less flour vs. more, you could always cook up a few before adding more flour.

[phatch]

I haven't tried baking them. That would probably solve my complaint about them. They are usually soggy and lacking flavor. I've made them. I've ordered them in quality restaurants and just never understood the appeal. I'll try them again but bake them this time.

[Mangilao30]

Also use a good buttery potato like a Yukon Gold or another yellow potato.

[Pete]

I like to serve my gnocchi with a heartier sauce, though I do like them with a light tomato and basil cream sauce. I usually serve mine with a rich ragu of italian sausage and dried mushrooms. I think the potato flavor helps this to stand out more than using pasta with this ragu.

[100folds]

Thanks so much,
I've been making them at work and they are not working out as well as they use to. I was wondering if I was doing something wrong or if it was the potatoes. We switched potatoes so I'll just go out and buy the ones I need. Thanks again for your help.

[100folds]

I just thought of something. What happens when you do overwork the dough. Do you work the glutens up too much and the dough becomes too tough or the opposite. How do you know when you have over worked it? If this happens, how do you fix it, if in fact you can fix it. It know you can't with pasta, so is it the same?

[Anneke]

we had a good discussion about this a few years back: http://www.cheftalkcafe.com/forums/s...hlight=gnocchi

[Mangilao30]

The thread you suggested is a wealth of infomation, I will try other recipies.

[100folds]

What a great discussion,
you were right, how something so simple can become so creative and complex. Thanks for the discussion, I'll do some of trials at home and bring my results to work.
Everyone should read that discussion.

[JohnRov]

Saw Mario Batali do a cooking demo last week. He said to use old potatoes when making potatoe gnocci. Just thought I'd pass it along.

[phatch]

Older potatos are drier. Cook's Illustrated in pursuing this line of thinking found that Americans eat potatos more and faster than Italians. "Old" potatos are essentially non-existent in the US unless you age them yourself.

Phil

[100folds]

so when you guys say "old" potatoes, you mean raw or cooked? If you mean raw then do they not grow soft and gain eyes? If it's a drier potatoe that your looking for then why don't you just bake the potatoes or dry them in the oven the way you do for duchess potatoes. Just need you to explain more. Thanks.

[phatch]

Not potatos that old I would think. Old potatoes has never been well explained to my knowledge. I was just relaying what I had read.

I made gnocchi yesterday with baked yukons and baked the gnocchi too. Better than what I'v had before, but they still aren't worth it to me.

Phil

[Mezzaluna]

I think "old" in this case means more developed potatoes which have a higher starch content than new potatoes. I used large russet Burbanks and they worked very well in Lidia Bastianich's recipe from Lidia's Italian Table. The dough was perfect and the product was light and flavorful- not gluey at all. I froze half of the recipe and cooked them later, with very good results.