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Instant Pot Sausage Gnocchi is a rich, hearty dish that has lots of flavor, and is so delicious, especially when you need a bowl of comfort food. This pressure cooker sausage and gnocchi is cooked in a tomato sauce with Italian spices, and is ready in under an hour. One of my personal top 5 favorite Instant Pot recipes!
Instant Pot Sausage Gnocchi
Not only is gnocchi fun to say, but it is also fun to eat! You can use gnocchi in pretty much any recipe that calls for pasta. Instant Pot Sausage Gnocchi is a recipe that I make when I am craving a rich, tomatoey, hearty bowl of Italian comfort food. I just love this stuff!
Gnocchi is pronounced “NO-KEE”, and are little doughy dumplings that can be made from potato, wheat flour, semolina, bread crumbs, cheese, egg, etc. Sometimes it has herbs, or flavorings like lemon added.
I prefer the potato gnocchi, it has some chew to it that is appealing to me. The flavor is pretty neutral, so it goes well with a tomato based sauce, as well as a cream based sauce. It holds up very well in the pressure cooker.
You can make gnocchi homemade, or buy it at the grocery store or online. At my grocery store the gnocchi is located right near the pastas. It isn’t dry like pasta, but is shelf stable. I keep a few packages in my pantry at all times. Always prepared for a quick dinner! There are also varieties that come refrigerated.
Instant Pot Sausage Gnocchi is not a complex dish. The secret is in the sauce! Use a good pasta sauce and then augment that with some garlic powder and Italian Seasoning. You may not even need salt. I use my homemade Instant Pot Marinara Fresh Tomato Sauce and do not add any salt to this dish. The sausage has plenty, as does the marinara.
This recipe can also be made on the stove top if you like, however, I love the one-pot aspect of this recipe. It’s not difficult to make in the pressure cooker. Sauté your onion and sausage, and layer the rest of the ingredients and cook. Easy!
Instant Pot Marinara Fresh Tomato Sauce
Instant Pot Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Instant Pot Pizza Pasta Casserole
Instant Pot Sausage Gnocchi
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 small Yellow Onion, chopped
- 1 lb Italian Ground Sausage bulk ground sausage
- ¼ teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes (or ½ tsp for spicier)
- 2 teaspoons Garlic Powder
- 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
- 2 ¾ cups Chicken Broth, low sodium (use 3 cups for an 8 qt pot)
- 1-2 (17 oz) package Gnocchi* (found in the pasta aisle)
- 2 cups Pasta Sauce (I use a jar of Marinara)
Garnish
- Fresh Basil Leaves
- Parmesan Cheese
Instructions
- Turn on the Sauté setting of your pressure cooker. When it is hot, add the olive oil.
- Add the onions and cook them for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until they start to turn translucent.
- Add the sausage, breaking it up with a wood spoon, and stirring until mixed in with the onion. It's okay to leave some of the sausage a little chunky as it is nice texture.
- Add the red pepper flakes, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning and stir. It's fine if the sausage isn't completely cooked through as it will finish cooking under pressure.
- Stir in the chicken broth, scraping the bottom of the pot to get up any browned bits (deglaze) so the sensor doesn't think it's burning.
- Add the gnocchi in an even layer over the sausage mixture, but don't stir it.
- Pour the sauce over the gnocchi, covering it as much as you can. Do not stir.
- Close the lid and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position. Cancel the Sauté function.
- Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button or dial, then the +/- button or dial to select 3 minutes. High Pressure. It will take several minutes to come to pressure.
- When the cook cycle has finished, let the pot sit undisturbed for 5 minutes (5 minute Natural Release). Then do a Controlled Quick Release* of the remaining steam/pressure.*A controlled quick release means you release the steam in short bursts, then longer bursts, until you can be sure none of the sauce spews out of the vent with the steam from the intense pressure. Then fully open the vent and let it go.
- When the pin in the lid drops down, open it and give the gnocchi a stir. It will be pretty saucy, but will thicken up as it cools. Use pot holders and carefully take out the inner liner to sit on a cooling rack and let it sit for a few minutes, stirring it a few times.
- Taste, and add a little salt if you think it needs it. This will depend on the type of sausage and sauce you used.
- Garnish as desired and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Resources to Make This Recipe and More
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This recipe is really really delicious and super easy to make. It is one of my favorites.
This was so good, but VERY saucy. And I used 2 packages of gnocchi! I would decrease the liquid next time.
I did change the recipe to be a little saucier as many people were getting the BURN error and the pot wasn’t coming to pressure. It never happened to me, but several others reported it.
made this several times now in my college dorm. easily one of the most delicious, easy, and affordable meals to make!