If you’ve never made homemade potato gnocchi before, you’re in for a treat. These little potato pillows are soft, tender, and way easier to make than you might think.

This recipe is completely gluten free, made with gluten free all-purpose flour instead of regular wheat flour. You honestly can’t tell the difference.

The ingredient list is really short – just a few pantry staples and some potatoes. Nothing complicated or hard to find.

Whether you serve them with a simple butter sage sauce or your favorite marinara, these gnocchi are a solid dinner option. They’re comforting, filling, and naturally gluten free without any weird substitutions.

Let me walk you through the whole process step by step so you can nail it on your first try.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Only 4 Ingredients – This gluten free potato gnocchi uses just potatoes, gluten free flour, an egg, and salt. That’s it. You don’t need a long shopping list or any hard-to-find ingredients to make restaurant-quality gnocchi at home.

Finally, Gluten Free Gnocchi That Tastes Like the Real Thing – If you’ve been missing gnocchi since going gluten free, this recipe will make your day. These little pillows of potato goodness taste just like traditional gnocchi, and nobody at the table will know the difference.

Way Better Than Store-Bought Gluten Free Gnocchi – Let’s be honest, most packaged gluten free gnocchi can be gummy or flavorless. Homemade gnocchi has a soft, pillowy texture that the frozen stuff just can’t compete with.

Super Budget Friendly – Russet potatoes, a little flour, and an egg are some of the cheapest ingredients you can buy. You can feed a whole family a fancy-feeling Italian dinner without spending more than a few dollars.

Ingredients

2 lbs Russet Potatoes
1 1/2 cups Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour
1 large Egg
1 tsp Salt

How to Make

Step 1

Wash the russet potatoes and boil them whole with the skin on until tender, about 45 minutes. Drain and let cool just enough to handle.

Step 2

Peel the skins off the warm potatoes and press the flesh through a potato ricer or mash them until completely smooth and lump-free.

Step 3

Spread the mashed potatoes on a clean surface to let the steam escape. Sprinkle the gluten free all-purpose flour and salt over the potatoes, and crack the egg into the center.

Step 4

Gently use your hands to bring the mixture together, kneading lightly until a soft dough forms. Do not over-knead.

Step 5

Divide the dough into 4 sections. Roll each section into a long rope about 3/4 inch thick. Cut the ropes into 1-inch pillows.

Step 6

Bring a large pot of salted water to a gentle boil. Drop the gnocchi in batches; once they float to the surface, let them cook for 1 more minute before removing with a slotted spoon. Serve with your favorite sauce.

Helpful Tips

Use a Potato Ricer if You Can

A potato ricer is the best tool for this job because it breaks the potato down into fine, even pieces without any lumps. Lumps in the potato will make your dough uneven, and you’ll end up with gnocchi that have a weird texture.

If you don’t have a ricer, you can use a masher, but you really need to go over it again and again until there are zero lumps left. Take your time with this step because it matters more than you think.

Whatever you do, don’t use a food processor or blender. It will turn the potatoes into a gluey paste, and your gnocchi will come out dense and gummy.

Let the Steam Escape Before Mixing

After you rice or mash the potatoes, spread them out on your counter or a large cutting board. This lets the steam and extra moisture escape, which is exactly what you want.

If you skip this and mix in the flour while the potatoes are still super hot and steamy, the dough will absorb too much moisture. That means you’ll need to add more flour to compensate, and too much flour makes the gnocchi heavy and dense instead of soft and pillowy.

Just give it about 5 minutes spread out on the surface. You want the potatoes warm but not piping hot when you start adding the flour.

Don’t Over-Knead the Dough

This is probably the most important tip for the whole recipe. When you start bringing the flour, egg, and potato together, use a gentle hand and stop kneading as soon as the dough holds together. It doesn’t need to look perfectly smooth like bread dough.

Over-kneading makes the gnocchi tough and chewy instead of light. With gluten free flour, you don’t have gluten development to worry about, but you can still overwork the starches in the potato and end up with a dense, rubbery result.

If the dough feels slightly sticky, that’s actually a good sign. Resist the urge to keep adding flour or keep working it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a different type of potato instead of Russet?

Russet potatoes are the best choice for gnocchi because they are starchy and dry, which helps the dough come together without getting gummy. If you use waxy potatoes like red or Yukon Gold, they hold more moisture and can make your gnocchi heavy and dense.

If Russet potatoes are not available, Yukon Gold is your next best option. Just make sure to dry them out really well after cooking, and you may need a little extra flour to get the right texture.