Pea Gnocchi (4 ingredients)

This homemade pea gnocchi is the perfect pasta for spring! Making your own pea gnocchi at home is super easy and it only takes 4 ingredients - frozen peas, flour, egg yolks, and salt. We made a quick white wine butter sauce and topped the gnocchi with parmesan, lemon zest and mint. If you're looking for an easy from-scratch recipe, look no further!

Making Your Own Gnocchi at Home

Of all the pastas you can make at home, gnocchi is probably the easiest and most forgiving. There aren't any special skills required, it's just mixing together the ingredients, rolling, and cutting. We used a gnocchi board to achieve those signature gnocchi ridges, but you can just cut them into squares and leave them as pillows.

We've made gnocchi with sweet potatoes and carrots in the past, and peas worked just as well in this recipe. The key is adding flour bit by but until your dough loses that wet, sticky feeling. Going slowly with the flour ensures you'll have a tender, delicious gnocchi.

If you're looking for some non-gnocchi pasta recipes, check out all of our pasta recipes, or for an even quicker gnocchi recipe, try our Cacio e Pepe Air Fryer Gnocchi.

Key Ingredients Needed for this Pea Gnocchi

• Peas - if you can get your hands on some fresh peas, go ahead, but for this recipe, frozen peas will work just fine.
• Tipo 00 (double zero) flour will result in a more tender pasta, but all-purpose is totally fine too.

How to Make this Pea Gnocchi

1. Cook your frozen peas according to the package instructions. We'd recommend steaming them for maximum color and flavor.
2. Let your peas cool briefly or dump them into some ice cold water to cool them off and halt the cooking process, then add them to a blender or small food processor and blend until the peas have formed a paste. If your peas aren't blending well, add a bit of water, just note that you'll need to add a bit more flour later on.

3. To a nonstick work surface, add the flour and salt, then make a well in the center with your fingers, and add the eggs yolks. Use a fork to beat gently, then add in the blended peas and use a fork or spatula to mix everything together until a shaggy dough forms, then use your hands to knead gently until no streaks of flour remain and the dough isn't sticky anymore. You may need to add more flour to the dough if it's too sticky, so add it in 1 tablespoon increments.

4. Flatten out your dough ball a bit and use a knife or a bench scraper to cut the dough into strips. Roll the strips into logs that are about ½" in diameter, then cut into pieces about ½" long. You can leave them as-is or roll them on a gnocchi board to get ridges onto your gnocchi pieces. Move them to a well-floured surface and let them rest for 20-30 minutes.

5. To a medium pot over medium low heat, add water and a heavy pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer, then add in your gnocchi in batches. Let the gnocchi cook until it floats, then let it cook another 30 seconds, then remove from the water with a slotted spoon.

6. At this point, you can serve them with your favorite pasta sauce, or make your own garlic lemon sauce (instructions in the recipe card below!).

Top Tips from the CK Test Kitchen!

• Don't be afraid to add flour to the dough. Depending on the humidity of your kitchen, the water content of your peas, and countless other factors, you may end up needing to use more or less flour than the recipe states. Go by feel rather than a strict quantity. Once your dough is no longer wet and sticky, it's ready.
• That said...don't use too much flour. The key with this recipe is to use just enough flour that the dough is workable, but still soft and slightly sticky. If you add too much flour, it will be easy to work with, but the gnocchi will be tough and dense.
• You'll want to cook these on a gentle simmer rather than a heavy, rolling boil. Wait until the gnocchi begin to float, then give them an additional 30 seconds, and remove them with a slotted spoon.
• You can use a gnocchi board or the tines of a fork to press ridges into the gnocchi pieces, but this isn't completely necessary. They taste exactly the same as little pillows.
• Storage: You can pop your cooked gnocchi into the fridge, where they'll keep for 3-5 days. To reheat, just add back to a pan with your favorite sauce until cooked through.
• Make ahead: You can make the dough, form the gnocchi, and move these to your refrigerator, covered with a towel or plastic wrap, and cook within 24 hours.

More Pasta Recipes You'll Love

We can't wait for you to cook this pea gnocchi in your own home! If you do, be sure to let us know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo and tag @crowded_kitchen on Instagram. We can't wait to see what you're cooking!

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