7 Best Pasta Sauces To Pair With Gnocchi

We all know and love the soft and pillowy Italian dumplings known as gnocchi. These bites are absolutely scrumptious, whether they're pan-seared in sizzling brown butter, generously doused in tomato sauce, or speckled green with pesto. Somewhere out there, there is the perfect gnocchi sauce for you. 

Just like certain pasta sauces are better suited to certain pasta shapes, some sauces are also more ideal matches for ricotta or potato-based gnocchi than others. Teaching gnocchi workshops has left me with a lot of dumplings ready and waiting to be dressed in numerous pasta sauces. The best sauces for a steaming bowl of gnocchi cling to the dumplings — which act as a vessel for carrying a whole lot of punchy flavor. Gnocchi are versatile and can soak up a rich emulsion of cheese and butter, or they can make themselves at home in a very cozy bowl of ragu. Either makes a truly perfect bite. The other brilliant thing about gnocchi is that you can easily transform a store-bought package of the dumplings with the right sauce, or, if you want something more involved, gather some potatoes and make your own from scratch. Either way, these pasta sauces will help you step into your gnocchi game this season and bring some seriously delicious pairings to the table.

The classic browned butter and crispy sage sauce may look like a lighter than it is, but it's actually quite decadent and delicious. While there are few ingredients used for it, the combination makes for a rich pasta sauce that is wildly flavorful. Besides the deep and layered notes of browned butter, herbaceous sage, and likely some punchy garlic, this pasta sauce is perfectly suited for browning the gnocchi  in — which is, quite possibly, the best way to eat them. The golden brown and crispy exterior is a textural dream that clings to the nutty complexity of the browned butter. The crispy-crunchy exterior gives way to the pillowy interior, while the rich sauce and potent sage ring through with each bite.

The best way to go about this sauce is to pan-sear the gnocchi first or crisp them up in the oven. Then, you can set the pasta aside to brown the butter and infuse it with sage and garlic. From there, bringing all the components together will be a breeze. I would also recommend adding a squeeze of lemon or a dusting of lemon zest to add a welcomed brightness to this dish. Don't forget to finish it with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, too. 

Pomodoro sauce is as classic as it gets. Honestly, you cannot go wrong with this sauce and any pasta-oriented pairing. Gnocchi is right up there — giving spaghetti a run for its money. And while gnocchi isn't as pasta-like as other shapes, this is probably the best gnocchi dish for a die-hard pasta lover. Do not overlook this sauce as a potential pairing because of its simplicity. In fact, that's exactly what makes it so great. In true Italian form, it keeps it simple with high-quality ingredients. And if you ask me, that's a recipe for success.

Infusing a bunch of aromatics, like basil, oregano, thyme, and garlic, in warm oil is the start of a very flavorful pasta sauce. Cooking off a healthy dollop of tomato paste kickstarts the whole tomatoey vibe; this ingredient offers concentrated flavors that you can build on. From there, it's a choose-your-own-adventure with crushed, diced, or whole tomatoes. A good pomodoro sauce should be infused with tomato flavor, have layers from the aromatics, and enough fat from the added extra virgin olive oil. Soft and plump gnocchi are the perfect pairing for this pasta sauce because they can swim in a bowl full of it. It's not too thick and viscous, but it envelopes the gnocchi and sticks to your spoon at the same time. This acidic, fresh, and complex sauce has everything you want to pair with gnocchi. 

Pesto is such a great pasta sauce because it can really include any combination of herbs and nuts or seeds that you prefer. This makes it very versatile and easy to adapt based on what you have on hand, as well as what your taste buds are calling for. Parsley pesto, a personal favorite of mine, is more earthy and peppery than a traditional basil pesto, which is herbaceous, but also has sweeter undertones. Arugula pesto is another peppery option that offers a bit more bitterness and kick. Toasted sunflower seeds, pine nuts, almonds, walnuts, or any other seed or nut can add a lot of texture to a pesto sauce, which is welcomed by plump and pillow gnocchi that have just come out of a hot water bath. A hard cheese offers a richness and nutty component that bumps up the pasta sauce to another level.

Whatever combination of herbs, nuts, seeds, and cheese you decide to go for, rest assured that the pesto will cling well to the soft dumplings — which is part of what makes this gnocchi and sauce pairing such a good match. The herbaceous nature of pesto, paired with the piquant garlic, is really fitting for gnocchi. You'll get a blank canvas to carry through with additional flavors of your choice. As a bonus, pesto is such a great pantry or freezer item to stock up on or make ahead of time for an easy gnocchi meal. Just warm it up and stir it through your gnocchi with an extra glug of shiny olive oil.

There isn't anything that hits quite like a good ragu. The pasta sauce is this perfect mashup of tender meat melded into an incredibly flavorful tomato sauce. After a slow simmer on the stovetop, it's lifted up to another dimension. Although it's traditionally paired with tagliatelle, ragu's chunky and saucy nature also lends itself well to being spooned over and stirred through a shallow bowl of steaming hot gnocchi. If a good ragu sauce isn't in your regular rotation, it's time to make that change.

The thick sauce envelops the dumplings and coats them with a depth of flavor. The slow-cooked infusion of aromatics, the profile of dry red wine, the caramelized meat, and the piquant and zingy tomato sauce infuses right into the pillowy gnocchi and makes for the perfect pairing. A warm bowl of gnocchi ragu is about the coziest thing you can serve up. It's perfect for eating in a big bowl — and it warrants a large spoon to scoop up the saucy dumplings and chunks of ground beef together for a complete bite. 

One-pot gnocchi is the best kind of gnocchi. This luscious cream pasta sauce is wildly simple and equally as impressive. Not to mention, tender gnocchi sitting in a little white pool of viscous, cheesy cream sauce draped with spinach leaves will make anyone do that melting face emoji.

Sauteing your aromatics and building the pasta sauce flavors by layering in white wine and Dijon mustard make this sauce extra punchy and fragrant. Thickening it with a hard cheese, like Parmigiano-Reggiano, will give you the perfect consistency to generously coat the gnocchi. The spinach adds a pop of fresh, herbaceous flavor along with color, which is perfect for an otherwise white-on-white pairing. This sauce is arguably one of the most rich and luscious pasta sauces you could douse your gnocchi in. So, if you're in the mood for a luxurious gnocchi pairing, you just found it.

Cacio e pepe, an Italian classic from Rome, is a simple cheese and pepper sauce. It has everything that a proper cheese sauce should have, as well as a kick of pepper. Pecorino Romano, a grassy and earthy sheep's cheese, is combined with starchy pasta water to make a shiny emulsion. It's heavily peppered for a zingy, yet lush-feeling sauce.

The pairing of cacio e pepe and gnocchi isn't the traditional one, but it is an extremely satisfying way to indulge in the sauce and enjoy your tender little dumplings. A perfectly-cooked gnocchi is soft, but slightly chewy, with just enough structural integrity that you should be able to pull it away on your fork and see perfectly imprinted teeth marks — not mush. This texture is important when it's paired with an otherwise smooth sauce, like cacio e pepe. 

I would recommend serving this in an incredibly shallow bowl or plate with an edge to splay each little gnocchi out in a single layer. Top it with more fresh cracked pepper, and you'll feel like you're sitting down to a restaurant dish at home.

Browned mushrooms dripping in a lush, thyme-infused bechamel sauce — what's not to love? There is a lot of depth and richness in a well-done bechamel, so it's a perfect pasta sauce to pair with perfectly cooked gnocchi. After all, this pasta has a lot of room to take on flavors. Again, this is one of those pasta sauce pairings where you want to be doubly sure that your gnocchi aren't overcooked. You want to leave just a bit of al dente energy there so they don't just fall apart under the weight of the sauce.

The addition of browned mushrooms here matches the gnocchi texturally; they're slightly soft but have some toothsome give. In the flavor department, they add earthy, sweet, and nutty notes to the dish. I would recommend cremini mushrooms for this dish as they offer some great earthy and umami notes without overtaking the entire flavor profile. Thinly sliced mushrooms that keep their shape are a good match for the gnocchi and will make this whole dish feel cohesive. This sauce is decadent, earthy, and a must-make sauce for gnocchi.