Primo / main course
Gnocchi with sage brown butter & pancetta
Shop-bought gnocchi, nutty butter and crunch — done before you know it.
Packet gnocchi become special when you fry them instead of just boiling: golden, lightly crisp pillows in nutty sage brown butter, with crispy pancetta for crunch. Simple, fast and still satisfying.
Method
- Fry the pancetta until crisp and drain.
- Boil the gnocchi briefly until they float; drain.
- Melt the butter until golden and nutty and fry the sage until crisp.
- Fry the gnocchi briefly in the butter until golden and lightly crisp.
- Serve with pancetta, Parmesan, lemon zest and pepper.
The bluff
Fry, don't just boil
The bluff is texture: fry the boiled gnocchi in the brown butter until golden and lightly crisp. Together with crispy pancetta you get a contrast that suddenly makes a simple dish feel ‘finished’.
Plating — how to make it look expensive
- Pile the gnocchi loosely; don't lay it all flat.
- Spoon the brown butter over for shine.
- Pancetta and sage as a crispy finish; lemon zest for freshness.
What you say at the table
“Frying instead of boiling — that's the whole secret.”
Make it complete
Serve with a fresh green salad with mustard dressing to balance the rich butter.
What to drink
A light red (Barbera) or a crisp white.
Foto via Pexels