Description
High Protein Tofu Gnocchi is an easy, delicious, and the ultimate comfort food. You only need 4 ingredients to make tender gnocchi.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- About 300 grams All Purpose Flour (approx. 2 + 1/3 cups, see Note 1)
- 15-ounce Block Extra Firm Tofu (drained) (see Note 2)
- 1.5 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (see Note 3)
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Prep Tofu: Drain the excess water from your package of extra firm tofu (if you have firm tofu, you may want to stick it in a tofu press to remove some of the water, or else you may end up have to add a lot more flour to get the consistency needed for gnocchi). I like to wrap it in a clean and dry tea towel (or a paper towel will work) and lightly squeeze to remove some more of the water. The more you remove, the less extra flour you'll need to add later. Don't worry if the tofu breaks as we're going to pulverize it in the next step.
- Crumble Tofu: Crumble the tofu block into a large bowl. You can do this and the next step or two in the food processor if you wish, but I found it simpler just to do it by hand. Plus that allows me to gauge the consistency of the dough better anyway.
- Add Remaining Ingredients: Add the olive oil and then the flour and salt. Mix well until a dough forms. I prefer to just do this with my hands as it allows me to really work the tofu and dry ingredients together. You're looking for a firm yet smooth dough that should be lightly tacky, not sticky and wet. If it's too wet, add a little flour (don't add too much at once) and work it all the way in, adding until the dough becomes firm but not hard. If there's too much dry ingredients and the dough won't come together, you can add water just a tablespoon or so at a time. Don't be tempted to add too much more oil as the dough may become greasy.
- Prep the Pot of Water: Fill a large pot about 1/2 to 2/3 full of water and put on to boil. You can continue with the next step while the water is heating. The next step with the pot is this: when it comes to a boil, dissolve a generous amount of salt into the water (how much will depend on the size of your pot, amount of water, and individual taste preferences; for reference I had a 4.5 qt pot about 2/3 full of water with a tablespoon of salt). Stir to allow the salt to fully dissolve. If the water comes to a boil before you're done with the next step, you can add a lid or even turn the heat down if needed.
- Make the Gnocchi: On a lightly floured surface, divide the dough ball into several sections (it doesn't matter how many, smaller sections are just easier to work with). Take one section and set the rest aside. Roll the section into a long rope about 1.5 - 2 inches thick. Use a bench scraper or a knife to cut little 1 inch pieces from the rope. I don't worry too much about making them perfect. If you'd like, you can roll them against your fork to make the grooves, but I didn't bother with this step. Set these gnocchi on a plate or tray and continue with each section until all the gnocchi are ready to go.
- Boil the Gnocchi: When the salted water is to a rolling boil (big bubbles), carefully add some of the gnocchi to the pot. I cooked mine in two batches so the gnocchi didn't stick together in the pot (when you drop them in, they will sink. This is temporary). Depending on the size of your pot, you may need to do 2 or 3 batches. Since you only need to cook them a few minutes, it's easy to do it in batches. Boil for 3-4 minutes or so. They will begin to rise to the top when they are done. Immediately remove them with a slotted spoon. I like to put mine on a plate until they're all done, but if you've got your heated sauce or oil in another pan ready to go, you can place them straight into the other pan. Repeat until all gnocchi are cooked.
- Serve as Desired: You can heat the gnocchi for a few minutes in a red sauce, add them to a cream sauce or pesto, or lightly pan fry them in a large skillet in olive oil or vegan butter (add a little tomato paste if desired, but fry it off for 30-60 seconds for better flavor) for 2-3 minutes over medium high heat, maybe with 1-2 cloves garlic (minced up), some chili flakes, herbs, or even a little vegan cheese (we love a little vegan parmesan with this dish) etc. Add another pinch of salt or some sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper if needed, and serve with some fresh basil or other herbs!
- Storage: Store cooked tofu gnocchi in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Note 1: Amount will vary slightly but you just add a little more flour as needed till you get a soft dough-like consistency. I highly recommend using an inexpensive food scale, since any time we dig our measuring cup into a bag of flour, we could be getting inconsistent amounts which could lead to trouble when making the recipe. I have not tested this recipe with any other flours, however if you wanted to try to make these gluten-free, I recommend a quality gluten-free all purpose flour blend such as Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Gluten-Free Flour or King Arthur Baking Company Measure for Measure Gluten-Free Flour. Other flours such as straight oat flour might be a little dense.
- Note 2: Extra firm tofu is the best tofu for this recipe. While you can use firm tofu for this recipe, it does have more water so you might need to press some of that water out or you will end up needing a fair amount more flour. I do not recommend using silken tofu or soft tofu.
- Note 3: While this isn't technically necessary, I'm not listing it as optional because I think it really helps to create tender tofu gnocchi. I would not skip this, but if you are strictly no oil, you could use 1-2 tablespoons of aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas) instead.
- Note 4: While you could flavor the gnocchi dough with anything from Italian seasoning, onion powder, and garlic powder to even a little nutritional yeast or chili flakes, I like to keep the recipe fairly neutral so they're ready for whatever sauce I want to put them in. Salt is the perfect seasoning in this case. And since we're boiling them in a pot of salted water, you don't need much salt in the actual dough.
- Note 5: If you're looking for serving suggestions, check out the section by that title in the article above this recipe. There's some good ideas in there.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner, Pasta
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American, Italian, Comfort