Gnocchi with Pancetta dressed in Garlic, Red Chill and Basil Butter
Don't buy long life Gnocchi, the texture and taste is far better making it at home. Not to mention cheaper!
Method
- Make the Gnocchi:
- Peel the potatoes and weigh out 200g. Cut into even sized chunks, then place in a saucepan with the salt. Cover with boiling water and boil as if you were making mashed potato. It's better to overcook than undercook the potatoes in this case, as lumps are an absolute no-no!
- Drain and set aside for 5 minutes without a lid on to let them dry out.
- Using an electric whisk and in a separate large mixing bowl, whisk the potatoes well to make a very smooth mash. At this point taste and add more salt if necessary.
- Sift the flour into the bowl and mix while slowly adding the egg to make a thick dough (not too sticky though). Set aside for 5 minutes to let the mixture cool slightly.
- Using well floured hands and on a generously floured work surface, roll the mixture out into a sausage shape about the diameter of a £2 coin.
- Cut into even sized pieces (about 1 cm thick), then shape into your preferred form. I just rolled each piece up into a ball again, and pressed down on top with a fork to give the ridges.
- Refrigerate for an hour, but no longer on a well floured plate.
- Cook the dish:
- Bring a pan of slightly salted water to the boil. Place a heavy based frying pan on the heat at the same time. When ready add the gnocchi to the saucepan of water, and the pancetta to the frying pan.
- The gnocchi will take around 5 minutes. A rough guide is to cook then for 2 minutes longer after they rise to the top of the water.
- When the gnocchi is ready, drain and arrange on your serving plate. Add the butter to the pan with the pancetta along with garlic, chilli and black pepper. Fry on a hight heat for about 30 seconds to a minute. Making sure that the garlic doesn't burn.
- Pour the butter on top of the gnocchi with the fresh basil and serve.
Main Ingredients
- Pancetta
- 70 g, diced
- Garlic
- 3 large cloves, finely diced
- Red Chilli
- 1, quartered lengthways and sliced thin
- Fresh Basil
- 20 large leaves, roughly chopped
- Black Pepper
- 1 tsp
- Unsalted Butter
- 100 g
- Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp
Gnocchi Ingredients
- Floury Potato
- 200 g raw
- Salt
- 1 tsp
- Egg
- 1 medium
- Plain Flour
- 70 g