Thick and rich Chicken glutinous rice balls This is perfect for those cold winter nights! Cross over to Olive Garden, this gnocchi soup features some healthier seasonings so you can feel guilt-free while indulging in a bowl of this delicious treat!
I’m not going to lie, I love a good bowl of Olive Garden gnocchi soup. It’s delicious, but it’s also full of unnecessary ingredients that don’t make any difference taste-wise.
As a self-proclaimed soup queen (we have over 50 soup recipes here on The Healthy Maven!) I took it upon myself to test…and test again Make a healthy version of an Olive Garden classic. If I can say so myself, I would call this chicken gnocchi soup even better than the original! So why make this soup? Let me tell you…
Why make this soup?
A healthier swap – Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi is typically filled with cream, heavy cream and thickened with flour. This version uses less butter to lighten it up, opting for dairy-free milk and a simple tapioca slurry to keep things nice and thick. I also doubled the spinach to add tons of healthy veggies!
a pot – Everything can be made in one pot (except the slurry) which means minimal dishes and saves you time.
Convenient meal preparation – Make a batch of thick chicken gnocchi at the start of the week and enjoy it for dinner and lunch. It’s also suitable for freezing!
Ingredients for gnocchi soup
- butter – For cooking chicken and vegetables. Feel free to substitute olive oil if desired.
- chicken breast – You can also use boneless and skinless chicken thighs.
- yellow onion – White onions will also work.
- celery – Cut into bite-size pieces.
- carrot – Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup uses shredded carrots, but feel free to chop the carrots if desired.
- garlic cloves – It’s best to use fresh garlic cloves.
- Tapioca starch – + Warm water to make starch slurry. Cornstarch is a great substitute.
- chicken soup – or stock or stock preferred.
- whole milk – Traditionally heavy cream is used, but I used whole milk instead for this recipe. You can also use plant-based milk if desired.
- fresh thyme – Or add dried thyme (just use half the amount)
- salt+pepper – Feel free to reduce flavor or sodium preference.
- spinach – or other preferred leafy green vegetables. Don’t use frozen spinach as it will break down too much in the soup.
- potato dumplings – It’s best to use shelf-stable gnocchi found in the pasta aisle. If not, you can use fresh gnocchi, but I would reduce the cooking time.
How to Make Chicken Rice Balls
Step 1: Brown Chicken
Add 1 tablespoon cream to a large stockpot or Dutch oven and place over medium heat. Add the chicken breasts and brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
Step Two: Cook the Vegetables
Add the remaining tablespoon of cream and stir in the onion, celery, carrots and garlic cloves. Fry in butter for 5 minutes.
Step Three: Make the Slurry
Combine tapioca starch and warm water in a small bowl. Stir until the tapioca starch is completely dissolved in the water. Pour the tapioca starch slurry over the vegetables in the pot and stir to combine.
Step 4: Boil + shredded chicken
Add the chicken broth, whole milk, fresh thyme, salt and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and return chicken and any juices to pan. Cook chicken for 15 minutes or until cooked through. Use tongs to remove chicken from pan and place on cutting board. Let cool for 5 minutes, then chop with two forks. Return the shredded chicken to the pot.
Step 5: Boil the gnocchi and make the soup
Add spinach and gnocchi and continue cooking for 10-15 minutes.
Easy exchange and substitution
Replace spinach – Feel free to swap out the spinach for other leafy greens like kale, chard, or a green of your choice.
Use grilled chicken – Want to skip cooking the chicken? Use grilled chicken instead! It speeds up the cooking time and tastes just as delicious. Just stir at the end.
Use dairy-free milk – I like to use whole milk for a more authentic taste, but if you want to add a dairy-free milk, I would recommend almond milk or cashew milk.
FAQ
I tested this recipe with cauliflower gnocchi and found that it turned out extremely mushy! That being said, if mushy gnocchi doesn’t bother you, feel free to use it.
Shelf-stable potato gnocchi is my favorite type of gnocchi to use in this recipe. Especially since it’s perfect for leftovers! That being said, you can definitely use fresh potato gnocchi too. But like I said above, I would skip the cauliflower gnocchi because I find it breaks down during the cooking process of the soup.
Generally speaking, my go-to answer is always some fresh crusty bread! That being said, this chicken gnocchi soup is perfect on its own or paired with a salad.
must! See some suggestions above, but yes, you can easily swap in different vegetables.
I wouldn’t recommend it. I find that the Instant Pot makes the gnocchi very mushy and breaks it down.
Yes you can! It won’t save you much time since this chicken gnocchi soup is pretty quick to make (and it’s all in one pot), but if you’re done with it for the day and would rather throw it in the slow cooker, you absolutely Can. I still think it’s a good idea to sear the chicken well before adding it to the slow cooker. I would also wait until the end to put the spinach and gnocchi in, otherwise both would become very mushy.
Yes! Use olive oil instead of cream and dairy-free milk instead of whole milk.
Yes. An equal amount of cornstarch can be used in place of the tapioca starch.
Storage instructions
refrigerator: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Warm on the stove top or in the microwave.
refrigerator: If you use shelf-stable potato gnocchi, this chicken gnocchi freezes well (surprisingly!). Freeze in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter for a few hours. Warm on the stove top or in the microwave.
More delicious soup recipes:
Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Thick and rich Chicken glutinous rice balls This is perfect for those cold winter nights! Move over to Olive Garden, this gnocchi soup features some healthier seasonings so you can feel guilt-free while indulging in a bowl of this deliciousness!
- Preparation time: 10 minutes
- Cooking time: 40 minutes
- Total time: 50 minutes
- yield: 6 number of copies 1x
- category: Soup
- method: chef
- gourmet food: Italian
- 2 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 big yellow onion, chopped
- 3 Celery Pork Ribs, chopped
- 1 big carrot, chopped
- 1 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon Tapioca starch (or cornstarch)
- 3 tablespoons Warm water (for making starch slurry)
- 6 cups chicken soup
- 1 cup Whole milk (or other dairy or non-dairy)
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 5 ounces fresh spinach
- 16 ounces Potato Gnocchi
- Add 1 tablespoon cream to a large stockpot or Dutch oven and place over medium heat.
- Add the chicken breasts and brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side.
- Remove chicken from pan and set aside.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of cream and stir in the onion, celery, carrots and garlic cloves. Fry in butter for 5 minutes.
- Combine tapioca starch and warm water in a small bowl. Stir until the tapioca starch is completely dissolved in the water.
- Pour the tapioca starch slurry over the vegetables in the pot and stir to combine.
- Add the chicken broth, whole milk, fresh thyme, salt and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low and return chicken and any juices to pan.
- Cook chicken for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
- Use tongs to remove chicken from pan and place on cutting board. Let cool for 5 minutes, then chop with two forks.
- Return the shredded chicken to the pot.
- Add spinach and gnocchi and continue cooking for 10-15 minutes.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. See instructions above for freezing soup.
