I love gnocchi and use it often to make quick weeknight dinners like this sheet pan gnocchi with kielbasa. My girls have been asking me for a gnocchi dinner, so one night I quickly threw together ingredients that I had in my fridge, and thus, this gnocchi skillet dinner was born. My whole family devoured it and asked for more, so I knew I needed to share this simple recipe. It’s perfect for those evenings when I have less than half an hour to spare for dinner.
This post was created in partnership with Primal Kitchen.
Recipe Highlights
- Done in 20 minutes: It’s rare to find a recipe that is truly a 20-minute meal, but this one comes together so quickly. Thanks to grocery store convenience items like chicken sausage links, tomato sauce, and pre-made gnocchi, the ingredients just need to be cooked together until heated.
- Minimal chopping: One reason this recipe is quick is because you hardly need to chop a thing. The only hands on steps required are to slice the sausage links and chop the basil.
- Texture and flavor: Even though this recipe is quick, it checks all the boxes for a satisfying weeknight dinner. The sun-dried tomato pasta sauce adds so much depth of flavor, while the gnocchi, spinach, and sausage add different textures and savory flavors.
- Full meal in one: I love it when I can get protein, carbs, and healthy fats all in one dish. Plus, a serving provides ingredients from the different food groups, including meats, veggies, and starches.
Ingredients And Substitutions
This isn’t the full list of ingredients needed, but just a few notes and substitutions I like:
- Gnocchi – opt for a shelf-stable potato gnocchi, which are like little potato-based pasta dumplings. I’ve tried and like many brands of gnocchi that I like, including La Molisana, 365 (Whole Foods), DeLallo, Simple Truth Organic, DeCecco, Garofalo, and Trader Joes. For gluten-free gnocchi, I like D’Oro Del Sud. To cut down on carbohydrates, you could use a cauliflower gnocchi. Or, skip the gnocchi and swap in cooked noodles or cooked tortellini. Due to the quick nature of this dish, I don’t recommend using frozen gnocchi.
- Pasta sauce – I love all of the Primal Kitchen marinara and tomato sauces, but the new organic Sun-Dried Tomato pasta sauce is especially good in this quick dish. It has no artificial sweeteners and is both sweet and savory because of ingredients like butternut squash, pear juice, roasted garlic, sundried tomatoes, pumpkin seed butter, and avocado oil.
- Chicken sausage – use any package of chicken sausage links. I simply slice the links into thin slices. But, if you’d rather not use sausage slices, remove the chicken sausage from the casings before browning it, or make your own ground turkey Italian sausage (see my Tip section below).
How To Make This Gnocchi Skillet Dinner
This comfort food sausage-gnocchi recipe comes together in just 20 minutes. Here are the basic steps:
- Brown the chicken sausage. Sauté the slice sausage in the skillet until it’s slightly crispy at the edges and golden brown.
- Add the gnocchi and sauce. Stir in the gnocchi, the sun-dried tomato sauce, and the water. Cook until the gnocchi are soft.
- Stir in the spinach and basil. Add the fresh spinach and fresh basil and stir until lightly wilted. Sprinkle with Parmesan and additional fresh basil.
- Garnish and serve. Divide servings onto plates or bowls and garnish with grated Parmesan (or shaved Parm, if that’s what you have on hand).
Storage And Reheating
Store leftover gnocchi, sauce, and sausage in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat servings in a skillet on the stovetop over medium heat, adding a few tablespoons of water to help soften as the dish reheats. Or, reheat servings in the microwave.
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Chicken Sausage Gnocchi Skillet Recipe
Here’s a true 20-minute dinner for those nights when you just need something quick that’s made with nourishing ingredients. Thanks to a flavorful sauce and other ready-to-use items, this protein-rich and veggie-loaded dinner couldn’t be easier.
Ingredients
- Avocado oil cooking spray
- 1 12-ounce package chicken sausage links, sliced
- 1 16-ounce package shelf-stable gnocchi (use gluten-free if needed)
- 1 15-ounce jar Primal Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce*
- ½ cup water
- 5 ounces (1 bag or carton) baby spinach leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves, plus more for garnish
- ½ cup shaved or shredded Parmesan cheese (omit for dairy-free)
Instructions
- Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, mist generously with cooking spray.
- Add the sliced chicken sausage and cook until a little browned, 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the gnocchi and sundried tomato sauce to the skillet. Add the water to the sauce jar, screw on the lid and give it a shake before adding the water to the skillet. Stir to combine.
- Bring the mixture just to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the gnocchi are soft, 3-5 minutes.
- Add the spinach and basil to the skillet and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low then cover the skillet and cook until the spinach is wilted, 2-3 minutes.
- Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and additional basil before serving.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Last Step! Please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive so we can continue providing free recipes and high-quality content for you.
Notes
*Use code REALFOOD20 to save 20% on all Primal Kitchen products (see our favorites). For this recipe, I recommend the Primal Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce.
*Primal Kitchen pasta jars have a convenient measure built into the side of the jar. Use that to measure 1/2 cup of water by adding the water directly to the jar, shaking it to get all the pasta sauce still left on the inside of the jar, then pour it all back into the skillet.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups
- Calories: 520
- Fat: 15 g
- (Sat Fat: 4 g)
- Sodium: 1,753 mg
- Carbohydrate: 55 g
- (Fiber: 6 g
- Sugar: 9 g)
- Protein: 33 g
- Cholesterol: 102 mg
Dietary
The photos in this blog post were taken by Rachel Cook of Half Acre House.
This is a sponsored post. Although we received compensation for this post, the opinions expressed here are – as always – 100% our own. Thank you for supporting the great companies we work with thereby allowing us to continue creating high-quality recipes and content for you.
For ultimate success, we highly recommend reading the tips in the full blog post above. All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. If you wish to republish a recipe, please rewrite the recipe in your own unique words. Link back to the source recipe here on The Real Food Dietitians. Thank you!
Save 20% on Primal Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce and more with REALFOOD20. 20% Off With Code REALFOOD20Try Ground Turkey Sausage
To reduce the sodium, swap the chicken sausage links for this homemade Italian sausage made with ground turkey:
- In a small bowl, combine 1 ½ teaspoons dried Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, ¾ teaspoon lightly crushed fennel seeds, 1 teaspoon fine salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, and ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes.
- Heat 2 teaspoons avocado oil or olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 pound lean (93/7) ground turkey and use a spoon or spatula to break it up. Sprinkle with the seasoning mix and cook until the turkey is no longer pink, 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Continue with the recipe as written, adding the gnocchi next.
How To Make This Gnocchi Skillet Dinner
This comfort food sausage-gnocchi recipe comes together in just 20 minutes. Here are the basic steps:
- Brown the chicken sausage. Sauté the slice sausage in the skillet until it’s slightly crispy at the edges and golden brown.
- Add the gnocchi and sauce. Stir in the gnocchi, the sun-dried tomato sauce, and the water. Cook until the gnocchi are soft.
- Stir in the spinach and basil. Add the fresh spinach and fresh basil and stir until lightly wilted. Sprinkle with Parmesan and additional fresh basil.
- Garnish and serve. Divide servings onto plates or bowls and garnish with grated Parmesan (or shaved Parm, if that’s what you have on hand).
Storage And Reheating
Store leftover gnocchi, sauce, and sausage in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat servings in a skillet on the stovetop over medium heat, adding a few tablespoons of water to help soften as the dish reheats. Or, reheat servings in the microwave.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email below & we’ll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great new recipes from us every week!
Chicken Sausage Gnocchi Skillet Recipe
Here’s a true 20-minute dinner for those nights when you just need something quick that’s made with nourishing ingredients. Thanks to a flavorful sauce and other ready-to-use items, this protein-rich and veggie-loaded dinner couldn’t be easier.
Ingredients
- Avocado oil cooking spray
- 1 12-ounce package chicken sausage links, sliced
- 1 16-ounce package shelf-stable gnocchi (use gluten-free if needed)
- 1 15-ounce jar Primal Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce*
- ½ cup water
- 5 ounces (1 bag or carton) baby spinach leaves
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves, plus more for garnish
- ½ cup shaved or shredded Parmesan cheese (omit for dairy-free)
Instructions
- Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, mist generously with cooking spray.
- Add the sliced chicken sausage and cook until a little browned, 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the gnocchi and sundried tomato sauce to the skillet. Add the water to the sauce jar, screw on the lid and give it a shake before adding the water to the skillet. Stir to combine.
- Bring the mixture just to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the gnocchi are soft, 3-5 minutes.
- Add the spinach and basil to the skillet and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low then cover the skillet and cook until the spinach is wilted, 2-3 minutes.
- Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and additional basil before serving.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Last Step! Please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive so we can continue providing free recipes and high-quality content for you.
Notes
*Use code REALFOOD20 to save 20% on all Primal Kitchen products (see our favorites). For this recipe, I recommend the Primal Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce.
*Primal Kitchen pasta jars have a convenient measure built into the side of the jar. Use that to measure 1/2 cup of water by adding the water directly to the jar, shaking it to get all the pasta sauce still left on the inside of the jar, then pour it all back into the skillet.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups
- Calories: 520
- Fat: 15 g
- (Sat Fat: 4 g)
- Sodium: 1,753 mg
- Carbohydrate: 55 g
- (Fiber: 6 g
- Sugar: 9 g)
- Protein: 33 g
- Cholesterol: 102 mg
Dietary
The photos in this blog post were taken by Rachel Cook of Half Acre House.
This is a sponsored post. Although we received compensation for this post, the opinions expressed here are – as always – 100% our own. Thank you for supporting the great companies we work with thereby allowing us to continue creating high-quality recipes and content for you.
For ultimate success, we highly recommend reading the tips in the full blog post above. All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. If you wish to republish a recipe, please rewrite the recipe in your own unique words. Link back to the source recipe here on The Real Food Dietitians. Thank you!
