Meatballs and Gnocchi in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce
The creamiest and most flavourful mushroom sauce you’ve ever tasted, combined with tender meatballs and gnocchi. Can you honestly think of anything better?
Hey guys, I don’t want to brag here, but I’ve knocked one out of the park with this recipe.
The cheesy mushroom sauce is super creamy, and the seasoned meatballs, combined with gnocchi, are simply out of this world.
I was inspired by this recipe from an older recipe I did on my Weber Q titled Creamy Weber Q Chicken and Mushroom Casserole.
Although the sauce is similar in its flavour profile, the addition of seasoned meatballs and gnocchi make them worlds apart.
And the best part is my kids approved my meatballs and gnocchi recipe, and it’s now a regular recipe on the weekend.
So let’s get cracking into this one, guys!
Ingredients you’ll need to make Meatballs and Gnocchi
Seasoned meatballs:
- 750g minced beef (depending on the size of your family, you should get around 16-18 golf ball-sized meatballs)
Power Tip: Go with a ratio of 80% beef and 20% fat. (Fat equals flavour, to lean and the mince will be too dry) This way, you end up with juicer meatballs.
- 1 small brown onion (finely diced)
- 2 tsp minced garlic (add an additional tsp if you love your garlic)
- 4 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 5 tbsp milk
- 1/2 tsp mixed Italian herbs
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Creamy mushroom sauce:
- 60g unsalted butter
- 3 tbsp plain (all-purpose flour)
- 500g gnocchi
- 200g white mushrooms (thinly sliced)
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp fresh basil leaves (chopped)
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- A pinch of chilli flakes (optional – gives the sauce a slight kick)
- 1 cup beef stock
- 3/4 cup vegetable stock
- 3/4 cup double heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (grated)
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (grated)
- 2 cups fresh spinach leaves (no need to chop them as they shrink)
- Salt & black pepper (to taste)
Serve with (optional):
Finely chopped fresh parsley
Creamy mashed potato
Green vegetables – such as broccoli, beans, asparagus
A fresh loaf of Turkish or sourdough bread – not negotiable 🙂 Yum!
How to prepare the meatballs?
Preparation when making my meatballs and gnocchi recipe is really easy with minimal fuss.
But first, we must begin the preparation of our meatballs.
Add your minced beef, finely diced onion, minced garlic, and breadcrumbs to a bowl.
Then add 1 egg, milk, salt & pepper and finely the mixed Italian herbs.
It’s going to get a little messy now, as all the ingredients must be well combined within the beef.
Pop on disposable kitchen gloves if you don’t want to get the mixture all over your hands.
You’ll need to combine the ingredients as quickly as possible because the heat from your hands will transfer to the meat, and you may find the beef doesn’t won’t stick together.
Next, you’ll need to roll each meatball roughly the same size as a golf ball until the mixture is gone.
Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a large frying pan over med-high heat. We will be browning our meatballs before adding them to the oven.
Power Tip: I used an enamelled cast iron braising pan to make this entire recipe. A braising pan is inexpensive and an excellent choice because of its even heat retention and distribution.
You can grab a similar braising pan to the one I use on Amazon for a great price.
Place half of the meatballs into the pan and fry them until brown on all sides, then place the meatballs onto an oven tray lined with baking paper.
Add a further tbsp of olive to the pan and repeat the process until all meatballs have been browned.
Place the meatballs into a preheated oven at 150°C (300°F) for 5-6 minutes to finish off the cooking process. Once cooked, set them aside.
How to create delicious mushroom sauce? Step 1
The meatballs are cooked, and we are up to the best part of my meatballs and gnocchi recipe.
My amazing creamy mushroom sauce.
To begin making the sauce, we want to prepare all of the ingredients in the same pan we fried the meatballs in.
Doing this will add additional flavour to our sauce. If you find any black crust in the pan, simply wipe it out with a paper towel.
You don’t want to eat that.
To begin, add 3 tbsp of unsalted butter and melt it over medium heat. Then add 3 tbsp of all-purpose (plain) flour.
Whisk the butter and flour together, forming a roux (thick paste).
Slowly begin introducing 1 cup of beef stock to the pan while whisking until well combined and no lumps remain.
Then stir in 3/4 cup of vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
How to create delicious mushroom sauce? Step 2
Add 3/4 cup of double heavy whipping cream to the pan, thyme, chopped basil, oregano, and a pinch of chilli flakes.
Stir together to combine.
Next, we need to introduce our sliced mushrooms with 500g gnocchi and 2 cups of whole spinach leaves.
And the final addition to our creamy mushroom sauce is 3/4 cup mozzarella and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese. Stir until the cheese has completely melted.
Note: you can reduce the amount of cheese to 1/2 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup of parmesan if you find it’s too much. The cheese helps thicken the sauce and adds to its flavour.
Taste the sauce and add salt and black pepper to taste.
The final step is adding the meatballs to the sauce and any liquid left behind on the tray.
Stir the meatballs until they are fully coated in the sauce (cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally), then serve immediately with your favourite sides.
I would love your thoughts on whether you tried my meatballs and gnocchi with creamy mushroom sauce recipe.
Please drop a comment below! I reply to all comments.
Try some of our other favourite tummy warmers at JustSoYum!
It doesn’t just stop at meatballs and gnocchi. We have some other cracking recipes at JustSoYum that I’d love you to try.
The following recipes are designed to warm the tummy on those cold winter nights. Check them out for your next winter cook!
- Weber Q chicken and mushroom casserole
- Slow-cooked Lamb Shank Stew With Vegetables
- Yummy Slow Cooker Beef Casserole
- Leftover Roast Lamb Stroganoff
- Nanna’s Slow Cooker Lamb Shank and Vegetable Soup
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Meatballs and Gnocchi in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce
Equipment
- Cast Iron Braising Pan optional
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 750 g minced beef 80% beef / 20% fat ratio
- 1 brown onion finely diced
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 4 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 5 tbsp milk
- ½ tsp mixed Italian herbs
- 2 tbsp olive oil for frying the meatballs
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Creamy Mushroom Sauce
- 60 g unsalted butter
- 3 tbsp plain (all-purpose) flour
- 500g g gnocchi
- 200 g white mushrooms thinly sliced
- 2 tsp thyme leaves fresh
- 1 tbsp basil fresh
- 2 tsp oregano fresh or dried
- 1 cup beef stock
- ¾ cup vegetable stock
- ¾ cup double heavy whipping cream
- ¾ cup mozzarella cheese grated
- ½ cup parmesan cheese grated
- pinch chili flakes (optional)
- salt & pepper (to taste)
Instructions
Meatballs:
- To a bowl, add minced beef, 1 finely diced small brown onion, 1 tsp of minced garlic, and 4 tbsp breadcrumbs. Next, add 1 egg, 5 tbsp of milk, ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp of black pepper, and ¼ tsp of mixed Italian herbs. Using your hands, mix the ingredients until well combined.
- Next, begin rolling the mixture into roughly the same size as a golf ball, give each meatball a good squeeze and roll it together. Then place each meatball onto a tray until all the mixture is gone.
- Add 1 tbsp of olive oil to a large frying pan. Then add half the meatballs to the pan and fry, occasionally turning, until browned all over. Repeat the same process with the second batch of meatballs, adding 1 tbsp of oil back into the pan. Once all meatballs have been fried off, transfer them to a baking tray.
- Place the meatballs into a Preheated oven at 150°C (300°F) for 5-6 minutes to finish off the cooking process. Then set aside.
Creamy Mushroom Sauce:
- Add 3 tbsp of unsalted butter to the same pan in which you cooked the meatballs and melt over medium heat. Then add 3 tbsp of flour. Whisk the butter and flour together, forming a roux (thick paste)
- Slowly introduce 1 cup of beef stock to the pan while whisking until well combined, and no lumps remain. Then stir in ¾ cup of vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
- Then to the pan, add ¾ cup of double heavy whipping cream, thyme, basil, oregano and a pinch of chilli flakes. Stir together to combine.
- Add 200g of thinly sliced mushroom, 500g of gnocchi and 3 cups of whole spinach leaves. Then ¾ cup mozzarella cheese and ½ cup parmesan cheese. Stirring until cheese has melted. Taste the sauce and add salt and black pepper to taste
- Place the meatballs back into the pan and any liquid left from the tray for added flavour. Stir together until the meatballs are fully coated in the sauce (4-5 minutes), then serve.
