Dinner doesn’t get much quicker than 20-minute gnocchi with chilli oil

Stephen Colbert once tweeted: “Every thirty minute recipe is a lie.”

My immediate reaction was to chastise the famously Catholic late-night talk show host for breaking the ninth commandment, but then I did a little self-reflection and I got where he was coming from.

Too often, we food writers say that a dish can be pulled together in a flash, but then we hear from home cooks who say it took them much longer.

Many factors can influence how long it takes to prepare a recipe, including cooking experience, available tools and appliance variations, but this recipe from Great British Bake Off finalist Ruby Tandoh’s soon-to-be-published cookbook, Cook As You Are, is the real deal.

All you need are two big-flavoured, common ingredients, a little fat and a hot frying pan, and in about 10 minutes, you will have a salty, spicy sauce to go with your favourite pasta.

To make the dish, you first put the gnocchi on to boil. Then you spoon capers and chilli crisp into melted butter in a frying pan and sizzle them together for a couple of minutes. When your sauce is good and hot, you add the cooked pasta to the pan, with a bit of reserved pasta water if needed, and stir and toss until it is well-coated and slick with the oil.

You scoop that into a bowl, top it with grated parmesan, and you’re off to the races.

I had to pick up gnocchi at the supermarket, but I had everything else I needed to make this dish, including the brand of chilli crisp that Tandoh recommends, Lao Gan Ma.

If you don’t keep chilli crisp at home, consider doing so. It and other flavourful condiments are a key to quick weeknight cooking because they are an effortless way to boost umami and, in this case, add texture, too.

How much do I use it? When our staff picked our favourite condiments in 2020, chilli crisp was my clear choice because you can toss it with noodles or vegetables, mix it into eggs and stir-fries, and spoon it over soups.

And that cookbook by Tandoh? I was tempted by other recipes in the chapters on low-effort cooking, so I may revisit it, but I couldn’t resist sharing this recipe now because it truly is a dinner in minutes.

Gnocchi with chilli crisp sauce, capers and parmesan

Serves: 4

Time: 20 minutes

This five-ingredient recipe, from the British food writer Ruby Tandoh, comes together in about 20 minutes. Both the parmesan cheese and the capers are salty, so taste before adding more salt. Tandoh recommends the Lao Gan Ma brand of chilli crisp, as well as vegan butter and vegan parmesan cheese for those avoiding dairy. This makes a fine weeknight dinner or could work as a side pasta as well.

Storage notes: Refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Where to buy: Chili crisp can be found at Asian markets, well-stocked supermarkets and online.

Ingredients:

900g potato gnocchi

3 tbsp unsalted butter (may substitute vegan butter, such as Miyoko brand)

3 tbsp capers in brine, well drained, plus more to taste

2 tbsp chilli crisp

56g grated parmesan cheese (may substitute vegan parmesan cheese)

Method:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the gnocchi and cook according to the package instructions.

Reserve ¼ cup (60ml) of the cooking water and drain the gnocchi.

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Once it’s sizzling, add the capers and chilli crisp, making sure to get spoonfuls of the crispy chilli flakes – not just the oil on top – and cook, stirring constantly, for about 30 seconds. Add the gnocchi to the pan, along with a couple of tbsp of the reserved cooking water, then stir or shake the pan until the gnocchi are well coated and everything is hot, about 1 minute, adding more water as needed if the pan is dry.

Remove from the heat and serve right away, with the parmesan on the side.

Nutritional information per serving | calories: 528l total fat: 18g; saturated fat: 8g; cholesterol: 35mg; sodium: 1,269mg; carbohydrates: 79g; dietary fibre: 8g; sugar: 0g; protein: 16g.

This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.

© The Washington Post