Better Than Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup

As a recipe developer, one of my favorite things to do is recreate popular restaurant dishes to make them easy to make at home. I’ve spend many years working in restaurants, so I know a few secrets, as well as how to make these dishes much better at home. I’ve spent years making this gnocchi soup and many other, it’s still one of the family favorite and it will become a new family favorite for you.

• Chicken – you can use boneless skinless chicken breasts or you can use boneless skinless chicken thigh meat. Thigh meat is more flavorful and juicy but does have a slightly higher fat content. Breast meat is leaner, but not as juicy or flavorful.
  • To save some time, you can use leftover chicken or a rotisserie chicken shortcut. Just watch additional flavors.
• Veggies – you will need the classic base vegetables for the soup: carrots, onion, and celery. This is called either “mirepoix” or “softito,” or “soffritto.” It a flavor base for many soups.
• Chicken Broth – homemade chicken stock is best for deeper, richer flavor, but if you need to, you can substitute homemade vegetable broth if needed. 
  • When using store-bought broths and stock, try to get “low sodium” or “no salt added” kind. Try to also get bone broth if available, it will have a richer flavor.
• Gnocchi – Homemade potato gnocchi is a great option for soups and you can always makes a large batch so you can use some in this soup, eat some sauteed in butter and Parmesan, and freeze some for easy weekly dinners. Although, you can always save a lot of time by getting store-bought gnocchi. If buying gnocchi, get the ones in the refrigerated section because it will be more fresh and way less preservatives. You can also use frozen gnocchi if you have any. No need to thaw frozen gnocchi, simple add it to the soup and cook until cooked through.
  • Use gluten free gnocchi if needed.
• Herbs – use an aromatic combination of fresh thyme.
  • If you don’t have access to fresh thyme, it’s completely okay to use dried. Just remember that dried herbs do tend to me more potent, so use half the amount listed in the recipe.
• Spinach – while it’s best to use fresh spinach, you can use frozen spinach if needed. Just make sure to thaw and drain off excess liquids first.
• Milk – use whole milk for rich and creamy soup.
  • If you need to keep it lactose free, use lactose free milk. If you need to keel the soup dairy free, you can use almond milk or soy milk but note that it does taste quite different from milk.
• Heavy whipping cream – for the best rich and creamy texture, do use heavy whipping cream and nothing less.
  • (If you need to keep it lactose free or dairy free, use lactose free half and half and some lactose free sour cream. There are some plant-based whipping cream options if needed, check your grocery stores.)

See recipe card for complete information on ingredients and quantities.

The Secret Ingredient!

• I’ve incorporated a secret ingredient – a Parmesan cheese rind – a staple of traditional Italian cooking that adds a unique depth of flavor and takes this copycat soup to a whole new level of deliciousness.
• Parmesan rind is very sturdy and stands up to cooking for a long time. It will be intact but incorporate a lot of flavor into the soup without changing the concistency.
• To get the rind, simply cut it off the block of parmesan cheese (it can also be Parmigiano-Reggiano rind). The rind is the darker, thicker part of the outer rim of the block. You will need a rind that’s about 2-3 inches in length and it’s about 1/4 inch thick.
• I also use the parmesan rind trick it in quite a few of my soup recipes such as Pasta E Fagioli Soup and Minestrone. It’s a great way to add a ton of flavor with something that is generally thrown out, but it’s definitely optional if you don’t have one on hand.

Secret Ingredient PRO TIP: Did you know that some stores with a dairy section will have parmesan rinds you can buy? Just ask them and they will show you or may have some in the back.

Serving & Pairing Suggestions

Try to serve this comforting, filling soup along with some crusty bread. You’ll be glad you have the bread to soak up every last drop of the soup from your bowl!

Bread – you can get a crusty baguette or make homemade garlic parmesan herb biscuits and dinner potato rolls.

Salad – soup and salad is a classic combination and you can’t go with Caesar salad as a side. Of make a simple side salad with Italian dressing.

Storing and Shelf Life

• Store the leftover chicken and gnocchi soup right in the Dutch oven you cooked it in or in an airtight container, in the refrigerator. Make sure to COOL the soup to room temperature first and cover the pot with the lid if using the same pot.
• Stored properly, this soup should be good for about 3-4 days.
• You can reheat the individual portions in the microwave. If you need to reheat a lot at the same time, do it on stovetop in the Dutch oven over medium heat until warmed through.

Will gnocchi be okay stored in soup?

• Yes, store-bought gnocchi will be able to hold its shape while being store with soup for a couple of days. It will be softer though, but still be completely good to eat.
• Note that store-bought gnocchi will hold its integrity a little better than homemade. Homemade gnocchi are also fine to store in leftover soup but will be a little softer.

Freezing Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup

You can freeze this soup but only partially made. Freeze it without gnocchi, without cream, milk, or spinach. So essentially, you will be making the soup half way in order to freeze it.

• Don’t freeze leftovers since the cream and gnocchi will already be added.
• Freeze soup in an air-tight freezer container and don’t fill the container all the way so there is room for soup to expand as it freezes. You can also freeze it in zip-lock freezer bags. 
• To finish the soup, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then heat it though in a pot over medium heat and lower the heat. Add milk, cream, gnocchi, Parmesan cheese, and spinach, and cook until gnocchi is cooked.

All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.