The first time I tasted Olive Garden’s Chicken Gnocchi Soup, it was during a winter lunch with friends. As the steaming bowl arrived at our table, I was instantly captivated by the aroma of herbs and cream. That first spoonful of pillowy gnocchi and tender chicken swimming in rich, velvety broth was pure comfort in a bowl. I knew immediately I had to recreate this magic at home. You can enjoy the same taste that you can get from the Olive Garden with this easy copycat recipe.
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Table of Contents
Why This Homemade Version Beats the Original
This copycat Olive Garden soup elevates the restaurant experience in several key ways:
- Gnocchi Perfection – Cook gnocchi to your ideal tenderness rather than the sometimes overcooked restaurant version
- Superior Chicken Quality – Use freshly roasted chicken instead of pre-processed meat for juicier, more flavorful results
- Customizable Consistency – Control the thickness of your soup for your perfect creamy texture
- Vegetable Freshness – Enjoy vibrant, just-cut vegetables with perfect al dente texture
- Herb Intensity – Adjust seasonings to amp up flavors beyond the sometimes subtle restaurant version
Everyone Loves Chicken and Gnocchi soup
Why does everyone love this recipe? This is one of those chicken soup recipes everyone loves because it is made with tender gnocchi, juicy chicken, fresh carrots and celery, and a perfectly seasoned chicken broth. Make salad and breadsticks to so with this soup.
The Secret to Perfect Chicken Gnocchi Soup
The magic of this recipe lies in creating a silky, flavorful base and ensuring each ingredient maintains its distinct texture while melding harmoniously with the others.
Ingredients
- Butter – Creates a rich foundation and helps form the roux that thickens the soup
- Olive oil – Adds authentic Italian flavor while preventing the butter from burning during sautéing
- White onion – Provides a sweet, aromatic base that’s milder than yellow onions
- Celery – Contributes essential savory notes and subtle texture to the soup
- Fresh garlic – Delivers aromatic depth that’s essential for authentic Italian flavor
- All-purpose flour – Works with butter to create the roux that gives the soup its signature thickness
- Half and half – Creates the creamy, luxurious texture that makes this soup so comforting
- Low-sodium chicken broth – Forms the flavorful foundation while allowing you to control salt levels
- Dried thyme – Adds classic herbal notes that complement chicken perfectly
- Dried parsley flakes – Provide color and fresh flavor balance to the rich base
- Ground nutmeg – Enhances the creamy elements with subtle warmth and complexity
- Shredded carrots – Adds natural sweetness, color, and nutritional value
- Cooked chicken breast – Delivers tender protein chunks throughout the soup
- Potato gnocchi – Creates the signature pillowy texture that makes this soup unique
- Spinach – Contributes fresh color, nutrition, and a slight texture contrast
Should you use store-bought or homemade gnocchi?
Store-bought gnocchi is perfect for this recipe. You can take the extra step in preparing homemade gnocchi, but premade potato gnocchi works well. Gnocchi can be found in a couple of places in your supermarket, and you have options to purchase them.
- Many local stores sell shelf-stable potato gnocchi in the pasta aisles. I have purchased this at Walmart and Kroger, and I have been told that some dollar stores carry gnocchi.
- I have seen fluffy fresh gnocchi sold in the fresh sections of higher-end grocery stores, where you would pick up a prepared meal. Fresh gnocchi has a better texture and is more desirable, but not every grocery store offers it.
- I have even found it available in the grocery store’s frozen section.
Either type of gnocchi will work well. Your family will love this. Have a hard time finding gnocchi? Make your homemade potato gnocchi.
Preparation tips
- 🥄 PREP TIP: Fresh garlic makes a massive difference in flavor
- 🔥 COOKING TIP: Don’t boil after adding cream to prevent curdling
- ⏰ TIME TIP: “Prep vegetables while heating broth
How to make Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi
Making this Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi soup recipe is straightforward. You will find that all of the ingredients are very common in your average grocery store. We think it is easiest if you gather all of your ingredients before you start preparing the soup. This way, you will have everything on hand to get started.
First, you will sauté the vegetables in butter over medium-high heat. Then, add some flour and cook that through. You will then add the half-and-half and chicken broth. Please bring it to a low boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
Cooked chicken and gnocchi are added to your seasoned broth and vegetables. Adjust your seasoning, and you will be ready to serve this soup in less than an hour.
Customizing this soup for you
Some people want a larger punch of flavor from their soup, so you can add some additional chicken soup base to dial up the flavor. I would add an extra teaspoon or two of chicken base to this to bring up the flavor. While I don’t find adding a soup base too close to the restaurant version, it can add something additional.
Want to add in a few more vegetables? We recommend adding some chopped zucchini; you could also add carrots or spinach.
Can you use a Crockpot for this recipe?
Yes, you can. I like to saute the vegetables first before I prepare the soup. You don’t need to do that if you like.
Place all of the vegetables, except the kale, chicken, seasonings, and stock, into the crockpot. Cook on low for 4 hours. Shred the chicken, add the remaining ingredients, and cook for another hour.
If the soup is too thin, make a cornstarch slurry of 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with two tablespoons of water. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the soup, turn the crockpot on high, and stir until the soup has thickened.
How to Store and Reheat Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- 📅Refrigerate any leftover soup in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- ❄️Freezer – freeze for up to 3 months in an air-tight container
- 🔥Reheat – this creamy soup is best reheated in a large pot on the stove over low heat. This way, the creamy broth won’t break down.
Can you freeze copycat Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup?
Yes, you can freeze this soup. The soup stays well in the freezer for several months when stored in an airtight container. The consistency of the soup will change a bit; if you can, I recommend freezing the soup without the gnocchi and adding gnocchi when you reheat it. The texture of the gnocchi will change after it is frozen. Thaw the soup in the refrigerator overnight.
What to serve with chicken gnocchi soup
There are so many things you can serve with this soup. You may want to serve the classic Olive Garden Salad; we have found a good old-fashioned Caesar salad that also hits the spot. But when it comes to bread options, you could serve some garlic bread, crusty bread like sourdough bread, or even our copycat Olive Garden bread sticks.
You may want to garnish this soup with cheese. To top the soup, you could use fresh grated Romano or grated Parmesan.
More Olive Garden Copycat Recipes
- Asiago Tortelloni Alfredo with Grilled Chicken
- Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara
- Olive Garden Alfredo Sauce
- Olive Garden Chicken Alfredo
- Olive Garden Chicken Scampi
- Olive Garden Dressing
- Olive Garden Minestrone Soup
- Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli Soup
- Olive Garden Salad Recipe
- Zuppa Toscana
Popular Soup Recipes
Love soup? Check out these soup recipes and try one of my great dessert recipes to complete your meal.
Look at more of my copycat Olive Garden recipes to make your favorites at home.
Homemade Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons Butter
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup finely diced onion
- 1/2 cup finely diced celery
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 quart half-and-half
- 28 ounces chicken broth
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
- 1 cup carrots finely shredded
- 1 cup spinach leaves coarsely chopped
- 1 cup chicken breast cooked, and diced
- 16 ounces package ready-to-use gnocchi
Instructions
- Melt the butter and olive oil in a large pot or a Dutch oven over medium heat.
- Add the chopped onion, celery, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally until the onion becomes translucent.
- Whisk in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk in the half-and-half. Simmer until thickened.
- Whisk in the chicken broth. Simmer until thickened again. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt, thyme, parsley, nutmeg (if using), shredded carrots, spinach, chicken, and gnocchi.
- Simmer until the soup is heated through. Before serving, season with additional salt, if necessary.
Video
Notes
- You can use leftover roitisserie chicken for extra flavor
- You may want to use less thyme than suggested
- Some gnocchi is very large, you can cut these pieces in half
- You may want to add additional salt to the final soup. This soup does not have a lot of salt in it, especially if you use low-sodium chicken broth
Hey…so I kind of made this s the Tuscan soup! Italian suds get instead of chicken, etc….great!! I really deviated from the recipe and went more towards the Tuscany…but OMG!! Love it
I just made this today. Absolutely delicious. No thyme or nutmeg. But i used 1 can of broth. Nice and thick. Thank you will make it again.
Both thumbs up for you Stephanie. We always get this soup from Olive Garden and its my families fav. I made the soup at home simply following your recipe when my husband was not home. When he came home I told him to close his eyes while I was giving him a spoon full of this soup and asked him to guess what it is. He guessed it right and asked me i have gone to Olive Garden without him. LOL I always make this soup at home now and my family and friends love it. I can’t thank you enough for sharing this recipe.
I make this in my crock pot. I use leg quarters that I can get for as little as $0.37/pound. I cook the chicken and most of the vegetables on low for a few hours before adding the half and half, gnocchi and spinach. Comes out great and gets lots of compliments.
hey, how long would this soup keep in the fridge?
made it was very good besides i ended up putting to much gnocchi
OMG this was amazing. After reading the comments I omitted the thyme, and I used on can of evaporated milk along with unsweetened almond milk. This is my new favorite soup — and so easy! Thanks!!!
Made this before ever trying the real deal at an Olive Garden. I have to say I like the copykat version better. I’ve made it several times now(without the optional nutmeg) and I already can’t wait to make it again!
I make this soup, but instead of chicken, I use leftover turkey from Thanksgiving. Tastes delicious.
Thank you for this a million times thank you 🙂 turned out great… I didn’t use the recipe exactly but it was a great start!!!
This is absolutely now my favorite soup.
I used Wondra flour in place of regular flour.
I used 1 can of fat free evap. milk with 2 1/4 sups of 1% instead of half & half. It keeps the calories down and you really can’t tell the difference.
Because I had just purchased fresh mushrooms, I added 1 cup of chopped.
Added an extra cup of shredded carrots and I used frozen chopped spinach and also added extra.
Just came back from a family trip to California. We did the Olive Garden for dinner,and loved the chicken gnocchi soup. Tried your recipe, and love it. Mahalo from Maui.
i love this soup if you can get it thick enough or miss a thickening step put a little chicken broth in a cup and whisk in cornstarch then add to soup…works like a charm and i use cubed potato instead of noodle as well as powdered thyme instead of those yucky ol “fresh ones”.
How many quarts would you get from this?
This looks delicious! I think i will make this on this cold dreary day today! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thanks so much for this! It’s amazing!
I just made this and it’s ok. I still prefer OG. If I ever make it again I’ll defiantly leave out the thyme, it ruined it for me.
Great recipe I loved it. My boyfriend loves gnocchi so I used 1 and a half boxes of gnocchi which my boyfriend loved but I definitely thought there was too much I will definitely would only use only one box next time. Thanks so much.
This is delicious! I omitted the celery because I forgot it but double up on the carrots & spinach & used mini gnocchi so there was more in every bite, yum. Also, I only used one cup of heavy cream & then the rest I used my almond milk & it came out great. I boiled my chicken breast in a little water & shredded it before adding to my soup as well. Thank you, great share!
Where do you find mini gnocchi?
I have found it at giant eagle/market district here in Ohio. In the pasta aisle. It’s called bite sized gnocchi. I used to cut the big ones in half. This is much better!
Just made this soup. AWESOME!K!!!!!!! This will be on my dinner table a lot this winter.. thank you for shareing the recipe.
I’m looking for different soup recipes that I can make large batches of and freeze to get me through the winter. I’d love try this one, it sounds delicious! Do you happen to know if it freezes well?
Freezes great:) just add a little milk and heat it back up on the stove!