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
This is fantabulous I have made it many times
What does “ready to use” gnocchi mean???
It means gnocchi that is ready whether you made it from scratch. It is a challenge to make from scratch, if you ever watch Top Chef – a contestant making gnocchi from scratch gets them top points. For me it is too much time, so I buy gnocchi already made. It is a speciality pasta and to May amazement I have found it in the dry pasta aisle at Walmart in their small speciality section of the aisle. It is in an air tight plastic package as opposed to all the boxes of dry pasta. Gnocchi are soft little pillows of loveliness, the best thing I have ever put in a soup! Good luck. Katherine
Can’t wait to try this recipe! So now I need a recipe for the breadsticks ????
This is amazing! I found the potato gnocchi at the Dollar Tree. I also make warm skillet bread & spinach and artichoke dip when i mak the soup. Always turns out better than Olive Garden!!! This is a keeper! And so easy!!
YEs! Amazingly, the dry packaged “gnocchi” they sell at the Doller Tree is THE BEST and closest to REAL handmade Gnocchi…Very tender, unlike frozen gnocchi that costs so much more! Better than the “other dry brands too”, which, if “not careful, can become “mucky”.
The brand at the Dollar tree is “actually imported from ITALY! DELICIOUS! Enjoy it many other ways too…With a homemade tomatoe sauce that uses “both “pork boneless county ribs and beef…My parents are from Italy, and a “pork sauce” goes the best with either Polenta or Gnocchis…The flavor after hours of simmering(till pork is tender) is AMAZING!
If I don’t have thyme or parsley, will the soup still be good without it?
It will be ok, it won’t taste quite the same.
I make this regularly and don’t use parsley and we don’t miss it!
Thank you so much!!!!
I’ve made this in the past! So Good! Tonight I’m trying it with almond milk, due to a new allergy to dairy 🙁 I’ll let you know how it goes!
Does the gnocchi need to be cooked prior to being added to the soup? Or can I boil it in ?
No, the gnocchi does not have to be cooked before adding, but you will need to lengthen the time to serve the soup after you add the gnocchi to make sure it is fully cooked.
Where in the store what section would I find the gnocchi?
I actually found it at the Dollar Tree. I am trying it tonight, we’ll see how it is.
You can find it in most pasta isles of the grocery store, you can also sometimes find it in the fresh dairy section where pasta is sold.
I had a hard time finding it but finally found it in the freezer where the frozen premade meatballs and other italian food is kept
I had a hard time finding it but finally found it in the freezer where the frozen premade meatballs and other italian food is kept
Hi , can you please tell me what half and half is and is it plain flour you use?
many thanks
Half-and-Half is found in cartons in the milk section of the grocery store. It has more fat than milk, but less than heavy cream. It is, needless to say, a dairy product, and is most often (in America) used in one’s coffee.
When I tried the recipe, I used plain Gold Medal unbleached flour and it came out great.
I have frozen homemade gnocchi. Should I cook it first and then add to the rest or throw it in frozen? Thank you!!
I have been coming back to this recipe for years now and anytime I make it people rave about it! My husband begs me to make this! Thank for sharing such a great recipe that has become a staple in our house!
Made this yesterday for dinner. Does thyme make it taste dirty???? It seemed to smell like of dirt. I thought maybe I should of washed the gnocchi but after reading the comments now I wondering Thyme instead…. My husband liked it but I was turned off. It looks great until I smelled it. If it’s Thyme or Parsley well I eat it….
Thanks for letting me ask my question.
Spinach can make it taste dirty
I wish I had the spinach but the stores are closed because of hurricane Irma. ????…so I actually made it a totally different way. I feel like the chicken broth would taste better fresh so I cooked the onion, celery, garlic and carrot in the pan with olive oil and a chicken thigh and browned it. Then poured in the water and let that simmer for about 20 mins. Seasoned that with thyme, salt, pepper and basil. In a separate pot, I made a rou with chic pea flour and butter and pored in milk Slowly because I had no half and half. Seasoned with salt and pepper and added parmigian cheese and made a creamy like sauce. I removed the chicken and let it sit then added the cream sauce to the pot of chicken broth. I then added the gnocchi and let that simmer a few minutes and then added the chicken. Was pretty good for my first time making it. CANt wait tonhave the spinach next time and half and half.
Oh and be generous with the salt!
Hi! Well, I made this and while it was good, I know what I did wrong. So I’ll have to make it again.
I will definitely get a rotisserie chicken next time. I used fresh, and browned it first, but it needed more flavor. I will also not put the gnocchi on to boil to soon. It had to sit until I was ready, and that’s a no no. And, I’ll let the soup liquid reduce more for a better concentrated flavor.
Other than that, it was yummy with lots of garlic bread to sop up the soup. 🙂 Until next time! 😀
I made this and it’s excellent. Used dried onion and onion powder. Plus extra thyme. Also added pepper and a half cup more of chicken. Served with grated Parmesan on top and it was great.
how much of the dried onion & onion powder did you use?
Great recipe! I used one can of chicken broth and added mushrooms as well as using homemade gnocchi. Definitely keeping this one!
Just got done making this. I knew I should have left the thyme out but I didn’t and it all but ruined it. If you don’t like thyme, do not add it. It overtook the flavor of anything else. I feel as though the recipe would have been spot on if it wasn’t for the thyme.
I am so sorry the 1 teaspoon of thyme ruined it for you.
@Stephanie, your response made me LOL.
She probably added a tablespoon of thyme.. can’t see how 1 tsp would ruin it. Lol
When I made mine I used thyme also & I didn’t like it. I was wondering if your tasted like dirt & smelled like dirt.
Thanks
This is always my go to recipe, I’ve left tout spinach before and it didn’t taste well (I don’t eat the spinach anyhow) I don’t like thyme or nutmeg but I sprinkle lightly.. all is amazing, Thank you so much
Awesome…Thank you so much and to add the print part was the frosting on the cake..u rock…
I didn’t use nutmeg I forgot it at the store. It didn’t taste bad just tasted off,still very good also I used the potato gnocchi from the store did I use the right kind thank you
The potato gnocchi you used is fine. The nutmeg may have helped, I hope the soup was ok.