Vegan gnocchi soup is loaded with vegetables and delicate potato gnocchi dumplings in a savory broth. This vegan gnocchi soup recipe is ready in under 25 minutes! Yum!
Recently, my husband and I dined at our favorite Italian restaurant in town. They serve a fabulous vegan Minestrone and a salad I love, so we eat there often. On this particular visit, the gentleman beside me ordered a gnocchi soup that looked divine. It was thick and creamy, with little gnocchi floating in the broth. So, of course, I searched the menu to check the ingredients. Although the soup wasn’t vegan, I made my own version of vegan gnocchi soup. I added some of my favorite veggies and a savory plant-based broth for my vegan gnocchi soup recipe.
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Vegan gnocchi soup is a thick and savory soup with a vegetable base flavored with savory ingredients, fresh vegetables, and potato gnocchi.
Even though this soup appears sinful, it is healthy and only contains plant food, a bit of flour, and nutritional yeast.
What is Gnocchi?
Despite popular belief, gnocchi is not pasta. Instead, gnocchi is made of potatoes and formed into dumplings. Although generally served as an entree with various sauces, gnocchi works wonderfully in soups and stews. In addition, most gnocchi is oil-free and vegan.
Gnocchi is available in the pasta section on the shelf, vacuum-sealed, refrigerated, or frozen in most grocery stores.
Even though I plan to make homemade gnocchi soon, I opted for the vacuum-sealed variety today.
Ingredients in Gnocchi
For this vegan gnocchi soup recipe, I chose De Cecco Potato Gnocchi.
- Mashed Potatoes 80% [Water, Dried Potato Flakes 24% (Potatoes 99%, Spices)]
- Potato Starch 15%
- Wheat Flour
- Rice Flour
- Spices
- Salt
- pH Control Agent: Lactic Acid, Preservative: Potassium Sorbate
But other vegan and oil-free varieties are available for sale as well:
Beware of brands that contain diglycerides and other hidden fat sources for an oil-free version. As a rule, the fewer ingredients in any product, the better.
Varieties of Gnocchi
- Classic potato gnocchi (some varieties contain egg, oil, and cheese, so check the label)
- Sweet potato gnocchi
- Gluten-free gnocchi
- Cauliflower Gnocchi
Soup Ingredients
Since this soup takes mere minutes, it begins with a trinity of vegetables to start the base. But, honestly, it takes longer to chop the vegetables than to cook the entire soup pot.
- Garlic: I love fresh garlic in almost everything. It has long been known for its heart benefits; spicy food is also good at detoxifying the body. And it is not only antiviral, antibacterial, and antibiotic, but it contains a chemical called allicin, which promotes the production of white blood cells and helps fight against toxins.
- White Onion: Did you know onions contain antioxidants and compounds that fight inflammation, decrease triglycerides and reduce cholesterol levels — all of which may lower heart disease risk.
- Shallot: Shallots add another level of flavor when combined with white onion, garlic, and herbs.
- Celery: Celery has a character leafy and earthy flavor. The leaves have a typical green and slightly bland taste, while the stalk is juicy and salty.
- Mushrooms: I call mushrooms vegan meat. They are so healthy when cooked, so I try to add them o almost every recipe I make.
- Carrots: Carrots add beautiful orange color to the soup as well as sweetness.
- Rosemary: I have a giant rosemary bush in my yard that I love, so I get fresh rosemary all year round.
- Thyme: I prefer fresh thyme over dried thyme.
- Poultry Seasoning: I used Trader Joe’s Chicken-Less Seasoning, but all poultry seasoning is vegan, despite including “poultry” in the name. Dried sage and thyme comprise the bulk of the flavor with their highly aromatic aroma and woodsy overtones. Most often, poultry seasoning includes nutmeg, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, and black pepper.
- White Wine: As wine cooks, its flavor becomes concentrated, lending savoriness or sweetness to a dish. Generally, dry red and white wines are recommended for savory dishes.
- Red Pepper Flakes (optional): A few red pepper flakes add additional flavor and a little spice.
- Vegetable Broth: I use organic vegetable broth I purchase in bulk from Costco.
- Gnocchi: I used shelf-stable gnocchi located in the pasta section of my grocery store.
- Kale: I love kale in soups because it is sturdy, holds up well to heat, and maintains some structure.
- Plant-Milk Plus Flour of Choice: The flour and plant milk combined create a thickening agent or a roux without using oil and butter. Fo ar gluten-free option, choose gluten-free flour like chickpea flour or oat flour.
- Nutritional Yeast: Nutritional yeast gives it a thick and cheesy taste. Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. It also contains all nine essential amino acids, making it a complete protein like those found in animal products, but it’s vegan.
- Salt and pepper: I suggest adding salt and pepper to taste. Both ingredients enhance the flavors of the soup.
Soup Ingredient Substitutions
- One clove of fresh garlic equals ¼ teaspoon of granulated garlic powder. The exact conversion applies to dehydrated or freeze-dried garlic or even minced refrigerated garlic. So if you don’t have garlic or garlic powder but garlic salt, you can reach for that.
- Yellow onions are often substituted for white onions in cooking.
- Onions, leeks, garlic, scallions, garlic scapes, and chives have a similar flavor to shallots and work as replacements in different recipes.
- Fennel and jicama are excellent substitutes for celery in recipes. However, fennel tastes like raw licorice. When cooked, fennel becomes sweeter, but it still has a different flavor than celery.
- Substitute dried rosemary for fresh rosemary in many recipes, especially cooked recipes. For example, use 1 teaspoon of dried rosemary for 1 tablespoon fresh, so a 1:3 ratio of dried to fresh rosemary.
- Dried herbs can be more potent than fresh herbs. This means you need fewer dried herbs than fresh ones when substituting one for the other. A good rule of thumb is 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon of dried herbs.
- Apple cider vinegar or apple juice replaces white wine in cooking. The alcohol in the wine cooks off, but if you don’t have wine or don’t drink wine, these substitutions work well.
- Choose any greens you prefer to substitute for kale.
- Use soy sauce, tamari or miso paste if you don’t have nutritional yeast.
Making the Soup
First, cook the garlic, onions, and celery, and then add the mushrooms and carrots.
Then, add the herbs and spices, allowing them to flavor the vegetables.
Next, add the vegetable broth and plant milk mixture.
Bring to a boil and add the gnocchi, followed by the kale. Both the gnocchi and the kale take minutes to cook.
Because gnocchi cooks so quickly (2 minutes), working quickly is essential. I suggest serving this soup with Italian chopped salad and thick crusty bread!
Recipe FAQs
No! Some gnocchi brands are made with egg and cheese. Also, if you eat an oil-free plant-based plan, look for hidden fat in ingredients such as partially hydrogenated coconut or palm kernel, hydrogenated soybean, etc.
This soup will keep for 3-4 days in your fridge. But … the gnocchi will get very soft. So if you know that you’ll have leftovers or are meal-prepping this soup, it’s best to cook the gnocchi separately and add it to your bowl.
Freeze vegan gnocchi soup for up to 3 months. Then, thaw the soup thoroughly before reheating. If the texture is thicker than desired, you may have to add additional water, broth, or plant milk.
Tips
- If using frozen gnocchi, the cooking time is the same (2-3 minutes) as the prepackaged gnocchi, but cover the pot while the gnocchi cooks and do not reduce the heat.
- Nutritional yeast provides a “cheesy flavor.” Soy sauce, liquid aminos, tamari, or miso paste is an excellent substitute for nutritional yeast.
- When freezing soup, always leave at least an inch between the top of the soup and the container’s lid. This prevents freezer burn.
- To expedite chopping vegetables, I suggest using a vegetable chopper. It saves a ton of time, and the vegetables are chopped the same size.
Try this vegan gnocchi soup; it’s so savory and delicious that it will be on your weekly rotation in the fall and winter!
The Best Vegan Soups
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Gnocchi Soup
Thick and creamy, this vegan gnocchi soup recipe is oil-free, loaded with vegetables and delicate potato gnocchi dumplings in a savory broth. Not only is this soup decadent, but it also takes under 25 minutes from start to finish. Stove-top, crockpot and Instant Pot directions provided.
Instructions
Stovetop Directions
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Saute on medium-high heat garlic, onions, shallots, and celery until onions are translucent.
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Add carrots, rosemary, thyme, poultry seasoning, and red pepper flakes (if using)
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Add the mushrooms and cook until mushrooms start to brown
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When the vegetables start sticking to the bottom of the pan, add the wine. Stir.
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Add the vegetable broth, plant milk blended with flour, and nutritional yeast and bring it to a boil.
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Add gnocchi, stir, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 2-3 minutes, uncovered (unless using frozen gnocchi; then cover for the same amount of time.
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Add the chopped kale, stir, and it will wilt immediately,
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Remove from heat.
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Add salt and pepper to taste.
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Add more red pepper flakes if desired.
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Serve with crusty bread and a large green salad.
Crockpot Directions
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Add the first 12 ingredients into the base of the crockpot (garlic-vegetable broth)
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Cook covered for 4-5 hours on high.
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Blend plant milk with flour and nutritional yeast and add to crockpot
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Reduce to low heat setting on the crockpot.
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Add the gnocchi, stir, cover, and cook for 4 or 5 more minutes.
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Turn off heat and add kale, and stir. Kale will wilt immediately.
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Serve
Instant Pot Directions
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Set Instant Pot on Saute setting
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Add the garlic, wine, carrot, shallot, onion, celery, and mushrooms.
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Stir in 4 cups of veggie broth, stirring frequently.
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Saute for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
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Add rosemary, poultry seasoning, red pepper flakes (if using), and thyme.
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Flavor mixture with salt and pepper to taste.
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Set Instant Pot to soup setting and set a timer for 15 minutes.
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Allow Instant pot to release for about 5 minutes naturally and then quick release.
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Return to Saute mode and add the gnocchi, plant milk blended with the flour, and nutritional yeast.
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Now add kale and stir the soup for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Notes
- If you can’t find Trader Joe’s Chicken-less Seasoning, it is available on Amazon. Or replace it with poultry seasoning (also vegan).
- When freezing soup, always leave at least an inch between the top of the soup and the container’s lid. This prevents freezer burn.
- To expedite chopping vegetables, I suggest using a vegetable chopper. It saves a ton of time, and the vegetables are chopped the same size.
- I suggest using soup cubes to freeze soup. They are divided into portions and the silicone structure makes them perfect for freezing soups and stews.
Nutrition
Serving: 6gCalories: 186kcalCarbohydrates: 37gProtein: 7gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0.4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.3gSodium: 984mgPotassium: 398mgFiber: 5gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 6160IUVitamin C: 27mgCalcium: 159mgIron: 4mg
Hi! My name is Kathy, I am a retired high school English teacher & vegan enthusiast and blogger. My entire blog is fully plant-based vegan. I truly believe what we eat & how we live determines our health & the preservation of our planet! 🙂