I had been hearing great stuff from folks in the keto/paleo crowd about Trader Joe’s Cauliflower Gnocchi. Apparently this is supposed to be a very tasty knock-off of traditional gnocchi made from potatoes that is just as filling without the carbs.
I spotted this bag of gnocchi in the frozen food section of Trader Joe’s and decided to give it a try.
Cooking Instructions
Trader Joe’s provides four sets of cooking instructions on the packaging:
- Pan Fry (preferred method)
- Air Fryer
- Boil
- Microwave
I decided to go with the preferred method and pan fried the gnocchi. To pan fry the gnocchi you need to:
- Place 1 tablespoon of oil in a shallow pan.
- Heat over Medium High Heat.
- Add the frozen gnocchi to the pan, cover and shake every few minutes.
- The gnocchi are done after 7-8 minutes when they have slightly browned and have heated all the way through.
- Remove the gnocchi from the pan, season and serve.
In hindsight it probably would have been easier to just throw these things in the microwave and zap them for 4-5 minutes.
Taste
The packaging suggested serving the gnocchi simple dressed with olive oil and grated cheese so I gave that a try.
It turns out that the gnocchi tasted exactly like steamed cauliflower that had been tossed with olive oil and grated cheese.
Sigh….
Don’t get me wrong, I like cauliflower. I probably like cauliflower more than most people. But at this point I am getting a little tired of cauliflower.
The cauliflower gnocchi has a shape and texture that is similar to potato based gnocchi but none of the flavors I was hoping for.
I suspect these would have been much better tossed with a pesto or served with a meat ragu.
Calories
A single serving of the gnocchi is one cup and you get about 2.5 servings per bag. A single serving has the following nutritional information:
- Calories: 140
- Fat: 3g (4% DV)
- Cholesterol: 0mg (0% DV)
- Sodium: 460mg (20% DV)
- Carbohydrates: 22g (8% DV)
- Protein: 2g
The gnocchi, which are a product of Italy, are labelled as Vegan. The gnocchi have the following ingredients:
- Cauliflower
- Cassava Flour
- Potato Starch
- Olive Oil
- Salt
I Will Not Buy This Again
This bag of frozen gnocchi cost me $2.99 and while he price is not unreasonable they are not something that I will buy again. There was nothing bad or awful about he product, it was just mind numbing in its blandness and unoriginality.
The fact that this product is dressed up as “gnocchi” gave me hopes for something tasty and original. Instead I was left with yet another bowl of steamed cauliflower that had to be choked down bite by boring bite.
I’m not happy about the ridiculous sodium levels in Trader Joe’s frozen foods. This is just one example.
I cooked the gnocchi in the microwave and it smelled like cauliflower and the gummy texture was not what I expected. I couldn’t figure out why it had so many positive reviews.
That being said I cooked the other half of the gnocchi on the stove in.a frying pan. A little olive oil and I browned them until a little crispy. Yummy! The next time I used a little butter instead of oil and they were even better!
To be honest I missed the part about adding water to the gnocchi. I just browned them in the skillet, added a little salt and they were delicious! They had a mild cauliflower taste with a great texture because I browned them.till a little crispy. Sort of like a cauliflower tater tot! Granted they are not typical gnocchi but I will be making them again. I just bought a bag of Sweet Potato Gnocchi from TJs and can’t wait to give them a try!