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 was a HIT! My boyfriend always gets this at OG, he said “10/10 let’s make it again”. I added about 1/4c of shredded Parmesan Cheese. Other than that the recipe was awesome!
My family loves this recipe!! So easy and delicious!!
Dip a little bake it bread in this soup, and now one of my favorite soups! Warms your winter night.
LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS RECIPE ITS SPOT ON, EXCEPT FOR SOME REASON EVERYTIME MY CARROTS R ALWAYS CRUNCHY, IS IT BECAUSE I DONT USE A CROCKPOT ?
You may want to cut your carrots into smaller pieces to get them to cook more quickly.
Will using fresh fresh thyme and parsley take away from the straight-from-Olive-Garden taste? And, is chicken stick interchangeable for the broth or will I need to add seasoning? I just made homemade stock, but I also have Better Than Bullion. Not sure which would be better.
I don’t think using fresh herbs will adversely impact the flavor, start with less than you think you will need. Chicken stock and broth are interchangeable. If I had homemade stock I would use it over anything I buy in the store. I hope this was helpful for you.
Question…
Are the carrots and spinach supposed to be pre-cooked before adding to soup? Recipe doesn’t clarify.
They are not pre-cooked the carrots and spinach cook in the soup.
I made these adjustments, and the soup was EXCELLENT!:
NO CELERY. I hate celery. Period.
1 box chicken stock instead of broth . . . AND add 1 chicken bouillon cube
Reduce nutmeg to just a small sprinkle
Add a small sprinkle Italian seasoning
Add about 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (to taste)
Sea salt . . . continue to add until taste is right
I used the freezer potato gnocchi (1/2 bag)
Can peas be used instead of spinach??? Or what other substitute??
You could use them, keep in mind, it won’t quite be a copycat then. Other substitutions could be cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage. I am sure there are others.
Many Italian cooks use the rind from Parmigiano Reggiano when cooking the soup and other cream soups. It adds a depth of flavor and salt. I get my rinds at Kroger, Whole Foods, Fresh Market, and Fresh Thyme. I freeze my rinds as I get them. Hope that helps for people “missing something” in the flavor. This soup was very good though. I did use the rind.
Absolutely delicious! Will add this into our dinner rotation. We swapped chicken for leftover thanksgiving turkey.
this is now one of my favorite soups. So easy to make. The closes Olive Garden to me is over 75 miles away, and now I can make this here at home. I think it is ever better than they make. I also tried it with some sliced fresh mushrooms. I took sliced my baby carrots. I don’t have thyme so I used Kingsfords Garlic & Herbs all-purpose seasoning. And it oh so good. thank you for your recipes.
If you are using a slow cooker, can you cook the chicken in the soup itself vs cooking separately and adding at the end?
If you are leaving the chicken for 4 to 6 hours yes. But I wouldn’t add in the gnocchi less it was fully cooked and add it at the end.
Entire family loves this. Have made this recipe many times and it never disappoints!
Hello! Planning to try this recipe this week, was wondering if it would be ok to make it ahead of time and put on warm in crockpot and/or if it’s ok to freeze? Thanks!
This recipe is ok to freeze. The soup re-heats very well. I don’t know how long you need to warm it in the crockpot, but it shouldn’t take too long since you already gooded it.
I liked it a lot but it was missing some
Kind of taste. Also should gnocchi be cooked prior ?
If you are missing something and can’t quite put your finger on it, you are generally missing salt. The gnocchi will cook in the broth of the soup. I hope this helps.
This recipe is amazing. I’ve been making it for years. Every winter multiple times
Love this recipe that I have made several times now! Thank you!
Hello from Brazil!
Do I need to add some salt/spices at the chicken or just cooked and that’s it?
I’m so excited to do this recipe!
If you are boiling chicken, I would cook it in chicken broth, or season the water with salt, and other vegetables if you have them on hand.
Fantastic! Tastes just like the Olive Garden version. My family loves it!
What flour can I substitute to make it gluten free that doesn’t have a funky taste? Almond flour would be too gritty I think.
You could use a corn starch slurry, I would add a couple of tablespoons of corn starch to a couple of tablespoons of water. Mix well, and then pour in towards the end of cooking, and allow it to heat through long enough for it to thicken. Your other option is simply to omit this step, and your soup won’t be as creamy, but the flavor should be there.
Exactly what I did and used gluten free Gnocci from Whole Foods. Amazing recipe! Thank you!