Once you get the hang of it, forming these dumplings is easy, but it may take a little practice at first.
Ingredients
4–6 servings
Dumplings
2
1
1
1
2¼
¼
Asparagus and Assembly
8
2
1
3
2
2
Preparation
Dumplings
Step 1
Check the wetness of the ricotta before preparing dumplings. If the ricotta is sold in an individual drained basket, then all you need to do is pat dry and adjust the quantity to 1½ cups. For ricotta that’s not drained, you’ll need to press it to drain any excess liquid. Line a colander with cheesecloth and set inside a large bowl (to catch the liquid draining from the ricotta). Spoon ricotta onto cheesecloth and put a paper towel on top. Weigh ricotta down using cans or other heavy pantry items; chill for at least 4 hours and up to 24. The ricotta should be dry and crumbly. Measure out 1½ cups.
Step 2
Pulse ricotta, Grana Padano, egg, egg yolk, and salt in a food processor just until smooth. Sprinkle flour over ricotta mixture and pulse again until just combined. Transfer dumpling batter to a medium bowl.
Step 3
Dust a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet generously with flour. Using a metal spoon, scoop out 2–3 tsp. dumpling batter and scrape spoon against side of bowl at a 45° angle to smooth batter. Using your finger tip, push batter off spoon and let drop onto baking sheet (this may take a few tries). The dumpling will slightly curve at each ends. Dust tops with more flour. (You should have about 65 dumplings.)
Asparagus and Assembly
Step 4
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and cook until almost tender, 2–3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl of ice water; drain and pat dry. Reserve pot.
Step 5
Meanwhile, bring chicken stock to a simmer in a large skillet over medium heat.
Step 6
Return pot of water to a gentle simmer and add dumplings (one by one so they don’t crush each other), stirring occasionally, until they’re almost double in size and cooked through and tender, about 4 minutes (dumplings will quickly float to surface).
Step 7
Transfer dumplings to pan; add butter and green garlic. Cook, tossing often, until sauce has thickened and garlic has slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Add asparagus, chives, and lemon juice and toss to warm asparagus; season with salt and pepper. Serve dumplings with more cheese and drizzle with olive oil.
Step 8
Do Ahead: Dumplings can be formed 1 month ahead. Freeze on baking sheet, then transfer to resealable plastic bag once frozen. Cook from frozen about 6 minutes.
Nutrition Per Serving
How would you rate Ricotta Dumplings With Asparagus and Green Garlic?
Leave a Review
Reviews (45)
Back to TopDelicious dumplings, but two takeaways. Watch the video. I’d never figure out the spoon method of scooping otherwise. Also pay attention to the firmness of the dumplings. Add enough flour so that they hold their shape and can be picked up, as he does in the video. Mine needed more, as I had scrape them up with a spatula. Luckily, they didn’t fall apart like for some others. Keeping the broth on a low simmer will help as well. I cut the salt in half, and it was still borderline too salty.
Rojoyo
Seattle
7/23/2023
Super delicious! Be generous with flour when making the dumplings and don’t add all the salt he recommends or it becomes too salty.
Anonymous
6/29/2022
Rough. Most of the dumplings fell apart somewhat in the cooking water. Have a feeling mine were too moist, but not sure what I could have done to improve that - I wrung out the ricotta before mixing into the egg/cheese. I admit that I bought the ricotta at the supermarket down the street so it was hard to choose a lower moisture option. Nonetheless, the dinner was generally good, it just looked nothing like the Bon Appetite version - more like porridge in chicken stock with asparagus and peas....... I'd maybe add fewer salty ingredients if I attempt it again
Anonymous
seattle
2/2/2022
I make these a lot. I use homemade ricotta, form the dumplings and freeze them. I find they keep their shape better, and that way it makes for a super quick dinner.
Paula
Spain
6/18/2021
I was a little intimidated after reading some of the reviews, but it turned out great! I was VERY generous with the flour for making the dumplings batter and when forming them. Was short on time, so made a few hours in advance and put them in the fridge and cooked for a little over 4 minutes. The texture of the dumplings is perfect - pillowy and full of flavor. And the sauce was the perfect companion. Highly recommend.
Morgan K
New York, NU
5/29/2021
Incredible recipe. I had zero issue with the dumplings; maybe it's because I used some bougie ricotta from the farmers' market, or maybe it's because I let them sit for a long time, but they held up great. Used a giant stalk and head of fresh garlic and a big knob of homemade ramp butter. Would absolutely make this again.
Jane Montgomery
Washington DC
5/1/2021
Is there a way to make this without eggs? My son is allergic. Thanks!
Sarah
Charleston
3/20/2021
Better than I even dreamed!
Anzley
St. Paul, MN
12/31/2020
So i only used this recipe to make the ricotta gnocchi/dumplings, I made my own base but it was so delicious. Yes, they are salty and cheesy and they are perfect. I did chicken broth with sautéed veggies slow simmered with parm rind and added chili flakes. Also, I made my ricotta at home which only added to the recipe. Watch the video for the dumpling technique!! Much easier than reading the directions, just like how my nonna did it.
Ellie
Portland
11/18/2020
Disaster. Would be good to add some direction over the consistency of the batter. Mine seemed too wet, but I couldn't tell if that was the correct -- and I wanted pillowly soft dumplings not chewy floury drinking, so I figured maybe the batter should be on the moist side. Fell apart, watery, and then 2 cups of chicken stock was ridiculous. Ricotta soup. Learned some lessons, but additional direction world have been helpful.
San Francisco
6/28/2020
This is a show-stopper. Thank you Andy. Forget chicken soup; make these dumplings. It was so easy for how good it was. This is going into my bag of tricks for date night! Make sure you use low sodium stock as it can get a bit salty if you let it over reduce.
MatthewComer
Naples, Italy
5/25/2020
This was an accessible and delicious foray for me into dumplings. They were delicate and utterly delicious.
Anonymous
North Carolina
5/23/2020
Yum! Halved the recipe and used 1 whole egg. I definitely recommend minimizing water in ricotta. I was lazy and a couple in the first half of boiling fell apart, but freezing the others helped for the second round.
Anonymous
Minneapolis
5/13/2020
I froze the dumplings after making, and then I put them directly into the blanched asparagus water. I did have issue with a few dumplings breaking apart, and overall, once complete the plating was a bit ugly. That is what made the taste so shocking - these dumplings are amazing. Super flavorful, almost lemony, they tasted so fresh and amazing.
Anonymous
La Grange, IL
5/12/2020
Really good! I followed the ricotta recipe and made slight changes to the sauce (subbed out green garlic for parsley, no butter, added chicken sausages). Really tasty!
Anonymous
5/7/2020