This Sheet Pan Chicken Scarpariello with Gnocchi is a one-pan dinner featuring juicy chicken thighs, sausage, bell peppers, onions, cherry peppers, and golden roasted gnocchi. Big flavor, easy cleanup, and ready in under an hour!
Sheet Pan Chicken Scarpariello
Think Chicken Scarpariello, but with a twist: easier and crispier with pillowy gnocchi instead of potatoes to soak up all the flavor. This sheet pan version has tender chicken thighs, sweet Italian chicken sausage, colorful bell peppers, onions, tangy cherry peppers, and gnocchi that roasts until golden on the edges.
You get all the bold flavors of the classic Italian-American dish in one sheet pan with minimal cleanup. See more sheet pan recipes here!
Why This Recipe Works
Chicken Scarpariello is traditionally cooked on the stove, but I wanted a simpler and quicker method so my family and I could enjoy it on busy weeknights. By putting everything on a sheet pan, it can be baked in the oven for an even more hands-off approach.
- Minimal Effort: Cook everything on one sheet pan to save time on cleanup.
- Family Friendly: If you’re making it for kids, choose mild peppers so everyone can enjoy the same meal.
- Dietary Restrictions: Weight Watchers-friendly, gluten-free (if using GF gnocchi), high-protein, dairy-free
If you love one-pot recipes, my cookbook One and Done (one of my most popular books!) is a must-have. And if you’re craving more Italian classics, try my Chicken Cacciatore, Chicken Piccata, and Chicken Francese.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here are all the ingredients for this easy sheet pan chicken scarpariello recipe. See the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
- Protein: Use 2 types of chicken for double the lean protein. Cut boneless, skinless chicken thighs and sweet Italian chicken sausage into 1-inch pieces.
- Vegetables: Slice red onion and bell pepper into strips.
- Gnocchi (potato dumplings) replace potatoes in traditional scarpariello. The best part is that they require no washing or chopping! Use gluten-free gnocchi if needed.
- Peppers: Buy a jar of cherry or banana peppers. You can typically find mild and hot varieties, so choose whichever suits your heat preference. You’ll also use some of the pepper brine to add flavor to the chicken and vegetables.
- Olive Oil prevents the food from drying out.
- Minced Garlic for flavor
- Seasoning: Kosher salt and Italian seasoning
How to Make Sheet Pan Chicken Scarpariello
Once you’ve prepped your chicken, sausage, onion, and peppers, just toss everything together and bake. See the recipe card at the bottom for printable directions.
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 425°F and spray a large sheet pan with oil. For simpler cleanup, line the pan with parchment paper and skip the oil spray.
- Mix and Season: Combine all the ingredients on the sheet pan.
- Bake for 35 minutes. Halfway through, give the food a good stir so it all cooks evenly.
Variations
- Sausage: Sweet Italian turkey sausage will also work if you can’t find chicken.
- Vegetables: You can use any color bell pepper or onion if you don’t have red.
- Potatoes: Substitute gnocchi with baby potatoes, sliced in half.
- Make it mild: I’d recommend banana peppers if you don’t want it too spicy. But if you want to make sure there’s absolutely no heat, use roasted red peppers and add a tablespoon or two of red wine vinegar to replace the brine.
- No Italian seasoning? Use a ½ teaspoon of dried basil, oregano, or parsley, or a ¼ teaspoon of two of them.
Serving Suggestions
Simple Side Dishes
This one-pan Italian chicken recipe is a complete meal, but if you’re looking for an extra side dish, here are some ideas for what to serve with chicken scarpariello.
Sheet Pan Chicken Scarpariello
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut in 1 inch pieces
- 4 (12 oz total) sweet Italian chicken sausage, cut in 1 inch pieces
- 1 cup red onion, sliced ¼ inch thick (from 1 small onion)
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced ¼ inch thick strips
- 1 ½ cups gnocchi
- 1 cup jarred cherry peppers, or banana pepper, sliced into rings (in brine)**
- ¼ cup cherry pepper brine
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F and spray a large sheet pan with oil.
- In a large bowl, combine chicken, sausage, onion, bell pepper, gnocchi, cherry peppers, pepper brine, olive oil, garlic, Italian seasoning and salt making sure everything is mixed thoroughly.
- Transfer to the prepared sheet pan and cook, abut 35 minutes, turning everything halfway.
Last Step:
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Nutrition
Storage
- Refrigerate the chicken and gnocchi for up to 4 days.
- Freeze leftovers in 2-cup airtight containers for 3 months.
- Thaw the scarpariello in the fridge overnight, then microwave in 30-second intervals until warm. You can also reheat it in a 350°F oven.
FAQ
Scarpariello translates to “shoemaker’s chicken” in Italian.
1. Cut the thighs, sausage, cherry peppers, bell peppers, and onions the day before and store them in an airtight container. You can also combine the brine, oil, garlic, and seasoning in a small jar.
2. The next day, place everything on the sheet pan with the gnocchi, toss it with the vinaigrette, and bake as directed.
More Sheet Pan Chicken Recipes You’ll Love
For more dinner ideas using chicken, check out these five delicious sheet pan chicken recipes to inspire your next meal!
Another incredible recipe from Skinnytaste! I used banana peppers and their brine juice and wow, did they complement the italian seasoning and other flavors. Such a hit in our house, thanks for keeping my kitchen interesting and yummy!
I have made hundreds of Skinnytaste meals; almost every single one has been perfection. This is the first recipe I’ve made where I had major issues. The freshly minced garlic turned blue-green to teal when combined with the pepper brine and heat as part of a chemical reaction which made it look very unappetizing. Also I used the refrigerated gnocchi and it got mushy. I would definitely say go with the dry gnocchi if trying.
Yes, recipe calls for dry which is always best for the sheet pan.
This is the first Skinnytaste recipe I’ve ever made that was an overall fail. My fresh garlic turned green in this recipe after going in the oven with the pepper brine. I’ve never had that happen and not sure how to prevent it in the future. Also I used refrigerated gnocchi and it turned to mush, I would definitely try this with dry over the refrigerated gnocchi.
1 day after making this recipe, and my hubby and I are still raving about it! This recipe is a keeper and will be a part of our meal rotation from this day forward!
Do we need to cook the gnocchi first if it’s dried gnocchi?
Nope!
Delicious! I followed your recipe and suggestion to use roasted red peppers and red wine vinegar for the brine — perfect!! Thanks
I loved this! Used peperonicini peppers. Had a great flavor with the perfect amount of spice. I have already sent it to a friend.
Can you use dried gnocchi?
This was fantastic! My whole family said it was delicious! Will definitely put this in my rotation.
Perfect!
Really liked this one! We even skipped the sausage since we didn’t need to feed too many people and even just with the chicken thighs it was good. We used banana peppers (cause I couldn’t find cherry peppers at the store I was in) and it turned out great. I didn’t think I’d like the banana peppers but it made the dish. The tangy taste from the brine is so goood.
I love this recipe! Has anyone tried this with Ginas cauliflower gnocchi recipe?
This was absolutely fantastic! I read the other reviews so I was expecting it to be good but I was blown away by how much I enjoyed it. My family asked to put it in the rotation. Thank you Gina!
Thanks Melissa!
This was a very tasty recipe. I don’t think it needs the teaspoon of kosher salt, since the sausage I used was salty and the brine was salty. But I would make this again. I used the banana peppers, because I love their taste. I am sure the cherry peppers would have been good, as well. Since I bought frozen chicken sausage, I had to use all of it in the recipe. So, my thigh to sausage proportion was off. I also cut the recipe down to a size appropriate for my wife and I. I am doing Skinny taste recipes all week.
Easy one pan dish. I substituted baby potatoes in place of gnocchi. It was delicious but very spicy with the cherry peppers. Loved it, definitely a keeper.
Both my husband and I are Italians but this dish is something neither of us had ever heard of and it was the first sheet pan dinner I’ve ever attempted. It was delicious, two thumbs up!!! Lot’s of leftovers and got the go ahead from DH to put this in our favorites rotation. Thank you Gina for another fabulous recipe!
This recipe is fantastic! I honestly didn’t think something so simple would turn out so delicious!! I used chicken breasts because that was all I had on hand. I cut them up and marinated them in the brine/oil/seasoning mixture for a couple of hours first. Then mixed everything together and cooked and it was SO GOOD! The leftovers might even be better so definitely a great meal prep meal too!!!
Did you adjust the cook time for the breasts?
Fabulous! Gina’s the best!
Aww thank you!
This was fantastic! A really easy meal to throw together after a long day and was extremely tasty. I am not usually a chicken thigh person but I would not swap for chicken breasts because the moisture really helped with the taste and texture of the dish. Definitely a keeper.
I don’t often write reviews but wanted to weigh in on this one because it was AMAZING and EASY! Tons of flavor, a big hit with my kids, and it made a ton of food. Leftovers were a great lunch.
Could you sub with cauliflower gnocchi instead?
Can the gnocchi be frozen or should it be cooked prior to going in the oven?
I was hoping to get an answer to the tyoe if gnocchi as well. Do you use the frozen ginnochi or dried? And is it coojed first at all
Simple, delicious sheet pan recipe! I love the use of the pepper brine! I will be adding this to our rotation.
Perfect!
Fantastic flavors , already making it a second time!
This was fabulous. Lots of great flavors that went well together. I used hot Italian turkey sausage instead of chicken. This is for sure going into my rotation.
Another yummy quick dinner to add to the rotation! Getting one of those flavorful gnocchi on my fork was the best part. Thanks Gina for making dinners easy, healthy and delicious…keep up the amazing work!
Glad you enjoyed it!
This was delicious! We only had hot Italian sausage which gave it a nice pop of spice. Will definitely make this again.
So flavorful and different with the vinegar bite. Super easy for a mid-week meal.
I LOVE a good sheet pan recipe and this did not disappoint!! I used 12 oz chicken thighs + (1) mild chicken sausage from Whole Foods. Added about 1/2 bag French green beans I had in the fridge with the listed recipe veggies. Sprinkled a little pecorino at the end .. perfect!!! And a quick clean up!!
Awesome!!
Great recipe! I used chicken breasts and regular hot Italian sausages (only 2 of them) and pepperoncini because I can’t find cherry peppers. It was a hit with me and the rest of my family! Some of the smaller chicken breast pieces got a little too dry; next time I’ll just be sure to cut them into cubes. I also used gluten free pasta. The dish has a great flavor and was easy to prep and clean up. It is going into the rotation!
Glad everyone enjoyed it!
Our family loved this recipe. Will be making again and again. Thank you for a delicious flavorful protein heavy recipe. 5 stars!!!!
Thank you!
This is really good! I wish I would have doubled the veggies but the flavor is really good. I used dry gnocchis and hot banana pepper and mild Italian chicken sausage. Yum!
We were looking for healthy recipes that were relatively quick to make. This one was extremely tasty with the chicken sausage and chicken tenderloin has protein, the cherry peppers really make the flavor.
Awesome
Delicious! I only used chicken tenders and added a little chicken broth.
Easy and delicious with the perfect amount of heat
Can you use fresh gnocchi?
Sure
Can you leave the thighs whole?
Sure
Do you use frozen Gnocci or do you have to thaw them first?
No need to thaw
Could you do this in an air fryer?
Sure! Maybe half the time?
Do you use fresh or dry gnocchi? How many ounces?
I used dry but fresh or frozen works
Looks delicious and easy.
I would also like to know if the gnocchi is fresh or dried and approximately how many ounces.
I used dry but fresh or frozen works. I dont recall the ounces.
Do you cook the gnocchi first?
Haven’t tried recipe but excited to do so, like sheet pan meal and new twist with gnocchi
Made this last night. It was delicious and really simple to put together. My family really loved the gnocchi. It was a nice change from traditional potatoes.
Are the gnocchi cooked first?
No
Do you use fresh or dried gnocchi