There are evenings when the only sensible thing to do is tip everything into one dish and let the oven take over. This salmon and fennel gnocchi bake is exactly that kind of supper: softly luxurious, lazily made, and yet it arrives at the table looking as though you’ve been tending it all night.

This salmon and fennel gnocchi bake is what I crave on certain evenings. On those nights, even the thought of standing at the hob feels vaguely unreasonable. You want something warm and creamy, soothing yet simple, and you want the oven to do the work. So you tip everything into one dish, shove it in, and let dinner quietly take care of itself. What comes out is a bubbling, golden-edged pan of comfort that looks far fussier than it is.

Why salmon and fennel just work

Salmon and fennel have always felt like an elegant pairing to me. The sweet aniseed of the fennel softens in the heat, losing any bossiness and turning mellow, almost creamy. The salmon, rich but gentle, sits against it beautifully, especially when you introduce lemon, garlic and a little chilli warmth.

In this version, the fennel is finely diced so it all but melts into the sauce. It becomes part vegetable, part flavour base, tumbled with cherry tomatoes that burst and slump in the oven. Together they make a kind of lazy, built-in sauce for the salmon, which cooks on top and sheds its own juices into the mix.

This is the quiet magic of the salmon and fennel gnocchi bake: you don’t stand whisking or reducing anything. You just layer, leave and then come back to a dish that already smells like you’ve been working much harder than you have.

The joy of a shove-in-the-oven supper

I love a recipe that doesn’t ask for ceremony. You tip your fennel and tomatoes into a baking dish, season with herbs and olive oil, then lay the salmon on top. After that comes the softening, soothing layer. Cream cheese and crème fraîche, dolloped in generously, to coax everything into a loose sauce as it bakes.

Once it’s in the oven, you’re free. You can wipe down the counter, find the good Parmesan, pour a glass of wine, or simply sit. When you pull the dish out again, the tomatoes are blistered, the fennel is tender, and the salmon flakes at the nudge of a spoon.

Only then does the gnocchi join the party. You stir double cream into the already-melted, tangy cheeses, creating a silky cloak for the soft dumplings. They go in raw, straight from the packet, so they can drink in the sauce and puff up in the oven, turning pillowy underneath and crisping at the tips where they catch the heat.

Little tweaks and serving thoughts

Because this is a one-pot supper, it doesn’t really require much else. A sharply dressed green salad is lovely alongside, or just a plate of lemon wedges for squeezing over at the table.

You can, of course, play with the details. A pinch of fennel seeds will lean into the aniseed note. A handful of spinach or peas stirred through with the gnocchi gives you an extra flash of green. And if you like your salmon and fennel gnocchi especially saucy, another splash of double cream before the final bake will not go amiss.

Mostly, though, I want you to enjoy the ease of it. This is food that looks after you while the oven does the work; you simply arrive at the end to take the credit and eat.

P.S. If this salmon and fennel gnocchi bake has hit the spot, chances are you’ll love my Courgette, Lemon & Ricotta Rigatoni and my Mushroom Gnocchi Soup – same cosy, creamy mood, just dressed a little differently. And you can always we watch me make these over on my Tik Tok Channel and Instagram. Come say Hi!

A cosy one-pot salmon and fennel gnocchi bake with burst cherry tomatoes, a tangy, creamy sauce and a golden Parmesan top – proper weeknight comfort.