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This easy tortellini soup recipe is packed with delicious ingredients, only takes 10 minutes to prep, and is perfect all year long.
Our Fav pasta in soup!
Drop everything you’re doing and add this tortellini soup to your weekly menu plan because we guarantee you’re going to love it. This seriously delicious soup has our favorite pasta in it, is prepped in 10 minutes and is perfect for chilly days.
With its cheese-filled tortellini, Italian sausage, and tender vegetables, it’s on repeat all fall and winter long. Complete the meal with some fresh Dinner Rolls or take it up a notch and serve the soup in homemade or store-bought Bread Bowls.
For a set-it-and-forget-it (but different) version of tortellini soup, try our Crockpot Tortellini Soup!
Why We Love It:
- Hearty and satisfying. Tortellini soup is a filling meal that will leave your family feeling full and content 🙂
- Easy to make. With just a few simple ingredients and minimal prep time, tortellini soup is a perfect easy dinner option.
- Add to it. Customize tortellini soup to your liking by adding different vegetables, proteins, or herbs and spices.
Ingredients
PREP TIME: 10 minutes
COOK TIME: 50 minutes
- 1 pound Italian Sausage, or 4 Italian Sausage links – Use a sweet sausage or a spicy sausage to add more flavor.
- For a VEGETARIAN version, remove the sausage and sauté the garlic for a minute before adding vegetable broth, cider, and other ingredients.
- 4 teaspoons minced garlic – (4-5 cloves of garlic) see How to Mince Garlic
- ½ cup apple cider – NOT apple cider vinegar
- 4 cups chicken broth – chicken stock or vegetable broth
- 1 (5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley – or an equal amount of Italian seasoning
- 2 medium zucchini – peeled and sliced
- 16 ounces cheese tortellini – frozen, fresh, or Barilla dry cheese tortellini. Try Three Cheese Tortellini, Mixed Cheese Tortellini, Spinach & Cheese Tortellini, or Sweet Italian Sausage Tortellini.
- optional additions. Add green beans, onions, corn, peas, celery, fresh baby spinach, and kale. For a spicy taste use spicy Italian sausage and sprinkle in some red pepper flakes and cayenne pepper.
Fresh Herbs
Replace 1 teaspoon of dried herbs with 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs. For this soup, add the fresh herbs during the last 10-15 minutes of the cooking time.
How to Make Tortellini Soup
- SAUSAGE. Cook 1 pound sausage in a pan until browned and broken up.
- Add 4 teaspoons garlic and cook sausage for 1-2 minutes longer.
- BROTH. Move meat to a large pot. Stir in 4 cups broth, 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, ½ cup cider, 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce, 1 cup chopped carrots, 1 teaspoon basil, and 1 teaspoon oregano. Bring soup to a simmer over medium heat, then cover and cook for 30 minutes.
- VEGGIES. After 30 minutes stir in 2 medium zucchini sliced and 2 tablespoons parsley and simmer for 10-12 more minutes.
- PASTA. Add 16 ounces tortellini and cook for 7-10 more minutes. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
For busy days, try our Crockpot Tortellini Soup!
Perfect Tortellini
- One of the signs that tortellini is done cooking is when it floats to the surface of the hot water. It is best when cooked al dente.
- To avoid mushy tortellini, take the tortellini soup recipe off the heat as soon as the tortellini has finished cooking. Or, cook it separately and add it in at the end of the soup’s cooking time.
Make It Creamy!
Easily make this soup creamier by adding ⅓-½ cup heavy cream during the last 2-3 minutes of the cooking time.
Easy Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound Italian sausage, or 4 Italian sausage links
- 4 teaspoons minced garlic
- ½ cup apple cider, NOT apple cider vinegar
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup carrots, chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 2 medium zucchini, sliced and halved
- 16 ounces cheese tortellini
Instructions
- Cook the sausage in a pan until browned and broken up.
- Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes longer.
- Move meat to a large pot. Stir in chicken broth, diced tomatoes, apple cider, tomato sauce, chopped carrots, basil, and oregano. Bring soup to a simmer over medium heat, then cover and cook for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes stir in the sliced zucchini and parsley and simmer for 10-12 more minutes.
- Add tortellini and cook for 7-10 more minutes. Top with grated Parmesan.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
Cook according to the recipe directions, except do not add the tortellini. Cool and place it in an airtight freezer container or use freezer bags. Uncooked tortellini can be stored in a separate bag. Label and store both bags in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Thaw and heat the soup in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Once the soup is hot add the tortellini pasta and simmer for 12-15 minutes and serve.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Freeze it for up to 3 months; the tortellini may be a bit mushy but still delicious.
I have been making this soup for years, but use red wine rather than apple cider. I have never tried with cider, but the wine adds an incredibly delicious element to the soup and is more readily available.
Excellent and delicious soup! The whole family loved it.
Our family loves this Tortellini Soup. Delicious!!
Looks interesting. But if we cook the sausage for 2 minutes, then add tomatoes and cook for 30 more, then add zucchini and cook for 7-10 minutes, then add tortellini for the last 7-10 minutes we’ve gotten to 45-51 minutes. But your cook time at the top of your recipe post indicates 12 minutes. Maybe that was the old recipe… Please update because I thought I’d be able to get this meal on the table much sooner.
Thanks for catching that. We will get the recipe updated.
I am so sad that you changed the recipe before I remembered to write it down. Is there anyway I could get a copy of the old recipe? Thanks!
Original Recipe
Sausage ‘Tortellini Soup Recipe by lil luna
https://www.copymethat.com/r/saFBaggRo/sausage-tortellini-soup-ready-in-20-minu/
Ingredients
9.6 oz Sausage Crumbles (1 bag)
2 tbsp minced garlic
29 oz chicken broth (2 14.5 oz cans)
9 oz package refrigerated cheese tortellini
1 1/2 cup water
1 14.5 oz diced tomatoes (1 can)
1 cup fresh baby spinach chopped
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp garlic salt
pepper
shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions
1. Add sausage crumbles and garlic to a large pot and cook for 1 minute.
2. Stir in broth, water and tomatoes and bring to a boil.
3. Add tortellini and cook for 6-7 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to low and add spinach, basil, salt and pepper. Cook for a few more minutes and serve warm with shredded Parmesan cheese on top.
Notes
I prefer using the fully cooked Sausage Crumbles (Jimmy Dean makes them, but I’m sure there are other brands) for the sake of time and convenience! If you’d rather use fresh sausage, just cook until no longer pink before adding in the garlic and cooking for 1 minute.
Where can we find the original recipe?? Please post
Yes we need the original please!!!!
I bet this recipe is great, I’ll definitely have to try it sometime! Is there any way I could be sent the old recipe for this soup? My family really fell in love with that one! Thank you!!
This is the best soup! We had a couple screw ups lol!!! Read directions wrong thought it said tbsp of oregano and basil caught it on the oregano, oh well, and the apple cider happened to be caramel flavored, lol!!! It’s crazy how good it is. We really don’t like Italian savage so we used regular Jimmy Dean sausage it is so so good. Oops, I said that already lol!
Glad to hear the soup turned out delicious even with a few changes! 😉 Thanks for giving it a try!
Did the recipe change recently? I don’t remember the apple cider vinegar, carrots, and a few of the spices.
Yes, we updated this recipe in August 2023. We regularly go back and re-test recipes and update. We love these changes! Hope you do too!
I’m sure this new variation is wonderful but the other was my daughter’s absolute favorite. She’s requested it for her birthday dinner and I don’t have the other recipe written down anywhere. Would you be able to send it to me or direct me to where I might find it? Thank you so much!
-Lacey
It’s your site so do what you want but I’d really like the original
This look delicious but could I get the original recipe too.
I just made this soup and it was wonderful. Thank you so much for sharing this easy and delicious recipe! ❤️