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There’s a lot to love about Italian wedding soup! Tender chicken meatballs, vegetables, tiny pasta, and spinach come together in a savory broth for a simple meal that’s hearty, flavorful, and easy to make. For another delicious Italian-inspired soup, make my Stanley Tucci Pasta Fagioli.
A Reader’s Review
I found this recipe through Pinterest and it is my FAVORITE recipe, possibly ever! My family loves this soup. I’ve made it for a work luncheon also and it was eaten up so fast! I had lots of requests for this recipe. Thank you so much! It’s amazing!
The Perfect Pairing of Flavor
- Big Meatball Flavor: Chicken and Italian sausage make the meatballs tender and full of flavor.
- Easy One-Pot Meal: The meatballs, pasta, and veggies all cook in one pot. That means less cleanup!
- Perfect for Dinner: This soup is filling on its own. Or serve it with crusty bread, garlic knots, or a simple green salad.
Ingredients for Italian Wedding Soup
- Acini di Pepe: This tiny pasta is classic in Italian wedding soup. Can’t find it? Use orzo instead.
- Homemade Chicken Stock: Switch up the stock for broth if it’s what you have on hand.
- Ground Chicken and Sausage: Use both for tender, flavorful meatballs. Remove the sausage casing before mixing.
- Breadcrumbs: Click here to try making your own!
How to Make Italian Wedding Soup
Tender meatballs and tiny pasta make this soup so good. Carrots, celery, and spinach add even more flavor. Best of all, it’s ready in about 30 minutes. Love cozy Italian soups? Try my minestrone soup, pasta e fagioli, or creamy chicken gnocchi soup next.
- Make the Meatballs: Add ground chicken, sausage, bread crumbs, egg, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper to a bowl, then mix well. Roll into 1-inch small meatballs. You should get about 25–30.
- Cook the Veggies: Heat olive oil in a large pot, then add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. Cook for 2–3 minutes, or until tender.
- Simmer: Add the chicken broth, acini di pepe, and meatballs, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes. The meatballs should be cooked through and the pasta al dente.
- Add Spinach: Stir in the baby spinach and cook until wilted. Add salt and black pepper to taste, then top Italian wedding soup with Parmesan cheese and serve.
Must Have Tools for This Recipe
- Large Pot or Dutch Oven: For cooking the soup.
- Cutting Board: For prepping the veggies.
- Sharp Knife: For chopping the veggies.
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Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 8 ounces ground chicken
- 8 ounces ground chicken sausage (casings removed)
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ cup diced yellow onion
- 3 large diced carrots
- 2 stalks diced celery
- 3 cloves minced garlic
- 10 cups chicken stock or broth
- ½ cup uncooked acini di pepe pasta or orzo
- 4 cups chopped spinach
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Meatballs
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add 8 ounces ground chicken, 8 ounces ground chicken sausage, ¼ cup breadcrumbs, 1 large egg, 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper. Stir until combined. Roll into one-inch meatballs, making about 25-30.
Soup
- In a large pot, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ cup diced yellow onion, 3 large diced carrots, 2 stalks diced celery, and 3 cloves minced garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until tender.
- Add 10 cups chicken stock, ½ cup uncooked acini di pepe pasta, and the shaped meatballs to the pot. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the meatballs are cooked through and the pasta is tender.
- Stir in 4 cups chopped spinach and allow to wilt. Season with salt and pepper, then top with ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese.
Video
Notes
- Refrigerator: Store cooled soup in an airtight container for 3–5 days.
- Freezer: Freeze cooled soup in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Leave a little room for expansion.
- Reheat: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat on the stove or in the microwave until warmed through.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More Savory Soups to Try
Italian wedding soup is one of my favorite cold-weather meals. Here are a few more cozy soup recipes to try next!
Love this recipe & make it pretty often! I have a hard time finding the pasta, so I use orzo instead. I also substitute frozen Italian Turkey meatballs. Quick & easy! Plus so delicious!!
Saw this recipe on FB this morning! Sounded perfect for this cold February day. Picked up all the ingredients and prepared the soup. Easy, nutritious and delicious!
I could not find chicken sausage, but did find bulk breakfast Turkey sausage. I mixed that with the ground chicken and other ingredients. Very nice flavor! ??
Sounds like a great recipe but I need to know how many it serves. Can anyone help?
This serves about 8 people, 1 1/2 cups of soup each.
Baked the meatballs a little before putting them in the soup. 400 degrees for 15 min then turn and another 15 min
This is my most favorite recipe I’ve ever found on the internet. Everyone in my family loves this soup! I use chicken broth instead of stock, but I follow the recipe exactly other than that. Thank you for this delicious soup.
Great recipe…made my meatballs a little bigger than yours but just guessed…still wonderful!!!!
This is my new favorite soup! It was hard to find the acini di pepe pasta so I used orzo instead. Next time I make it, I am using ground turkey instead. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us!! I love it.
Classic is ot use escarol as your green.
To: Erin – (3/17/19): If you have a problem finding chicken sausages, you can easily type in “how to season gr. chicken to taste like chicken sausage” into your browser. You will immediately find the spices & amounts to use & mix into a lb. of gr. chicken. No doubt that ‘everyone’ has these spices in their pantry. I do this all the time. Very easy, honey. Also – WOW, could Heather Lampman, on 10/15/19, could have been any ‘snootier’ with her comment? If someone has nothing constructive or helpful to contribute, they should just SHUTTIE! ?
I found this recipe through Pinterest and it is my FAVORITE recipe, possibly ever! My family loves this soup. I’ve made it for a work luncheon also and it was eaten up so fast! I had lots of requests for the recipe. Thank you so much! It’s amazing!
Great recipe! Meatballs were tender and soup had lots of flavor.
Very delicious soup and easy to make. I loved the chicken meatballs for the healthier option versus beef and pork like most call for. I also doubled the amount and froze for a quick throw together for next time. The other thing I did that I saw in another recipe was add a dollop of basil pesto (I had store bought on hand) and I will tell you it was over the top good!
so do you cook the meatballs first or do you add them directly into the soup to boil?
No, you do not have to cook them ahead of time. They will cook through in the soup.
Very good soup! I made it with sweet Italian sausage and ground chicken, worked just fine. I did bake my meatballs for about 20 minutes on 350 before adding to soup. Easy to make and delicious on a cold rainy day! Making again this week! ?
Easy and delicious! This recipe also lends itself to substitutions, if you can’t get to the grocery store. I saw the pin and had to make it, even though I had no ground chicken, chicken sausage, or kale. I did have ground beef and rainbow chard, however, so used those instead. This was tasty and savory without being heavy. I imagine it would have tasted even better with the addition of sausage, but everyone loved it and had seconds. My husband even had thirds! Perfect for a cold day! A definite keeper! Thanks!
This soup turned out amazingly delicious. I used kale for the greens and baked the meatballs in the oven for a total of 20 minutes (turning halfway through baking) prior to adding to the broth and they were wonderful. Otherwise, I followed the instructions as written. I will be making this soup time and time again! Thank you for a great recipe!