Sausage and Tortellini Soup

This Sausage and Tortellini Soup has everything comfort food should! It’s warm, it’s creamy, it’s secretly loaded with vegetables, and there’s cheese! This recipe makes a hearty and filling soup that will warm you from the inside out!

This sausage and tortellini soup has quickly become a new favorite in our house! It’s so easy to prepare, so loaded with flavor, and so incredibly filling. There’s a kick of spice from the hot Italian sausage, perfectly cooked cheese tortellini, and a splash of rich cream to hold it all together. Grab a big ol’ bowl!

Ingredients needed for this recipe:

• Ground Hot Italian Sausage (see the sausage section for notes on this!)
• Cheese Tortellini
• Carrots
• Onion
• Garlic
• Diced Tomatoes
• Chicken Stock
• Heavy Cream
• Salt
• Parmesan Cheese, to serve

How to make Sausage and Tortellini Soup

1. Brown the sausage. Until nice and crispy. Remove it from the pot and set it into a paper towel lined bowl to drain.
2. Cook the carrot, onion, and garlic. In the pan you just browned the sausage in. Add a splash of the chicken stock to help deglaze the pan. Cook everything just until beginning to soften.
3. Add the tomatoes and the chicken stock. Then bring it all up to a boil.
4. Add the tortellini. And return the cooked sausage to the pot. Boil the soup until the tortellini are cooked through and then remove from the heat.
5. Pour in the cream. And stir in the silkiness.
6. Serve topped with parmesan cheese. And some slices of sourdough bread. You’ll be glad you did!

I know I was!

Using Ground Sausage vs Linked Sausage

This recipe calls for hot Italian sausage, but can totally be made with mild or even sweet. I love using sweet Italian sausage in cooking, it’s even a must-have in my momma’s lasagna! Spice may not be for everyone, and that’s totally ok! Simply use whatever you prefer!

Also, if the store doesn’t have ground sausage you can substitute linked sausage. Simply slice it into coins and brown as you would if it were ground. Or! Slice along the casing, remove and discard the casing, and then crumble the links into the pan. Voila! Ground sausage!

What does "deglaze the pan" mean?

This sausage and tortellini soup recipe starts by browning sausage in the soup pot. This will not only cook the sausage but will leave a brown crust on the bottom of the pan. It's called "fond!" This is a mixture of tiny pieces of sausage, seasonings, and fat. That’s all flavor! It can’t go to waste! So, to be sure we get all those little bits of flavor into our soup (and to keep them from scorching on the bottom), we must deglaze the pan.

“Deglazing” is just a fancy term for adding a splash of liquid (in this case chicken stock) to the bottom of a pan that has that brown crust of fond on it. This liquid will help loosen all those brown bits to keep them from burning and to incorporate them into the dish. After adding the liquid, be sure to stir and scrape the pot to get everything up off the bottom and into the mixture. The liquid you added will then cook out and you’ll be left with all those morsels of flavor throughout your meal! It is divine!

As is this soup. Try for yourself to see!

Print Recipe

5 from 8 votes

Sausage and Tortellini Soup

This recipe for sausage and tortellini soup is made with ground Italian sausage, cheese tortellini, and loaded with vegetables! A splash of cream and a sprinkling of cheese make it absolutely perfect to warm you up from the inside out.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time40 mins

Course: Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Dinner, Pasta, Sausage, Soup, Tortellini

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 368kcal

Equipment

• Soup Pot

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground hot Italian sausage
• 3 carrots peeled and diced
• 1 large white onion diced
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 29 ounces diced tomatoes from two 14.5 ounce cans
• 16 ounces cheese tortellini
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Parmesan cheese for serving

Instructions

• In a large soup pot, or heavy-bottomed Dutch oven, brown the ground sausage over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined bowl to drain and set aside.
• Reduce heat to medium and add the carrot and onion, stirring to coat. Add a splash of the chicken stock to help deglaze the pan. Cook the vegetables until they just begin to become tender, about three minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Add the remaining stock and diced tomatoes. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the soup to a boil.
• Stir in the tortellini and cooked sausage, making sure everything is well combined. Cook until tortellini are tender, about five minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir in the heavy cream.
• Serve with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese, if desired.

Notes

• Soup can be kept for up to two days before the tortellini totally fall apart.
• If wanting to make and freeze this soup: omit the tortellini and cream in the beginning. Cool the soup and freeze. When wanting to serve, thaw the soup, reheat and bring up to a boil in a large Dutch oven. Stir in the tortellini and cook until tender before removing from heat and stirring in cream.

Nutrition

Serving: 2cups | Calories: 368kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 580mg | Potassium: 385mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 2919IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 105mg | Iron: 2mg