Hearty Italian Sausage, Spinach and Orzo Soup is a cozy combination of flavors that that result in a phenomenal one-pot meal to please even your pickiest of eaters. My husband is half Italian, and this dish ranks at the tippy top of his soup list! Plus, it’s easy to prepare from items usually on hand (with limited chopping), freezable and delicious the next day, too.
Table of Contents
You’ll LOVE this Sausage Orzo Soup just like we do!
Now that it’s Fall, it’s officially soup season. Yay! I love soups. My favorite way to warm up on a cold and rainy night is to curl up in front of a cozy fire with my husband Robert and a steamy bowl of flavorful soup. This mouthwatering Italian Sausage, Spinach and Orzo Soup recipe came to me from good friend Carol Nollsch. It’s my favorite kind of recipe — quick and easy to prepare from items usually on hand (with limited chopping!) and full of flavor.
Italian Sausage Soup Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this hearty, satisfying soup:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Uncooked Italian sausage (regular and/or hot – I like to use a mixture)
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Italian seasoning
- Red pepper flakes
- Dry white wine
- Chicken broth or stock
- Fresh tomatoes – can substitute 1 (16-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- Orzo pasta
- Fresh baby spinach
- Grated Parmesan cheese
How to make Italian Sausage Spinach Soup
Here’s an overview of the steps involved in preparing this soup:
- Cook sausage.
In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add sausage and sauté until browned, breaking up meat with a spatula. Drain and discard oil. - Add onion and seasonings.
Stir in onion, garlic, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes and cook 3 to 4 minutes. - Add wine.
Stir in wine; reduce heat to low and simmer, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan, until wine is almost evaporated. - Add broth, tomatoes and pasta.
Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes and orzo. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer about 10 to 12 minutes or until pasta is cooked. - Add spinach.
Stir in spinach; cook about 3 to 5 minutes or until wilted. - Garnish and serve.
Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
How to serve Orzo Sausage Soup
Scrumptious and crowd-pleasing, this soup is hearty enough to be served as a main dish. Just add a Caesar salad on the side – and Carol recommends serving it with cornbread; our recipe testers also liked it with sourdough bread.
Carol also recommends making this soup the day before serving, to allow the flavors to blend.
How to store Italian Sausage Soup with Spinach
If making ahead, or if you have leftovers, cool soup to room temperature, cover and refrigerate. If desired, you can also freeze in an airtight container for up to 1 month. You may need to add more broth when reheating.
Italian Sausage Soup with Orzo FAQs
It’s very easy to make this soup spicier. Just use all hot Italian sausage and/or add more red pepper flakes than called for in the recipe.
I’ve also made this soup with Turkey Italian Sausage, for my non-red meat eating friends.
Any other small pasta would work in this recipe in place of the orzo – small elbow macaroni, ditalini or orecchiette would all work well.
More Favorite Soup Recipes
- Tortellini Soup with Sausage, Carrots and Zucchini
- Split Pea Soup with Country Ham
- Artichoke and Chicken Chowder
- Corn and Chicken Chowder
- Southwest Chicken Soup with Avocado-Cheese Garnish
- Indian Mulligatawny Soup
Italian Sausage Spinach Soup
Hearty Italian Sausage, Spinach and Orzo Soup is a cozy combination of flavors that that result in a phenomenal one-pot meal to please even your pickiest of eaters. My husband is half Italian, and this dish ranks at the tippy top of his soup list! Plus, it’s easy to prepare from items usually on hand (with limited chopping), freezable and delicious the next day, too.
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound uncooked Italian sausage, casings removed if necessary
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2/3 cup dry white wine
- 7 cups chicken broth or stock
- 2 cups seeded and diced fresh tomatoes, or 1 (16-ounce) can diced tomatoes undrained (see Tip below)
- 1 cup orzo pasta
- 5 cups packed shredded fresh baby spinach
- 3/4 to 1 cup (3 to 4 ounces) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large stockpot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and sauté until browned, breaking up meat with a spatula. Drain and discard oil.
- Stir in onion, garlic, Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes and cook 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the wine; reduce heat to low and simmer, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan, until wine is almost evaporated. Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes and orzo. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer about 10 to 12 minutes or until pasta is cooked.
- Stir in spinach; cook about 3 to 5 minutes or until wilted. Ladle into soup bowls and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
Gluten free: Use gluten-free sausage and chicken broth or stock. Use DeLallo gluten-free Pasta Corn and Rice Orzo.
Make ahead: Soup can be prepared earlier in the day, cooled, covered and refrigerated. It can also be frozen for up to 1 month. You may need to add more broth when reheating.
Tip on tomatoes: If using canned tomatoes, don’t drain and reduce chicken broth by around 1/2 cup.
- Category: soups, main dishes
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Made this soup over the weekend, double batch for us and our neighbors who just had a baby. Oh my! We all LOVED it. So easy, so good!!
Thanks Jenn! I’m so happy to hear you liked our recipe. It’s a favorite in our house for sure.
oh mooy
oh goodness. Just finished making this for weekend guests. So much yumminess for so little work. Bet it will be even better tomorrow. Thank you for a great recipe ?
Thanks Susan! So glad to hear you like our recipe.
The Italian Sausage, Spinach and Orzo Soup has become our go-to recipe this Winter. It’s wonderful. AND delicious!
Thank you!!
Do you suppose I could use 1/2 Italian sausage and 1/2 ground turkey with this recipe? Looks delicious and I’m gonna try it today!
Yes you can definitely use ground turkey. Try to find turkey sausage if you can – I’ve used that and it was delicious.
Think it would change the flavor too much if I subbed broccoli for spinach? Not a fan of cooked spinach but this looks great otherwise! Thanks!
It might work; just make sure to add it toward the end so the broccoli doesn’t get mushy. I’m thinking that slice zucchini might be a better substitute, if you like zucchini! Again, add it toward the end so it doesn’t get mushy. Let me know how it turns out!