Tortellini Soup

Fresh veggies, tender cheese tortellini and herbs simmered together in one pot. This tortellini soup is easy to make and is ready to serve in about 45 minutes.

Post, photos and recipe updated from the archives. First published in October 2014.

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I’ve been tweaking and updating this tortellini soup recipe over the last few years and, long story short, it’s a whole lot less fussy than it was when I first shared it back in 2014. Less fussy is always good and even with some edits and a shorter ingredient list it’s still one of my favorite soup recipes.

Last week, I made a batch along with some cheesy toasted bread on the side and a simple romaine salad with the last of my garden tomatoes. The whole spread looked a lot like the soup/salad/breadstick deal you get at Olive Garden but better because, well, it’s not Olive Garden. It’s homemade tortellini soup and without all of the annoyances that come with dining out at a chain restaurant.

Ingredients

It’s a one-pot soup made with some fresh veggies and herbs with some convenience items from the pantry. This tortellini soup recipe takes about 45-ish minutes start to finish which puts it in contention for the coveted weeknight dinner award.

• Olive oil
• Diced red onion
• Chopped garlic
• Diced carrots
• Dried Italian seasoning
• Crushed red pepper
• Canned fire-roasted tomatoes
• Chicken stock
• Salt and pepper
• Refrigerated cheese tortellini
• Chopped fresh parsley
• Grated Parmesan cheese

A note about the tomatoes: I love Muir Glen fire-roasted tomatoes. They have great flavor. They’re more expensive than the run-of-mill diced tomatoes, but I think they’re totally worth it.

How to Make Tortellini Soup

• This tortellini soups starts like a lot of soups do with sauteed onion, garlic, and carrots. From there you add the dried seasonings, tomatoes, stock and salt and pepper.
• Simmer the soup for about ten minutes on medium-ish heat. After ten minutes, bring the soup to a boil and add the tortellini. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer and cook the pasta in the soup for 8 to 10 minutes.
• Right at the end, just before serving, add the chopped fresh parsley. I think this might be my favorite part – as soon as the chopped herbs hit the hot soup they release a wonderful fresh aroma.
• Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with Parmesan cheese, and serve.

Can I use frozen tortellini?

I have not tested this recipe with frozen tortellini, but I imagine it will work fine. Frozen tortellini may need to cook longer in the soup, so keep that in mind.

Can this tortellini soup be made ahead?

So, parts of the soup can be made ahead. Pasta that sits too long in soup will eventually absorb all of the liquid. So here are my tips for making the soup ahead of time:

• Make the soup up until the point you would add the pasta. Instead of adding the pasta, cool the soup and store it in an airtight container. It will keep well in the refrigerator for three to four days.
• When you’re ready to serve it, warm the soup in a pot and bring it to a boil. Add the tortellini and cook it in the soup until it’s tender. Add the parsley and serve with Parmesan cheese.

How long does leftover tortellini soup last?

The soup without the pasta will last for three to four days in the refrigerator. If you leave the pasta in the soup, the pasta will absorb all of the liquid and you’ll be left with mushy pasta and no soup. The recipe I’m sharing serves four, so if you’re not planning to serve all of the soup in one sitting you have a couple of options:

• Make all of the broth but only cook enough pasta for the number of people you are serving. Save the leftover broth in the refrigerator and, when you want to serve the leftovers, cook the rest of the tortellini then.
• Or, and I’ve done this with success, cook all of the pasta in the soup. If you have leftovers, separate the cooked pasta from the soup and store them separately. When you’re ready to serve the leftovers, warm the soup, add the leftover cooked tortellini and simmer it just until it’s warmed through.

Happy soup-making!

More Soup Recipes

I ❤ soup season! Here are a few of my favorite soup recipes including a round-up of chicken soup recipes. I hope you find some new recipes to try!

• Garlic Soup
• Mushroom and Leek Soup
• 25 Comforting Chicken Soup Recipes
• Black Bean Soup

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