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This ground turkey soup recipe is simple to make, inexpensive, and very nourishing. It’s a brothy, light yet filling soup that’s loaded with pasta, vegetables, and beans!
Try my Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup or Italian Sausage Soup next.
Why you’ll love it
A classic Chicken Noodle Soup is great and all, but sometimes I like to change up the protein to ground turkey! It’s an easy-to-prepare protein that works fabulously in soup. It’s especially tasty with this easy turkey soup that has added brightness from lemon juice.
This turkey soup is the type of recipe that’s easy to whip up on a busy weeknight, and it’s also good for if anyone in your home is feeling under the weather. It’s also very forgiving, so feel free to throw in a bit extra/less depending on what you’ve got on hand!
What you’ll need
- Olive oil – for sautéing
- Celery, onions, carrots, and garlic – the tastiest base for soups! I like sweet (Vidalia) onions.
- Italian seasoning – my go-to all-purpose blend of dried herbs
- Ground turkey – it’s lean and budget friendly
- Beans – we’re using a can of cannellini (white) beans for extra protein
- Carrots and spinach – for veggie goodness
- Chicken broth – it adds more savory flavor
- Pasta – I like fusilli or rotini, but use your preferred shape
- Lemon juice – use even more than suggested if you like!
Pro tip
You could absolutely use ground chicken instead of ground turkey if you prefer.
How to make ground turkey soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Sauté the celery and onions in the olive oil in a soup pot until softened. Stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning until fragrant. Add in the turkey, and cook until white, breaking it up as you go.
Add in the beans, carrots, broth, and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to a simmer. After 10 minutes, add in the pasta. Once al dente, stir in the lemon juice and spinach. Season with salt & pepper.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- There’s a bit of chopping for this one, so use a knife from a quality knife set. I love Henckels and my Epicurean cutting board.
- Here’s my beloved Dutch oven pictured above. The black is so elegant!
- Mince the garlic with a garlic press for no sticky fingers.
Substitutions and variations
- If you happen to have leftover Thanksgiving Turkey or rotisserie chicken that needs using up, you can use it instead of the ground turkey. I would add it towards the end of cooking time just to warm through.
- Use kale or Swiss chard instead of spinach if that’s what you’ve got in your fridge.
- The lemon juice can be omitted or doubled/tripled depending on how much lemon flavor you want in the soup.
What to serve with ground turkey soup
- I love a big slice of fresh crusty bread to round it out. Cheesy Garlic Bread? Why not!
- A salad works too. Pair your favorite salad greens with my Creamy Balsamic Dressing, this Easy Lemon Tahini Dressing, or my Creamy Pesto Dressing to change it up. I also recommend my basic Easy Cucumber Tomato Avocado Salad.
Leftovers and storage
- Store any leftovers for 3-4 days in the fridge in a covered container.
- Reheat on the stove in a saucepan. Give it a splash of extra broth if needed.
- If you’re freezing the bulk of this recipe (or making it a day or two ahead), I suggest adding the pasta in after you’ve thawed it/when you’re reheating it. The leftovers really soak up the broth.
More ground turkey recipes
If you made this ground turkey and pasta soup, leave me a comment below! As always, tag me on Instagram if you’ve made one of my recipes.
Ground Turkey Soup with Vegetables and Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 sticks celery chopped finely
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 (14 ounce) can white beans (cannellini) drained
- 2 medium carrots peeled & sliced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup water
- 1.5 cups uncooked fusilli or rotini pasta
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice or more, to taste
- 2 cups (packed) fresh baby spinach
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the oil, celery, and onion to a soup pot over medium-high heat, and sauté for 4-5 minutes (ok if the onion starts to brown a little).
- Stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning and cook for 30 seconds.
- Add in the ground turkey and cook until it's mostly turned white, breaking it up with your spoon as it cooks (about 4-5 minutes).
- Add in the beans, carrots, broth, and water. Increase the heat to high and bring it to a boil. Cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar and reduce the heat & simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add in the pasta, cover the pot again (lid slightly open), and cook for another 10 minutes. I stir it a couple of times just to ensure the pasta isn't sticking to the bottom.
- Add in the lemon juice (add more if you like it really lemony) and spinach. Cook it for a couple more minutes until the spinach wilts. Season with salt & pepper as needed. This soup soaks up the broth pretty fast, so feel free to add more chicken broth/water as needed (especially when reheating leftovers).
Notes
- Serves 4-6 depending on how much people eat.
- You can use 5 cups chicken broth (vs. 4 cups broth and 1 cup water) if you want. I just do this because the 32 oz/4 cup cartons of broth are handy, and that way you don’t need to open a second one if you don’t want to.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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If I already have the ground turkey cooked, should I cook the noodles separately then add both cooked noodles and turkey at the end?
That sounds like a good idea to me!
This was a family winner all around . Which is a feat . I added a little crushed red pepper .
Wonderful! Thank you!
Perfect for the start of rainy weather! We added extra carrots and beans along with dried hot peppers for some heat.
Looking forward to trying more recipes 🙂
I’m so glad you liked it!! 😀 Appreciate your review. Let me know what else you try.
Could you use rice with this instead of pasta?
Sure, but rice generally takes longer to cook, so you might want to cook it separately then add it in.
Will lean ground turkey work well?
Sure!
Thank you for this delicious and healthy recipe! My 2 year old gobbled it up it too!! He loves pasta and so happy he liked the ground turkey and veggies too! It’s a winner!
That’s awesome!! 😀
Yummy! I added some green beans and parsnip I had as well. Delish on a cold Michigan day.
Excellent!! Glad you liked it!
Wow, this recipe is delicious!!! Very filling and tastes yummy! The lemon really adds a nice touch. Kids and the hubs were fans! Will definitely make again! Thank you for this easy recipe!
You’re very welcome!! Thanks for your kind review!
I never rate recipes but this one is a KEEPER. Whipped together so easily and has such great flavor that I felt like it tasted like I know what I’m doing! Would proudly serve to anyone. Thank you!!
Thank you so much!! It’s definitely appreciated.
This soup is delicious! I added a little extra lemon juice and it really adds to the flavor of the soup. I used 1 cup of Gemelli pasta as had it on hand and it was perfect, although it does soak up the broth so you can thin the soup later as needed.
Thank you!! 😀
Delicious soup! The lemon really tops it off with a beautiful lightness.
Will totally make again.
Glad you liked it!