Italian Sausage Orzo Soup
This easy Italian sausage orzo soup recipe has an irresistible creamy tomato broth! It's a favorite with picky eaters and is simple to make with everyday ingredients.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Italian sausage see note
- 1/2 medium onion chopped finely
- 2 sticks celery chopped finely
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 cup uncooked orzo
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 2 cups (packed) fresh baby spinach optional
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the sausage meat to a large soup pot. Sauté over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sausage is browned (about 7-10 min).
- Take the sausage out of the pot and transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Leave about a tablespoon of the fat in the pot (drain any excess).
- Add the onion and celery to the pot and cook for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the flour and garlic and cook for a minute, stirring constantly.
- Slowly add the chicken broth and stir until the flour has completely dissolved.
- Add the canned tomatoes and oregano to the pot, and also add the sausage back in. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a gentle boil.
- Once it's gently boiling, add the cream and orzo. Reduce the heat as needed and simmer for about 12 minutes or until the orzo is tender, stirring fairly often so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in the spinach and season with salt & pepper as needed.
Notes
- The orzo will soak up the liquid the longer it sits! If you're planning on having most of this as leftovers, I recommend cooking the orzo separately and adding it when reheating. See more storage/leftovers tips in the blog post.
- For the sausages, anything around the 16 ounce/1 pound ballpark is fine - it doesn't need to be exact. You can either buy ground sausage meat or, if using whole sausages, take the meat out of the casings.
- Do not sub the cream for anything lower fat - it's likely to curdle due to the acidity of the tomatoes and the high heat this soup is cooked at.
Nutrition
Calories: 541kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 1355mg | Potassium: 678mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1742IU | Vitamin C: 19mg | Calcium: 116mg | Iron: 3mg