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This Tortellini Soup is filled with cheese tortellini and vegetables in a flavorful broth. It’s so easy to make and perfect for a weeknight dinner. 

Tortellini soup with kale in red Dutch oven pot.

If you’re looking for an easy, healthy, comforting dinner recipe, this tortellini soup checks all the boxes. It’s warming and hearty, filled with tender cheese tortellini and veggies. As written, this soup is vegetarian, but you can easily add some sausage or chicken for added protein. Out of all of the soup recipes I’ve shared, this tortellini soup is one of the easiest. While it simmers on the stove, throw together a quick green salad and enjoy!

Why You’ll Love this Tortellini Soup Recipe

  • Quick & Easy: The active prep time for this recipe is about 15 minutes, and start to finish you can have steaming bowls of tortellini soup on your table in just 40 minutes.
  • Adaptable: This basic recipe can be modified to use up what you have on hand. Switch up the veggies, add spinach instead of kale, keep it vegetarian or add meat. See the section called recipe variations below for some ideas!
  • Delicious Leftovers: If you happen to have leftovers, they are wonderful reheated for lunch the next day.

Ingredients You’ll Need

This recipe is simple and you’ll love the short ingredient list.

Ingredients for tortellini soup recipe.

  • Olive Oil: For sautéing the veggies.
  • Onion & Carrots: Onion adds flavor and the carrots are an easy way to add vegetables to the soup. Feel free to add additional vegetables that you have on hand, such as celery, zucchini, green beans or frozen peas.
  • Garlic: You can’t beat the flavor of fresh garlic!
  • Vegetable Broth: Use a low sodium broth so that you can better control the amount of salt in the soup. Low sodium chicken broth can be substituted for the vegetable broth but the soup will no longer be vegetarian.
  • Diced Tomatoes: Canned diced tomatoes add depth of flavor. I tested this recipe with fire roasted diced tomatoes and we preferred the milder flavor of the soup made with regular diced tomatoes.
  • Italian Seasoning, Salt & Pepper: To season the soup. Italian seasonings enhance the Italian flavor profile of this tortellini soup recipe.
  • Cheese Tortellini: I used fresh cheese tortellini from our grocery store’s refrigerated section. 
  • Kale: The kale cooks down and softens in the soup. It adds nutrition and a beautiful pop of green color. Before chopping the kale, remove any tough stems from the leaves.

We also like to have some grated Parmesan cheese on hand for serving. It makes the soup even more flavorful! A bit of chopped fresh basil is delicious, too.

How to Make Tortellini Soup

Here’s an overview of the steps to making the best tortellini soup. Find the full recipe with ingredient amounts and instructions in the recipe card below.

  1. Sauté the onion and carrots in olive oil until softened. Sautéed carrots, onions and garlic in pot with wooden spoon.
  2. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
  3. Stir in the broth, diced tomatoes and seasonings. Tomatoes and seasonings added to pot.
  4. Simmer the soup, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until the carrots are almost tender.
  5. Stir in the tortellini, cover the pot, and cook according to the package directions. Be careful to not overcook the tortellini to keep them from getting mushy or falling apart.
  6. When the tortellini have about 1 minute of cook time left, stir in the chopped kale. Wooden spoon in pot of soup after adding tortellini and kale.
  7. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Then sprinkle on some grated Parmesan and serve!

Bowl of tortellini soup with parmesan and spoon.

Recipe Variations

Change up the flavors with these variations on this easy tortellini soup recipe.

  • Chicken Tortellini Soup: Follow this Chicken Noodle Soup recipe and substitute tortellini for the egg noodles.
  • Sausage Tortellini Soup: Before sautéing the onion and carrots, brown 1 pound of Italian sausage, crumbling it as it cooks (remove the sausage from the casings before adding it to the pot). Once the sausage is cooked through, add the carrots and onions to the pot and continue with the recipe as written.
  • Creamy Tortellini Soup: When you add the kale, also slowly stir in 1/2 cup heavy cream.
  • Spinach Tortellini Soup: Substitute chopped fresh spinach for the kale.

Serving Suggestions

Bread and salad are perfect for serving alongside steaming bowls of tortellini soup.

  • These Garlic Knots are garlicky, chewy deliciousness. Want even easier? This Garlic Bread never disappoints.
  • We’ll never say no to homemade Dinner Rolls.
  • Or slice up a loaf of crusty bread, such as sourdough.
  • Toss together a big Italian Salad to round out the meal.

Bowl of tortellini soup topped with parmesan.

More Easy Soup Recipes

Try one of these cozy soup recipes next!

When it Comes to Tortellini Recipes, this Tortellini Soup is a Winner

One pot, 40 minutes start to finish, hearty, healthy and satisfying. Grab your soup bowls and spoons and get cozy with this easy tortellini soup recipe!

Tortellini soup in a red dutch oven pot.

Tortellini Soup

Servings: 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
An easy recipe for Tortellini Soup that's perfect for dinner any night of the week. As written, this recipe is vegetarian, filled with veggies, kale and cheese tortellini. See the notes section below for recipe variations with sausage, chicken or cream.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup chopped yellow onion
  • 3 medium carrots, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 5 cups low sodium vegetable broth, or chicken broth
  • 15 ounces canned diced tomatoes
  • 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 9-10 ounces fresh cheese tortellini
  • 4 cups loosely packed chopped fresh kale, or chopped fresh spinach
  • grated Parmesan cheese, optional, for serving

Instructions
 

  • Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring often, until softened, 3-4 minutes.
  • Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.
  • Add the broth, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Stir.
  • Bring the soup to a boil. Then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover the pot, and simmer the soup for 15 minutes, or until the carrots are almost tender.
  • Stir in the tortellini, cover, and cook according to package directions. When the tortellini have about 1 minute of cook time left, stir in the chopped kale.
  • Serve soup with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Notes

  • Chicken Tortellini Soup: Follow this Chicken Noodle Soup recipe and substitute tortellini for the egg noodles.
  • Sausage Tortellini Soup: Before sautéing the onion and carrots, brown 1 pound of Italian sausage, crumbling it as it cooks (remove the sausage from the casings before adding it to the pot). Once the sausage is cooked through, add the carrots and onions to the pot and continue with the recipe as written.
  • Creamy Tortellini Soup: When you add the kale, also slowly stir in 1/2 cup heavy cream.
Calories: 217kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 16mg, Sodium: 1309mg, Potassium: 439mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 8g, Vitamin A: 10067IU, Vitamin C: 53mg, Calcium: 223mg, Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is an estimate.
Cuisine: Italian
Course: Main Course, Soup
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