Best Instant Pot Italian Wedding Soup Recipe
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Instant Pot Italian Wedding Soup – a tasty marriage of tender mini meatballs, hearty veggies, tiny pasta, and a savory broth. This flavorful soup is family friendly, easy to make, and so nutritious and comforting!
The Best Instant Pot Wedding Soup Recipe
As our summer is winding down, there is one thing I’m looking forward to – soup season! There’s nothing better than a warm and comforting bowl of soup on a cool fall day. Italian Wedding Soup is a longtime favorite of mine, and I’m especially loving this Instant Pot version.
This is an easy recipe, made with juicy meatballs, veggies, and pasta in a flavorful broth. Serve this hearty soup with a nice green salad and crusty bread for a complete meal or make it ahead and reheat individual portions for a quick lunch.
Ingredients
- Ground Turkey – other varieties of ground meat can be used to make the meatballs (see tips below.)
- Almond Flour – I love using almond flour in meatballs instead of bread crumbs. It has a subtle nutty flavor and it makes for very tender meatballs!
- Parmesan Cheese – freshly grated parmesan is the best!
- Egg
- Carrots, celery, and onion (aka Mirepoix) – this trio is a standard base for many soups.
- Minced Garlic
- Chicken Broth – try my Homemade Chicken Stock or use a low sodium store-bought version.
- Seasonings – sea salt, black pepper, and Homemade Italian Seasoning.
- Pasta – for best results, use a tiny pasta like acini di pepe (pastina.)
- Kale – chopped kale is super hearty and adds great nutritional value to this soup. Other leafy greens such as Spinach can also be used.
Swaps and Variations
- Meatball Ingredients – for the ground turkey, feel free to substitute ground chicken, ground beef, or a combination of 50% ground beef/turkey/chicken and 50% ground pork or Italian sausage.
- Almond flour – breadcrumbs can be used instead in making the meatballs.
- Broth – substitute vegetable broth (this homemade veggie broth is very budget friendly!) or a low sodium beef broth (if using ground beef for the meatballs.)
- Pasta – any very small pasta (such as ditalini pasta or orzo pasta) will work in place of the acini di pepe.
- Leafy Greens – any combination of kale and/or baby spinach can be used in the final step.
- Gluten Free version – to keep this soup entirely gluten free, use almond flour for the meatballs and gluten free pasta.
How to Make Italian Wedding Soup in the Instant Pot
Make the Turkey Meatballs
- Combine the ground turkey, almond flour, parmesan cheese, egg, and seasonings in a large mixing bowl. Mix well.
- Roll the mixture into small 1-inch meatballs and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Set aside.
Make the Soup
- Turn your Instant Pot on to the sauté setting. Add oil to the pot and when hot, add the diced carrots, celery, and onion. Cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the garlic and continue to cook for 30 seconds. Turn off sauté function.
- Add the broth, remaining Italian seasoning, and the pasta to the pot. Give it a good stir.
- Drop meatballs into the broth.
- Seal the lid and cook on Manual function (high pressure) for 3 minutes.
- After the cook cycle is complete, let the pot depressurize naturally for 10 minutes, then release remaining pressure.
- Remove the lid and stir in the chopped kale (or spinach.) Place the lid back on the pot for 5 minutes to let the greens cook a bit in the broth.
- Serve immediately, topped with grated parmesan cheese if desired.
Tips for Rolling Meatballs
- Ground turkey tends to be wetter and stickier than ground beef. If you are having trouble rolling meatballs without the meat sticking to your hands, try wetting your hands with water or a light spritz of avocado oil. You may need to do this several times throughout the process of making the meatballs.
- A small meatball scoop or a tablespoon also works well for scooping the meat mixture into uniform sized meatballs.
Can I use frozen meatballs?
Frozen meatballs are a great shortcut in this recipe. Ready-made meatballs save tons of time, but keep in mind that store-bought meatballs will be larger in size. Smaller, bite-sized meatballs are best in this recipe, but either option will work. Another option is to make the meatballs ahead and freeze them.
Can I make Italian Wedding Soup in the crock pot?
Yes, absolutely! To make Italian Wedding Soup in the slow cooker, follow these steps:
- Make meatballs as directed and set aside.
- Add the veggies, broth, and seasoning to the slow cooker. Stir well. Cover and Cook on High for 4 hours or Low for 8 hours.
- In the final 30 minutes of cook time, drop the meatballs into the broth and add the pasta. Stir carefully and cover again.
- Stir in the kale (or spinach), cover, and let sit for a few minutes to allow the greens to wilt.
Leftover Soup Storage Instructions
Store cooled leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.
To freeze this soup, pour cooled leftovers into freezer safe containers or even better, use these Souper Cubes for freezing individual servings.
More Instant Pot Soup Recipes
Instant Pot Turkey Sweet Potato Chili
Instant Pot Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Instant Pot Italian Wedding Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
- 3 large celery stalks, diced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/3 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons Homemade Italian Seasoning, divided, see recipe below
- 8 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1/2 cup acini di pepe pasta
- 2 cups packed chopped kale leaves
Equipment
Instructions
- Add ground turkey, almond flour, parmesan cheese, egg, salt, pepper, and 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning to a large mixing bowl. Mix with your hands until well combined.
- Roll mixture into small 1-inch sized balls and place on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Set the meatballs aside. (If mixture is very sticky, try spritzing your hands with avocado oil spray to assist in rolling the meatballs.)
- Turn on the Instant Pot saute function and add the olive oil to the pot.
- When the oil is warm, add the carrots, celery, and onion. Cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes, until the veggies begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Turn off the Saute function.
- Add the broth, remaining 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, and pasta to the pot. Stir well.
- Drop the meatballs into the broth. Seal the lid and cook for 3 minutes on Manual function (high pressure.) It will take the pot several minutes to come to pressure before it starts counting the 3 minutes cook time.
- When cycle is complete, allow the pot to depressurize naturally for 10 minutes, then release remaining pressure.
- Remove lid, stir in the chopped kale (or spinach) and add the lid back to the pot. Let sit for 5 minutes to allow the greens to cook in the hot soup.
- Serve topped with additional grated parmesan cheese if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
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Whole30
Vegetarian
Paleo
Keto Friendly
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
