Sausage Tortellini Soup
This creamy sausage tortellini soup is a 30 minute meal that’s easy to make with sausage, kale, simple seasonings, broth, and cream!
Be sure to serve this with a side of Garlic Bread with Cheese or Biscuits!

Sausage Tortellini Soup
Wait until you taste this soup. This is one you will undoubtedly add to your favorite list of soup recipes, especially because it’s a 30-minute meal that’s got vegetables, protein, and pasta all in one bowl!
You may scratch your head when you see that I’ve got hot sauce and mustard powder on the ingredients list, but trust me. They enhance the other flavors in the recipe and add a very subtle touch that creates a great base for this soup. Once you try it, you’ll see what I mean!
Check out my PRO tips below on how to add even more flavor to this soup, and what you can use if you don’t have kale on hand!
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Cook the sausage, onions, and garlic. Add flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add basil, oregano, hot sauce, mustard powder, and pepper. Stir to combine.
Add chicken broth and heavy cream. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.

Add kale and tortellini. Cook 3-5 minutes. Taste and add salt if desired. Transfer to serving bowls and add a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Pro Tips
- For even more flavor, add the rind from a block of Parmesan or Romano cheese when you add the broth and let it simmer and flavor the soup. If any remains at the end of cooking, it can be discarded. Salt will likely not need to be added if you do this.
- 2-3 cups of Spinach can be used instead of kale, stir it in once the tortellini is cooked and let it wilt, about 30 seconds. If you use frozen spinach, let it thaw and pat it dry prior to adding it.
- I use RANA refrigerated cheese-filled tortellini for this recipe. I also use Texas Pete hot sauce or Frank’s Hot Sauce.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 51!
- For a similar recipe with a twist, try my Sausage Gnocchi Soup! And be sure to try my Marry Me Chicken Soup as well- it also has tortellini!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for 3+ months.
- Note that the tortellini will continue to absorb broth during storage. I recommend boiling the tortellini separately and add it directly to serving bowls if you plan on having leftovers.
- Be sure to try my chicken tortellini soup recipe next!
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 4 quart Soup Pot: The perfect size for this recipe.
- Spice Rack– This is the one I have, it’s a snap to measure out your seasonings quickly and easily. (Big time saver.)
- Kitchen Scale: In case you need to weigh the sausage. (I use this all the time.)
- Measuring Spoons– To measure out the seasonings.
- Pinch Bowls– I measure out my seasonings ahead of time and add them to these small bowls so they’re ready to go when it’s time to add them.
- 16 oz. storage containers – I use these to store/freeze my soups. They have 8 oz. sizes as well. They’re stackable, leak proof, and dishwasher/microwave safe.
Try These Next
- BEST Clam Chowder
- Tomato Basil Pasta
- Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup
- Pasta Primavera
- Meatball Soup
- Marry Me Chicken Pasta
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Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Sausage Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage, hot or mild
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tablespoons flour
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1 pinch cayenne, optional
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 5 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups kale, chopped
- 2 cups tortellini, just under 10 oz. (refrigerated or frozen)
- Salt/ to taste
Instructions
- Note: The mustard powder and hot sauce are so subtle in this soup but help enhance the other flavors, so although you may be hesitant to add them, I highly recommend it!
- Remove the casings from the sausage if you purchased links. Cook and crumble the sausage and diced onions over medium-high heat until the onions are softened and the sausage is cooked through, 8-10 minutes. Drain grease. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes to remove the raw flour taste.
- Add basil, oregano, cayenne, hot sauce, mustard powder, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine.
- Add the chicken broth and use a silicone spatula to “clean” the bottom of the pot. Slowly stir in the heavy cream. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.
- Add the kale and tortellini and simmer for 3-5 minutes. (If your tortellini needs longer cooking time, add the tortellini first, then the kale during the last 5 minutes.)
- Taste the soup and add salt if desired. Start with ¼ tsp and add more after that if needed.
- Transfer to serving bowls and serve! (This is great with Garlic Bread with Cheese!)
Notes
- I use RANA refrigerated cheese-filled tortellini for this recipe. I also use Texas Pete hot sauce or Frank's Hot Sauce.
- For even more flavor, add the rind from a block of Parmesan or Romano cheese when you add the broth and let it simmer and flavor the soup. If any remains at the end of cooking, it can be discarded. Salt will likely not need to be added if you do this.
- 2-3 cups of Spinach can be used instead of kale, stir it in once the tortellini is cooked and let it wilt, about 30 seconds.
- This recipe is in The Cozy Cookbook on page 51!
- For a similar recipe with a twist, try my Sausage Gnocchi Soup! And be sure to try my Marry Me Chicken Soup as well- it also has tortellini!
Crock Pot Method:
- Brown the sausage/onions on the stove top and add the flour as outlined in steps 2 + 3.
- Transfer everything except for the cream, tortellini, and spinach to the slow cooker.
- Cook it on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 6-7.
- Stir in the kale toward the end and let that heat up for 10-15 minutes.
- Turn heat off. Temper the cream in the microwave for 45 seconds and stir it in slowly>
- Add cooked tortellini to serving bowls and ladle soup on top!
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for 3+ months.
- Note that the tortellini will continue to absorb broth during storage. I recommend boiling the tortellini separately and add it directly to serving bowls if you plan on having leftovers.
- Be sure to try my chicken tortellini soup recipe next!
Nutritional information an estimate and is per serving. Each serving is 1 cup, and this recipe makes approximately 10 cups.
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Took this soup to a church function and it was the only soup that was gone at the end of the night.
Delicious addition to our recipe book.
Nice work Elizabeth, sounds like it was a huge success! Thanks for the review!❤️
You must have quiet a heat tolerance! I added at most half the recommended “hot” spices just because I was worried about the heat, I don’t like a ton of it. It was still a bit spicy! We loved the soup and still a great recipe, but if you don’t like much heat I would put much smaller amounts of the spices or not put all of them in!
Hi Camryn! The only spices that have heat is a pinch of cayenne, (which is noted as being optional), and a pinch of red pepper flakes. It may have been your sausage, it wasn’t the seasonings, you can’t halve a pinch. ☺️
Made this soup for the first time tonight. Followed the recipe as written. My husband and I loved it. So easy and so much flavor. Definitely will be making again. My husband made homemade foccacia with rosemary, parmesan cheese, garlic and a few olives as toppings to go with the soup.
I’m so glad that you and your husband loved the recipe Hope!! Sounds like an amazing toppings as well, I love that! Thank you so much for sharing and for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! 🙂 -Stephanie
Soup is delicious, can you freeze it we are a family of 2
So happy that you love the soup Sylvia! Here is the storage information from the blog post: “This soup does freeze well but I recommend boiling tortellini separately so that it doesn’t absorb too much broth or get overly soft.”
Delicious! I added some Parmesan cheese for added flavor! This recipe is a keeper!
I’m so happy this one is a keeper! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!❤️
This recipe is amazing and I make it all the time! It’s definitely a favorite in our house and it never fails to make us feel cozy and cared for. Thanks so much for sharing this awesome dish!
You’re very welcome! I’m so happy you all are enjoying this one, it’s one of my favorite soups! Thanks so much for the review!❤️
This was AMAZING!!!
Yayyy! I’m so happy to hear that Misha, thanks so much for the review!💖
I completely misread the ingredient list and purchased uncooked barilla 3 cheese tortellini instead of refrigerated or frozen. If I prepare the pasta per the directions on the bags in conjunction with your recipe, do you think I’ll be okay? 🤦🏻♀️😅 Excited to try it, regardless!!
Hi Canyon! Absolutely! YES- it’ll still be great! Prepare according to the package as you said and enjoy!
Hi! I’m wanting to make a bigger batch of this! If I’m using 2 lbs of sausage would I up the amount of flour?
Hi Teri! If you’re also increasing the amount of broth, I would increase the flour and other ingredients as well. If you’re only doubling the sausage, then no need 🙂
This soup is delicious! I added all the ingredients but went light on the cayenne pepper and pepper flakes because I don’t like things too hot. The mix of flavors comes out so perfect. I am so glad I came across this recipe.
I’m so happy that you loved it!! Thank you so much for the review!! 🙂