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This creamy sausage soup recipe is simple, comforting, and loaded with flavorful Italian sausage and potatoes. It’s a ridiculously cozy soup that’s ready in under an hour!
You may also like my Cheesy Sausage Potato Soup or Italian Sausage Mushroom Pasta next.
Why you’ll love it
This Italian sausage and potato soup is one of those warm you to your core kind of soups that’s rich, hearty and flavorful, and a real treat. The crumbled Italian sausage makes every single bite special. I like to make this soup on the coldest of winter days to perk me up.
It comes together easily with everyday ingredients. There’s nothing fancy in this potato and sausage soup, just a whole lot to love! Everyday ingredients like garlic and half-and-half shine. It’s potato soup but upgraded, and you can feel good knowing what’s in it.
What you’ll need
- Italian sausage – use mild or hot sausage to kick it up a notch
- Butter and olive oil – a classic combo for frying up the aromatics
- Onion, celery, and garlic – this trio is the flavorful base for our soup
- Flour – it thickens up the broth
- Chicken broth – gives depth of flavor to the soup broth
- Half-and-half – it’s half whole milk, half heavy cream and gives this soup its luxurious creamy quality
- Worcestershire sauce – my secret ingredient to give the soup an additional savory boost. You can’t taste it itself in the soup, don’t worry! I wouldn’t recommend leaving it out.
- Crushed red pepper flakes – optional, but it gives a little warmth rather than making it spicy
- Potatoes – we’re using Russet potatoes. They’re my go-to variety for soups.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- This is the Dutch oven I use most often for soups.
- A garlic press makes it effortless to mince garlic, and I store the rest of the cloves in this handy garlic keeper.
- Here’s the wire whisk I use.
How to make creamy sausage soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Crumble the sausage into a soup pot and cook it until it’s browned, then transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Add in the butter, then sauté the chopped onion and celery. Stir in the garlic and flour.
Whisk in the broth until the flour has dissolved. Add in the half-and-half, Worcestershire sauce, potatoes, red pepper flakes, and sausage. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are tender. Season with salt & pepper.
Substitutions and variations
- You can use ground sausage meat if that’s easiest for you. I just buy a pack of Italian sausages and take the meat out of the casings.
- I used Russet potatoes since they are great for soups. They get nice and soft and fall apart, but another variety would be fine.
- The crushed red pepper flakes don’t make the soup particularly spicy, so feel free to add more in as needed or leave them out altogether. Use hot Italian sausage if you want even more heat.
What to serve with this soup
- This soup is quite filling, but feel free to go all out and serve it with a slice of Garlic Bread! I would. Of course, a dinner roll or slice of bread works too. Try sourdough.
- For a lighter option, a side salad would pair well. Try one with my homemade Caesar, Ranch, or Balsamic dressing.
Leftovers and storage
- This soup will last in the fridge for 3-4 days in a covered container.
- Since it’s got quite a bit of dairy, it probably won’t freeze well, so I wouldn’t recommend it as the texture can change.
- Reheat over a low heat on the stove. You may need to add a little more chicken broth to leftovers if they get too thick.
If you made this creamy sausage potato soup, please leave a star rating and review in the comments below! You can also tag me on Instagram with your S&L creations.
Creamy Italian Sausage Soup
Ingredients
- 16 ounces Italian sausage
- 1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
- 1/2 medium onion chopped small
- 2 sticks celery chopped small
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 6 tablespoons flour
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes optional
- 1 pound Russet potatoes peeled & diced small
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the sausage meat to a soup pot. Over medium-high heat, cook until browned (about 10 minutes), and break it up with your spoon as it cooks. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Leave the fat in the pot, but if it's more than about a tablespoon, drain some of it out.
- Add the butter to the pot and once it's melted, add the onion and celery and sauté for 4-5 minutes. Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.
- Stir in the garlic and flour. Cook for about 2 minutes, breaking it up with your spoon/stirring it as you go along. This step cooks the raw flour flavor out.
- Slowly whisk in the chicken broth until all the flour has dissolved and there's no lumps.
- Stir in the half-and-half, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper flakes, potatoes, and add the sausage meat back to the pot. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat so it's bubbling but not boiling like crazy (medium-low heat works with my cast iron pot and gas stove). Cover the pot with the lid slightly open.
- Let the soup simmer for about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender and the soup has thickened up to your liking. I like to stir it a few times to ensure nothing is sticking and that the stove's temperature is still correct.
- Season with salt & pepper if needed.
Notes
- Serves 4-6 depending on how much people eat.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on September 18, 2021. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
Delicious and cozy for a rainy evening. I wondered if the soup might feel overly rich or heavy. It was not. Everyone enjoyed! Thank you for sharing.
Wonderful!! So glad it was a hit, Michelle!
I had some Italian sausage to use and this was perfect! But I didn’t have potatoes, so I substituted penne pasta. Just cut the liquids in half and added the noodles instead! I also used heavy cream instead of half. So so SO good!
I’m so glad it worked out! Thanks, Katy!
Easy to make with pantry/freezer staples. My husband loved this stew. Perfect for these long midwest cold winters. TY!
You’re very welcome, Cynthia! 😀
My gosh! This soup was so delicious! I made exactly the same recipe except I used heavy cream bcuz I don’t have half & half. I used hot Italian sausage. My husband goes 👍🏻! Definitely will make again.
Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Stay warm!
Kathi
Thank you so much, Kathi!! I’m thrilled you enjoyed it. Appreciate your review. 🙂
This was delicious. I tried to follow the recipe exactly, except I was forced to make three tweaks. While at the store, my husband insisted we had onions at home and pointed out that me buying onions every time I’m at the store is why we always have too many onions at home. Anyway, we didn’t have any onions. I did happen to have a couple of shallots so I used them instead. I’m also very lazy and didn’t feel like peeling potatos so I used baby Yukons instead of russet. Lastly, I already had spicy Italian sausage at home from a recipe I ended up not making, so I used that instead of sweet Italian and omitted the red pepper. I’m torn now because I will be making this soup on frequent repeat and I loved the hot Italian sausage. But maybe sweet is better? Maybe I should make two batches next time and try both ways. Thank you Natasha for this new thing to stress over lol. Joking aside. Truly a delicious soup and I am so glad I stumbled onto my our blog!
Hi Amaya!! I’m so glad you found my blog and gave this soup a try haha. 😀 You know what’s funny? I made this soup last night, and I used hot Italian sausage. Either is totally fine… if you prefer spicy then I’d just stick with that.
This is a great cold weather soup. My 95 year old parents love this. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Awww I love that!! 😀 I just finished making it myself too! Haha.
Family favorite!
Thanks, Debbie!! 😀
This was easy to make and so so good!!
Thank you!!
I made this last night and it was delicious! I changed a few things. I substituted half of the broth with beer and let the beer cook down before adding the half and half. I also added a little liquid smoke and cheddar cheese to make it a Sausage Beer Cheese soup!
Sounds good to me!!
Could I use frozen diced potatoes?
Sure!