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This easy chicken tortellini soup recipe is a simple meal that has plenty of comforting cheese tortellini and juicy shredded chicken in an irresistible broth! It’s ready in just 40 minutes.
Want to make this soup in your Instant Pot? Try my Instant Pot Chicken Tortellini Soup!
Why you’ll love it
One of the most underrated things to eat is healthier comfort food. In this soup you’ve got cheesy pasta, a simple yet unbelievably flavorful broth, and it’s filling without being calorie dense. I love a comforting Chicken Noodle Soup, but something about using pillowy cheese tortellini instead of noodles makes it next-level cozy.
This chicken soup with tortellini is also super simple to make with everyday ingredients, which is good news for a cold day or when someone in your family is feeling a little under the weather! No fuss here. Just a piping hot bowl of soup fast. Total bliss.
What you’ll need
- Olive oil – for sautéing the aromatics
- Onion, celery, carrots, garlic – the tasty base for many soups
- Italian seasoning – it’s a delicious and versatile blend of dried herbs that comes in one convenient jar
- Chicken broth – another layer of flavor
- Chicken – this soup is a great way to make use of leftover chicken, or you can buy a rotisserie chicken for it like I did
- Tortellini – I used three cheese tortellini for this recipe from the refrigerated section of the grocery store. Choose any cheese variety, and the quantity is pretty flexible!
- Parsley – a little chopped Italian parsley at the end adds some freshness and contrast to this hearty soup
Pro tip
Measuring out 8 cups of chicken broth is easy. All you need is to use two 32 oz cartons!
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- I use this Staub Dutch oven for this soup.
- Chop up the aromatics with a quality chef’s knife on a sturdy cutting board.
- Mince the garlic with one squeeze of a garlic press. No peeling needed!
How to make chicken tortellini soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
Add olive oil to a large pot or Dutch oven and sauté the onion until softened. Stir in the celery, carrots, garlic, and Italian seasoning. Cook for a few more minutes.
Add in the chicken broth, bring to a boil, and then simmer until the veggies are tender. Stir in the cooked chicken and tortellini. Continue cooking until the pasta is cooked through. Season with salt & pepper and dig in!
Crockpot method
- You can absolutely make this in your slow cooker! Instead of using the pre-cooked chicken, I would suggest 3-4 raw chicken breasts or 6 chicken thighs.
- Cook it on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours, and test to make sure the chicken is cooked through and shreds easily.
- Then simply add the tortellini in with about 30 minutes to go.
Substitutions and variations
- Want to make it lemony? Try stirring in 1 tbsp lemon juice or more to taste.
- You can use meat-stuffed tortellini if you prefer. Just be sure to read the package directions carefully for the cook time to ensure they’re cooked through in the soup.
- Easily add in a handful or two of fresh baby spinach or any other veggies you’d like. Frozen corn would be a great option to toss in near the end of the cooking time.
- Uncooked chicken breasts or thighs will work. Just add them in during step 3, and then cook for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through before adding the tortellini.
- You can sub for frozen or dried tortellini, but keep in mind that it will take longer to cook than the refrigerated kind.
What to serve with this soup
- I love it all on its own as the star with a big slice of crusty bread. Garlic Bread works too!
- For more of a complete meal, try pairing it with a side salad that has Homemade Caesar Dressing or this Creamy Balsamic Dressing.
Leftovers and storage
- You can keep the soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- The tortellini will soak up the broth over time. To avoid this, just add it separately as needed when you’re reheating it. You can either take it out of the soup and store it in a separate container, or simply cook more pasta when you’re ready to eat leftovers. It’ll cook right in the broth as you warm it up.
- You can freeze the broth portion, but cooked pasta freezes badly and changes the texture. Again, add in the tortellini when reheating for best results!
If you made this easy tortellini soup, talk to me in the comments below! You can also tag me on Instagram if you made this or any S&L recipe.
Easy Chicken Tortellini Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 3 sticks celery finely chopped
- 3 large carrots peeled & chopped or sliced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 8 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups shredded cooked/rotisserie chicken (or more, to taste)
- 2 (9 ounce) packages refrigerated cheese tortellini
- Salt & pepper to taste
- Chopped parsley to taste
Instructions
- Add the olive oil and onion to a large soup pot. Sauté over medium-high heat for 5-7 minutes (it's ok if onion lightly browns).
- Add the celery, carrots, garlic, and Italian seasoning to the pot. Give it a good stir and continue cooking for a few more minutes.
- Add the chicken broth to the pot. Increase the heat to high, and once it starts to boil, reduce the heat to a rapid simmer and let it cook for 10 minutes or until the veggies have softened to your liking.
- Add the chicken and tortellini to the pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and let the soup cook for a few more minutes until the tortellini is cooked. If it starts to boil furiously, you may need to turn the heat down again.
- Season with salt & pepper as needed and garnish with the chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
Notes
- The tortellini will soak up the broth the longer it sits, so this soup is best eaten right away. The leftovers are still tasty, but you may need to add more water or chicken broth. If you’re planning on having lots of leftovers, don’t add all the tortellini to the soup – keep the broth separate and add uncooked tortellini to the soup as needed when reheating it (it cooks fast).
- See my tips within the blog post if you want to make this soup in your slow cooker. Or check out the Instant Pot version.
- Serves 4-6 depending on portion size/what it’s served with.
- Find this recipe in chapter 5 of the Salt & Lavender: Everyday Essentials cookbook as well.
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 April 5, 2018. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
Wondering if you used fresh or frozen tortellini? I’m hoping frozen, because that’s what I have.
I use the fresh/refrigerated kind. Honestly, frozen wouldn’t make any difference… it would thaw very quickly so you have nothing to worry about! 🙂
Super easy! And every one in the family loved it!
Wonderful! Thanks for letting me know, Samantha!
Great recipie! Does anyone know what the calories are for a serving???
I would also like to know
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Its so easy to make my kids love it
Excellent! Thanks for letting me know.
I made it tonight it was Amazing!
Wonderful! So glad to hear it! 🙂
I’ve made this twice in the last month and thumbs up both times from the guests! Delish!
That’s awesome! Thank you ❤️
I just made it ..perfect for winter nights..sooo delicious..Mmmmmmm mmmm Goood!!!!
That’s awesome!! ❤️
Hi Natasha! I’m Vicky from NJ and I Love your recipes! Last week we made your delicious sesame, ginger shrimp and the chicken Marsala. I’m going to make your chicken tortellini soup tonight, looks amazing! It’s been freezing here, so it’s the perfect meal for a cold night. Thank you!
Hi Vicky! Wonderful – so happy you liked those recipes. Stay warm! 🙂
Hi, am Robbie from Devon in the UK; lovin’ your recipes.
(Am searching for ideas of what to do with a beautiful cooked whole chicken w. lemon/thyme.)
Can you please tell me what ‘half and half’ is, coz I’ve never heard of it before…
Scusi me if it’s something ridiculously basic.. just curious!
All the best
Robbie B
I’m so glad you like my recipes, Robbie! Not a silly question at all – half and half is a mix of half cream and half milk. It’s a Canadian/American thing. My blogger friend in the UK suggests using single cream instead. 🙂 Hope this helps!