My Italian Wedding Soup combines browned mini meatballs, orzo, and spinach in a savory broth. Frying the meatballs first and simmering the soup with a Parmesan rind builds extra flavor, making this one of our family's favorite soups. It's become a favorite online, too, with over 20 million views across platforms!
When I first shared this recipe, people gave me a LOT of feedback, good and bad. When I really looked through it, what I found was that a lot of people made Italian wedding soup just like me!
But a lot of people felt it wasn't an Italian dish... which it isn't. It's an Italian-American dish which tends to be very different than something that's classically Italian.
If you love Italian soup, you HAVE to give these a try: Pasta Fagioli with Spinach, EASY Chicken Farro Soup, Classic Italian Minestrone, or White Bean Lentil Soup.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Extra flavor from browned meatballs. Frying the meatballs creates browned bits on the bottom of the pot that add savory flavor to the broth.
- Easy ingredient swaps. Use orzo or acini di pepe, and choose spinach or escarole depending on what you have available.
- A flavorful broth with simple ingredients. A Parmesan rind adds depth, while seasoning the meatballs and soup separately builds flavor throughout.
- A complete family meal in about an hour. With meatballs, pasta, and vegetables in every bowl, this soup is hearty enough for dinner.
Why Is It Called Italian Wedding Soup?
The name comes from minestra maritata, meaning "married soup," and refers to the way the meat and greens come together. My version is the Italian-American wedding soup many of us know and love, with little meatballs, pasta, and leafy greens in a savory broth.
It's similar to a Zuppa Toscana with the meat and vegetables combined in the soup!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Meatballs. My mom likes to use ground pork and ground beef for her meatballs. My mother-in-law has always used just ground beef. I lean toward only ground beef even when I'm making Classic Italian Fried Meatballs, because I am usually only making a pound of meatballs. Substitute our Italian-Style Chicken Meatballs if you prefer chicken.
- Pasta. I use Orzo in my Italian Wedding Soup. I love orzo because it doesn't just immediately suck up all of the liquid. You can substitute pastina or acini di pepe.
- Parmigiano Rind. I like to add a Parmigiano rind to my soup. It's an additional salty flavor that will help with the depth of flavor in the soup.
- Vegetables. Italian wedding soup is classically a melding of meats and greens. For our vegetables, we use carrots, celery, and onion.
- Leafy green. I use spinach or escarole. Escarole is more classically Italian.
*Please see the recipe card below for more information on the ingredients
Watch Me Make It!
How to Make Italian Wedding Soup
Step 1: Combine ground beef, egg, Parmigiano, parsley, breadcrumbs, milk, garlic powder, salt, and pepper for the meatballs.
Step 2: Roll the mixture into quarter-sized meatballs. Making the little meatballs can be a pain without a little scooper. If you have one, you can make them all the same size.
Step 3: Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. Sear the meatballs for about 30-45 seconds on each side. They will sear quickly because they're so small. Transfer to a plate. They will finish cooking in the soup.
Step 4: Reduce the heat to medium and drain the oil, leaving behind 1 tbsp. Stir in the onions, carrots, and celery and sauté until the vegetables begin to soften, 6-8 minutes. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
Testing Tip: I've tested this recipe over 15 times with and without searing the meatballs. Searing is by far better than traditional boiling of the meatballs because it adds flavor directly to the pot.
Step 5: Pour in the chicken broth and add the bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of salt, and a Parmigiano rind. Bring to a boil and then immediately lower to a gentle simmer.
Step 6: Add the meatballs and simmer for 15 minutes. Then stir in the pasta and simmer for an additional 10 minutes until the pasta is al dente. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking
Step 7: Remove from the heat. Add the spinach and cover for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and stir in the spinach.
Finish and serve. Remove the bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then serve hot with freshly grated Parmesan.
Pro-Tips
- Brown the meatballs for extra flavor. I prefer a quick sear before simmering them. It renders some of the fat from the beef and creates browned bits on the bottom of the pot that add savory flavor to the broth. Work in batches, drain off excess fat, and leave those browned bits behind. You're browning the outside-the meatballs finish cooking in the soup.
- Mix gently and roll lightly. Combine the meatball ingredients just until evenly mixed, and avoid packing the meatballs tightly when rolling. This helps keep their texture tender.
- Simmer with a Parmesan rind. Add it with the bay leaves for extra savory, nutty flavor. Taste before adding more salt, especially if your stock is already salted, and remove the rind before serving.
- Cooking pasta in the soup. I choose to cook pasta in the soup because it absorbs the flavor of the soup and adds a little bit of starch to the soup that gives it a nice glossy texture.
- Plan ahead for leftovers. Orzo keeps absorbing broth as the soup sits. If you're making a batch for later, cook the pasta separately and add it to individual bowls. Otherwise, keep extra chicken stock handy to loosen the soup when reheating.
Storage and Reheating
Planning for leftovers: Cook the orzo separately and add it to individual bowls before serving. This keeps the pasta from absorbing the broth and becoming overly soft during storage.
Refrigerating: Store for 3-4 days. Keep separately cooked pasta (if you did this) in its own container.
Freezing: Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and cook fresh pasta when ready to serve.
Reheating: Reheat on the stovetop, stirring occasionally, until the soup reaches a rolling boil. If the pasta was stored in the soup, add chicken stock as needed to restore the broth's consistency.
FAQs on Italian Wedding Soup
There's a lot of debate about what's actually in this soup, but basically, as long as it has meatballs, leafy greens, and some pastina, you can call it Italian wedding soup.
So many people think this soup isn't actually Italian. It is definitely Italian, but it has nothing to do with a wedding. The word wedding was loosely translated from the Italian name minestra maritata, which means "married" soup, referring to the marrying of inexpensive meat and leafy greens in the soup!
No, not really. The meatballs are so small that you will dry them out by trying to bake them. While Should you Bake or Fry Meatballs is a perfectly normal question when it comes to larger meatballs, you're better off just cooking the meatballs in the soup if you don't want to fry.
When making meatballs for Italian wedding soup, you may have to adjust your milk and breadcrumbs amounts. If the meatball mixture is feeling a bit dry add 2 more tablespoon of milk. If it feels too wet and sticky, add 2 tablespoon of breadcrumbs.
Favorite Italian-American Classics
Please leave a comment and star rating below in the recipe card! I love to hear what you think of our recipes. Feel free to tag us on Instagram @vindelgiudice.
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Italian Wedding Soup
Equipment
- 1 large pot
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb ground beef
- ¼ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
- ¼ cup milk
- ½ cup bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil, to fry meatballs
Soup
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2.5 qts chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups baby spinach or escarole
- 1 cup orzo
- 1 Parmigiano rind optional
Instructions
- Combine ground beef, egg, Parmigiano, parsley, breadcrumbs, milk, garlic powder, salt, and pepper for the meatballs.
- Roll the mixture into quarter-sized meatballs. Making the little meatballs can be a pain without a little scooper. If you have one, you can make them all the same size.
- Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. Sear the meatballs for about 30-45 seconds on each side. They will sear quickly because they're so small. Transfer to a plate. They will finish cooking in the soup.
- Reduce the heat to medium and drain the oil, leaving behind 1 tbsp. Stir in the onions, carrots, and celery and sauté until the vegetables begin to soften, 6-8 minutes. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Pour in the chicken broth and add the bay leaves, 1 teaspoon of salt, and a Parmigiano rind. Bring to a boil and then immediately lower to a gentle simmer.
- Add the meatballs and simmer for 15 minutes. Then stir in the pasta and simmer for an additional 10 minutes until the pasta is al dente. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking
- Remove from the heat. Add the spinach and cover for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and stir in the spinach.
- Remove the bay leaves and Parmesan rind. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then serve hot with freshly grated Parmesan.
Video
Pro-Tips
- Brown the meatballs for extra flavor. I prefer a quick sear before simmering them. It renders some of the fat from the beef and creates browned bits on the bottom of the pot that add savory flavor to the broth. Work in batches, drain off excess fat, and leave those browned bits behind. You're browning the outside-the meatballs finish cooking in the soup.
- Mix gently and roll lightly. Combine the meatball ingredients just until evenly mixed, and avoid packing the meatballs tightly when rolling. This helps keep their texture tender.
- Simmer with a Parmesan rind. Add it with the bay leaves for extra savory, nutty flavor. Taste before adding more salt, especially if your stock is already salted, and remove the rind before serving.
- Cooking pasta in the soup. I choose to cook pasta in the soup because it absorbs the flavor of the soup and adds a little bit of starch to the soup that gives it a nice glossy texture.
- Plan ahead for leftovers. Orzo keeps absorbing broth as the soup sits. If you're making a batch for later, cook the pasta separately and add it to individual bowls. Otherwise, keep extra chicken stock handy to loosen the soup when reheating.
Luciana A. says
I loved this recipe!!! I'm so grateful I found the recipe on Instagram! I switched the ground beef for ground turkey and it turned out really good. Can't wait to try more recipes. Thanks!
Tracey Stockdale says
Loved this recipe - it will become a go to one over the fall and winter - switched it up to make it gluten free for my daughter and it was still amazing. Still like the og but I know I can make it for her too now
Michelle says
I am of Italian decent as well and grew up on this! We would fight over who had more meatballs!!
Question for you, my grandmother would make crispy bread “croutons”. I believe they were double fried.
Do you have any knowledge of these and how to make them? Sadly, everyone that knew has passed
Vinny DelGiudice says
Hey Michelle, I'm not sure how to make them double fried? I usually bake my croutons with olive oil. You can see them here: Homemade Italian Parmesan Croutons
Emily Zamora says
We make this almost every other week in my household. To save time, I usually use the frozen Italian meatballs from Trader Joe’s and it’s delicious
Vincent DelGiudice says
Love that this is a staple for your family!
Karl says
Made this for our weekly game night. Was absolutely delicious. Searing the meatballs is a little extra work, but it's SO WORTH IT!
Sharon Vicera says
As soon as I saw this reel on Instagram I HAD to make it. So I made it for dinner and WOW it is SO GOOD!! This is definitely a new favorite of our familys! All 3 of my kids love it and will be having it for their school lunch tomorrow 🎉👍🏼👍🏼 I can’t wait to send a pot over to my mom’s house this week! Thank you for this amazing recipe!!
Brenda says
Second time making this, absolutely delicious. I did add an extra cup of chicken broth, the second time, to keep it soupy for lunch the next day and it worked out perfect. Thank you
Darlene says
We just had this for lunch, It was delicious, the only thing I changed I added just 1/2 bag of spinach... I will make this again.
Al Maurer says
Great recipe. I replaced the meatballs with frying a pound of mild Italian sausage patties then cutting into half inch cubes. It makes the recipe easier and faster to make.
Zach G says
I would lower the bread crumb amount next time, felt there was to much. Otherwise amazing!!
Nazema says
Delicious! Everyone loved it. Used kale because that’s all I had.
Vincent DelGiudice says
Kale is a great substitution! I use that in Zuppa Toscana!