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This Authentic Italian wedding soup is like a bowl of pure comfort and a hug from an Italian Nonna! Mini meatballs, escarole, carrots, and acini di pepe pasta make this the best anytime soup!
I’m not Italian by heritage but I married into an Italian family. There were things I had to know how to make that were “Nonna approved”. Sauce, meatballs, homemade pasta, and wedding soup.
I grew up on soup that was a meal, not just a precursor or a side dish to the main meal. Soups were hearty, stick to the ribs, and comforting to the soul. Or, as I coined the phrase years ago – “Soup is like a hug from your grandma; warm, comforting and good for the soul!”
What is Italian Wedding Soup?
Traditionally it’s chicken stock that has mini beef and pork meatballs, green veggies (like escarole), Acini de Pepe pasta, parmesan, and egg.
Does it have chicken in it? If you ask me and the Italians in Mr. Fantabulous’ family. No. In my opinion, adding chicken to it is like “Hey, here’s chicken noodle soup with mini meatballs.” But can you add it? Sure, just don’t serve it to me, k? You could poach some chicken breasts in your Instant Pot, shred it and add it after you add in the egg and parmesan.
Wedding soup comes from the Italian phrase “minestera maritata” or “married soup”. It’s the marriage of greens and meat.
What do you need to make Italian Wedding Soup?
- A KILLER recipe! *See below!
- Mini pork and beef meatballs *again, see recipe below)
- Escarole – I’ve seen folks use spinach and kale but I’m sorry, it just doesn’t have the same flavor as what escarole has.
- Carrots, celery, onions
- Acini de Pepe
- Parmesan Egg Drizzle
What is Acini de Pepe and what other pasta could you use?
In Italian, it means “seeds of pepper” or peppercorns. It’s a tiny round-shaped pasta that you tend to boil right in the soup.
If you can’t find it you could use orzo, stellini, ditalini or tubetti pasta. Couscous doesn’t quite work and tends to turn gummy.
I know someone will ask so I might as well put it out there. Yes, you can use cooked rice (I would say wild rice blend would be awesome) but make sure you cook it in stock!.
Let’s talk Meatballs
Meatballs to me are rarely all beef. I find the mixture of beef and pork lends to the most tender meatballs as well as the most flavorful. You will also find that almost all of my meatballs use a panade.
A panade is where you put bread in a bowl and add milk to the bowl. The bread soaks up the milk after about 5-10 minutes and creates a panade. You may have heard it called “milk bread”. To me, it’s critical to help the meatballs retain their tenderness.
In most meatball applications I bake mine (either par-bake and then finish in a sauce or bake fully as I do in my Gobbler Thanksgiving Meatballs).
However, in Italian Wedding soup, they are neither. They are cooked directly in the pot. Since they are so tiny they cook in boiling stock with the escarole and Acini de Pepe.
Could you fry or roast them first? You *could* but honestly, I tried both and didn’t like the flavor they imparted to the soup. These meatballs should be soft and tender not only on the inside but also on the outside.
While we’re talking meatballs, let’s talk shaping. These are TINY. I use my Jenluca Mini Cookie Scoop. It’s only 2 teaspoons full which makes it so much easier to make. Just mix the ingredients, scoop and put on the baking sheet. If need be, plop the scoop into damp hands to make them round.
Nonna-approved tips for The Best Italian Wedding Soup
There are a few things that are crucial to making truly amazing soup. From my decades of making this, this is what I consider tried and true Nonna approved tips!
- Use a panade when making your meatballs. This is crucial to keep them moist!
- Use both pork and beef in your meatball mixture. Could you use ground chicken? You could but you may need to add a tad more panade and maybe a little fat to keep them from getting tough.
- MINI meatballs – you do not make big honkin’ sized meatballs as you would for meatballs and spaghetti
- No shredded chicken. This isn’t Italian Chicken Noodle soup. Okay fine add it if you want
- Escarole – no kale, no spinach but escarole. Spinach doesn’t give it the right flavor and kale is just funky
- Yes, you need to add the egg and parmesan (well okay you can skip if you’re allergic) but it helps give it that unctuous flavor and mouth-feel
- Use tiny pasta. It doesn’t take over the dish but does give some body to the stock.
- Cook the pasta in the pot with the rest of the stuff. If you need more stock, add it. The pasta will plump even more after it’s fully cooked so you may need to add a tad more stock upon reheating. That’s completely fine and normal.
BONUS TIP
I don’t list it here BUT if you have leftover parmesan cheese rinds, SAVE THEM! I keep a baggie of them in my freezer. When I make my soups I’ll toss one of the rinds in for about 15 minutes to help flavor the soup.
In this recipe, I toss the rind in when I put the meatballs in to boil. I remove the rind and discard it when it’s all done and the egg mixture has been stirred in.
How to make Italian Wedding Soup
Making the actual soup is easy. Where I’d say you’ll spend the majority of your time is making the mini meatballs and chopping the vegetables. This is something that would be great to get the kids involved! Have one mix the meatballs and the other scoop/roll them out.
- Mix the meatball mixture, shape into mini meatballs and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan.
- In a dutch oven or stockpot, sauté up your carrots, onions, and celery. Once they are translucent, add the stock and bring to a boil.
- When the veggies are sauteing, chop up the escarole. When the stock is boiling, add in the escarole, mini meatballs, and the Acini de Pepe. Stir to combine.
- While the meatballs, pasta, and escarole are cooking, whisk together the eggs and parmesan cheese.
- When the meatballs are cooked through, slowly stir in the egg parmesan mixture to form thin strands of egg. Cook for about a minute and season to taste.
What pairs well with Italian Wedding Soup?
If it’s just me, this is a meal. Just give me some crusty bread and I’m in heaven! Since this is deemed Italian, I tend to serve this with:
- stuffed shells
- homemade spaghetti
- chicken parmesan
- Panzanella Salad
- Pork Ragout
- Crusty Bread and Tuscan Dipping Oil
There’s not much that I don’t pair with this. This is just such a great recipe to have in your wheelhouse. It freezes beautifully and is one that I honestly have on hand all year long!
Speaking of freezing…
Can you freeze Italian Wedding Soup?
Absolutely! I make a huge pot of this monthly and freeze it in smaller containers. Just ladle into your freezer-safe containers leaving a 1″ gap at the top. Once cooled completely, place the lid and put it in the freezer.
This makes great dishes to drop off with your family and friends! Just drop off a container of soup (fresh or frozen), a loaf of crusty bread and reheating instructions. This would put a smile on anyone’s face!
What I often do is make up extra and give it some of my elderly senior friends that I know don’t often get homecooked meals. I’ll stock up their freezers with this for them.
To reheat it’s best to thaw in the fridge overnight. When to heat it up, just place the soup back into a pot on the stove or in the microwave and heat until heated through.
A Great Time Saver for Italian Wedding Soup
When I know I’m going to make a big pot of this soup I’ll make up a huge batch of meatballs. Yes, this means sitting at the kitchen island and rolling meatballs for an hour or so.
Essentially I’ll double the meatball recipe and save one tray for the pot and one tray I’ll put in the freezer. This is known as flash freezing. Once the meatballs are frozen, I’ll transfer them to a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
This is a great way to get the kids all involved on a snowy afternoon…or when you need help. I tend to just put on a movie, sit at my island and scoop and roll until they are all done.
The next time I’m making this soup, all I have to do is grab my bag of frozen meatballs and toss them into the boiling stock. You may need to add another minute or two of boiling but that’s it! Trust me, it’s a HUGE time saver as those little mini meatballs are a labor of love!
More Soup Recipes that I know you’ll love!
Instant Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Blend Rice Soup (with Crock Pot instructions too!)
This Family Favorite Instant Pot Creamy Chicken and Wild Blend Rice Soup recipe is done in minutes and will quickly become your FAVORITE soup! Ladle up a bowl of this luscious, rich, flavor-packed soup today! It’s the perfect comfort food!
Tuscan White Bean & Sausage Spinach Soup
This Tuscan White Bean & Sausage Spinach Soup will definitely warm you up on a cold day. With the flavors of Tuscany, you can’t help but fall in love with this soup! Serve this with some crusty bread!
Authentic Italian Wedding Soup
- Prep Time: 25
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 45
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Italian
This Authentic Italian wedding soup is like a bowl of pure comfort and a hug from an Italian Nonna! Mini meatballs, escarole, carrots, and acini di pepe pasta make this the best anytime soup!
Ingredients
Soup
- 4–8 cups chopped escarole (1 head)
- 3/4 cup finely chopped white onion
- 1 cup finely chopped carrots (about 3)
- 1 cup finely chopped celery (about 2 stalks)
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 12 cups chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoon grated parmesan plus more for garnish
- 1 cup dry acini de pepe
Meatballs
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1/2 pound ground pork
- 2 slices of torn bread soaked in 1/4 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
Instructions
- In a large bowl add all of the meatball mixture and mix to just combine. Do not overwork the meat as it will get tough. Using a small cookie scoop or a Tablespoon, scoop the meatballs into 1/2” round balls. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet or plate. Repeat to make all of the meatballs. Set aside.
- In a large stock pot over medium heat add the oil. When the oil starts to shimmer add the onion, carrots and celery, stirring. Sautee for 6-8 minutes or until the onions turn translucent. Add the stock and bring to a boil scraping the bottom. Once it starts to boil, add the meatballs, pasta and escarole. Continue to cook for 8-10 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through stirring often.
- In a bowl whisk together the egg and 2 tablespoon of parmesan cheese. Turn heat down on the soup to medium. Start stirring the soup around in a circle. Continue stirring and gradually drizzle in the egg mixture to form thin strands of egg; ~ 1 minute. Taste for seasoning and adjust accordingly.
John says
Really great soup. I made some modifications to suit my tastes (like, in meatballs, using minced shaved onion and grated garlic in place of onion and garlic powders and using more parsley, and cooking pasta separately in very little water then adding pasta and cooking water just before the egg/cheese drip). This is now my go-to recipe for Ital Wedding Soup. Just delicious.
Linda Hooper says
If I could give this TEN STARS I WOULD! I followed this recipe to the tee! Originally I “questioned” escarole because I have never used it before so I was a little leary, but I totally trust Lori and decided to follow her lead, as I have never even eaten this soup before. The only tweaking I did to the recipe was I added fresh garlic in the press instead of minced, because I realized I did not have any I also had some extra fresh basil, so I added it to the meatballs along with the parsley. I had to use Ditalini instead of the Acini de Pepe because I couldn’t find it in my neck of the woods but it worked just fine. Yep, I loved it! HIGHLY RECOMMEND, I put a pic of it on the Facebook Kitchen Whisperer page.
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so so much Linda! I appreciate all the kind words you said. You truly touched my heart! I put so much into creating recipes that are easy and delicious plus maybe push folks out of their comfort zones.
It means the world to me that you trusted me to make this recipe and use stuff you’ve never cooked with before!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Shelby says
I made this and it was phenomenal. Absolutely exceeded my expectations and I’m going to make those meatballs with everything, forever and ever. They are SO GOOD!
The only thing I didn’t do was the egg-parm drizzle because it wasn’t what I was craving, but I will try it next time. Also, I couldn’t find acini di pepe so I used fregola. Thank you so much for this recipe keeper!
TKWAdmin says
That means SO MUCH to me Shelby! It honestly makes my day when folks leave comments and that they found a family favorite for years to come.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Karen B says
OMG!! Made this for supper tonight and it turned out soooooo good! Delicious!
I had to substitute fresh spinach for the escarole since it can’t be found in our small town but it was yummy just the same. Thank you for sharing! Definitely a keeper!
TKWAdmin says
Yeah! So happy you loved it Karen! If you can find escarole, definitely try that. If you love the soup with spinach, wait til you try it with the escarole! It’s AMAZING!
Thank you so much!!!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Licia McClary Trifoglio says
I’m giving 5 stars before making it because your recipe is tremendous! I am Italian and I can say yours looks just delicious. Mr Fantabulous surely must appreciate you! I will be making this weekend as they expect lots of snow here this weekend. I am lucky, the grocery store (Wegmans) sells cleaned and chopped escarole in a bag. Your such a wonderful chef, love your recipes and aways look forward to my in box! Have a lovely day, I’ll send photos. ps: I am also a big fan of using a scoop for my meatballs. I have three sizes depending on what I am making:)
TKWAdmin says
Oh Licia thank you so, SO much! Yes, Mr. Fantabulous is a keeper and truly does appreciate me. That’s one thing I can say about him is that he never takes me for granted.
I truly appreciate all of your kind words. You absolutely made my day! I can’t wait to see your pictures!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Frankie says
This the best Italian Wedding Soup I’ve ever had – even better than my Italian family’s version! Lori you nailed the flavors of old world Italy
TKWAdmin says
WOO HOO Frankie! So happy you loved it! That means so much to me!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
JoeW says
Hey, Ms. Lori.
Another keeper recipe, made last night. Halved it, for 2 people. Will be enough for tonight’s dinner, as well. Given that it’s soup, it will probably taste even better tonight.
For the soup, I used a mixture of beef and chicken stock, because that’s what I had opened.
Had to settle for a spinach/arugula mixture, because Safeway can’t spell exarcole…, escargoyle…, umm… endive.
Used acini, which turned out to be the gating factor for cooking time, rather than the meatballs. The pasta took 10 minutes to become a very firm al dente.
Couple of nits:
1)Under meatball ingredients, I assume that “1 tsp kosher” means “1 tsp kosher salt”. You know, instead of kosher lima beans.
2)Soup ingredients specify “2 Tbl grated Parmesan…”. Instructions (step 3) say: “In a bowl whisk together the egg and 3 Tbl of parmesan cheese”. I used the 2 Tbl amount, and it was just right.
Thanks for another great recipe.
TKWAdmin says
Hi Joe!
LOL escarole! That’s hysterical! Love it! Much appreciated for the clarifications in the ingredients/steps. I just updated them. So happy you loved the recipe! I do hope you can get escarole at another location because honestly, the escarole is all part of the flavor profile.
Yes, I think the soup, like chili, tends to taste better the longer it sets. Hopefully, you’re able to freeze some for later too!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Sophie says
My Italian friend always tells me about the wedding soup his grandma makes. It’s the best thing in the world. Am yet to taste hers but I can veganize and try yours.
TKWAdmin says
Hi Sophie! I would LOVE to see your rendition on a vegan way of this. I’m thinking more of portabella meatballs and vegetable stock would be really well in this. Using the same seasonings I think that would really work. The only difference is I would think you’d have to bake or saute the meatballs instead of boiling them.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
GUNJAN C Dudani says
such a comforting and delicious soup recipe. I love this soup season and try to experiment with a variety of flavors. I am trying this one soon as I have noted it down on my to do list.
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so much Gunjan! Soup soothes the soul!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Charity says
Well now that I know this is Nonna approved, I have to make it! It’s getting pretty chilly out, so a comforting hot soup is always on the menu.
TKWAdmin says
Yes this is definitely Nonna approved. I just picked up more escarole today to make more for the freezer.
Best Kitchen Wishes!