Easy Tortellini Meatball Soup Recipe

This easy meatball tortellini soup recipe is a hearty soup with Italian flavors that takes less than 25 minutes to make. There is no chopping or dicing – and is satisfying as a meal. It’s an easy meatball soup recipe the whole family will love that tastes like it took you hours!

You might also like this recipe for the best Italian wedding soup!

My husband has been away for work so I’ve been taking a cooking vacation. Tonight’s dinner was a bowl of soup and a sandwich. But I wanted to make a quick but flavorful soup that both my son Max and I would like.

I remembered an Italian Vegetable Soup that I made awhile back and how the broth was so good. It tasted like a big bowl of marinara sauce.

I didn’t have much time so I just took what I had in the house and made this easy meatball tortellini soup and boy was it delicious. It was the perfect meal in a bowl type of soup which is great for a busy weeknight dinner.

Recipe ingredients I used.

The basics of this soup can all be bought at your local Aldi. The ingredients I used were frozen vegetables, frozen mini Italian meatballs, dried cheese tortellini, crushed tomatoes, beef broth, fresh garlic, salt, pepper and Italian herbs (oregano, basil, thyme). 

I often have all of these items on hand for quick meals. I use the frozen mixed vegetable in soups like my creamy turkey or taco soup. And while I used frozen vegetables to make this quick and easy, you can use fresh veggies like yellow onion, celery, carrots, corn, peas, green beans, spinach, etc. 

Today I used some mini Italian meatballs that I found at GFS. But when I can’t find them, I use frozen meatballs and cut them into pieces for dishes like this or use them whole for recipes like this meatball sub spaghetti squash.

And the dried tortellini are perfect to have on hand for when I don’t feel like cooking dinner. I just make some brown butter to top them and my family is a bunch are happy campers! You can also use fresh tortellini if you want. 

How to make easy meatball tortellini soup.

This is basically a dump soup. No need for chopping or dicing, just  dumping everything in a big soup pot and cooking your ingredients.

Step 1: Pour beef stock or broth and water into a large soup pot or dutch oven. Turn on the heat to a medium-high heat.

Step 2: Add  the frozen vegetables, mini meatballs,  crushed tomatoes, garlic and spices and bring to a boil. Then turn down the heat to medium heat.

Step 3: Pour in the dry tortellini and when it’s done, according to package instructions, so is your soup!  Note cooking time may vary depending on the starting temperature of your ingredients.

Step 4: Garnish with grated parmesan cheese if you wish. ou could also garnish with fresh parsley or fresh basil if you wish. Serve a bowl of this with some crusty bread or garlic bread and green salad you have a meal!

Step 5: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. (please scroll down to view and print the recipe card.)

Recipe Notes & Tips

• One thing I would like to note: The dried tortellini will suck up lots of broth. You might want to add extra broth at the beginning or when it’s finished if you like your soup more brothy (is that a word?).
• I personally like chunkier soups with more “stuff” than broth. However if you are otherwise inclined, just add more broth or less tortellini or cook the tortellini separately and add at the end.
• If you want to add a little spice or heat, try sprinkling a little hot pepper flakes at the end.

Substitutions for this recipe.

• frozen vegetables: I used a frozen mixed vegetable blend but you can use any vegetables you like. Actually if you don’t want any vegetables that’s fine too. I just wanted some added nutrition since this was for my son.
• meatballs: I used frozen mini Italian meatballs however you could also use Italian sausage. Just buy a few links and cut them up pieces and cook in the broth. You could also just ground beef or ground turkey. Just brown the meat before adding the other ingredients.
• tortelli: I bought a bag of the dry tortellini you can find on the shelf of a grocery store. You could use fresh cheese tortellini but you won’t need to cook those very long and frozen tortellini might take a few minutes more. You can also substitute egg noodles or any kind of pasta you like.
• broth: I used beef stock but you could use chicken broth (stock) or vegeteble broth (stock) if you wish.
• other additions: I recently made this fresh baby spinach. Add a bunch at the end and it will wilt from the heat. It adds color, bulk and good nutrition!  I also sometimes add shredded mozzarella at the end and it gets gooey gooey. Sour cream will also add a creaminess to this soup. Play around!

I hope you like this hearty bowl of tortellini meatball soup as it’s become a family favorite for my family. It’s an easy dinner on those busy days leading up the holidays or during the cold weather. I like it because I always have these items on hand and it’s really easy. Enjoy!

PS I have over 35 deliciously easy soup recipes so check them out!