Chicken Tortellini Soup

This chicken tortellini soup is a cozy weeknight dinner that's on the table in 30 minutes. It's a fun twist on chicken noodle soup made with creamy pockets of cheese. Sauté onions, carrots, celery, and garlic, add broth, and simmer the chicken and tortellini. Voilà: before the garlic bread comes out of the oven, soup is on! Meals like this one-pot hit are a lifesaver on busy nights, chilly nights, or anytime you crave comfort food.

What tortellini is best for chicken tortellini soup?

Tortellini is available refrigerated, frozen, and dried. You can find the folded pasta with all kinds of fillings, including cheese, spinach, and meat. This soup works best with refrigerated or frozen tortellini because they are larger and have pockets of smooth, fresher-tasting filling. They also cook a little faster, which is something we can all appreciate.

What kind of chicken goes into chicken tortellini soup?

Use one of Ree's favorite weeknight dinner hacks and use a juicy rotisserie chicken. (Leftover turkey would be delicious here, too.) But if your family prefers white meat, you can cook a few chicken breasts instead. Before sautéing the onions, carrots, and celery, slice three boneless skinless chicken breasts into 1-inch pieces. Season them with salt and pepper and sauté them in 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat until golden, about five minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and cook the vegetables. Add the chicken back in with the tortellini.

What else can you add to chicken tortellini soup?

Stir in 3 cups of baby spinach for a veggie boost or a squeeze of lemon for a hint of bright, citrusy flavor. If you want to add even more veggies, frozen peas, corn or broccoli would all work.

Do you cook tortellini before adding it to soup?

Nope, this tortellini cooks right in the soup pot! This is not just convenient—the starchy noodles also act as a natural thickener, giving the soup body.

Can you make chicken tortellini soup ahead of time?

Yes, but if you're making it in advance, cook the tortellini separately and add it to the soup just before serving. If the tortellini sits in the soup for too long, it will absorb too much broth and may become mushy. Want to freeze this soup? Keep reading!

Can chicken tortellini soup be frozen?

Sure, but you'll need to remove the tortellini from the broth and freeze both separately. This will preserve the pasta's chewy texture. Allow the soup to cool completely before freezing it. Divvy up the soup and tortellini into freezer-safe containers or zip-top bags for easy storage. Reheat the soup in a saucepan until simmering. Then stir in the tortellini and simmer until the pasta is heated through.

What side dishes go well with tortellini soup?

Serve this cozy dinner with buttered dinner rolls and a Caesar salad on the side. Or, try cheesy monkey bread and Greek salad.