Zesty Chicken Tortellini Soup is a comfort food classic that's loaded with fresh, bold flavors! Fire roasted tomatoes, white beans, seared chicken thighs, cheese tortellini and the perfect amount of spices make this soup so good that you might just find yourself licking the bowl.
Zesty Chicken Tortellini Soup
Tortellini soup is easy to prepare and even easier to eat several bowls of. You know those dishes that are so filling and hearty that you just can't fit anymore in your belly, but they're so good that you can't deny yourself a second serving? This is definitely one of those recipes!
The majority of the time spent with the recipe is waiting. You have about 10 minutes of food prep with some chopping, and maybe 10 minutes TOPS of cooking down your initial veggies and chicken, then it's a "dump everything into a pot and wait" situation. The idea is that you want the ingredients to meld and develop, resulting in a perfect bite every time you dip your spoon down into the bowl.
Ingredients in this Chicken Tortellini Soup Recipe
- Olive oil
- Veggies - You'll need bell peppers, jalapeño peppers, a yellow onion, celery, garlic and fresh spinach.
- Chicken thighs
- White beans
- Fire roasted tomatoes
- Chicken broth
- Spices - A medley of cayenne powder, paprika, chili flakes, salt and pepper creates the best flavor!
- Dried Herbs - Oregano and basil are your friends here.
- Cheese tortellini
- Heavy cream - You can use Mexican crema for a lighter touch.
How to Make Chicken Tortellini Soup
Cook the veggies (except for the spinach). First, cook down your peppers, onion, celery and garlic in a pot with a bit of olive oil. It should take about 5 minutes or so until they start to caramelize.
Add the chicken. Next, toss in some chopped chicken thighs and give them a nice sear, about 5 minutes or so.
Add more ingredients and simmer. Add in a collection of flavorful ingredients - fire roasted tomatoes, white beans, chicken broth, and all of your herbs and spices. Stir and simmer the whole pot for about 20 minutes or longer.
Add tortellini and spinach. When you're just about ready to serve the tortellini soup, boil the tortellini according to your packaging instructions, usually only 3-4 minutes or so, and add them to the pot along with the chopped spinach.
Make it creamy and serve. Remove from heat, stir in some heavy cream and serve it up. Top the bowls with spicy chili flakes, fresh chopped herbs, maybe a few sliced peppers.
Have fun with it, and enjoy!
Recipe Tips & Notes
- You can lighten it up. If you're looking for a lighter version of this recipe, skip the heavy cream and use either sour cream or Mexican crema. It has a lightness to it, but effectively adds a nice creamy texture.
- Adjust the heat level. With just one TSP of chili flakes and 2 sautéed jalapeños, this certainly isn't an overly spicy dish (at least to me)! You can add more chili flakes and garnish your bowl with fresh jalapeños for more spice.
- Don't add the spinach until the end. Spinach wilts very quickly, so be careful about how long you let it cook. If you add it too soon it'll wilt to practically nothing by the time you're ready to serve.
Storage
Once cooled to room temp, you can store your leftover tortellini soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave in 30 second intervals until warmed through.
Because of the creamy broth, I don't recommend freezing this zesty soup!
I hope you enjoy it! Let me know how it turns out for you. If you make it, shoot me a note or post it somewhere on social media with the following - #ChiliPepperMadness. I want to see your creations! -- Mike H.
Zesty Chicken Tortellini Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large bell pepper chopped
- 2 jalapeno peppers chopped
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 1.5 pounds chicken thighs chopped
- 15 ounces white beans drained
- 14.5 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon cayenne powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon spicy chili flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 10 ounces cheese tortellini
- 1 cup chopped fresh spinach
- ¼ cup heavy cream optional (or use Mexican crema for a lighter touch)
- FOR SERVING: Extra chopped peppers fresh herbs, Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat a large pot to medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the peppers, onion and celery and cook them down about 5 minutes to soften them up.
- Add the garlic and chicken and cook another 5 minutes, stirring, until the chicken is cooked mostly through.
- Add the beans, fire roasted tomatoes, chicken broth and seasonings. Bring the mixture to a quick boil, then reduce the heat and simmer at least 20 minutes to let the flavors develop.
- While the tortellini soup is simmering, bring a small pot of water to a boil and boil the tortellini until they float, about 3-4 minutes or so. Drain.
- Add the tortellini noodles to the soup pot and stir in the spinach.
- Remove from heat and swirl in the heavy cream or crema, if using.
- Serve into bowls with your extra toppings.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Diana says
Delicious as expected. Most flavorful tortellini soup I have ever tried making. I left out the cayenne, but did use the chili flakes. I had leftover pinto beans that I had cooked previously, so I used those.
Instead of boiling the tortellini separately, I added it to the soup in the last 4 minutes of simmering. Genius, if I say so myself. 🙂 One less pan to wash.
Such a yummy and quite satisfying soup. Thank you.
Mike Hultquist says
Wow, this is great to hear! Glad you loved it, Diana! Thanks so much!
Kevin says
This is yet another recipe from you I'll keep going back to! It's 25° here tonight so this hit the spot on multiple levels. Only difference was I didn't know I was out of paprika so I subbed in smoked paprika...out of the park for sure!
Mike H. says
That must have been a great sub. Glad you like it, Kevin!
Becky says
Hi Mike!
Made this for dinner tonight. It's been a gray, rainy day here in the pacific northwest. Only in tbe 40's. This weather requires soup. This was so good, hearty, spicy, and warming. ( added extra heat)Maybe, one day soon we'll warm up. But until then, give me all the comfort food!
Thank you!
Mike Hultquist says
Hi, Becky! Glad you enjoyed it! Yes, a good way to warm up those chilly days. I hope you get some warmer weather soon!
Jason says
Made this tonight using jalapenos from our garden and everyone loved it. Will definitely make again and check out your other recipes!
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed it, Jason! Happy to hear! Thanks for sharing.
Susan Montgomery says
Loved this, I had most everything I needed I didn't have spinach but I have kale still growing so I used that and 2 of my poblano peppers from my garden and I used some leftover turkey. Fantabulous! Thanks Michael.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Susan!
Laura says
This recipe was incredible, loved the spicy kick! Was a huge hit and I will definitely be making again - thank you!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome! Thanks, Laura!
John says
Great recipe. I may try this as a alternate for chicken and dumplings and use dumplings vs the tortellini.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Great, John! Now I want some dumplings!
jeff Palmer says
Thumbs up on this soup - I saw it and its a cool rainy day in the midwest. Its a go for me!
Got everything at home..Thanks for the perfect timing
Jeff
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Great, Jeff. Thanks! Glad you liked it.