Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana, aka Instant Pot Tuscan Soup – a hearty, creamy, and delicious soup… ready in about 40 minutes. This one-pot, homemade Zuppa Toscana recipe is so filling, and loaded with tasty ingredients like Italian turkey sausage, kale, Parmesan cheese, and potatoes. Plus, it’s gluten-free.
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This meal only requires 1 minute of pressure cooking and in my family’s opinion, tastes better than the original Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana version. Plus, you can enjoy it on your own couch in your PJ’s!!
So a big shout out to our friends at Olive Garden for making this soup so popular and bringing it to our attention. Ya’ll are fabulous – thank you!!
What is Zuppa Toscana?
In case you’re wondering Zuppa Toscana is a broad-based term, meaning "Tuscan soup."
Allow me to share the back story on this special Zuppa… the original Tuscan version of this Zuppa Toscano Soup included kale, zucchini, cannellini beans, potatoes, celery, carrots, onion, tomato pulp, extra virgin olive oil, salt, powdered chili, toasted Tuscan bread, and rigatoni (and Italian bacon).
The soup was served on toasted Tuscan bread, with just a tiny splash of extra virgin olive oil. Sounds good to me!
It reminds me of one of my favorite soups of all time… Spicy Italian White Bean and Sausage Soup. Which of course is on the blog waiting for you to try it out.
It has a ton of veggies, cannellini beans, spicy sausage, fresh spinach, and grated Parmesan.
Annnnd not to brag but it has won a Bon Appetit Reader’s Choice Award!
What can I say – I’m almost famous. LOL
Let’s talk more about my version of this Zuppa Toscana Soup…
What I love about this soup rendition is that there’s not too much prep work involved.
Plus, the cook time is soo short because the Instant Pot AKA Miracle Pot cooks those potatoes in no time at all - 1 minute to be exact. Crazy – right!??
And because I can’t help myself and I’m all about "healthy stealthy" recipes… I did make it healthier by using half and half instead of heavy cream, using lean spicy turkey sausage instead of pork, and omitting the bacon because I don’t think you need it (plus, when bacon goes into the liquid it gets soggy and personally I say “no-thanks to soggy bacon”).
What can I say? I’m working hard over here to make you the most nourishing and delicious meals possible! And it’s all my pleasure - I got you, Boo!!
As you can tell by the photos this soup is on the brothier side. But you can thicken it up if you would like.
HOW TO MAKE ZUPPA TOSCANA THICKER?
This soup is traditionally on the brothy side, but if you prefer a thicker soup, it’s easy to thicken it. Here are your options:
- Reduce the chicken stock by 1 cup. OR:
- Mash some of the potatoes after they have been cooked and then add them back into the soup. OR:
- Mix 1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch in with the half-and-half before adding it, then turn on the saute mode for 4-5 minutes, gently stirring occasionally.
How to make Zuppa Toscana
In the Instant pot!
Set your 6-quart Instant Pot to the high saute setting. Add olive oil and the sausage. Stir it frequently while it cooks, until sausage is just browned, about 5-6 minutes. Be sure to break up and crumble the sausage as it cooks.
Next up, add the onion, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir frequently, for about 3 minutes.
Now pour in the chicken stock, fresh parsley, and add the potatoes. Give it a good stir.
Press cancel on the Instant Pot. Place the lid on, turn and lock. Make sure that the pressure release valve is in the "Sealing" position. Set the pressure to high, and set the time for 1 minute. (It will take 16-18 minutes for the soup to come to pressure).
When it's finished cooking, carefully quick-release the pressure. It will take 3-5 minutes to completely decompress.
Remove the lid and turn the pot off. Stir in kale, parmesan cheese, and half-and-half, and let sit for 2-3 minutes. Taste and season with more salt, pepper, parsley, Parmesan cheese, and chili flakes if desired.
Now it’s time to dive on in!!
This Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana Soup is creamy, but still brothy with the half-and-half and chicken stock combination. The Italian turkey sausage gives it great flavor but keeps it on the lighter side. And the potatoes and kale are cooked perfectly and make it one hearty and satisfying bowl of zuppa!
Buon appetito my friend!
Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana (Gluten Free)
This one-pot, homemade Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana recipe is so filling, and loaded with tasty ingredients like Italian turkey sausage, kale, Parmesan cheese, and potatoes. Plus, it’s gluten-free.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound spicy turkey Italian or chicken sausage, casing removed (use ½ spicy and ½ mild if you don't like much spice)
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt and black pepper
- 4 cups chicken stock (only use 3 if you like a thicker soup)
- 2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5 medium potatoes)
- ⅓ cup chopped parsley (more for garnish)
- 4 cups kale (which is about 4 ounces in weight), stems removed and torn or chopped into bite-sized pieces (you can substitute baby spinach if preferred)
- ½ cup half and half
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated (more for garnish)
- Chili flakes for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Set a 6-quart Instant Pot to the high saute setting. Add olive oil and sausage. Cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is lightly browned, about 5-6 minutes, crumbling the sausage as it cooks
- Add onion, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 3 minutes.
- Pour in the stock, fresh parsley, and the potatoes. Give it a good stir. Place the lid on, turn and lock. Make sure that the release valve is in the "Sealing" position.
- Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 1 minute. (It will take 16-18 minutes for the pot to come to pressure).
- When finished cooking, carefully quick-release the pressure (do this by manually moving the valve to “Venting.” It will take 3-5 minutes to completely decompress.
- Remove the lid and turn the pot off. Stir in kale, parmesan cheese, and half and half, let it rest for 2-3 minutes. Taste and season with more salt, pepper, parsley, parmesan cheese and chili flakes as desired.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
HOW TO MAKE ZUPPA TOSCANA THICKER?
This soup is traditionally on the brothy side, but if you prefer a thicker soup, it’s easy to thicken it. Here are your options:
1. Reduce the chicken stock by 1 cup. OR:
2. Mash some of the potatoes after they have been cooked and then add them back into the soup. OR:
3. Mix 1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch in with the half and half before adding it, then turn on the saute mode for 4-5 minutes, gently stirring occasionally.
Nutrition Information
Yield
6Serving Size
2 cupsAmount Per Serving Calories 526Total Fat 22gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 13gCholesterol 132mgSodium 958mgCarbohydrates 43gNet Carbohydrates 39gFiber 3gSugar 4gProtein 41g
This nutrition card uses an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. This estimate is not a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice!
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