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Recipes » Soups » Homemade Italian Wedding Soup Recipe

Homemade Italian Wedding Soup Recipe

Posted on January 1, 2020 By Chef Billy Parisi

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This super tasty wedding soup recipe is loaded with homemade meatballs, veggies, escarole and pasta that’s simmered in delicious chicken stock.

bowl of wedding soup with meatballs, carrots and escarole

It’s that time of year where soup is the main entrée.  Just like in my Scotch Broth Soup or my Tuscan Vegetable Soup, It’s comforting, it’s hearty, and perfect for those cold wintery days.

What Is It

Italian wedding soup is an Italian American dish, mush like Chicken Parmigiana or Cioppino, that has been adapted and popularized by Italians who immigrated to America.  It consists of:

  • Meatballs
  • Mirepoix
  • Chicken Stock
  • Acini di Pepe Pasta
  • Escarole

Why Do They Call It Wedding Soup

It originally stems from the Italian word “minestra mariata, which literally translates to “wedded broths.”  Italian Americans adapted it to wedding soup, however It’s more about the marrying of flavors in a broth as opposed to it being served at weddings in Italy, which it is not.

How to Make Wedding Soup Meatballs

Making meatballs is really easy to make.  Here’s a quick overview of how to make them:

  1. Add ground beef, ground pork, small diced yellow onions, finely minced garlic, finely minced parsley, grated parmesan cheese, eggs, and water-soaked and squeezed out Italian Bread, salt and pepper to a large bowl.

making homemade meatballs in a bowl

  1. Mix with your hands until completely combined and form it into small ping pong sized balls.

rolling meatballs to a ping pong size and frying them

  1. Place on a sheet tray and bake until browned and cooked through, or pan roast in some oil in a pan and cook through, finish in an oven, or simmer in the soup broth at the end.

Set them aside until it’s time to serve up the soup

This recipe makes quite a few meatballs, which I did on purpose so I could freeze half the batch.

How to Make the Soup

Once the meatballs are done cook, the soup is incredibly easy to prepare.

  • Add the mirepoix to a large-size pot with some oil on low heat to sweat the vegetables for about 15 minutes. Stir frequently.

sweating vegetables in a large pot until tender

  • Add in the chicken stock and simmer on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

adding acini di pepe to a pot of boiling water

  • Cook the pasta in boiling salted water and set aside.
  • Once everything is done, it is then time to plate up your soup.

Do not brown the vegetables.

How to Serve It

If you plan on serving this soup right away and finishing it on the same day, I advise you to add everything together in the pot and serve it.

If you’re going to be grazing all day for a few days, then plate it like this so that the greens to wilt and the pasta doesn’t turn to mush:

  1. Add some of the soup broth with vegetables to a bowl.
  2. Place in some escarole (sub with baby spinach if you’d like).

adding soup to a bowl along with escarole

  1. Add in some cooked acini di pepe.
  2. Place in some meatballs.

adding cooked acini di pepe and meatballs to the soup

  1. Grate in Parmesan cheese and serve

adding parmesan cheese to the wedding soup

Recipe Chef Notes + Tips

How to Make Ahead: Make the soup and keep the meatballs, broth with vegetables and acini di pepe separate until the day of serving it.

How to Reheat: Place your desired amount of wedding soup into a small size pot and heat over low heat until hot. You can also simply heat in a microwave until hot.

How to Store: Place in a container with a lid and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

How to Freeze: You can absolutely freeze it and it does so well. Once the soup is cool in the fridge in a container with a lid, place in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it for 1 day in the refrigerator before reheating it.

This recipe makes quite a few meatballs, which I did on purpose so I could freeze half the batch.

a bowl of italian soup with meatballs and vegetables

More Amazing Comfort Food Recipes

  • Italian Sausage with Peppers and Farro
  • Mediterranean Quinoa Bowl with Falafel
  • Slow Cooker Pot Roast
  • Chicken Satay Recipe

Be sure to follow me on Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, and Pinterest and if you’ve had a chance to make this then definitely drop me a comment and a rating below!

Video

bowl of wedding soup with meatballs, carrots and escarole
Print Recipe
5 from 3 votes

Homemade Italian Wedding Soup Recipe

This super tasty wedding soup recipe is loaded with meatballs, veggies, escarole and pasta that’s simmered in a delicious chicken stock.
Prep Time30 mins
Cook Time50 mins
Total Time1 hr 20 mins
Course: Appetizer, Soup
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 12
Calories: 644kcal
Author: Chef Billy Parisi

Ingredients

For the Meatballs:

  • 2 pounds ground beef
  • 2 pounds ground pork
  • 1 peeled small diced yellow onion
  • 4 finely minced cloves of garlic
  • ¼ cup finely minced parsley
  • 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 loaf Italian bread soaked in water and squeezed
  • 5 eggs
  • Sea salt and pepper to taste

For the Soup:

  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 peeled medium diced yellow onion
  • 3 finely minced cloves of garlic
  • 4 stalks medium diced celery
  • 4 peeled medium diced carrots
  • 128 ounces chicken stock
  • 2 heads escarole or 8 cups packed baby spinach
  • 1 pound cooked and cooled acini di pepe
  • Sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°.
  • Meatballs: Combine all of the ingredients together in a large bowl until thoroughly mixed in and form small ping pong sized meatballs and set them on sheet trays lined with parchment paper.
  • Bake in the oven at 400° for 22-25 minutes or until lightly browned and cooked through.
  • Freeze ½ of the meatballs and set the other ½ aside.
  • Soup: Add the olive oil to a large soup pot along with the onions, garlic, celery and carrots and sweat over low heat for 15 minutes. Do not brown them.
  • Add in the broth and simmer over low to medium heat for 15 more minutes or until the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper.
  • To Plate: Place some of the broth and vegetables into a bowl. Add in some of the cooked and cooled acini di pepe along with a small handful of escarole, and 5-6 meatballs.
  • Grate on optional parmesan cheese.

Notes

Chef Notes:
  • How to Make Ahead: Make the soup and keep the meatballs, broth with vegetables and acini di pepe separate until the day of serving it.
  • How to Reheat: Place your desired amount of wedding soup into a small size pot and heat over low heat until hot. You can also simply heat in a microwave until hot.
  • How to Store: Place in a container with a lid and keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
  • How to Freeze: You can absolutely freeze it and it does so well. Once the soup is cool in the fridge in a container with a lid, place in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw it for 1 day in the refrigerator before reheating it.
  • This recipe makes quite a few meatballs, which I did on purpose so I could freeze half the batch.

Nutrition

Calories: 644kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 108mg | Sodium: 688mg | Potassium: 965mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 5292IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 132mg | Iron: 4mg
Homemade Italian Wedding Soup Recipe was last modified: March 16th, 2020 by Chef Billy Parisi

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Comments

  1. Matt Taylor says

    January 10, 2020 at 10:18 am

    5 stars
    Billy, this soup looks so amazing! I need to try it out before it gets too warm here in Phoenix, which is like March, LOL

    Reply
  2. Rachael Yerkes says

    January 10, 2020 at 9:35 am

    5 stars
    perfect soup to get you through winter

    Reply
  3. Paige says

    January 10, 2020 at 9:29 am

    5 stars
    Billy this soup looks AMAZING and those meatballs, especially. I also appreciate that you’ve really explained exactly how to make this recipe, which I intend to make this weekend! 🙂

    Reply
  4. Karyl | Karyl's Kulinary Krusade says

    January 03, 2018 at 3:59 pm

    Oh my goodness this looks amazing! With all this horrible cold weather, I need a bowl of this soup STAT

    Reply

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ABOUT ME

I’m Billy Parisi and thanks for checking out my site! I’m a culinary school grad that spent 15 years in the restaurant industry as a line cook, sous chef and executive chef. Now I write recipes, take pictures of’em, shoot some video, occasionally hosting on TV, checking out the latest fashion, hangin with my wife and daughter and watching a whole bunch of college sports. Hope you enjoy my twists on classics as well as new innovations! Read More…

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