Italian Zucchini soup is a delicious and simple way to enjoy zucchini when they are in season or any time of year. This easy Italian soup has all the flavors of Italy with garlic, onion, and tomatoes which makes such a great compliment to the zucchini. This soup is definitely a recipe you need to try and perfect for when you have lots of zucchini to use up.
About this Italian Zucchini Soup
You may think zucchini should not have an entire soup dedicated just to itself but I am here to tell you that this soup tastes amazing and it is one that Italians have been making forever. It is loaded with so much flavor and the zucchini actually becomes more of a background flavor in this recipe.
There is no meat and lots of veggies.
If you love or need meat in your soup, you can easily add some ground sausage or Italian pancetta to the soup and it will be just as amazing. We sometimes make our baked Italian sausage and slice that up to go in the soup.
It is totally up to you! It is also really delicious with some homemade garlic ciabatta bread or a side dish of an Italian tomato ricotta galette!
Ingredients
- Zucchini: Just like with my sauteed Italian zucchini, any zucchini variety will do!
- Bell peppers: Use green or red or whatever you have on hand.
- Crushed canned tomatoes.
- Garlic
- Onions
- Potatoes. I like using Yukon gold potatoes.
- Chicken stock. Always try to use stock and not broth for your soup. It tastes much better.
- Orecchiette pasta
- Kosher salt.
- Red pepper flakes.
- Parmesan rind.
- Dried Oregano
- Olive oil
About the ingredients:
This Italian zucchini soup has very few ingredients so you want to make sure you use all of them and don't leave any out. As I mentioned above, I prefer using chicken stock in all my soups because there is so much more flavor. I do this with my passata tomato soup, classic minestrone and wedding soup as well.
The pasta that I use for this soup is orecchiette (little ears in Italian) but you can use any small shape pasta that you like. A great alternative is Ditalini.
How To Make Italian Zucchini Soup With Orecchiette
This soup could not be any simpler to make. Here are the steps (the full recipe is below):
- Saute: You want to saute the aromatics which are the onions, garlic, and herbs in the olive oil. You do this in a large pot over medium heat.
- Add Veggies and Chicken Stock To Pot: Now add all of the other ingredients including the chopped carrots, peppers, potatoes, zucchini, and crushed tomatoes along with the chicken stock and give it a good stir.
- Simmer: Bring the soup to a gentle simmer and reduce the heat to low. Give the soup about 10-15 minutes to come together.
- Cook The Pasta: While the soup is simmering, cook the orecchiette pasta then drain and add it back to the pot. Drizzle with a few tablespoons of olive oil and set aside.
- Assemble: Once the soup is ready, grab a bowl and add in some pasta then ladle the zucchini soup over the top. Serve with fresh parmesan cheese.
Great add-ins
Now I think this soup tastes amazing on its own but I know that many people need a little more cajoling to eat an all-vegetable soup. Here are some of my favorite add-ins when I want a more indulgent zucchini soup.
- Italian sausage. To add this just brown the sausage in your pan first making sure to remove the casing beforehand. Once the sausage is browned you can follow the recipe as is. I also like to make baked Italian sausage and add that in sliced up.
- Italian pancetta. I honestly cannot think of any dish that does not taste better with Italian pancetta. This salty Italian-style bacon will add just enough of a meaty note to make meat lovers happy. I use this in my farro minestrone as well.
- More vegetables. Meat is not the only great add-in idea. I love adding more vegetables to this soup. Yellow summer squash, cabbage and even red and yellow peppers make great additions.
- Beans! Italian cannellini beans are wonderfully creamy and make a nice addition to this soup or any soup really. It also adds a bit of protein to round out the meal.
- Italian Meatballs!
Different types of zucchini for this soup
Italians have many different types of zucchini that they grow and they are all delicious with this soup. My favorite Italian zucchini for this soup is an heirloom variety called Italian ribbed zucchini.
You can use any zucchini variety that you have on hand.
Recipe Faqs
Italian zucchini refers to a whole variety of different types of zucchini that grow in Italy. My favorite is Italian ribbed zucchini and Zucchini Napoli.
Yes. Squash makes a great substitute for zucchini since they are both firm in texture, have similar flavors, and cook up the same way.
Zucchini will stay fresh when stored in the refrigerator. If you have a vegetable crisper drawer, this is the best place to store it. If you do not, store the zucchini on the bottom of the refrigerator where it is not too cold for the zucchini.
Storage And Reheating
To store the leftover soup, just allow it to completely cool then place the soup in a container with a lid and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Store the pasta in a separate container with a lid in the fridge so the pasta does not absorb all of the liquids in the soup.
To reheat the soup, pour it into a medium saucepan and heat on low heat on the stovetop until warmed all the way through. While the soup warms, microwave the leftover orecchiette in the microwave on medium heat for about 1-2 minutes, just to take the chill off of the pasta. Assemble the leftover pasta and soup in individual bowls.
More Italian recipes
- Penne all Vodka
- Italian Ricotta Pie
- Torta Tenerina (Italian Brownie Cake)
- Ravioli Sauce
- Italian American Meat Sauce
- Italian Chickpea Salad
- Panzanella Salad With Zucchini and Peppers
Authentic Italian Zucchini Soup With Orecchiette
Ingredients
- 28 ounce canned crushed tomatoes
- 28 ounces chicken stock
- ½ pound orecchiette pasta
- 1 cup yukon gold potatoes large diced the same size of the zucchini
- 3 medium zucchini cut into large dices (almost quartered)
- 2 green bell peppers large diced the same size of the zucchini
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- ½ cup Freshly grated Parmesan for topping
- 1 Parmesan rind for soup
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt plus more to taste
- 1 Bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a large heavy bottom pot over medium heat, add 2 tablespoon of olive oil and your red pepper flakes.¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Now add onion and sauté for 3 minutes.1 small yellow onion
- Add your garlic and sauté for an additional minute.3 cloves garlic
- Add the crushed tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, chicken stock, diced potatoes, salt, parmesan rind, Bay leaf, oregano and stir well.28 ounce canned crushed tomatoes, 28 ounces chicken stock, 1 cup yukon gold potatoes, 3 medium zucchini, 2 green bell peppers, 1 Parmesan rind, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, 1 Bay leaf, ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- Let simmer for 15 minutes gently on low heat.
- Now grab a medium pot of water and bring to a boil.
- Add your orecchiette and cook until according to the manufacturers instructions for al dente.½ pound orecchiette pasta
- Drain your pasta and add it back to the pot.
- Add the remaining 2 tablespoon of olive oil to the pasta and mix well.
- Set aside.
- Once the soup has simmered for 15 minutes, test the potatoes for doneness by trying to pierce them with a fork. If it pierces easily it is ready. if not, add a couple more minutes of cooking.
Assembling the zucchini soup bowls
- Scoop a heaping spoonful of the orecchiette pasta into a soup bowl
- Ladle your soup over the pasta until it covers the pasta.
- Top with a handful of freshly grated Parmesan.½ cup Freshly grated Parmesan
- Enjoy!
Christine says
This was really good! I did what the other suggested and added Italian sausage and it was a hit.
Bill says
Made this zucchini soup exactly as the recipe said and it’s so delicious!
Anna says
A great soup to use up all my zucchini in the garden . Very tasty
Jan says
This was delicious and very easy to make.
kisitalian says
Hi Jan. I'm glad you enjoyed it 🙂