Instant Pot Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat
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So much tastier and cheaper than the restaurant and it’s on your dinner table in just 30 min!
Featured Comment
why i love this recipe
- Copycat favorite
- Tastier, faster and cheaper than the restaurant version
- Rich, hearty and full of all the sneaked in greens
- Tastes as if it’s been simmering for hours
- Only needs 5 minutes in the IP – quick, easy, effortless
WHAT IS ZUPPA TOSCANA?
Zuppa toscana is a soup from northern Italy in Tuscany. Translated word for word, zuppa toscana literally means Tuscan soup, also known as minestra di pane in Italy (bread soup).
tips and tricks for success
- Add in leafy greens. This is a great recipe to sneak in leafy greens for those picky eaters. Kale, spinach, collard greens, swiss chard, or arugula are all great options.
- Make it dairy-free. Need a dairy free option? Substitute coconut cream or skip the half and half.
- Add garnishes. Garnishes are always optional but a fresh sprinkle of grated Parmesan or some crispy bacon will certainly take your soup to the next level, adding more flavor, texture and contrast.
- Serve with crusty bread. Serve with all the homemade crusty bread for dipping, sopping and dunking!
what to serve with Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana
Tools For This Recipe
6-qt Instant Pot®
Instant Pot Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat: Frequently Asked Questions
Mild or spicy Italian sausage is great, or even turkey sausage!
Spinach, cabbage, swiss chard and collard greens are all great subs.
Half and half is equal parts of whole milk and cream. For 1 cup half and half, you can substitute 3/4 cup whole milk + 1/4 cup heavy cream or 2/3 cup skim or low-fat milk + 1/3 cup heavy cream.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the half and half (cream soups tend to separate when frozen) in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding half and half when serving.
No Instant Pot, no problem! We have a favorited stovetop version here.
Instant Pot Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Copycat
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage, casing removed
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 3 russet potatoes, chopped
- 6 cups chicken broth
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped
- 1 cup half and half
Equipment
Instructions
- Set a 6-qt Instant Pot® to the high saute setting. Add olive oil and sausage. Cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is lightly browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Add onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in garlic and oregano until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in potatoes and chicken broth; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 5 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions.
- Stir in kale until wilted, about 1-2 minutes.
- Stir in half and half until heated through, about 1 minute; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately.
Video
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We gussy this up with cooked chopped smokey bacon and red pepper flake!
Delicious!
A friend and I used to go to Olive Garden and she would always have the ‘sausage soup’ and I would have minestrone. The calories and fat in the sausage soup is astounding.
Thanks so much for an IP version. I make a wonderful sausage soup using Soy-rizzo, which is vegan. That vegan sausage is incredibly good and I’m looking forward to trying your soup with the vegan sausage and vegann stock.
Thanks, Lou!
LOVE this soup! I don’t have an IP, but make it stovetop. I’m not sure how this would work in an IP, but I add a pkg. of instant potatoes to thicken the broth a bit. Also, I have substituted 1/2 of the broth with either white wine or beer (no kids here!). Thanks again for your yummy, easy recipes!
Thank you!
Um, can I just ask where those spoons were purchased? I love them!
West Elm!
Isn’t there diced bacon, and a little chilli flake in this soup
You can surely add these ingredients in if you prefer, David! Isn’t that the beauty of home cooking?
I prepared this soup with my grandaughter – it is sooo good!!!!
How fun!! So happy you enjoyed it!
I’ve been seeing all your FABULOUS Instant Pot recipes but don’t yet own an Instant Pot BUT I’m visiting my son & he has a brandnew one, I’m excited to be making this recipe as The First!!
It’s been a long time since I had this at Olive Gdn,, but as I recall the broth is supposed to be thin. It’s like milk. If you want a cream soup run an immersion blender in the potatoes when its done.
I prepped the ingredients before I realized that this recipe is for an Instant Pot. I don’t have one, so I prepared it on the stovetop. After the sausage was browned and the vegetable were sautéed, I simmered the potatoes for about 20 minutes until tender before adding the kale and half-and-half. Perhaps this soup is supposed to be the consistency of a chowder, but it is very thin with lots of broth. I followed the recipe, but substituted mild Italian chicken sausage and increased the amount of kale. After de-stemming, ½ bunch seemed a bit skimpy so I used all of it, which was not too much). This is a quick, tasty one-pot meal and I will definitely make it again, but will reduce the amount of chicken broth in the recipe.
I have an Instant Pot and it was really watery for me. I don’t think I’ll make this one again.
Can this be doubled in the instant pot?
Yes, of course, but cooking time may vary. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
I made this a few days ago but it turned out very runny. Still have lots of leftovers. Is there any way to salvage this? Also, it was pretty bland. Seemed like too much cream? And now I am rereading your recipe and see you specified half and half. LOL I totally messed up on this. Will try again. 😉
I also found it bland & the broth very thin. It needs something else to add some depth of flavor…more oregano? I think k the instant pot just create steam / water that goes into the broth? Not a fan unfortunately… :-/
If you’ve ever eaten this at Olive Garden you know it is a brothe based, not a cream soup. With 5 basic ingredients it requires high quality of each especially the broth. This is a delicious soup if made to the recipe.
This came out great! I used to make a stovetop version that took a lot longer. I really enjoy how the potatoes become so creamy. We doubled the sausage cause my boyfriend loves it and didn’t have to adjust anything else. I used 2 huge potatoes.
This was fantastic! Simple to make and hit the spot on a rainy evening! I doubled the kale since it cooks down so much and topped it off with some freshly grated parmesan cheese.
So I borrowed my friend’s instapot. The soup was a hit. My son ate 2 bowls yesterday and one today. My husband ate a huge bowl too. I used sweet Italian sausage by mistake so my daughter liked it because it wasn’t spicey. I used the kosher salt but it was still bland so I added pink salt instead. Tgank you for the recipe.
I just made the soup. It is very delicious! This is a keeper recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Can this be frozen.
Unfortunately, I cannot answer this with certainty as I have never tried freezing this myself. Please use your best judgment for freezing and reheating.
I was wondering the same thing. Did you ever try freezing it? I was hoping to make this again for company but I would like to make it ahead of their visit and freeze it.
Delicious soup!
I have frozen it before with no issues.
I make this but just a bit differently – I wait until it is served to add the cream/half-n-half. this way each person can make it as creamy as they would like or not add it at all if they don’t want too. When you do it this way it freezes very well with no separation from the dairy. If you can freeze it in individual 8-10 oz size containers it is great for lunches. I also serve this with fresh grated Parmesan cheese, cracked black pepper, red pepper flakes, and fried onions as optional toppings for the zuppa. I am making this recipe tonight and have a loaf of no-knead overnight bread in the oven now to go with it for dinner …….. makes my DH’s heart and tummy smile. 🙂
This was so good and so easy. Thank you. I might add more garlic just because I really like garlic. I didn’t have russet potatoes so I used 6 smaller red potatoes my husband approved. Thanks again. Definitely making this again. Mangia Mangia
In case this is helpful for anyone, I made this recipe and it’s SO good!! My modifications were to add 4 large carrots and instead of the half and half I blended two cans of white beans. It thickened the soup and increased the fiber. I will make this again and again!! Thank you, Chungah!!!
What size instant pot do you use? I cook your recipes all week long and I I am trying to decide on the size of one to buy.
I use a 6-qt.
What can I substitute for the half and half that’s non-dairy?
Thanks, Jan
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.