Learn to make Instant Pot Italian Sausage Soup! This easy one-pot recipe for Instant Pot Sausage Soup has no potatoes and no cream. It's a healthy pressure cooker sausage soup with a taste the whole family will love and it’s gluten free. Try this comforting Instant Pot Sausage Vegetable Soup tonight- it fits in an 8-quart or 6-quart Instant Pot.
I’ve had this flavorful sausage and bean soup on the site for a while now. Recently, I realized there was a nifty way to streamline the process of making it. Gotta love hacks that make life easier!
This Instant Pot Sausage Bean Soup uses dry beans. What I used to do is pressure cook the beans, and then cook the soup on the stovetop. It’s a great way to make a delicious dinner packed with leafy greens when you don’t want the oven heating the house.
However, doing things this way messes up two pots (the electric pressure cooker and a Dutch oven). Why not make this into an Instant Pot recipe instead, cooking the beans and soup at the same time? Works for me!
This soup is one of the lovely ways you can use Swiss chard. Plus, it’s a lot lighter than another popular sausage soup, the Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana. Instead of making this a heavy cream-based soup, we’re using a broth base.
The result is a dish that’s nutritious but doesn’t sacrifice flavor, since we’ve kept the delicious sausage. In short, don’t miss this one-pot soup recipe- it's the perfect comfort food any time of the year!
(And no worries, if you don’t have an Instant Pot, I’ve still got the stovetop instructions for you.)
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📋 Calories, Net Carbs, Protein
One serving of Instant Pot Sausage Soup has 533 calories, 38.2 grams net carbs, and 36.1 grams protein. You’re getting over 15 grams of fiber with this one!
⭐ Benefits
What are the benefits of making Italian Sausage Soup in the Instant Pot? Here are some reasons you’ll love this Italian Sausage Soup Instant Pot recipe:
- Healthy: This soup is packed with veggies and has a bit of a Mediterranean flair. You’re getting a lot of provitamin A, vitamin C, fiber, beneficial phytonutrients, and high-quality protein here.
- Easy: Love to cook but hate cleaning up the mess in the kitchen? I hear ya! This one-pot recipe means you won’t be scrubbing a ton of pots and pans. It’s simple.
- Special diets: Depending on the ingredients of the sausage you use, this Instant Pot soup is gluten-free. I have tips in the FAQs section below to make it keto, Paleo, Whole30, and even vegan!
- Delicious: If I’m going to the effort of making a meal, I want it to be full of flavor. This pressure cooker soup recipe meets that goal. Aside from being nutritious, its taste is amazing.
🥘 Ingredients
What do you need to make Instant Pot Italian sausage soup? Here is what to buy from the store:
- Fresh ground hot Italian sausage or ground mild Italian sausage (raw)
- Olive oil (or your favorite cooking oil)
- Chopped onion
- Minced garlic cloves
- Chopped carrots
- Chopped celery
- Low-sodium chicken broth
- Canned diced tomatoes
- Large dry lima beans
- Dried oregano
- Dried basil
- Bay leaf
- Swiss chard, red chard, rainbow chard (or another type)
- Salt and pepper
- Grated Parmesan cheese
The Italian sausage you use is extremely important! Make sure to use a sausage that you think is delicious because it imparts a lot of flavor to the soup.
This homemade chicken sausage is a great option if you want to go the extra mile. The feta, sundried tomatoes, and herbs in the sausage add something extra to this soup. However, your favorite store-bought pork sausage will definitely work too.
You’re also getting an abundance of colorful fruits and vegetables in this main dish. The chard practically provides a rainbow by itself as you can also find chard with white, red, gold, and purple stems. When several different colors of chard are bunched and sold together, this is referred to as rainbow chard.
As always, fresh ingredients are important, so try to use the freshest veggies that you can get your hands on. They’re really going to shine in this hearty (yet surprisingly low calorie) soup.
Additionally, very old dry beans can take up to an hour to soften under high pressure. The pressure cooking time of this recipe will be inaccurate if you don’t use new dry beans.
🥣 Substitutions
Don’t be afraid to make this Instant Pot Sausage Soup your own. Want to use a different type of beans or a different combination of herbs? Go for it! Chase the flavor profile that makes your taste buds happy.
Instead of Swiss chard, try...
- Chopped spinach
- Baby kale
- Beet greens
Rather than chicken broth, use...
- Bone broth
- Vegetable broth
Switch out the beans for another starch...
- Pasta (such as tortellini or orzo)
- Potatoes
- Rice
- Or go lower carb with cauliflower or zucchini
Note: these will have a shorter pressure cooking time than the beans.
Try a different meat (or poultry) ...
- Ground turkey
- Ground pork
- Or ground beef
Add another soup topping...
- Croutons
- Bacon
- Pancetta
- Pesto
- Red pepper flakes (just a little!)
🍽 Equipment
To make pressure cooker sausage soup, you need a good knife and an Instant Pot. If you’ll be making the soup on the stovetop instead, you’ll need a large cast iron Dutch oven.
You’re welcome to use whatever multipurpose cooker you own for this recipe, such as the Ninja Foodi. I use a Crock-Pot Express 6-Quart Easy Release Pressure Cooker. Cooking times may vary slightly if you use a different multi-cooker.
🔪 How to Make Instant Pot Italian Sausage Soup
Let’s make soup! Begin by soaking the lima beans. Cover them in warm water and let them soak at room temperature for 12-24 hours.
After soaking, remove any loose or floating skins from the beans. Drain the beans well. Set them aside as you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Remove the casings from the Italian sausage and chop the veggies. The onions and carrots should be chopped to ½-inch dice (1.27 cm). The celery should be halved lengthwise and cut into ¼- ½-inch (0.6-1.27 cm) pieces. Mince the garlic.
Separate the chard leaves and stems. The stems should be cut to ¼-inch dice (0.6 cm) and the leaves should be shredded. I ended up with about 1½ cups of stems.
Put the Instant Pot on the “high saute” setting and heat the oil. Add the sausage, carrots, onions, celery, and garlic to the pot. Cook for about 10 minutes, crumbling the raw sausage with a metal spatula as it cooks.
You want to brown the sausage without browning the vegetables. After the sausage is browned, add the chard stems, drained lima beans, oregano, basil, bay leaf, chicken broth, salt and pepper to the pot. (Nothing should be sticking to the bottom of the pot, so no need to deglaze.)
Put the lid on the Instant Pot and close the vent. Dinner will be ready before you know it!
️⏲ Cooking Time and Temperature
How long to cook sausage soup in Instant Pot? What setting to cook Italian sausage soup in an Instant Pot? Pressure cook sausage soup for 25 minutes under high pressure (beans/chili setting). Allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes when the time is up.
Next, carefully turn the vent to finish releasing the pressure and lift the lid of the pot. Stir in the canned tomatoes and the chard leaves. Leave the pot on the “warm” setting.
Cover the Instant Pot with the lid but leave the vent open. Leave it for 5 minutes. The Swiss chard leaves will wilt into the hot soup.
Mature chard leaves tend to be a little tough, so they are best served cooked rather than raw. Cooking may also help to reduce chard’s bitterness, allowing it to be its best self in your dishes. However, overcooked chard will become too soft and mushy.
Now all you have left to do is to remove the bay leaf. Ladle your soup into bowls, and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
️🌡️ Leftovers
How long does Instant Pot sausage soup last? Cool the soup, put it in a covered food-safe container, and it will last 3-4 days in the fridge. You can reheat it on the stovetop over medium heat or in the microwave for 2-3 minutes.
Some of the ingredients (such as the beans) may absorb more liquid as it sits. However, you shouldn’t have the mushy texture issues that occur when you try to store soup with pasta and soup with rice. Add a little extra broth if your soup begins to dry out.
You can also freeze this soup, but it’s best to leave the chard out until reheating if you do this. Make the soup ahead without the chard, freeze, and buy fresh chard to add in during heating.
💭 Expert Tips from a Dietitian
This is a level 1 recipe (may help support fat loss). As calculated, this sausage soup recipe is just a smidge over 500 calories, but I’ve still placed it in level 1. The calories in Instant Pot Italian sausage soup are impacted by the type of sausage you use. Chicken Italian sausage, including my homemade chicken sausage, tends to be a lighter option than pork Italian sausage.
As I’ve mentioned before, broth-based soups tend to be an excellent meal option if you have a weight loss goal. This sausage soup is packed with protein and non-starchy veggies, giving you a low-calorie, high-volume meal that provides lasting fullness. If you need a higher calorie meal, consider adding some bread or crackers on the side.
If you prioritize making meals with protein and non-starchy veggies, adjusting the dish to meet the energy needs of different family members is easy. Adding a side of starch (bread, crackers, rice, pasta, potatoes, etc.) is a simple way to boost calories without having to cook a separate meal. Even middle-aged adults with weight loss goals and hungry teens can enjoy the same meals with modifications to portions and side dishes.
FAQs
To make keto Instant Pot Sausage soup, you should omit the beans, perhaps substituting with additional meat. You could also try using a legume that is very low carb, such as black soy beans. Removing the beans and Parm topping also makes this a Paleo and Whole30 Instant Pot soup.
To make vegan Instant Pot Sausage soup, swap the meat for more beans or vegan sausage, and the chicken broth for veggie broth. You will also need to skip the Parmesan cheese topping for a completely plant-based option.
In general, soup can be left out for a maximum of 1-2 hours in the food safety danger zone (40-140F/5-60C). Don’t leave soup out overnight at room temperature. It will not be safe to eat.
Yes! To make a Crock Pot sausage soup recipe, brown the sausage in a pan on the stove. Add everything to the crockpot except the tomatoes, red chard leaves, and Parm. Cook on low for 4 hours, adding the tomatoes and chard leaves during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Remove the bay leaf and sprinkle with Parmesan to serve.
👩🏻🍳 More Soup Recipes
Want more recipes for soup? Try these next:
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The Disclaimer…
All recipes on this website may or may not be appropriate for you, depending on your medical needs and personal preferences. Consult with a registered dietitian or your physician if you need help determining the dietary pattern that may be best for you.
The nutrition information is an estimate provided as a courtesy. It will differ depending on the specific brands and ingredients that you use. Calorie information on food labels may be wildly inaccurate, so please don't sweat the numbers too much.
For more information on how the three recipe levels may help with a weight management goal, refer to my overnight oats no sugar post. Let's get cooking!
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Italian Sausage Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 lb. Italian sausage (454 grams; raw sweet Italian sausage)
- 1½ cups onion, chopped 7 ounces (198 grams)
- 3 medium carrots, chopped about 8½ ounces (241 grams)
- 3 medium stalks of celery, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 14 ounces diced tomatoes (397 grams; from a can, do not drain)
- 1 cup dry large lima beans
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- ½ tablespoon dried basil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 lb Swiss chard, both stems and leaves 454 grams (approximately 1 small bunch of chard, can substitute rainbow chard or red chard)
- salt and pepper, to taste (amount depends on how salty your broth is)
- 4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated (for topping)
Instructions
- Cover the lima beans in warm water and let them soak at room temperature for 12-24 hours.
- After soaking, remove any loose or floating skins from the beans. Drain the beans well. Set them aside as you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Remove the casings from the Italian sausage and chop the veggies. The onions and carrots should be chopped to ½-inch dice (1.27 cm). The celery should be halved lengthwise and cut into ¼-½-inch (0.6-1.27 cm) pieces. Separate the chard leaves and stems. The stems should be cut to ¼-inch dice (0.6 cm) and the leaves should be shredded. (I ended up with about 1½ cups of stems.) Mince the garlic.
- Put the Instant Pot on the “high saute” setting and heat the oil. Add the sausage, carrots, onions, celery, and garlic to the pot. Cook for about 10 minutes, crumbling the raw sausage with a metal spatula as it browns.
- After the sausage is browned, add the chard stems, drained lima beans, oregano, basil, bay leaf, chicken broth, salt and pepper to the pot.
- Put the lid on the Instant Pot and close the vent. Pressure the sausage soup for 25 minutes under high pressure (beans/chili setting). Allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes when the time is up.
- Open the vent, lift the lid, and stir in the tomatoes and chard leaves. Cover the Instant Pot with the lid but leave the vent open. Leave it on "warm" for 5 minutes. The Swiss chard leaves will wilt into the hot soup.
- Remove the bay leaf, ladle the soup into bowls, and sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Hollie says
I make soup with Swiss chard too! I grow it with flowers in my pots and between pepper plants in the veggie garden. They are gorgeous and delicious!
This looks yummy besides the Lima beans ????!
Summer Yule says
You're lucky to have Swiss chard in your garden! I think a lot of people dislike lima beans! haha I was the only one who liked them in my household as a child, so I am making sure to get them in now as an adult! 🙂
Terrified Amateur says
Oh my, Summer, you're right - just look at those hues! Between the chard and all those berries, you're the perfect Technicolor Chef. These are just great for everything, I bet, especially the eyes. I mean, even before you eat them they're conferring all kinds of benefits.
My grandparents - not the rhubarb pair, but the other set - used to grow chard, then they'd boil it nearly to mush. That put me off it for the longest time. Only with maturity and knowledge came a renewed appreciation for chard. Brussels sprouts, broccoli and zucchini too. (By the way, I loved those grandparents too, and miss them desperately. Just, they misused all that chard!)
Speaking of which, does eating vegetables raw take fullest advantage of their health benefits? While I love my soups, both cold-weather and warm-, I always put raw kale and broccoli (among other things) on my daily salads. Tell myself I'm really amping them up that way.
Summer Yule says
Oh no! Well, you can't fault them too much. It seems like everyone was boiling veggies to death in the 70s and 80s. At least they were growing their veggies! We lived in a semi-urban suburb and got most of our veggies in canned form. (As if canned veggies have not already been cooked enough, let's give them a good boil too! haha)
It's best to enjoy veggies both cooked and raw! Some nutrients can be lost with heating, while you'll get a boost from others. Diversifying your nutrition portfolio with a variety of veggies served in a variety of ways is going to be your best bet. There's so much that is still unknown about nutrition, I generally say it is wise to hedge your bets. Don't put all of your eggs in one basket. (Or in your case, maybe skip putting eggs in the basket at all because you don't like them, but enjoy a variety of other foods. lol)
Terrified Amateur says
Right, Summer, that's what I suspected too, vis-a-vis boiling veggies. Plus, my grandparents came of age during the Depression, and I'm sure, back in the thirties, that's just the way it was done.
Thanks too, for the advice about raw-vs-cooked. My salads always are raw, even mid-winter, as I prefer the texture. However, elsewhere on the menu, veggies usually are cooked.
I too am of the suburbs, though at a little more distance from the urban core than were you. Consequently, most people had gardens of some sort, and farms never were very far over the horizon.
A little too late for your childhood, unfortunately, but urban gardening really has become quite the "thing" in the last twenty years or so. Had you been born a couple decades later, maybe your family would've had access to a farmers' market, or even to a community garden rejuvenating a vacant lot
Summer Yule says
True! I think it's interesting how fresh fruits and veggies have become more popular in recent decades. I remember there was a big park near the apartment where I lived as a child that would hold a huge flea market on some weekends. I wonder whether they eventually branched out and added a farmer's market.
I'm kind of hoping it eventually became like the big farmer's market I used to go to in another part of the state. You could get your farm fresh produce, enjoy the flea market, and even buy Amish peanut butter and pies! Quite the one-stop shopping experience!
LetsCurry says
Such a healthy and a hearty bean soup recipe. I love how you have brought some light on overcooking vegetables. One pot is sure a pleaser to me during the hot days. Thanks for another amazing recipe Summer.
Summer Yule says
You're welcome! I'm so glad that you liked it! Thank you so much for leaving a rating 🙂