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You will fall hard for this quick and easy Instant Pot zuppa toscana recipe. You can make this cozy sausage and potato soup in the Instant Pot, crockpot, or on the stovetop.
You’re in for a real treat with this Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana, my friends! It has flavorful sausage, creamy broth, sliced potatoes, and bacon, AKA, the candy bar of meats.
Make it in the Instant Pot (or slow cooker OR on the stovetop), I mean, seriously, you have options. You’ll find yourself making this Olive Garden copycat soup again and again.
Reader Review
“This soup was amazing! We’ve had an instant pot for years but I’d never used it (I know, shameful!) because I found it kind of intimidating. Your recipe was so easy to follow and everything worked perfectly. Thank you! The instant pot definitely won’t be collecting dust anymore.”
Amanda
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- This soup is meant to have a thin broth with a hint of creaminess. It’s delicious and so good, but it is not a thick cream-based soup like a chowder. If you want to make the texture thicker, remove some of the potatoes, mash them with a bit of the broth, and stir them back into the soup.
- I made this in an 8-quart Instant Pot. It will work in a 6-quart without issue. You would need to make adjustments to the measurements (slide the servings lever on the recipe card below) to make it in a 3-quart.
- If you’re doubling the recipe, the cooking time remains the same. It will take longer to come to pressure with more volume, but you still only need to cook it for 5 minutes. Do not try to double in a 3-quart Instant Pot.
Quick and Cozy Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
You will fall hard for this quick and easy Instant Pot zuppa toscana recipe. You can make this cozy sausage and potato soup in the Instant Pot, crockpot, or on the stovetop.
Ingredients
- 4 strips bacon {chopped}
- 1 lb ground sausage {casings removed if using links}
- 1/2 cup white onion {diced}
- 6 cloves garlic {minced}
- 5 cups chicken stock {low sodium recommended}
- 4 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 3/4 cup heavy cream {non-dairy cream works well too}
- 2 cups kale {sliced into ribbons}
- 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes {optional}
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Set the Instant Pot to saute. Add the bacon and cook for 3-4 minutes stirring so that it doesn't burn.4 strips bacon
- Add the sausage and break it up, stirring often. Drain all but 1-2 tsp of fat.1 lb ground sausage
- Add a splash of chicken broth and use a scraper to deglaze the bottom of the Instant Pot. Don’t skip this step as anything stuck to the bottom can prevent the Instant Pot from coming up to pressure.
- Add the onion, garlic, broth, and potatoes. If using red pepper flakes, add here.1/2 cup white onion, 6 cloves garlic, 5 cups chicken stock, 4 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes, 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
- Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to “Sealing”. Press Manual>High Pressure>5 minutes.
- When the cooking time is up, do a natural release for 10 minutes, and then flip the vent to "venting" and perform a quick release.
- Add heavy cream and kale and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.3/4 cup heavy cream, 2 cups kale, salt and pepper to taste
Notes
- If you want to make the texture thicker, remove some of the potatoes, mash them with a bit of the broth, and stir them back into the soup.
- You can leave the peels on the potatoes if desired.
- If you’re doubling the recipe, the cooking time remains the same. It will take longer to come to pressure with more volume, but you still only need to cook it for 5 minutes.
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In a heavy-bottomed saucepan set to medium, cook the bacon and break it up, stirring often. Add the sausage and cook until no longer pink. Drain any excess fat.
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Add the onion, garlic, broth, and potatoes and cook on low for 20-35 minutes, or until the potatoes are softened. If using red pepper flakes, add here.
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Add cream and kale and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
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In a heavy-bottomed saucepan set to medium, cook the bacon and break it up, stirring often. Add the sausage and cook until no longer pink. Drain any excess fat. Transfer to a slow cooker.
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Add the onion, garlic, broth, and potatoes and cook on low for 6 hours, or until the potatoes are softened. If using red pepper flakes, add here.
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Add milk and kale and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupCalories: 412kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 19gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 64mgSodium: 312mgPotassium: 1186mgFiber: 3gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 770IUVitamin C: 37.8mgCalcium: 75mgIron: 5.2mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Mr. Picky Pants and I love this recipe! I am going to help our daughter’s family for a couple of weeks and would love to make this soup for them; however, one grandchild has a serious allergy to whey (she comes with an Epi pen). The other has a serious nut allergy (also an Epi pen kid). My question…do you have a suggestion for a non-dairy, non-nut creamer for soups that is any good? Thanks in advance!
Who-hoo, yay for winning over Mr. Picky Pants!!
I have a friend who has similar issues and her favorite creamy non-dairy creamer is coconut cream (from the can) or pea milk. I think the brand is Ripple.
We introduce my in-laws to this delicious soup and they absolutely loved it! Can’t pronounce it, but happily ate a few bowls of it!
Awww, I love hearing that, Tina!
LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS SOUP! It’s been forever since we made it. This time around I used our Butcher Box bacon and breakfast sausage and Ripple Original Unsweetened in place of the cream. I doubled the recipe (I think ended up with about 5 cups of kale) and we are all so excited about leftovers!!
Tina, you’re a woman after my own heart! Doubling soup and enjoying the leftovers is the best part of life.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
I made a dairy free version on this crisp Fall Sunday and it was a hit! Everyone wanted a second bowl. Requests were made to add it to the regular Fall/Winter Sunday Soup rotation. I did pull about 1 cup of potatoes out after they were soft, blend them, and then add them back in to thicken the soup a bit. We used 3/4 cup of coconut cream to make it dairy free. Two thumbs up and five stars for the stove-top method!
So glad you three loved it so much, Erin! You inspired me to make it this week for our own family meal plan.
LOVE this soup! I took the lazy route and bought the pre-chopped kale, but it wasn’t really chopped, so wasn’t a time saver… I’m sad it’s taken me so long to make it since the last time!
You have inspired us, Tina and we’re making this tomorrow!
I’m so glad you love this soup as much as we do. <3
Seriously the simplest soup and amazing during the week when you want something warm and hearty without having to spend all day at the stove. Thanks for such a great recipe, Sarah!
So glad you have enjoyed it so much! Gotta love a soup you can throw together and enjoy.
This soup was amazing! We’ve had an instant pot for years but I’d never used it (I know, shameful!) because I found it kind of intimidating. Your recipe was so easy to follow and everything worked perfectly. Thank you! The instant pot definitely won’t be collecting dust anymore.
I’m so glad you loved it, Amanda. And YES to taking that Instant Pot out of the box!!! That is a huge step; nice work.
Zomg. Amazing! I haven’t had time to cook in ages but I came across a bag of chopped kale and have been thinking about this recipe for weeks.
Today was the day—I got some Spicy Italian sausage out of the freezer, bought potatoes and milk (didn’t use the milk) and started cooking.
I didn’t feel like defrosting bacon, so skipped that. Missed the part where I take the fat out after cooking the sausage (oops), used plain water and skipped the milk but it was still amazing!!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It’s the coziest and most comforting soup.
So good! We make this all the time and EVERYONE we’ve ever shared it with loves it!
It’s like a snuggly hug in a bowl, so I’m thrilled you enjoyed it so much!