Italian Bean Soup Recipe (Easy and Delicious)

Italian Bean Soup is one of those dishes that can be quick and easy to make with ingredients that are usually in your pantry or refrigerator. This Stovetop Italian Bean Soup recipe can be ready to serve in under 30 minutes and all of the work can be done in one pan.

Stovetop Italian Bean Soup

Made with Italian sausage, red kidney beans and diced tomatoes, this soup is a great weeknight option when you need to feed a hungry family quickly. Stovetop Italian Bean Soup is a simple recipe to toss together. with all the work is done on top of the stove. As much as we love the Crock Pot and Instant Pot, the stove top is our tool of choice for a quick meal.

A Creamy Italian Sausage Soup Recipe

Have you fallen in love with our Tuscan Sausage and White Bean Soup? It is our number one recipe on These Old Cookbooks. It’s not a surprise. Barbara’s family has been enjoying that recipe for years. We even made a low-carb, gluten-free version for those wanting to follow a low-carb, gluten-free and/or Keto diet. Low-Carb Tuscan Soup uses riced cauliflower!

So, when Barbara headed back into the kitchen to cook up some new soup recipes, she took some of the elements from those Tuscan soups and pulled them into this Italian Bean Soup version. She used kidney beans instead of cannellini beans and Italian sausage instead of regular pork sausage.

Simple Italian Sausage Soup

She loves using canned diced tomatoes that already have the seasonings added and for this recipe she used a can of diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano. If you don’t have access to these, you can always use regular canned diced tomatoes and add the seasonings separately to taste.

It is safe to say that this Stovetop Italian Bean Soup is just as well liked as our other soup recipes.  All three of Barbara’s kids plus our niece finished their bowls with no complaining.

Ingredient List for Creamy Italian Sausage Soup

• Italian sausage, casing removed and browned
• Butter
• Onions
• Garlic
• All Purpose Flour
• Evaporated Milk
• Chicken Broth
• Diced Tomatoes with Italian Herbs
• Kidney Beans (or your other favorite canned bean)
• Salt and Black Pepper

How to Make Italian Bean Soup

Step by Step Instructions

1. Cook and drain the Italian Sausage over medium-high heat; set aside.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan.  Add diced onions and garlic, sauté for 1-2 minutes.  Stir in flour.
3. Add canned evaporated milk and chicken broth, heating until boiling over medium heat.
4. Add Italian sausage, diced tomatoes and kidney beans; heating until warm.
5. Season with salt and black pepper.

Storage Instructions

Store cooled leftovers in an airtight container for up to a week in the refrigerator.

Full recipe steps and ingredient amounts for Italian bean soup with sausage is at the bottom of the page in the recipe card.

Recipe FAQs

• This Italian sausage soup is a fast, weeknight option.  It comes together quickly and feeds a crowd.
• Swap in whatever sausage you prefer—hot, mild, Italian, pork, etc.
• If you buy your Italian Sausage in links, remove the casing and discard. Brown up the rest for the soup.
• Use Italian diced tomatoes, diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano, or even regular canned, diced tomatoes.  If you use regular, add your own dried Italian seasonings.
• You could also you Italian San Marzano Tomatoes in a can.  Use your fingers or a meat chopper to chop the whole tomatoes into bite-sized pieces.
• Swap in white beans for red kidney beans, if desired in this Italian Sausage Soup.
• This would be great served along Cheesy Garlic Biscuits.

Recipe Variations

• Substitute extra virgin olive oil for butter.
• White kidney beans are a great option instead of red kidney beans.
• Add you favorite vegetables such as celery stalks, carrots, kale or fresh baby spinach. Sauté with the onions.
• Any type of dried herb can be added such as basil, rosemary, bay leaf or thyme.
• Have a leftover rind from Parmesan Cheese? Add it for flavor.
• For heat, add red pepper flakes.

How to Use Raw Italian Sausage Links for a Recipe?

If your recipe calls for ground, Italian sausage, go ahead and stock up on the raw sausage links from the grocery store.

To use raw sausage links for a recipe, take a sharp knife and make a slit long-ways down the sausage. Split the sausage open, and separate the meat from the casing (the slimy, stretchy skin around the ground meat).

The sausage casing can be discarded, and the meat inside can be browned up in a skillet just like bulk sausage or ground beef.

Soup Recipes for Fall

Poor Man’s Stew

Tuscan White Bean Soup

Ground Beef Vegetable Soup

Ham and Cheddar Chowder

Amish Cabbage Chowder