Italian wedding soup sounds fancy. It is really a simple dish from the country which can easily be made in your kitchen. The name actually has nothing to do with marriage. Don’t let the name fool or scare you. This is a simple soup and a hearty one pot meal.
History
Italian wedding soup, known in Italy as minestra maritata (“married soup”), has no actual connection to weddings despite its English name. The dish originated in Naples and the surrounding Campania region of southern Italy. Some sources date it to the 15th century, while other historians trace its roots to the Spanish stew olla podrida adapted from local ingredients. Its name refers not to a union of two people but to the harmonious “marriage” of meats and bitter greens simmered together in broth. The original was a hearty peasant dish built on pork scraps and bones from the annual winter pig slaughter, combined with foraged greens like escarole, cardoons, and borage. The now-familiar Italian-American version—tiny meatballs, escarole or spinach, and small pasta like orzo in chicken broth. This combination emerged when immigrants from Campania adapted the dish to ingredients available in the United States.
Meats
This recipe has only ground beef. You can use 50% ground beef and 50% ground pork. For more flavor, 50% ground beef and 50% ground Italian sausage. You decide the flavor you like best.
Meatballs
Try not to make the meatballs too large. This recipe uses ¾ inch size. Remember, the meatballs will grow in size during cooking. You can try ½-inch meatballs, which will be easier to eat with a spoon.
Greens
I like spinach, however, you can substitute escarole or kale. If you use kale, you need to add cooking time when you add it.
What goes with this soup?
I have a biscuit recipe you can add to your meal.
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Rinse the spinach and trim the ends. Slice spinach and set aside,
- Dice the carrots and set aside.
- Mince the onions and set aside.
- In a Dutch oven add chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
- In a large bowl, add the ground beef, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, basil, onions, eggs, and mix well with your hand.
- Using the meat mixture, roll meatballs into 3/4 inch size, and set aside.
- In the simmering Dutch oven, add carrots, pasta and meatballs. Simmer for 10 minutes while stirring from time to time.
- After 10 minutes of simmering, turn the heat off. Add spinach and stir. After 30 seconds the spinach is cooked and is ready to be served. Bon Appetite!
