Sausage and Potato Soup
Sausage and Potato Soup made with potatoes, Italian sausage, and spinach simmered in a creamy broth topped with parmesan, ready in 45 minutes!
Sausage Potato Soup is one of my favorite comforting soups to make as soon as the weather turns colder. We’re using everyday ingredients like Italian sausage, broth, and veggies, with some half and half to achieve a creamy texture. I also like to top this with some fresh chopped chives, red pepper flakes, and parmesan cheese just before serving!
If you like this recipe, you’ll also love my other cozy soups like Slow Cooker Potato Soup, Potato Cheese Soup, and Slow Cooker Kale Bean and Sausage Soup!
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Hearty: This soup is warm, creamy, and filling. It’s perfect for cold days or when you’re craving something more substantial.
Easy: Sausage Potato Soup is not hard to make at all! But it tastes like it should be, which is the perfect combination. We’re using wholesome ingredients and simple seasoning to cut down on cooking time and turn this into a go-to weeknight recipe!
Gluten Free: You know that this is 100% gluten free because it’s made with wholesome ingredients that you add yourself!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Italian Sausage. For this soup I use regular Italian sausage, which is usually a pork sausage. You can use mild or hot sausage, depending on how spicy you like it.
I find that sausage in casing tends to have more flavor, so I usually just remove the casing and break the sausage into 1-inch pieces. You can also use ground Italian sausage for this recipe.
Potatoes. Gold potatoes work well for this recipe because they are the perfect balance of starchy and waxy. This means that they’ll hold their shape in a soup without getting mushy. You also don’t have to peel gold potatoes, because the skin is soft and tastes good.
Red potatoes also work for this recipe. I don’t recommend using Russet potatoes, because the texture will be too mushy.
Fresh Spinach. I like to use baby spinach, because it’s already in smaller pieces. I also make this faster by buying the bag of pre-cut and pre-washed spinach. You can also use other leafy greens, like kale.
Onion. This recipe works well with a sweet onion like Vidalia, but you can also use a yellow onion or white onion. I use a small to medium onion, because we’re also using leeks which have a similar flavor.
Leeks. This adds another flavor that is similar to onion, and is a great way to add more veggies to the soup.
Celery. This adds flavor, and also some extra veggies in the soup.
Carrots. This helps add a little sweetness that balances the savory notes in the soup.
Broth. Chicken stock, chicken broth, or vegetable broth both work well for this recipe.
Half and Half. This gives the soup a nice creamy texture, and balances out the savory notes. You can also use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream for a creamier soup, or milk for a lighter one. Milk won’t have as much of a creaminess, because it’s lower in fat.
Garlic. Using a few garlic cloves will give you the best flavor, but you can use garlic powder if you don’t like chopping garlic.
Butter. This helps add flavor, and keeps the veggies from sticking to the pan. I like to use unsalted butter, because the sausage is already pretty salty.
You can also substitute with olive oil instead of butter.
Spices. I’m keeping this easy by adding some Italian seasoning and black pepper. If you don’t have it in your pantry, you can try making my Homemade Italian Seasoning. At the end of the recipe, you can season with salt (if needed) and fresh ground black pepper to taste.
Kitchen Tools
For this hearty soup recipe you’ll need a medium sized dutch oven or soup pot.
How to Make Sausage and Potato Soup
Time needed: 40 minutes
- Brown the sausage.
In a dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt two tablespoons of butter and add sausage pieces. Brown sausage, turning the pieces until mostly cooked through, about 4-5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside. Drain the grease from the pan.
- Soften the vegetables.
Add remaining butter to pot with leeks, celery, carrots, and onion. Cook until softened, stirring often, about 5-7 minutes. Move the vegetables to the side of the pot and add the garlic. Cook for another minute.
- Combine everything but the spinach and cream.
Add the sausage back into the pot, along with the potatoes, broth, and seasoning. Stir everything together and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover the pot and let it simmer on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the sausage is completely cooked through.
- Add spinach and cream.
Add a ladle of broth to the cream and stir together, then pour the cream into the soup. Add the spinach and stir everything together. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes, until the spinach is soft and serve.
Recipe Variations
- Make this sausage potato soup recipe spicy by using spicy Italian sausage, or adding a dash of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes.
- Try topping with crispy bacon, green onions, or chopped fresh chives.
- Try adding more veggies to this creamy sausage potato soup like green beans, peas, corn, or edamame. Or increase the fiber with a can of white beans.
- Try adding 1-2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese to give this a really nice cheesy flavor! Get the block of cheese that you shred yourself for the best melting.
- You can make sausage potato soup without cream. Just leave it out, and increase the broth until you have the desired consistency. If you’re dairy free, try using canned coconut milk or almond milk instead.
- If you want a lighter version of this, you can use chicken sausage or turkey sausage.
Recipe Tip! Make sure to carefully drain the grease from cooking the sausage before adding other ingredients. The grease will sit on the top of the soup if too much of it is left in the pot.
Frequently Asked Questions
If your soup consistency is too thin, you can make a cornstarch slurry that will give you a thicker soup. Try adding 1 tablespoon of cornstarch whisked with 1/4 cup broth to the soup. Stir until well combined, and simmer for a few minutes as the soup thickens. If you’d like it thicker, you can add an additional tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with broth.
On the flip side, if your soup is too thick, you can add a cup or two of broth to thin it out.
More Soup Recipes
Storage
Refrigerate leftover soup in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze potato sausage soup in a freezer-safe container for 1-2 months. Potato based soups don’t freeze very well, and may change texture after being frozen. Try reheating in a saucepan, and adding more cream as-needed.
Cooking Tips
- I didn’t puree this soup, but if you wanted to make this more like potato leek soup with sausage in it, just cook the sausage completely in the beginning and puree the soup before adding it back in. You can also use a potato masher until you have the right consistency.
- You can add a pinch of kosher salt if the final product needs it, but sausage is already very salty so make sure you don’t add too much!
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Sausage and Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pound Italian sausage, casing removed
- 2 large leeks, white parts only, chopped
- 2 medium celery stalks, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, chopped
- 1 small Vidalia onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, washed and quartered
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth, gluten free
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- parmesan cheese, grated (optional for topping)
Instructions
- In a dutch oven over medium-high heat, melt two tablespoons of butter. Add sausage and brown for 4-5 minutes, turning the pieces until mostly cooked through. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside. Drain the grease from the dutch oven.
- Add remaining butter to pot with leeks, celery, carrots, and onion. Cook until softened, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Move the vegetables to the side of the pot and add the garlic. Cook for another minute, stirring.
- Add the sausage back into the pot along with the potatoes, broth, and seasoning. Stir everything together and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover the pot and let it simmer on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the sausage is completely cooked through.
- Add a ladle of broth to the cream and stir together, then pour the cream into the soup. Add the spinach and stir everything together. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes, until the spinach is soft, and serve.
Notes
- If you wanted to make this more like potato leek soup with sausage in it, just cook the sausage completely in the beginning and puree the soup before adding it back in. You can also use a potato masher until you have the right consistency.
- You can add a pinch of kosher salt if the final product needs it, but sausage is already very salty so make sure you don’t add too much!
- Make this recipe spicy by using spicy Italian sausage, or adding a dash of cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes.
Nutrition
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