This lasagna soup recipe delivers everything you love about classic lasagna—rich tomato flavor, savory sausage, tender noodles, and creamy ricotta—in a weeknight-friendly one-pot format. Instead of relying on jarred marinara, you’ll build flavor fast with a full tube of tomato paste and Italian sausage, creating a deeply savory broth in less time than it takes to make the real thing.
As the noodles simmer, they release just enough starch to thicken the soup into a silky, stew-like consistency. Finish with fresh spinach and generous dollops of seasoned ricotta for that signature lasagna feel—no oven required.
Lasagna Soup FAQs
- What makes this soup taste like lasagna? It’s the combination of concentrated tomato paste, sausage, tender noodles, and ricotta. Together, they recreate the richness and layered flavor of meaty lasagna in a weeknight-ready brothy format.
- Why cook the noodles in the soup? As the noodles simmer, they release starch that naturally thickens the broth, giving the soup a silky, stew-like texture.
- Do I need double-concentrated tomato paste? Double-concentrated tomato paste adds deeper, more intense flavor and is worth using even when not explicitly called for. Let it cook until darkened and slightly caramelized to build a rich, savory base. You can use regular tomato paste, but the flavor will be milder.
- Can I make lasagna soup ahead of time? The pasta will continue to absorb liquid as the soup sits, causing it to thicken. If making ahead, reserve the noodles until reheating; drop them into the bubbling broth just before serving and cook until al dente, adding splashes of water as necessary to thin the broth.
- Can I skip the sausage? You can absolutely make this a meat-free lasagna soup if desired. The easiest swap is an uncooked plant-based sausage, but you can also leave it out entirely—add a bit more olive oil to the pan when cooking the onions and to help bloom the tomato paste. If desired, you can replace the sausage with sliced mushrooms, big chunks of zucchini, or another vegetable that says “lasagna” to you.
Recipe information
Total Time
40 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Heat 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high. Arrange about 1" pieces of 1 lb. hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed, in pot in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, 3 minutes, then continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon or heatproof rubber spatula, until browned all over and just cooked through, 3–4 minutes more. Using a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a plate.
Step 2
Place 1 medium onion, chopped, in same pot and season with kosher salt. Cook, stirring often, until slightly softened and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced, and one 4.5-oz. tube double-concentrated tomato paste (about ½ cup) and cook, stirring often, until paste is starting to stick to pot and has darkened significantly, about 3 minutes. Pour in 2 cups water, scraping up any browned bits stuck to bottom of pot.
Step 3
Pour in 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth and add 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Add 10 oz. dried lasagna noodles (about 10 noodles), broken into 2"–3" pieces, and cook, stirring often, until very al dente, about 9 minutes.
Step 4
Meanwhile, place 1 cup whole-milk fresh ricotta in a small bowl and season with salt and freshly ground pepper; mix well.
Step 5
Stir another 2 cups water into soup (it will have thickened up by this point); return sausage to pot. Reduce heat to low and cook just until meat is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat and stir in 5 oz. fresh baby spinach; season soup with more salt and pepper if needed.
Step 6
Ladle soup into bowls. Top each with a dollop of ricotta mixture and season with more pepper.
