Creamy Orzo Meatball Soup
This Orzo Meatball Soup recipe features tender meatballs with orzo pasta simmered in savory beef stock. It is a warm, satisfying dish with well-balanced ingredients, offering a hearty meal for any occasion.
I’m always on a serious soup kick —anyone else feeling the same? Not only are soups super easy to pack with flavorful ingredients, but they also make perfect leftovers. Plus, my favorite thing about soup is that it’s almost impossible to mess up. You’re almost always guaranteed a delicious, comforting meal.
So what makes this Italian Meatball & Orzo Soup so irresistible? First off, it’s loaded with tender, juicy meatballs— I love me some juicy meatballs! This old-school Italian meatball soup with orzo is a recipe I come back to again and again, especially when one of my kids needs a comforting dish. While this orzo meatball soup is hearty enough to stand alone as a meal, it’s also amazing paired with crusty bread or a grilled cheese sandwich.
Ingredients
Detailed quantities are on the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Orzo pasta Uncooked
- Beef stock
- Baby Spinach
- Bell peppers: Green pepper, Yellow pepper, Red pepper
- Carrots
- Celery
- Onion
- Egg
- Thick cream Optional
- Seasoning: Dried oregano, All spice, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt
How to make Orzo Meatball Soup
- Prepare the Meatballs: In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, egg, dried oregano, allspice, garlic powder, Cajun seasoning, black pepper, and a pinch of salt. Mix well until fully combined. Shape the mixture into meatballs and arrange them on a baking tray or dish. Bake in a preheated oven at 190°C (375°F) for about 30 minutes, or until fully cooked and golden brown.
- Cook the Vegetables: While the meatballs are baking, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions, bell pepper, and celery for about 5 minutes, until softened.
- Season the Soup: Add the diced carrots, add seasoning then pour in the beef stock. Bring to a boil. I used dried oregano, garlic powder, all spice, black pepper and pinch of salt.
- Simmer the Soup: Add the orzo pasta, reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the pasta from sticking. Add more stock or water as needed.
- Add Spinach & Meatballs: In the last 5 minutes of cooking, stir in the spinach and add the baked meatballs. Continue simmering for another 5 minutes until the spinach wilts and the flavors meld together.
- Optional Cream: If you prefer a creamier soup, stir in a splash of cream during the final minutes of cooking.
- Serve: Ladle the soup into bowls and enjoy!
Tips & mistakes to avoid for beginner cooks
- Don’t use water in place of broth cause this can result in a less flavorful soup; using beef broth adds depth to this Orzo meatball soup. The pasta absorb the broth and the taste is amazing.
- If you decide to use store-bought broth like me, please do a taste test before you add seasoning that contains salt because broths are salty on their own unless you bought a low-sodium one.
- Don’t overcook the orzo pasta, if you are not sure that you will be able to pull it off in one pot then you are better off cooking it separately. Then add it to the soup to absorb the flavors, you may need a thickening agent if you are not doing one pot.
More easy soup recipes to add to your rotation
How to store and reheat leftover Orzo pasta soup
Allow your Orzo meatball soup to cool to room temperature before storing. Place any leftover soup in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
For longer storage, freeze the soup in an airtight container or ziplock bags—ziplock bags are great for saving space. It will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating Instructions
If refrigerated, you can reheat the meatballs with orzo soup in the microwave or on the stovetop. In a small saucepan, warm it over medium heat, and if it’s too watery, let it simmer uncovered to reduce the liquid.
For frozen soup, thaw it in the fridge or at room temperature, then reheat using the same methods.
Creamy Orzo Meatball Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup Orzo pasta Uncooked
- 1.10 lbs Ground beef
- 4 cups Beef stock
- 1 handful Baby Spinach
- 1 Green pepper
- 1 Yellow pepper
- 1 Red pepper
- 2 Carrots
- 2 sticks Celery
- 1 Onion
- 1 Egg
- 2 tbsp Double thick cream Optional
- 1 tsp Seasoning Dried oregano, All spice, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the ground beef and 1 egg the season with seasoning of your choice. I used dried oregano, all spice, garlic powder, cajun seasoning, black pepper and pinch of salt. Mix well then make meatballs and lay them on a baking tray or dish and bake in a preheated oven on 190°C (375°F) for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, chop the veggies. In a large pot sauté the onions, bell peppers and celery with a tablespoon of olive oil on medium-high heat for up to 5 minutes.
- Season and add the carrots followed by the beef stock. Bring it to boil.
- Add a cup of uncooked orzo pasta and lower the head to medium heat then let it gently simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or just until the pasta is cooked. Stirring occasionally so that it doesn't stick, add more stock or water if needed.
- In the last 5 minutes at a handful of spinach and meatballs then continue cooking for 5 more minutes.
- This step is optional, add cream if you like creamy soup and your Orzo meatball soup is ready to be served.
