How to Make Chicken Soup: Italian Grandma Style (Thick & Hearty)
Learn how to make chicken soup the Italian way. This thick and hearty Italian Chicken Soup is the meal I grew up eating at my grandmother’s house. This is a truly healing soup that makes a much bigger impact than the viral “Italian Penicillin.”
This is the exact meal you would find at Nonna’s house, and it’s the ultimate comfort food for the colder months or any time of the year you’re feeling down and need a boost. It’s packed with nourishment to bring you right back up! If you don’t have an Italian grandmother of your own, that’s what I’m here for!
Ingredients:
5 Chicken legs
2 Carrots, diced
2 Celery stalks, diced
1 Yellow onion, diced
3 Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed
2 tbsp Tomato paste
12 cups Hot water (plus more if needed)
1 lb Spaghetti, broken into pieces
Olive oil
Salt & Black pepper
Parmigiano Reggiano
Directions:
1. In a large pot, heat olive oil and sear the chicken legs until lightly browned.
2. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and potatoes. Cook for a few minutes to soften.
3. Add the hot water, salt, pepper, and tomato paste. Mix well and simmer gently for 45 minutes.
4. Remove the chicken legs, shred the meat, and discard the bones. Pour the meat back in!
5. Add your broken spaghetti and cook until al dente. Add a splash of water if it gets too thick.
6. Turn off the heat and stir in a generous amount of Parmigiano Reggiano for a rich, savory finish.
⭐ Video Chapters
0:00 The Chicken Soup
0:35 Searing the Chicken for Deep Flavor
1:54 The “Soffritto” and Potatoes
2:51 The Broth
3:40 Shredding the Meat
4:37 Why We Break the Spaghetti
6:23 Preview and Adding in Cheese
6:54 Plating
7:19 Giovanni
Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
✅ Real Italian Comfort: This isn’t restaurant food; it’s authentic, rustic home cooking.
✅ Hearty & Filling: The combination of potatoes and pasta makes this a complete, satisfying meal.
✅ Budget Friendly: Uses simple, inexpensive ingredients to feed a crowd.
Comment Below:
How do you like your chicken soup? Do you prefer it thick and hearty like this one, or light and brothy? Let me know in the comments! 👇🥣🇮🇹
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#soup #italianfood #easyrecipe
38 Comments
Love love love everything about you , as a British Italian well Sicilian , both my parents have passed so I loosing touch with the old ways and traditions , and people like you are bringing them back .
I would cook the paste a little
Another excellent dish Giovanni! We're Pecorino Romano famiglia when it comes to adding cheese….😁 Did your Nonna make Minestrone soup? If so, would love for you to record that recipe……..was an absolute favorite of mine when my Nonna used to make it.
Honestly, last two weeks, my entire family has been living off many of your recipes and I just made this one today and you know what? It rose to the top of the charts instantly. Sold out in 30 seconds! 😊 So tasty, so simple. And, oh! Oh! Them cracking spaghetti sounds! ASMR 😂. Thank you for this one. We love it.
Giovanni’s recipes are awesome and this one looks amazing too. I never knew my Italian grandparents who moved to the US from Calabria but I have many recipes from them. Love your channel and I especially enjoy your delivery. You make everything easy. You’re the best, paisano! 🎉
Good morning! Another winner if you ask me! I love soup all year long and this will be made. I usually make wedding soup the most because it's my favorite but this will be a close second. I've never had soup with potatoes but it looks great. And, you're so much like me – a little soup, pasta or anything with my cheese! Cheese is what makes it all taste better and better. I'm anxious to make peas and pasta your way for either Ash Wednesday or this Friday. I hope it comes out as good as yours.
Your cooking makes me go back to growing up in the big Italian neighborhood! Thank you sooooooo much Giovanni. Not only are you a wonderful chef, you bring back all of the good memories! – David
The best soup ever! The cheese yes! Makes the house smell of comfort, love it. Your style of cooking is very much the same as ours and finally someone who makes chicken soup with water, adding tomato too allowng a natural broth. The only difference is we never added potato, which I will next time I make it. You made me laugh breaking the pasta. We fought over who would break it as kids!
My nana (vs nonna) and my mother always made like a minestra style soup (not a stooup), a minestra like Giovanni in this recipe. And, yes, they broke the spaghetti so that you can take spoonfuls without getting chin drip! Today: my wife has a short cut. She buys a whole rotisserie chicken from the supermarket. (was $3 albeit $6.99 with today's inflation) Packed with flavor she then takes all that meat for the protein part of the minestra. And our dogs enjoy the skin & gristle scraps as a healthy treat while the soup simmers! However, I do have to arm wrestle with her because she doesn't like to "mix carbs" like potatoes and pasta in the same zupa. Sometimes I let her win. 😄
A little too much pasta but other than that very good
Dear Giovanni
Think you should know that the 1st ad on this vid is an hour long SCAM called
RETINA CLEAR.
Your fans should not be suckered in to wasting $$$$.
Think if you contact
You Tube it might be changed. idk?????
THANK YOU SO MUCH for my new chicken soup recipe. Looks delicious.
❤❤✌😋
Do you ever do sweet stuff?
CANOLIS????
Please !!!
Love your video recipes.
I usually make my Chicken soup with some peas and lintels, and after cooked carrots and potatoes I mashed them together and add it to the soup, also break spaghetti and add to soup. Delicious 😋 Yummy
That's what we need – simple, hearty meals with soul❤
Love your cooking! I will definitely make this! God bless! ❤️
Please, cookbook greetings from Germany
What culinary school did you go? You are more of a pretty face than chef.
Looks awesome. I love chicken soup. But me i love the broth, but I’ll make this cause i do love chicken stew. PS. Your channel and Sip and Feast are two awesome Italian cooking channels.
Buonissimo
Another great recipe to try! Thank you, Giovanni.
I’m gluten free. I’d make with GF fettuccine.its better than the gf spaghetti
My mother broke up spaghetti for soup!
Are you taking medications?
Love to make chicken soup-can’t wait to try your version-I could smell it cooking! Thanks for sharing Giovanni. 🥣
So glad came across your channel love these recipes
Ive been cooking your recipes for my girlfriend, and she thinks Im this incredible cook. Im going to wait a little longer to tell her you're the cook lmao! Jk….Great recipes….Ty
Love me a thick chicken noodle soup. A quick and easy variant is to use leftover rotisserie chicken, perhaps a can of Veg-all, a small bag of fideo, and whatever herbs are on hand. So fast yet still tasty. Thanks for video.
Please do a cook Book your recipes are wonderful
Yay! Finally a chicken soup recipe that really has my attention 😍🥰💯
I made this soup tonight for my Italian husband's dinner. He saw me folding the towel around the pasta and breaking it. "That's just how my Nonna did it when I was little! How did you learn to do that?" Ha! How, indeed. Happy husband, happy life. THANK YOU!
I like to cook the pasta separate. Then add to soup as much as I want
Please make a tortellini soup
Great looking soup, but where is the garlic ? I cannot conceive of making this dish without any garlic.
Buonissimo! 😋
Came across this earlier today and decided to make it for my wife and daughters. I'm Mexicano from south Texas with zero ties to Italy whatsoever, but this came out very tasty. Made a few adjustments… used skinless chicken breast for health reasons, and used fresh garlic and an Italian spices mix of oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, and marjoram I bought at Sprouts to give extra spice. Also upped the tomato paste amount by about double what was used here.
Nicely done, will have to try some more of your video recipies.
I remember this one. One of my favourites that nonna used to make, especially in the winter. Thanks for the nostalgia trip ❤
What no saffron
Looks delicious!❤
My mom and dad would always save the parmesan cheese rinds and break them into pieces to add to soups or sauce while its cooking. Adds great flavor and was always a bonus if you got a piece in your bowl.