Italian Penicillin Soup–a brothy chicken soup with carrot, kale and orzo pasta. Make it in the Instant Pot or slow cooker.
Italian Penicillin Soup
Italian Penicillin Soup is a warm, comforting, and nourishing soup that’s like a classic chicken soup with an Italian twist. It’s packed with tender chicken, hearty orzo, and fresh kale, all simmered in a flavorful broth infused with garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. The name comes from its healing qualities—similar to traditional “Jewish penicillin” (chicken soup)—but with an Italian flair, thanks to ingredients like orzo and Parmesan.
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Olive oil–or canola, vegetable
- Onion–yellow, white
- Chicken broth–or water and Better than Bouillon chicken base
- Carrots–or sweet potato
- Celery
- Dried thyme leaves
- Garlic cloves
- Bay leaf
- Chicken breasts–or thighs
- Orzo–or pastina
- Kale–or spinach
- Parmesan–optional but good
Steps
Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. When display says HOT add in the olive oil and onion. Saute for 4 minutes.
Pour in the broth and let it start heating up while you gather the other ingredients.
Add in the carrot, celery, thyme, garlic, bay leaf and chicken.
Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the SOUP button to 10 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
Remove the chicken and set on a cutting board. Cut into cubes and set aside.
Discard the bay leaf. Use an immersion blender or a regular blender to blend the soup.
Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. Add in the orzo and kale. Simmer until orzo is cooked through, stirring every couple minutes (about 8 minutes). Stir in the chicken.
Ladle into bowls and serve topped with a bit of parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Notes/Tips
- Serve with french bread, a dinner roll or breadsticks.
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 3 or 8 quart pot.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Other recipes you can make with orzo are Slow Cooker Chicken Lemon Orzo Soup and Instant Pot Cheesy Taco Orzo.
- Recipe adapted from All Recipes.
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Italian Penicillin Soup
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
A brothy chicken soup with carrot, kale and orzo pasta. Make it in the Instant Pot or slow cooker.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 3 inch pieces
- 1 rib of celery
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 1 bay leaf
- 12 ounces chicken breasts
- 1/2 cup orzo
- 1 cup chopped kale
- Parmesan, for topping
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. When display says HOT add in the olive oil and onion. Saute for 4 minutes.
- Pour in the broth and let it start heating up while you gather the other ingredients.
- Add in the carrot, celery, thyme, garlic, bay leaf and chicken.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the SOUP button to 10 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Remove the chicken and set on a cutting board. Cut into cubes and set aside.
- Discard the bay leaf. Use an immersion blender or a regular blender to blend the soup.
- Turn Instant Pot to saute setting. Add in the orzo and kale. Simmer until orzo is cooked through, stirring every couple minutes (about 8 minutes). Stir in the chicken.
- Ladle into bowls and serve topped with a bit of parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Add onions, broth, carrot, celery, thyme, garlic, bay leaf and chicken into slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.
- Remove the chicken and set on a cutting board. Cut into cubes and set aside.
- Discard the bay leaf. Use an immersion blender or a regular blender to blend the soup.
- Add in the orzo and kale and chicken. Cover and cook on high until orzo is cooked through, about 30 minutes.
- Ladle into bowls and serve topped with a bit of parmesan cheese. Enjoy!
- Category: Soup
- Method: Instant Pot
More chicken soups to try…
Instant Pot Bob Evan’s Soup
Bob Evan’s Chicken-N-Noodles Soup is a copycat version of the homey, comforting soup that can be made at home in your Instant Pot or Crockpot!
Magic Soup
Instant Pot or slow cooker lemon dill chicken noodle soup with chicken, ginger, cabbage, carrots and onions. Warms you right up!
Avgolemono Soup
A creamy dreamy chicken, rice and lemon soup made in your Instant Pot or slow cooker.
Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
This recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup is fast and easy to make. No need to cook the chicken ahead of time, just add it straight to your pressure cooker along with the veggies and broth. We love making this recipe on a cold day or when we have a sick one in the house.
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I made this in my crockpot and it turned out wonderful! I did sub a sweet potato for the carrots and spinach for the kale since we prefer those. My husband complimented it several times! Will make it again!
I love that your husband complimented it! That always feels so validating.