Can I make lasagna soup in the slow cooker?

Yes. Brown the sausage, onion, garlic and tomato paste on the stove first, then slow cook with the tomatoes, broth and seasonings on low 6 hours or high 3 hours. Add the broken noodles and cook on high 30 minutes more.

Why did my lasagna soup get so thick?

The noodles keep absorbing broth after cooking. Thin leftovers with a splash of broth or water. For meal prep, cook the noodles separately and add them per bowl.

What noodles work best for lasagna soup?

Regular lasagna noodles broken into 2-inch pieces hold their texture best. Mafalda, campanelle or bow ties are good substitutes with the same cook time.

Can I freeze lasagna soup?

Freeze the broth base without noodles for up to 3 months and add fresh noodles when reheating.

Home › Comfort Food › Lasagna Soup

Lasagna soup

By Ami · September 5, 2026 · ★★★★★ 4.9 from 71 reviews · Jump to Recipe · Print

This lasagna soup is every bit of lasagna — browned Italian sausage, a rich tomato-basil broth, tender noodles and a big creamy dollop of ricotta and parmesan on top — made in one pot in 35 minutes, with none of the layering, none of the 90-minute bake, and about 34g of protein a bowl. It has quietly become the most-requested comfort food in this house, right alongside the chicken pot pie.

Lasagna soup — rich tomato broth with broken lasagna noodles, Italian sausage, melted mozzarella and a ricotta dollop in a rustic bowl, easy one pot comfort food dinner

This one pot comfort food dinner basically makes itself.

All the lasagna flavor in a third of the time. The noodles cook right in the tomato broth, so they soak up the sausage and garlic the same way the layers do in a baked lasagna — just without the assembly, the foil, or the hour in the oven. It's the same shortcut logic as baked ziti, taken one step easier.
One pot, one spoon, no colander. Everything happens in a Dutch oven: brown the sausage, build the broth, drop the noodles in, ladle. Cleanup is a single pot, exactly like the one pot chicken alfredo pasta.
It's a genuinely high-protein comfort food. A pound of Italian sausage plus ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella across six bowls comes to about 34g of protein each. Check what that covers for you on the protein calculator.

Here's what you'll need.

Italian sausage does the heavy lifting here — it brings fennel, garlic and salt all at once, so the broth tastes like it simmered for hours. Regular lasagna noodles broken into pieces are the right call (the no-boil kind go mushy). Whole-milk ricotta makes the topping creamy instead of grainy.

Ingredients for lasagna soup in small bowls — Italian sausage, onion, garlic, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, chicken broth, broken lasagna noodles, ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan and fresh basil

Here's how it all comes together.

Step 1 — Brown the sausage and onion

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high and add the sausage and diced onion. Break the meat up with a wooden spoon and cook until it's deeply browned and the onion is soft, about 7 minutes. Those browned bits on the bottom are flavor — don't rush this.

Italian sausage and diced onion browning in a Dutch oven for lasagna soup

Step 2 — Add the garlic and tomato paste

Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until the paste darkens to a brick red and coats the meat. Cooking the paste first takes away its raw, tinny edge and gives the soup that slow-simmered depth.

Garlic and tomato paste being stirred into browned sausage in a Dutch oven

Step 3 — Build the broth

Pour in the crushed tomatoes and chicken broth, scraping up anything stuck to the bottom. Add the Italian seasoning, a pinch of red pepper flakes and a teaspoon of sugar to round out the tomatoes. Bring it to a boil.

Crushed tomatoes and chicken broth being poured over browned sausage to make lasagna soup broth

Step 4 — Cook the noodles in the soup

Break the lasagna noodles into roughly 2-inch pieces and drop them straight in. Simmer, uncovered, stirring every few minutes so they don't clump, until tender — about 12 minutes. The starch they release thickens the broth just enough.

Broken lasagna noodles being added to simmering tomato soup in a Dutch oven

Step 5 — Mix the ricotta topping

While the noodles cook, stir the ricotta, parmesan, chopped basil, a pinch of salt and some black pepper together in a small bowl. This is the "cheese layer" — a cold, creamy dollop that melts into each bowl as you eat.

Ricotta, parmesan and basil being mixed in a small bowl for the lasagna soup topping

Step 6 — Ladle and top

Taste the soup for salt, then ladle it into bowls. Top each with a big spoonful of the ricotta mixture, a handful of shredded mozzarella and torn basil. The mozzarella goes stretchy in the hot broth in about a minute.

Lasagna soup being ladled into a bowl and topped with ricotta and melting mozzarella

Finished bowl of lasagna soup with melted mozzarella, ricotta, basil and garlic bread — easy 35-minute comfort food dinner

Things I learned while testing this recipe.

Don't cook the noodles ahead if you're meal prepping. Lasagna noodles keep drinking broth as they sit, and by day two you have lasagna stew. If you're making it for the week, cook the noodles separately and add them to each bowl.
Brown the sausage hard. A pale sausage gives you a pale soup. Let it sit undisturbed for a couple of minutes between stirs so it actually caramelizes — the same rule I use for the crockpot pot roast sear.
The sugar isn't optional. One teaspoon takes the sharp edge off canned tomatoes. You won't taste sweetness, you'll just taste a better tomato.
Keep the ricotta cold and separate. Stirring it into the pot makes the broth cloudy and grainy. Dolloped on top, it stays creamy and everyone gets to swirl their own.

Make it ahead, or make it lighter.

Freeze the broth base. Make the soup through step 3, cool it, and freeze it flat in a bag for up to 3 months. Thaw, simmer, add noodles — dinner in 15 minutes.
Swap in turkey sausage or lean ground turkey. It drops the fat by about a third and keeps the protein. Add an extra teaspoon of Italian seasoning and a pinch of fennel seed to make up for what pork sausage brings.
Cottage cheese ricotta. Blend 1 cup of cottage cheese until smooth and use it in place of the ricotta — more protein, fewer calories, same creamy dollop. It's the trick behind the cottage cheese alfredo pasta.

Here's what I'd serve with this.

Garlic bread is non-negotiable — or go crunchier and put today's other new recipe, the extra-crispy air fryer chicken wings, in the middle of the table.
A simple arugula salad with lemon and shaved parmesan to cut the richness.
Serve it in the same week as chicken parmesan and you'll have used up the whole block of mozzarella.
For a soup-night lineup, rotate with white chicken chili and slow cooker beef stew.
Finish with a square of Greek yogurt banana bread — light enough after a bowl this hearty.

Just in case you have leftovers.

Storing: refrigerate the soup and the ricotta topping in separate airtight containers for up to 4 days. The noodles will keep absorbing broth, so it thickens as it sits — that's normal. Freeze only the noodle-free base (see above); cooked noodles turn soft after freezing.

Reheating: in a saucepan over medium with a splash of broth or water to loosen it, stirring until steaming, about 5 minutes. Microwave: 2 minutes, stir, then 1 more. Add the cold ricotta dollop and fresh mozzarella after reheating, never before.

More easy comfort food recipes...

Chicken pot pie — creamy filling under a flaky golden crust

Chicken and dumplings — old-fashioned one pot comfort food

Baked ziti — cheesy, saucy, make-ahead pasta bake

Crockpot pot roast — fall-apart beef with carrots and potatoes

Lasagna soup

★★★★★ 4.9 from 71 reviews — easy one pot lasagna soup with browned Italian sausage, a rich tomato-basil broth, tender lasagna noodles and a creamy ricotta-parmesan dollop. 35 minutes, one pot, 34g protein a bowl.

Prep 10 min · Cook 25 min · Total 35 min · Serves 6 · Category: Comfort Food · Cuisine: Italian-American

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage (mild or hot), casings removed
1 medium yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 tsp Italian seasoning · ½ tsp red pepper flakes · 1 tsp sugar · 1 tsp kosher salt
8 oz regular lasagna noodles, broken into 2-inch pieces
1 cup whole-milk ricotta
½ cup grated parmesan
¼ cup chopped fresh basil, plus more to serve
1 cup shredded mozzarella, to serve

Instructions

Brown. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high. Add the sausage and onion and cook, breaking the meat up, until deeply browned and the onion is soft, about 7 minutes.
Paste. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste; cook 1–2 minutes until the paste darkens and coats the meat.
Broth. Add the crushed tomatoes, broth, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, sugar and salt, scraping up the browned bits. Bring to a boil.
Noodles. Add the broken lasagna noodles. Reduce to a lively simmer and cook uncovered, stirring every few minutes, until tender, 11–13 minutes.
Topping. Meanwhile, mix the ricotta, parmesan, basil, a pinch of salt and black pepper in a small bowl.
Serve. Taste the soup for salt. Ladle into bowls and top each with a spoonful of the ricotta mixture, shredded mozzarella and torn basil.

Notes: Ground beef or turkey work in place of sausage — add 1 tsp fennel seed and an extra ½ tsp salt. Use gluten-free lasagna noodles or any short pasta with the same timing. For a thinner soup add another cup of broth; for thicker, simmer 3 more minutes. Add 3 cups baby spinach in the last 2 minutes for greens. If meal prepping, cook the noodles separately and store apart from the broth.

Nutrition (per serving, estimated): 520 calories · 34g protein · 42g carbs · 24g fat · 5g fiber

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If comfort food is the goal, this cookbook makes it automatic.

The Ultimate Slow Cooker Mediterranean Diet Cookbook is built on the same idea as this soup — real ingredients, simple technique, big flavor — but with the slow cooker doing the work. Tested, family-approved dinners for the nights you'd rather not stand at the stove at all.

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FAQ

Can I make lasagna soup in the slow cooker?: Yes. Brown the sausage, onion, garlic and tomato paste on the stove first, then transfer to the slow cooker with the tomatoes, broth and seasonings. Cook on low 6 hours or high 3 hours, then add the broken noodles and cook on high 30 minutes more until tender.
Why did my lasagna soup get so thick?: The noodles keep absorbing broth after cooking, especially in leftovers. Thin it with a splash of broth or water when reheating. For meal prep, cook the noodles separately and add them per bowl.
What noodles work best for lasagna soup?: Regular (not no-boil) lasagna noodles broken into 2-inch pieces hold their texture best and look the part. Mafalda, campanelle or bow ties are good stand-ins with the same cook time.
Can I freeze lasagna soup?: Freeze the broth base without noodles for up to 3 months. Cooked noodles go soft when frozen and thawed, so add fresh ones when you reheat.