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Discover the ultimate comfort food with this tasty Pastina Soup recipe – full of tender veggies, flavorful broth and little pasta stars.
Featured with this recipe
This comforting soup is the perfect thing for when you are feeling under the weather, chilly, homesick, or heartbroken. A bowl of Pastina Soup will cheer you right up, with its bright lemony flavor and wholesome vegetables. The chicken broth will get to work fixing whatever is wrong. They don’t call this “Italian penicillin soup” for no reason!
Ingredients in Pastina Soup
- Olive Oil
- Onion
- Carrots
- Celery
- Garlic
- Thyme
- Bay Leaves
- Chicken Stock
- Salt and Pepper
- Pastina
- Parmesan Cheese
- Lemon Zest and Lemon Juice
What is Pastina?
Pastina is a special, tiny pasta that is star shaped. It is actually the smallest type of pasta produced! Because it is so small, it cooks up very quickly. It tends to be softer than most pasta, because of its size. Often confused with orzo, this pasta is different than orzo, because if its shape and size; orzo is more shaped like a grain of rice.
If you are looking to purchase pastina, sometimes you can find it at Target or Walmart in their pasta aisle. Some grocery stores carry it, but we are seeing it less and less on the shelf. You can always find it on online grocers, especially Amazon.
Other dishes to make with pastina include all kinds of soups. Tomato based soups with vegetables and pastina, a more brothy chicken and vegetable soup with pastina, purely chicken broth and pastina. Some people enjoy pastina with egg.
Variations
- Chicken- add shreds of freshly cooked chicken
- Fresh herbs- freshly cut herbs like parsley would add a fresh taste and depth to your soup
- Parmesan rind- cook your chicken stock with a rind of parm for a deeper flavor
- Olive oil- add a drizzle of olive oil to the top of your bowl of soup
Recipe Tip
If too much of the stock gets absorbed, you can add more stock or add water and a little salt until it reaches the desired consistency.
Frequently Asked Questions about Pastina Soup
If you are having trouble finding pastina, try these instead: Acini de Pepe, Fregola Sarda, and Orzo.
It means “little pasta” 🙂
Yes! It’s like boiling it in water.
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How to Make Pastina Soup
Pastina Soup
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 2 celery ribs diced
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 sprig of thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper plus more to taste
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 12 ounces pastina
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese plus more for topping
- zest of one lemon
- juice of half a lemon
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery, and cook until tender. Add garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Add thyme, bay leaves, salt, pepper, and chicken stock to the pot. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat to medium low and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add pastina and cook for 6 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Stir in parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add more salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve immediately with extra parmesan cheese for topping.
Notes
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
- When reheating leftovers, you might have to add a little water or chicken stock to get the right consistency.
- Add shredded chicken to make this soup even more filing and nutritious.
