Carrabba’s copycat recipe for Sicilian Chicken Soup is simple & gorgeous. Full of flavor, this will become a family favorite.

This Sicilian Chicken Soup is a delicious household staple. It’s flavorful and super easy to make. Perfect for sick days, cold wintery nights, and every meal in between, this soup can satisfy any and every craving! What’s not to love?

photo of Sicilian Chicken Soup in a white bowl with a spoon
We are still so grateful to this day for our friend Kelli giving us the cookbook with our favorite soup recipe in it. You seriously can’t beat this chicken soup recipe.

This Sicilian Chicken Soup is from our family’s to-go-to place. Do you have a “go-to” restaurant? You know a place when you walk in, it feels like home? Our family does – it’s Carrabba’s Italian Grill. Every Friday {or almost every Friday} we go – yes, all 7 of us. The kids love their kids’ menu which includes steak! And well I am in love with the arancini and this Sicilian Chicken Soup. Sadly, they are getting rid of the arancini. BOO!!!! When we arrive they know us all by name and in fact, we celebrate most of our special occasions there and it is like celebrating with extended family.

photo of Sicilian Chicken Soup in a white bowl with herbs in background
Full of flavor and completely satisfying, this Sicilian Chicken Soup is traditionally made in our home over the holidays for the last few years.

We sit up at the bar top watching the kitchen, a bonus is that you get a bit of an appetizer from the kitchen. The kids love watching their pizzas being made and of course, we ask for a side of alfredo to dip their delicious bread in.

The first thing I fell in love with besides the chocolate lovers’ dream dessert was this Sicilian Chicken Soup. And I have been known just to go and get a bowl to go because I love it that much.

And I love that I don’t have to add the noodles, making this gluten-free for my daughter Jersey. So this is a soup that the whole family can enjoy!

A few years back the owner at the time Kelli gave me a copy of their cookbook and this was the first recipe that I made from it. We have made it several times since then. You will want to season this soup to taste because it is a peppery soup but my kids prefer a little less pepper, so I adjusted it to their taste – so if you want to kick it up a notch, add some additional pepper.

photo of Sicilian Chicken Soup being spooned out of the bowl
Spoon full of flavor….

So cheers to making great friends, while eating delicious food and being able to make some of our restaurant favorites at home.
XOXO San

How do you make Chicken Soup?

In a large soup pot place whole chicken, onion, red peppers, celery, carrots, potatoes, diced tomatoes with their juices and then add enough cold water to cover by 1 inch.
Over high heat bring to a boil.
Then add parsley, garlic, 1 tablespoon of salt and pepper.
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover partially with a lid.
Let it simmer for 2 hours, or until chicken is falling off the bone.
Remove chicken and let it cool, for 30 minutes or until cool to the touch.
Reduce heat to low and let the soup continue to simmer.
Remove all the meat from the chicken and shred the chicken into large pieces.
Discard the skin and bones.
In a medium saucepan cook pasta as directed on box. Drain well and set aside in a bowl.
Using a potato masher, mash the soup around a few times, letting some of the potatoes get a little smashed.
I don’t try too hard on this, I just mash 2-3 times and call it good.
Add the shredded chicken and noodles to the pot.
**We actually like to serve the soup with the noodles on the side, letting each person add the number of noodles they want.**

You can also make this in the slow cooker, with my recipe for Slow Cooker Sicilian Chicken Soup.

Need ideas to makes this a complete meal? Check out of favorite sides with this Chicken Soup, especially the dessert!

Love soup and want to add to your collection, try out any of these!

 

Don’t forget to pin this recipe for SICILIAN CHICKEN SOUP to your favorite Pinterest board for later.

collage: with 2 photos of soup in a white bowl, with title Copycat Carrabba's Sicilian Chicken Soup

Instant Pot Sicilian Chicken Soup

Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 25 minutes
Total: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings: 12
Calories: 140 kcal
Inspired by a Carrabba's recipe this Instant Pot Sicilian Chicken Soup is easy to make and incredibly delicious.
overhead shot of siclian chicken soup in white bowl with french bread on the side

Ingredients
 

  • 1 3 lbs whole chicken giblets removed
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 teaspoons oregano
  • 1 1/2 cups diced yellow onion
  • 1 1/2 cups diced celery ribs
  • 1 1/2 cups diced carrots
  • 1 red bell pepper diced
  • 2 medium russet potatoes peeled and diced into 1/2 -inch diced, you may use any baking potato
  • 14.5 ounces canned diced tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley chopped
  • 5 garlic cloves minced, I use my garlic press
  • 4-6 cups chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon chicken bullion
  • 4 cups water
  • 1/2 pound ditalini pasta

Instructions
 

  • In a small mixing bowl combine the salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and oregano – mix.
  • Pat the chicken dry; then rub the sseasoning all over the chicken and place in the bottom of the Instant Pot.
  • Add 4 cups of chicken broth, 4 cups of water, chicken bullion, parsley and bay leaf to the Instant Pot.
  • Place the lid on the pressure cooker and set the pressure regulator to "sealing". Program the cooker to pressure cook for 20 minutes at high pressure.
  • After cooking the soup, wait 15 minutes before quickly releasing the pressure. This helps prevent excessive steam and broth from spitting out of the valve. Be cautious when releasing the steam! Alternatively, you can allow the pressure to release naturally, but this will take some time.
  • Use tongs or a slotted spoon to remove the chicken from the pot and transfer it to a plate. Allow it to cool for about 15-20 minutes until it's easy to handle to remove the bones and skill and cut up the meat.
  • Once you remove the chicken, add celery, carrots, red pepper, onion, diced tomatoes, and potatoes to the broth. Add more chicken broth until the pot measures 8 cups. This could take anywhere from 1-3 additional cups of chicken broth.
    Cover the pressure cooker with the lid and set the pressure regulator to "Sealing". Program the cooker to pressure cook for 5 minutes at high pressure. After cooking the soup, wait 10 minutes before quickly releasing the pressure.
  • While vegetables are cooking, boil and prepare noodles according to package directions. And shred the chicken.
  • Once you have released the pressure from the Instant Pot, using a potato masher, mash the soup around a few times. Add the shredded chicken and stir together. You can add the noodles at this time as well, but we like to serve noodles on the side so that each person can add the amount they desire and then the noodles also don't absorb the broth.
Calories: 140kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 6gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.3gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 0.1mgSodium: 684mgPotassium: 479mgFiber: 3gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 3193IUVitamin C: 23mgCalcium: 51mgIron: 1mg
overhead shot of siclian chicken soup in white bowl with french bread on the side
Tried this recipe?Let us know what you think!

Post updated October 1st, 2017 from original post date of May 31, 2014.

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336 Comments

          1. I completely agree! Make broth the day before and scrape the hardened fat layer off the top and the soup will be sooo much better.

    1. It’s AMAZING!!!!!! My favorite soup. Note I’m gonna make this bad boy for my family cuz I finally found the recipe.

    2. It’s AMAZING!!!!!! My favorite soup. Now I’m gonna make this bad boy for my family cuz I finally found the recipe.

    3. why did this recipe change? there was no dry spices before and it was done on the stove. where’s the old recipe?

  1. I had seen Carrabbas’s commercial on television and I always wanted to try their food. Unfortunately, we don’t have one in the area. That soup looks so yummy. Perfect for the cold weather.

      1. can you send me the slow cooker version as well. Looks fantastic, but I need an on the go with 3 busy kids version! Thank you. 🙂 Can’t wait to try it.

  2. Oh wow, that looks amazing and has all of my favorite ingredients. Will have to give it a try. Thanks so much

  3. Well I just saved this recipe. I may even be making it tomorrow. I sure wish I had found it earlier because I’m sure I would have made it a few times in this cold winter – oh, well – I live in Ohio. We never know when it will snow. It snowed yesterday and today it’s 60 degrees!

    1. Girl, I so know what that is like here is CO – the weather changes in an instant. Super windy here and supposedly snow later. Can’t wait for you to make the soup, come back and tell me what you think!!! xo San

  4. I’ve never been to Carrabba’s Italian Grill but your inspired soup look delish! My daughter loves soup so I wonder how she’d like this.

  5. We have a restaurant owner friend because we did breakfast every Saturday at their place. they are hard workers I tell you. This soup looks so hearty and like you could cook it in the crock pot too!

    1. Aly – when I do, you will be the first invited….I would love to open a small lunch cafe sometime…when I don’t have 5 young children. xo San

  6. I’m having a hard time deciding if you are a great photographer, an amazing cook or both 🙂
    We don’t have a favorite restaurant as we don’t go out a lot. My mom cooks delicious and way too much food, someone has to eat it 🙂

  7. Wow! Just wow. What a gorgeous recipe…I am really craving this now! And it doesn’t actually look too hard…I think I have all the ingredients in the kitchen already!

  8. I adore Carrabba’s! The one here in Albuquerque, NM closed down years ago and the closest one now is in Denver – 8 hours away! Sometimes I’m tempted to make the drive just to have their minestrone soup! This recipe sounds so delicious, and if it’s based on a Carrabba’s dish, I know it’s good! I’m stopping by from The Wednesday Roundup to check out your yummy recipe. I would love it if you would share this recipe and any others you like in my very first week of The Yuck Stops Here link party. http://mommasangelbaby.com/the-yuck-stops-here-1/ It’ll be open until this Friday at 8pm EST. If you can’t stop by this week we’ll be having a party every week starting on Monday evenings at 8pm EST and going until Fridays at 8pm EST. HUGS

  9. About to make this tonight – very excited!
    Just a question and it may be that i’m just going blind after staring at this and drooling…. but the ingredient list has 2 red bell peppers, but i dont see anywhere in the directions on when to add them?

    1. Sorry I will change that. Add it in when you add the onions and the rest of those ingredients. 🙂 ENJOY!! Come back and let me know what you think. xo San

  10. Hi Sandra,
    It is cold and rainy here today and your soup would be delicious. Thank you so much for sharing this special recipe with Full Plate Thursday and have a fantastic week!
    Miz Helen

  11. Hi Sandra! I’m stopping over from Let’s Get Real today. I just had to check out this soup. We have a soup restaurant near us and it was one of our favorite places to go eat. We all love soup…….although we all made different selections. I was really disappointed when I found out that their soup had MSG in it because that always gives me headaches. I’ve been trying to keep the soup going for my family by trying different recipes and this is going on the must-try list. With the potatoes and pasta it is sure to be a favorite in my house. We like to eat soup year round.

  12. I love any kind of chicken soup, and this Sicilian Chicken Soup sounds divine… and not just because I’m under the weather today! The balance of comfort with a bit of heat is my favorite, and you’d better believe I’ll be trying this soon.

    Also, this dish was one of my favorite from last week’s That’s Fresh Friday! I’ll be sharing it tomorrow evening as one of my favorites from the week, so thanks for sharing!

  13. This is my favorite soup!!! Can’t wait to try your recipe. Have you ever tried it in the slow cooker?

  14. It was delicious!!! Master 6 said “It was wonderful”! Thank you I will be making this again & again & again…..

  15. It was absolutely delicious!! Master 6 said “This is wonderful”!! I will be making it again!! I did add a couple of chicken stock cubes for added saltiness. Thanks:))

    1. Tina you could totally make this slow cooker, I would just add all of the ingredients, except the pasta and let it cook 6-8 hours. Make the pasta separately and add at the end. I will have to try it too. xo San

  16. Before adding the parsley and garlic – skim off the foam that rises to the top. I also add 1tsp of white pepper and a few chicken bouillon cubes. I also use green peppers – cut them small and you don’t even know they’re there but adds to the flavor. It’s the best!!

  17. You said this was your twist on Carabba’s soup. What did you do differently from theirs? My aunt used to us ditalini in her soups all the time. We have a Carabba’s here so I’ll have to check it out – when the weather cools down of course.

  18. O.M.G.!!! I love this soup from Carrabba’s and here it is! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. I’m looking very forward to making it soon.

    1. I haven’t tried this yet that way, But I would think it would be pretty easy, just add the noodles in the end like the recipes calls for, and I would have the crock pot on high heat.
      Let me know how it goes.
      San

  19. I will be trying this when weather gets cooler. Would bone in chicken breast work as well as a whole chicken? I have family members that will not eat dark chicken or turkey.

    1. Nancy – that will work just fine. Wow, I can’t believe that your family like all white meat, that is just like me! But the rest of my family only likes dark. Enjoy! xo San

  20. Looks Fabulous! Making this for this Weekend. So many ingredients I already had on hand. A different way to do Chicken Noodle Soup! Yay. Think I will add a small Zucchini chopped too. Maybe add chickpeas at the end . Oh, can’t Wait, Sandra!

  21. Can you send me the crockpot modification? I want to make this so bad but we don’t even own a pot that big! 🙂

  22. Hi there! Saw this on Pinterest and had to come over for the recipe, looks and sounds soooooo yummy. We used to have a Carraba’s in Denver, but I think it closed. I’ve never been. My favorite place is a local Italian/pizza/pasta joint. Repinning this recipe to make soon. Thanks for sharing and nice to find your blog.

  23. Hi, this looks amazing!! I love Carrabas!! They have the best calamari 🙂
    I seen you have a slower cooker version of this recipe, can I find it on this site or are you able to email it too me? My husband is Sicilian and I would love to impress him with this recipe 😉 Thanks!

  24. Y does everyone post ! looks great ! sounds like no one made it yet ?
    Making the soup now ! smells amazing looking good so far ! 🙂
    I’ll let u know how it turns out !

          1. Perfect! Thank you so much! This looks delish and will be making this in this fridid weather we have today! 🙂

  25. My Husband Jeff made this for us and it was wonderful! Great for a snowy evening! Freezing the leftovers and I’m sure they will be just as good! Thank you for the recipe.

  26. I don’t normally leave comments on recipes, but I just finished eating/making this and I had to comment on this. This soup was absolutely outstanding!! The only thing I did differently was use a rotisserie chicken, to save on time, so then subbed low sodium chicken stock, for the water. This easily just became my favorite chicken noodle soup. Thank you SO much for this recipe!!

  27. Making this as I type, my house already is smelling so delish!! This is what I order everytime we eat at Carrabas!thank you for sharing such a tasty recipe.

  28. Nothing better on cold winter’s day – the rotisserie chicken idea is great. have you ever added cayenne to it? or other spicy peppers?

  29. My husband and I eat at Carrabas and love this soup. Theirs is spicy and I see the only spices are salt, pepper and garlic in this recipe. I would’ve thought there would be more spices used. Am I missing something in the recipe? I would love to make this for my husband. Thank you.

    1. Cheri – no that is it on the spices. The flavor comes from using the whole chicken and the veggies. The first time I made it I thought it will need more…but it didn’t. Good luck, you will love it. xo San

  30. Sandra I just made this tonight and let me tell you it was the bomb dot com!!!! It was delicious and even my husband (who doesn’t eat veggies) loved it too. The kids said this is a must keep recipe! The only problem I had was that there wasn’t enough broth to make it soupy enough. But it was still in a winner!

  31. This tastes like the Caraba’s version in almost every way. One thing that is always left out is a pinch or so of cayenne pepper. When you have it at the restaurant it is a bit spicy. I asked our waiter and he said it’s the black pepper. I looked in my bowl and noticed that there was hardly any black pepper at all. So if you are looking for that subtle spiciness, add the cayenne. It gives you a perfect replica of the restaurant’s soup.

    1. I’ve not tasted this soup at Carrabas but as I was tasting the broth it was good but not great. I went ahead and added about 1/2tsp of cayenne pepper (with only about 30 minutes or so left to cook) as Terry suggested. It put it over the top!! Amazing soup.

  32. This soup is amazing!! Whole family just loved it!! Instead of a whole chicken, I used 5 bone-in, skin-on thighs, only one bell pepper, and one large potato. My new favorite:)

  33. I’ve never had this at the restaurant, but I’m making it right now. 🙂 I’m excited to see how it turn’s out for me. It smells so good just simmering away.

  34. Sounded so good so I am making it now for tomorrow night. I plan to add noodles tomorrow. You mentioned cheese at the very end. Is it just a little sprinkled on top before serving?

  35. I was a bit scared to make this recipe, because I never cooked an entire chicken before. Let me tell you, this was super easy…I couldn’t believe it! This is by far one of the best soups I have ever made, I ate this everyday for 5 days..and never got tired of it. Thanks for posting this recipe, I’m looking forward to making more of them.

  36. I followed this recipe and I hate to say it but it is terrible :(. It has no taste at all. IT’s like drinking water. So bland. What a waste of time And money. Very disappointing.

  37. I made thia for dinner to ight but with a twist. I used chicken breast, since we dont like dark meat, cooked it in butter and shredded it. Took the cook time down to about 30-45 mins. Used chicken broth and water. And used veggie noodles since there is already a starch. Topped ot with some mozzarella!!!!!! Yummmm. Thats for the recipe!!!!

  38. I used to work at Carrabbas and I loved the soup, that’s what I miss most about that job actually, I’m so glad I found this recipe. I made it and it is spot on to the actual soup, I love it!

  39. I made this soup over the weekend and my family LOVED it. They devoured their bowls and raved about how good it was. I added a splash of hot sauce and a bit of Parmesan cheese,a side of crusty bread, delicious. I used a rotisserie chicken to save time and it was still wonderful. Leftovers were even better! I too boiled pasta and served separate. Will make again and again!

  40. I am such a big fan of Carrabbas! The Mama Mandola’s soup is my favorite and I order it every time I go there. I made this a few weeks ago and am already making it again. Thank you for sharing! The soup is generally spicier than this recipe called for, so I added some red pepper flakes and that made it almost exactly like the Carrabba’s version. I also followed all of the same steps shown in this recipe, but instead put it in the crockpot on high for 6 hours. I am a teacher, so the crockpot is used as much as possible 🙂 this is so delicious and I’m thrilled to have the recipe!

  41. This soup looks delicious. I am in the process of making it right now. I have a question for you. How do the potatoes not turn to complete mush after simmering them for two plus hours or are they suppose to?

    1. Cindy – I was worried when I made it the first time but they always come out. If you follow the directions you should be good. Have you tried it yet? xo San

  42. Do you think this could be made in a pressure cooker? I’m thinking of making this recipe with my cooking classes. Due to time constraints (we only have 90 minutes) I thought I could put my pressure cookers to use. OR – could I make the stock one day and pick the chicken and then add the chicken back to the stock the second day along with the pasta and reheat it?

    1. I haven’t tried it that way, I would love for you to come back and let me know. I haven’t used my pressure cooker in so long, you have inspired me. xo San

  43. This restaurant in South Naples FL is my FAVORITE and I ALWAYS order this soup. The recipe just doesn’t seem complete though – the restaurant soup is spicy and there are no spicy ingredients in this? Did you leave something out? Thanks.

  44. Hey Sandra, my b/f and I really love this soup and I’m looking to make it as a surprise a few days and I was wondering if you could please tell me exactly how much water to add?

    1. Ally – simply just put in the chicken and the ingredients and then cover with water until the water level is about an inch higher than the chicken. Hope this helps.

  45. I was just reading the comments and thought WOW this is so different than the sarcastic, condescending stuff I usually see on comments. My husband says don’t read the comments because they depress me. But people who are “into” food must be really nice. My faith in people is restored Yeah!

  46. I just made this for the first time and OH my GOSH!! This is soooo delicious! I did cook a little too much ditalini and it soaked up some of the juices but it was still delicious. The flavor is there, everything perfect! My 6 and 4 year old boys even ate it and they are picky eaters! Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe!

  47. I just made this for the first time today and OH my GOSH!! This is soooo delicious! I did cook a little too much ditalini and it soaked up some of the juices but it was still delicious. The flavor is there, everything perfect! My 6 and 4 year old boys even ate it and they are picky eaters! Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe!!!

  48. I laughed when I saw this recipe. I was married to a Sicilian and he taught me how to make it in 1972. Anyone who ate this soup, loved it. The only difference is that I didn’t add potato or green pepper. A little parmesan sprinkled on a bowl of this soup is to die for.

    Brenda

    1. Brenda I am jealous someone from Sicily taught you to make this soup. Lucky lady! I would for you to come and teach me! xo San

  49. I absolutely love this recipe. We love carrabas and this soup. I have made several times now, and can confirm it’s family approved by the husband and the kids.
    I love the note about the noodles on the side.
    I like to freeze 1/2 of the soup and then make fresh noodles as needed. It’s reflect when someone is sick. I just pull it out, thaw and serve. Thank you again, this is a keeper in our house.

  50. Very delicious soup. I found I needed to add some thyme, celery salt, bay leaf and basil to boost the flavor of the broth.

  51. I love the Carrabas soup and this one is just as good. Thank you for sharing. Soo easy to make and freezes easily for dinner another night. I may have to add little water, salt and pepper, and it’s just as if i made that night. New family favorite!

  52. This soup is so good . Made a huge pot , ate for dinner and lunch at work . Kept well in fridge for a couple of days . Very filling . Will be making again

  53. Delicious! I even put a handful of spinach in the bottom of my bowl, then the noodles (all I had on hand was whole grain small macaroni noodle;great) , then the soup! Oh, and we try not to eat potatoes…I used turnips!

  54. I have this cooking on the stove now – what’s the easiest way to get the whole chicken out of the pot when it’s time?

  55. Soup looks simple and delicious, full of flavor! This will become my family’s favorite soup. I don’t like pasta in soup so would make it without pasta and hopefully this will taste divine.

  56. I made this today. Made homemade french bread to go with it. Was absolutely perfect! Wonderful to have on my snowy autumn day. Thanks for this recipe.

  57. 5 stars
    I’ve never been to this restaurant before but this soup sounds fantastic! Today is freezing so it’ll be perfect.

  58. 5 stars
    I know it’s just my imagination but I can seriously almost smell the aroma of this gorgeous soup wafting through my computer screen – it looks and sounds so good!

    1. I’m so glad you enjoyed it! It’s good to hear that it works in an Instant Pot for you.

    1. You definitely have to try it someday! So glad you are able to enjoy the soup from home in the meantime!

  59. 5 stars
    It just started turning cold and dreary here so this looks like perfect dinner this week. Perfect way to cozy up with a bowl and warm up. Love it!

  60. 4 stars
    This was delicious! I made this soup for 5 friends for a dinner party. I served it with warm garlic bread and it was a hit, it was hearty and tasteful!

  61. 5 stars
    Love this Sicilian Chicken Soup, this one seems so delicious . I love chicken soups but I always tried simple boil chicken soup. Thanks for sharing this one.

  62. 5 stars
    I tried almost Almost all soups but never tried this Sicilian Chicken Soup, excited to try this yummy one . Thank you for sharing this delicious looking recipe.

  63. 5 stars
    I made this tonight, but just used a rotisserie chicken and put all the seasonings in with the veggies in the IP (basically I started at that step. turned our great! I also added a can of white kidney beans just because we like them. Thank you for the great recipe!

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