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This low carb Sausage and Kale soup is your next one-pot wonder! It’s full of flavor and comfort, perfect for those chilly winter days. Best of all, it comes together in just 15 minutes!!
We all need a quick and easy meal sometimes, right?! I have a few in my back pocket, like sesame chicken drumsticks and Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas. But this one is probably one of the fastest and most flavorful meals I’ve made from start to finish.
This soup fits well with the Trim Healthy Mama plan or Keto diet. It’s low in carbs and the pork makes it high in protein. If you’re not big on pork, you can use turkey or chicken sausage instead.
Key Ingredients
With only 5(ish) ingredients and no chopping, slicing, and dicing, it truly comes together quick. Here’s what you need:
- Ground Pork Sausage
- Seasonings- salt, onion powder, garlic powder, ground sage, pepper
- Bone broth or chicken broth
- Heavy Cream
- Kale
- Glucomannan (say what?!) this is optional and is a natural thickening agent. See the notes for more info.
How to make Sausage Kale Soup
Step One: Gather your ingredients.
- You can pre-measure your seasonings if you’d like, all into one prep dish. Aside from the pepper, they will all go in at the same time. Or, you can just set them out for easy access.
- You just need the leaves of the kale, they should be trimmed from their stems. I like to use pre-washed, pre-cut kale that I find in my produce section. It’s a great short cut that helps make this recipe come together so fast.
- Have the sausage ready to go, the broth opened up, and the cream measured out.
Step Two: Cook the Sausage
- Place a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot on the stove and turn the heat on to medium-high. Wait a few minutes until the pan is very hot. A well-heated pan prevents the meat from sticking.
- Add the sausage and break up with a chopper like this one, or a wooden spoon, until it’s browned and no longer pink.
- Drain the sausage in a colander and return to the pan. If you’d like to make it a bit leaner, rinse the meat in the colander with really hot water.
brown the ground sausage Add bone broth Add seasonings
Step Three: Finish and Serve
- Add the broth, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and sage, stir to combine. Bring the soup up to a gentle boil, just to get the broth hot, then reduce the heat.
- Add the heavy cream and stir.
- Sprinkle the glucomannan (if using) and whisk like crazy while adding it in.
- Add the kale and stir.
- Serve immediately and garnish with pepper.
Add heavy cream Add kale Stir and serve
Notes and Variations
- If you’re not a big fan of kale, you can substitute fresh spinach or another green leafy vegetable. Truth be told, kale has had to grow on me. I used to not like it at all. Why I love it in this soup is because it holds it’s shape and doesn’t get slimy. It leaves a better texture overall in my opinion. The flavor is not overpowering at all, and it’s so good for you!
- Ground turkey sausage or ground chicken sausage also work well.
- If you like spicy, then add some cayenne, or, sub out regular sausage for a spicy version.
- Substitute arrowroot powder or cornstarch for glucomannan if desired.
- Add some freshly grated parmesan cheese for an additional garnish.
What is Glucomannan?
I feel like this note needs it’s own section, just because it’s not a super popular ingredient.
Glucomannan is a natural thickening agent made from the Konjac plant. It actually has great health benefits, but we are using such a small amount. Some of the benefits are:
- helps to improve digestion
- build immunity
- absorbs minerals
- boosts metabolism
- and many more
In this recipe, we are using it to thicken the soup just a bit. You can totally make this soup without it! If you do want to thicken it and you don’t want have or want to get the glucomannan, you can thicken it with arrowroot powder or cornstarch
The instructions are: Mix 1 tablespoon of arrowroot or cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of cold water. Whisk with a fork until the powder is dissolved. Add it to the soup and stir well.
This shouldn’t be thick like potato soup, it just adds a little more creaminess and will cling to your spoon.
Freezing and Storing
Sausage and Kale soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It will keep in the freezer for 6 months.
To Freeze: Let the soup cool, ladle it into freezer ziplock bags, and store flat. I always recommend double bagging, sometimes things get moved around in the freezer and they tear. You won’t notice until it leaks all over everything.
To Reheat: Thaw in the refrigerator before heating. Pour the soup in a pan and heat on medium low, stirring often. It may appear separated and not look great at first, but with stirring and warming, it will come together. Once the soup is heated through, serve.
This soup pairs nicely with this fall salad with blackberries and pears, or a side of fruit.
More Soup Recipes
More Low Carb Recipes
More recipes featuring kale
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Low Carb Sausage and Kale Soup
Equipment
- Dutch Oven or heavy-bottomed pot
- meat chopper or wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground sausage
- 2 quarts bone broth or chicken broth
- 1/2 teaspoon mineral salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ground sage
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoon glucomannan optional- natural thickening agent, see notes
- 8 ounces kale more or less depending on your taste
Instructions
- Heat dutch oven over medium high heat on the stove. Wait a few minutes for the pan to get hot.
- Add the sausage and break up with a chopper like this one, or a wooden spoon, until it's browned and no longer pink. Drain the sausage in a colander and return to the pan.
- Add the broth, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and sage, stir to combine.
- Bring the soup up to a gentle boil, just to get the broth hot, then reduce the heat. Add the heavy cream and stir. Sprinkle the glucomannan (if using) and whisk like crazy while adding it in.
- Add the kale and stir. Serve immediately and garnish with pepper.
Video
Notes
- You can substitute fresh spinach or another green leafy vegetable for the kale. I prefer the kale because it holds it’s shape and doesn’t get slimy. It leaves a better texture overall in my opinion. The flavor is not overpowering at all, and it’s so good for you!
- Ground turkey sausage or ground chicken sausage also work well.
- If you like spicy, then add some cayenne, or, sub out regular sausage for a spicy version.
- Substitute arrowroot powder or cornstarch for glucomannan if desired. The soup will still be great if you don’t thicken it, it’s preference. (use 1 tablespoon of arrowroot or cornstarch and mix with 1 tablespoon cold water until the powder is dissolved, then add to the soup).
- Add some freshly grated parmesan cheese for an additional garnish.
Nutrition
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What a great way to enjoy kale! I’m so glad you shared this with us. The soup is one of my favorites- so creamy and comforting!
Oh I was skimming your recipes and ran across this one. I know what’s for dinner one day this week! I have all this! I’ve been trying to use up what I have before I buy more. I always have kale as I use it for lunches, I just wilt some, (about 6 cups) in a pan with a little water and apple cider vinegar and add whatever flavor of mustard I want that day and some protein, yummy.