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I love pasta Puttanesca. It has a little bit to do with the fact that supposedly, it came about from Italian “ladies of the night” who used to make the pasta between customers or, as it is also rumored, concocted this dish to lure customers in with the intoxicating scent of this garlic-based tomato sauce. Sure, I love a good story—I’ll admit it. But add in capers, anchovies, and black olives…well. You had me at capers. And ladies of the night.

Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
Skill Level – This is an easy soup to make, especially considering you can make it in the slow cooker OR your Instant Pot.
Total Time – If made in the slow cooker, this soup will take about 6 hours to finish. If you use the Instant Pot method, you can be eating in just over an hour.
Variations – Carrots and celery would be excellent in this. If you are making it in the slow cooker, add them a few hours before the stew is finished. If you are making it in the Instant Pot, cook the beef first, then release the pressure and add the vegetables. Cook for another 15 minutes at high pressure, then continue with the recipe as written.

What You’ll Need for Ingredients
Here are a few tips for some of the ingredients in this recipe.
Stewing Beef – This is the perfect protein source for this soup, it’s relatively inexpensive and benefits from long cook times making it perfect for the slow cooker and even better in a soup!
Egg Noodles – These noodles are the best in this soup, just be sure to read the directions in the recipe card and add them near the end so you don’t turn them into mush!
How to Make Beefy Pasta Puttanesca Soup
This is a brief overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients and step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Fry and drain the beef according to the recipe card below.
- Place in the slow cooker and add in the remaining ingredients.
- Cook for 6-8 hours, then, 30 minutes before finishing, add in the egg noodles and cook until softened.
- Top with parmesan cheese and serve.

Hearty, Beefy Puttanesca Soup
You are probably wondering how I came up with this pasta puttanesca soup, as this isn’t your normal type of soup recipe. Well, my online friends, I had one puny 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes with peppers, and my large can of tomatoes that I always have on hand was nowhere in sight. I also had almost three pounds of stewing beef. The math was not adding up, my friends.
This is how my recipe came about. I had stew meat that I wanted to use in a tomato-based stew or soup. I wanted a tomato stew with pasta and beef, and here we are.
Love this? Try my Classic Beef & Tomato Macaroni Soup.
Storage Instructions
This soup will last in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can freeze it, but make sure to read my posts about freezing cream-based soups!
Happy cooking!
Love,
Karlynn

Beefy Pasta Puttanesca Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2-3 pounds beef stewing meat
- 4 cups beef broth
- 14 ounces diced tomatoes
- 24 ounces puttanesca sauce
- 1 ½ cups egg noodles, or other pasta of choice
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- Place the oil in a large skillet. Heat on medium-high heat.
- Fry the beef until browned on all sides. Drain any excess grease from the beef cubes, then place them into the crockpot.
- Pour in the broth, tomatoes, and puttanesca sauce.
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the beef is tender and falling apart. Taste test, and if the sauce is too acidic, add in a bit of white sugar to balance out the flavor.
- Half an hour before serving, mix in the pasta. Let it cook in the slow cooker soup until it has softened and is ready to eat.
- Serve topped with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese if desired!
Instant Pot
- Place the oil in the bottom of your instant pot. Use the saute button and fry the beef until browned. Remove any excess grease from frying.
- Pour in the broth, tomatoes, and sauce. Deglaze the bottom of the pot by scraping it with a wooden spoon to remove the browned bits.
- Cook on high pressure for 60 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally. Taste test, and if the sauce is too acidic, add in a bit of white sugar to balance out the flavor.
- Stir in the pasta of choice. Let cook in the hot soup for 20 minutes or until softened. Serve in bowls.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.











Mike says
You don’t mention how much capers and olives and what kinds to add…
Karlynn J says
You don’t need to add them, the puttanesca sauce will already have it in it! The large sauce will already be flavored, have the capers and olives and onions in it, and is ready to go.
Karlynn J says
“jarred” sauce, not large.
John M Antosy says
Homemade Puttanesca! Easy Peazy! Yes you need the anchovies, capers and black olives into a can of 28 oz. Stewed Tomatoes italiano seasoned. Bada Bing Bada BOOM!
Susan says
Could this be cooked on high pressure in the Instant Pot? If so, how long do you think it would cook?
Patty Cakes says
Dare I say this might even be better than the beef macaroni soup? It’s close man, it’s close! SO GOOD!
Ladb says
can you please share the brand of sauce you used and where to purchase please……thanks
thekitchenmagpie says
Ladb There’s Pembertons, Barillo, Del Grosso, head to your nearest Italian shop and peruse the aisles! That’s where you will find the best ones!
Jamie King says
I picked up a jar at Frieson Bros. They had a few different brands to chose from.