Nutritious, filling, and wholesome Italian Minestrone Soup is loaded with vegetables, pasta, and beans in a tomato-based broth.
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This winter Italian minestrone soup is the perfect comfort food to eat while curled in blanket on your couch watching a classic movie in the dead of winter. It is light yet warm, filling, and satisfying. Plus, it’s super easy to make and is a meal by itself, just pair it with your favorite bread and enjoy a deliciously easy, and hearty dinner.
Learn more about Minestrone soup here.
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What We Love About This Italian Minestrone Soup Recipe
- 40 Minute Soup: This Italian minestrone soup can be made in 40 minutes or less.
- Adaptable: This recipe is super versatile; you can switch in and out ingredients as you please. Make it to your taste.
- Any Meal: Old Fashioned minestrone soup is perfect to enjoy anytime, whether it’s for lunch or dinner or served as a side dish or appetizer.
Ingredient Notes for this Old-Fashioned Minestrone Soup
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Onions
- Green Beans
- Carrot
- Garlic: A few cloves garlic.
- Celery
- Dried Oregano: Or try a good Italian Seasoning blend to replace the dry herbs such as Favorite Italian Seasoning Substitute.
- Dried Thyme
- Canned Whole or Diced Tomatoes
- Canned Kidney Beans
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Vegetable Broth or Chicken Broth
- Pasta: Such as ditalini are perfect for this recipe.
- Chopped Fresh Basil or your favorite fresh herbs.
Equipment Needed
- Large Dutch Oven or Pot
- Knife
- Cutting Board
- Wooden Spoon
How to Make Minestrone Italiano Soup
These are the basic steps for making Italian Minestrone Soup. Please refer to the recipe card below for more detailed instructions and nutrition information.
STEP 1: SAUTE VEGGIES
In a large pot, add olive oil start by sautéing garlic and onions until the onions turn brown. Then add carrots, green beans, celery, oregano, and thyme, mix. Next add your tomatoes, kidney beans, and seasonings.
STEP 2: ADD THE BROTH
Once the tomatoes get slightly mushy, you will want to add the vegetable broth and bay leaves, boil then cover and let simmer for 20 minutes. Then you will want to add your pasta and stir occasionally.
STEP 3: FINISHING TOUCHES
Once the pasta is al dente remove from heat. Garnish with basil and cilantro, serve hot and enjoy!
Prep and Storage Tips
HOW TO MAKE THIS RECIPE AHEAD OF TIME
This recipe is perfect to make ahead of time for week prepping during the week. Just follow instructions as usual and store in airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
HOW TO STORE THIS RECIPE
This Italian minestrone soup will be good for a week when store in an airtight container in the fridge.
HOW TO FREEZE THIS RECIPE
If you are planning to make this recipe to freeze, do not add pasta, just freeze the vegetable and the broth. When you are reheating then you can add cooked and drain pasta.
HOW TO REHEAT THIS RECIPE
To reheating this recipe, you can heat up in pot on the stovetop or in a microwave bowl in the microwave for 1-2 minutes or until hot.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make this recipe gluten free, you can sub the pasta for rice or gluten free pasta.
You can switch kidney beans for any other type of bean that you prefer such as chickpeas or cannellini beans, this recipe is extremely versatile.
This recipe can easily be doubled or halved, just proportionally increase or decrease ingredients proportionally.
The proper pronunciation is mi-nuh-strow-ee.
Expert Tips for Making This Italian Minestrone Soup Recipe
- Customizable: Minestrone soup is extremely customizable. For example – you can add bell peppers, zucchini, Swiss chard, spinach, kale, potatoes, butternut squash, etc to it or you can replace them with other ingredients such as green beans and celery. Also try farro or barley
- Serve With: To finish off your Italian minestrone soup, you can serve with parmesan cheese or sour cream.
- Protein Pasta: Use protein plus or chickpea or other legume-based pasta to snack in more protein.
- Instant Pot: You also make this recipe using an instant pot starting with the sauté setting then switching to pressure cook.
- Meat Minestrone Soup: You can make minestrone soup with meat, just add cooked ground meat to this recipe. Or use shredded rotisserie chicken to make chicken minestrone soup.
- Parmesan Rind: To get more flavor in this soup use this Italian secret ingredient soup hack by adding a parmesan cheese rind to the pot while this vegetable soup cooks
What to Serve with Minestrone Pasta Soup
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Italian Minestrone Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¾ cup chopped onions
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ¾ cup chopped carrot
- ½ cup green beans
- ¾ cup chopped celery
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 medium ripe tomatoes chopped
- 1 cup cooked kidney beans
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ cup small elbow pasta
- ½ cup chopped basil
- Chopped cilantro to garnish
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a pan; add onion followed by garlic, and sauté for a few seconds on high flame until the onion begins to brown slightly.
- Add carrots, green beans, celery, oregano, and thyme, and stir to combine.
- Next add tomatoes, kidney beans, salt, black pepper, and chili flakes, and cook on medium flame until tomatoes turn a little mushy.
- Add broth and bay leaves, cover, and let it simmer for 20 minutes.
- Stir in pasta and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chopped basil and switch off the heat.
- Sprinkle chopped cilantro on top; serve hot and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Customizable: Minestrone soup is extremely customizable. For example – you can add bell peppers, zucchini, spinach, kale, potatoes, butternut squash, etc to it or you can replace them with other ingredients such as green beans and celery.
- Serve With: To finish off your italian minestrone soup, you can serve with parmesan cheese or sour cream.
- Protein Pasta: Use protein plus or chickpea or other legume based pasta to snack in more protein.
- Instant Pot: You also make this recipe using an instant pot starting with the saute setting then switching to pressure cook.
- Meat Minestrone Soup: You can make minestrone soup with meat, just add cooked ground meat to this recipe. Or use shredded rotisserie chicken to make chicken minestrone soup.
- Parmesan Rind: To get more flavor in this soup use this italian secret ingredient soup hack by adding a parmesan cheese rind to the pot while this vegetable soup cooks
Estimated Nutritional Information
The nutritional information provided are estimates. To learn more about how I calculate this information go to www.itisakeeper.com/about-its-a-keeper/privacy-disclosure-policies/
This recipe is my personal adaption of an ethnic inspired recipe. It is not intended to be an authentic recipe. I’ve recreated this recipe because I enjoy the flavors and I want to encourage my readers to expand their tastes and try new flavor combinations. The recipe, ingredients and processes may have been adapted to make the recipe accessible for the average American. I have provided links to authentic versions of the recipe in the post above. I encourage you to visit these pages and learn more about the traditional version(s) of this recipe.
Such a hearty winter soup. Love it!