Vegan Minestrone Soup

Hearty and packed with veggies this Vegan Minestrone Soup is delicious and comforting. Brimming with beans, pasta, veggies and greens this soup is more like a stew than a soup and makes for a very satisfying dinner. So easy to make this recipe is definitely a keeper!

I have always considered minestrone to be more of a dinner than a soup you’d have for lunch. It’s perfect for a cosy weeknight dinner, just serve with some good bread and you have a very satisfying meal. No one ever leaves the table hungry after a big bowl of this!

The great thing about this vegan minestrone is that it’s a one-pot meal! No messing about with different pots here. It’s also a very flexible soup too, so you can throw in almost anything you have lying around in your fridge. I find it’s great for using up any half-empty bags of pasta too.

What Is Minestrone?

Minestrone originated in Italy, it is a thick soup made with vegetables, beans, stock and tomatoes. It often includes pasta or rice, sometimes both. It is usually made with whatever vegetables are available, so there is no set recipe per se. Because of the absence of a set recipe, minestrone varies widely across Italy depending on traditional cooking times, ingredients, and season. 

Why This Recipe Works

• It’s packed with flavour! The perfect combination of herbs makes this a very tasty soup.
• Perfect for dinner – because it’s so packed with veggies, beans and pasty this soup is very satisfying, np one will the table hungry!
• It’s versatile – you can switch up the ingredients to use whatever you have handy. 

What You’ll Need

This is a flexible recipe, you can switch up the vegetables, the beans and the greens but the base and the herbs should stay the same. 

How To Make Vegan Minestrone Soup

This is just a quick visual guide, please see the recipe card below for full ingredient list and instructions.

1. Cook the onion, celery and carrot until the onion is soft, then add the sweet potato and cook for a few minutes.
2. Add the garlic, cook for a minute then pour in the tinned plum tomatoes, use your wooden spoon to break them up.
3. Next, add the stock.
4. Now add the beans and the herbs. Stir well then bring the soup up to the boil. Reduce to a simmer then cook for 20 – 30 minutes.
5. Add the pasta, cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often.
6. Finally, add the kale. Cook until the kale has just wilted. 

Recipe Notes and Substitutions

• The Base – onion, celery and carrots, also known as the soffritto in Italian cooking, or mirepoix in French cooking, this is the flavour base of the soup. This should be kept the same. I am breaking the rules slightly here by cutting the carrots into larger slices. I have done this to add more bulk to the soup.
• Herbs – I use a mixture of fresh and dried herbs: fresh parsley and thyme, dried bay leaf and oregano.
• The Stock – I use a vegan vegetable bouillon to make my stock. I add 4 level teaspoons to 1 litre of boiling water.
• Tomatoes – Canned plum tomatoes are really great in this soup, but you can use regular tinned tomatoes if you want and if you are making this in the summertime then fresh ripe Roma tomatoes will work great if you don’t mind taking the time to peel, deseed and chop them all.
• Beans – Borlotti and Cannellini beans are my beans of choice for this minestrone. I use canned beans for convenience but you can also use dried beans. If you use dried beans then you will need to make them the day before. You can use one or two kinds of beans if you wish.
• Vegetables – I used sweet potato and kale in this minestrone but you can add in other veggies if you like. Courgettes/zucchini work well, I would add them later though to avoid them turning to mush. Green beans, cauliflower and butternut squash work really well too. The trick here is to use what you have but not anything that will go too soggy, for example, I would avoid broccoli as it may be too bitter and go too soggy. You could also swap the kale for spinach if you wish, that will need less cooking too.
• Pasta – most pasta will work in this soup, but I would avoid big pasta shells. Shapes like orzo, penne, fusilli or macaroni work well, as do broken spaghetti or linguine. I used dried Margheritine pasta, this is a small soup pasta that works really well as it cooks quite quickly. You can cook the pasta separately if you wish but I like the added starch that comes when you cook it in the soup.
• Extras – I know it may be controversial to add garlic to minestrone, I find it adds flavour but if you prefer you can omit it. I also add lemon juice, which lifts the flavours in this minestrone, again omit if you wish.

Tips For Making The Best Vegan Minestrone Soup

• The secret to a good vegan minestrone soup is in the broth – your soup should have a very flavourful tomatoey broth. To achieve this you will need to use good vegetable stock. The beans and pasta also add flavour by releasing starch into the stock. So, add the beans before you simmer the soup. This is also why I use plum tomatoes, they break down in the soup to release their juices. Only use fresh tomatoes when they are very ripe and in season.
• Use this recipe as a guide – the best thing about minestrone is that it brings life to vegetables that are hanging around the fridge. I really see this recipe as a guide that you adapt for whatever you have in your fridge. Use up those half-empty bags of pasta, add in that can of sweetcorn that’s been sitting in your cupboard!
• Add the greens at the end – whether you use spinach, chard or kale, I would always add it in at the end. The kale needs to be just wilted so barely needs any time to cook. 
• Take your time – this is a soup that is made in stages, it is not a quick soup. The onions, celery and carrots need to cook for a good 20 minutes before you add anything else. And once you add the beans the soup will need to simmer for another 20 – 30 minutes at least. 

FAQs About This Recipe

Can I freeze this minestrone? I don’t recommend freezing this due to the pasta, it can become mushy once reheated and can turn your minestrone into a bit of a mess.

How long will this minestrone keep for? This minestrone will keep for up to 3 days once stored in the fridge. For best results reheat it on the hob.

Can I make this gluten-free? Yes, you can. Swap the pasta for gluten-free pasta or omit it altogether. If you omit the pasta add in more veggies. Also, make sure your stock is gluten-free.

More Tasty Soup Recipes

• Spicy Vegan Cauliflower Soup – A rich and creamy cauliflower soup that will keep you warm and satisfied. Easy to make and ready in under 30 minutes this soup is also Vegan & Gluten-Free.
• Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup – Delicious and warmly spiced, this sweet potato and carrot soup is so easy to make, filling and vegan.
• Vegetable Orzo Soup –  A very tasty and filling soup. Perfect for chilly days, this soup is packed with veggies, spinach and orzo. Great for dinner or lunch.

Have you made this Vegan Minestrone Soup Recipe? Rate it and leave me a comment below to let me know what you think!

Vegan Minestrone Soup

Vegan Minestrone Soup, delicious and comforting. Packed with beans, pasta and veggies this minestrone is great for a tasty dinner.

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Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Italian

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Servings: 4

Calories: 405kcal

Author: Michelle Alston

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 1 medium yellow/brown onion finely chopped.
• ▢ 2 stalks of celery finely chopped.
• ▢ 3 medium carrots peeled then cut into thin slices of half-moons. Or roughly chopped.
• ▢ 1 medium / 1 heaped cup once chopped of sweet potato peeled and cut into chunks
• ▢ 2 large cloves of garlic minced.
• ▢ ½ tbsp dried oregano
• ▢ 2 x 400g cans / 2 x 14.5 oz cans of whole plum tomatoes
• ▢ 1 litre of / 5 cups of vegetable stock made with 1 litre/ 5 cups of boiling water and 4 teaspoons of vegan vegetable bouillon.
• ▢ 2 dried bay leaves
• ▢ 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
• ▢ 5 or 6 sprigs of fresh thyme
• ▢ 1 400g /14.5 oz can of cooked borlotti beans drained and rinsed under running water
• ▢ 1 400g /14.5 oz can of cooked cannellini beans drained and rinsed under running water
• ▢ 75 g / just under 1 cup of Margheritine pasta small pasta shells
• ▢ 60 g / 2 ½ packed cups of chopped kale woody stems removed
• ▢ 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ▢ ½ tsp sea salt divided into two quarters
• ▢ ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large saucepan or stockpot.

  Add the chopped onion, celery and carrots and ¼ teaspoon of salt.

  Cook over medium heat for at least 20 minutes, stirring often. Once the onions are soft add the chopped sweet potato and cook for about 5 minutes.
• Add 2 large minced cloves of garlic and ½ a tablespoon of dried oregano. Cook for a minute until you smell the garlic.

  Next pour in two cans of plum tomatoes, use your wooden spoon to break them up a bit.

  Pour in the stock then add the beans and 1 tablespoon of freshly chopped parsley, two dried bay leaves and 5 or 6 sprigs of fresh thyme.

  Season with the salt and pepper and stir well. Bring the soup up to a boil then reduce the heat to low to medium until the soup is simmering.

  Leave to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

  Check the seasoning now, add more salt and pepper if you feel it needs it.
• Once the sweet potato and carrots are tender then add the pasta. Cook for five minutes stirring often so the pasta doesn't stick to the bottom of the saucepan.

  After 5 minutes add the kale and the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Stir well and once the kale has wilted your minestrone is ready.

  Serve immediately with vegan parmesan and crusty bread.

Notes

• Stock – I use a vegan vegetable bouillon to make my stock. I add 4 level teaspoons to 1 litre of boiling water.
• Tomatoes – Canned plum tomatoes are best for this soup, but you can use regular tinned tomatoes if you want and if you are making this in the summertime then fresh ripe Roma tomatoes will work great, you will need to peel, deseed and chop them.
• Beans – Borlotti and cannellini beans are my beans of choice for this minestrone. I use canned beans for convenience but you can also use dried beans. If you use dried beans then you will need to make them the day before. You can use one or two kinds of beans if you wish.
• Vegetables – I used sweet potato and kale in this minestrone but you can add in other veggies if you like. Courgettes/zucchini work really, I would add them later though to avoid them turning to mush. Green beans, cauliflower and butternut squash work really well too. The trick here is to use what you have but not anything that will go too soggy. I would avoid broccoli as it may be too bitter and go too soggy. You could also swap the kale for spinach if you wish, that will need less cooking too.
• Pasta –most pasta will work in this soup, but I would avoid big pasta shells. Shapes like orzo, penne, fusilli or macaroni work well as do broken spaghetti or linguine. I used dried Margheritine pasta, this is a small soup pasta that works really well. You can cook the pasta separately if you wish but I like the added starch that comes when you cook it in the soup.
• Freezing/Storing/Reheating - I don’t recommend freezing this due to the pasta, it can become mushy once reheated and can turn your minestrone into a mess to be quite frank. This minestrone will keep for up to 3 days once stored in the fridge. For best results reheat it on the hob.
• Make it gluten-free - Swap the pasta for gluten-free pasta or omit it altogether. If you omit the pasta add in more veggies. Also, make sure your stock is gluten-free.
• Nutritional Information - is calculated using an online nutrition tool and is approximate. It is based on one large serving for dinner and does not include any bread or vegan cheese added.
• Weights and measurements - For US readers, I use Cuisipro measuring cups and spoons, and a Pyrex measuring jug for liquids. These are the industry standard. Cup/spoon volumes can differ from brand to brand, for accuracy, I recommend weighing all ingredients if possible.

Nutrition

Calories: 405kcal | Carbohydrates: 63.9g | Protein: 17.1g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 1.4g | Sodium: 3121mg | Potassium: 933mg | Fiber: 15.5g | Sugar: 5.5g | Calcium: 111mg | Iron: 6mg

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