Classic Minestrone Soup
Warm up with this vegetarian minestrone soup! This classic minestrone soup recipe is healthy, easy to make, and tastes incredible. It's vegan, too, if you don't top it with cheese.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
Finally! It’s about time this blog offered a traditional minestrone soup recipe. Minestrone is a hearty Italian vegetable soup made with tomato-y broth and pasta or rice. I’ve been working hard on this recipe and I’m so excited to share it with you.
Minestrone was traditionally made to use up leftover vegetables, so feel free to use any seasonal vegetables and greens you have on hand. I used potatoes and spinach for the soup you see here, and it was absolutely delicious.
I listed some alternatives in the recipe, including yellow squash, zucchini, butternut squash, green beans or peas. That means that you can make seasonal minestrone on cool days from fall through spring!
I used canned beans here instead of cooking my own, which cuts the cooking time down to a reasonable weeknight level. The remaining ingredients are basic pantry items, including canned tomatoes, pasta, basic spices and onions.
Why is this the best minestrone soup?
- This hearty minestrone is easy to make and totally worth the effort.
- The recipe calls for seasonal vegetables and affordable pantry ingredients.
- The soup packs great for lunch, and tastes even better the next day.
- It freezes and defrosts well, too.
- This homemade minestrone is infinitely better than the Olive Garden or store-bought varieties!
I adapted this recipe from the lentil minestrone in my cookbook, which was based on my lentil soup. For this classic minestrone, I omitted the lentils, added white beans, upped the tomato paste, and reserved the final tablespoon of olive oil to mix in at the end.
Please let me know how you like this soup in the comments! I always love reading your feedback and I’m eager to hear which veggies you use in your soup.
If you’re looking for more soup recipes, definitely check out the two mentioned above, and I have even more soups here.
Watch how to make Minestrone Soup
Classic Minestrone Soup
Warm up with this vegetarian minestrone soup! This classic minestrone soup recipe is healthy, easy to make, and tastes incredible. It’s vegan, too, if you don’t top it with cheese. Recipe yields 6 bowls or 8 cups of soup.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 medium ribs celery, chopped
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 cups chopped seasonal vegetables (potatoes, yellow squash, zucchini, butternut squash, green beans or peas all work)
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 large can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, with their liquid (or 2 small 15-ounce cans)
- 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 bay leaves
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup whole grain orecchiette, elbow or small shell pasta
- 1 can (15 ounces) Great Northern beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked beans
- 2 cups baby spinach, chopped kale or chopped collard greens
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for garnishing (optional)
Instructions
- Warm 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chopped onion, carrot, celery, tomato paste and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until the vegetables have softened and the onions are turning translucent, about 7 to 10 minutes.
- Add the seasonal vegetables, garlic, oregano and thyme. Cook until fragrant while stirring frequently, about 2 minutes.
- Pour in the diced tomatoes and their juices, broth and water. Add the salt, bay leaves and red pepper flakes. Season generously with freshly ground black pepper.
- Raise heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil, then partially cover the pot with the lid, leaving about a 1” gap for steam to escape. Reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer.
- Cook for 15 minutes, then remove the lid and add the pasta, beans and greens. Continue simmering, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until the the pasta is cooked al dente and the greens are tender.
- Remove the pot from the heat, then remove the bay leaves. Stir in the lemon juice and remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Taste and season with more salt (I usually add about ¼ teaspoon more) and pepper until the flavors really sing. Garnish bowls of soup with grated Parmesan, if you’d like.
Notes
Make it dairy free/vegan: Don’t garnish with Parmesan, or use homemade vegan Parmesan.
Make it gluten free: Substitute your favorite sturdy gluten-free noodle. I used DeLallo’s Whole-Grain Rice Shells and they worked great.
Parmesan note: Most Parmesans are not technically vegetarian (they contain animal rennet), but Whole Foods 365 and BelGioioso brands offer vegetarian Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This is so good! There is nothing here that needs to be changed. Thank you!!
Made it today and included chorizo and corn. So good I’ve had two bowls already!
I only have chicken broth. Do you recommend using it or water instead?
Hey there! Honestly, either one should work well. If you want to save the broth for something else, use water.
I have made this recipe numerous times now .. it is delicious, healthy and so easy to make…. now my go to recipe for vegetarian soup.
This soup was delicious!! I love all the vegetables, it was perfect for my vegetarian family. Will definitely be making this again.
Hi Kate
This soup is amazing!!!! It will be a regular for me. Im a fan of your vegan Lentil soup, i have been making it for a few years now, i always have it handy in the freezer.
I made this today, very tasty and easy to make. Had to split in to 2 pots because my pot not big enough. A lot nicer than store bought. Worth the effort. Ate it with the bread I made.
This soup is soooo good, thanks for the recipe!
This is a wonderful recipe! I made it today and both my husband and I were thrilled. We could not stop eating! I omitted the beans (because I did not have any) but we did not miss them at all. Excellent minestrone!
You know it’s great when you can’t stop eating it! I love it. Thank you for sharing, Gertrud.
Best Minestrone I ever made!
Wonderful, Karen! Thank you for your review.
Such a delicious recipe! Love how easy it is and it uses leftover ingredients that you’re very likely to have at home. Left mine to boil a little too long and lost most the liquid so will be sure to add a bit more next time!
Excellent! I doubled the batch and used frozen kale. Absolutely delicious!
Thanks for letting me know you loved it, Kelli!
Best Minestrone Recipe I have ever used. Excellent
Just made this today and everyone absolutely loved it – even my Dad, who usually hates all veg – thanks so much for posting it!
This turned out so great!! Delicious! I added less water though. I think the lemon juice really works well.
Really great minestrone!! I’m picky because of my Italian grandma, and this was just like hers. Cooking the onion in tomato paste for 10 minutes, I think, sets this recipe apart from other minestrone soup recipes. It really brings out the flavor of the onion and sweetens the tomato paste, removing the acidic trace of the tomatoes in the soup.
This recipe is great. Love how flexible it is—a great way to clear the fridge and pantry.
OMG!!!! Made this last night for a “6 Foot Dinner” with my husband and best friend outside (since we are having to stay physically distant at this time). Was looking for something warm and homey during a somber time in the world, and this was the BEST! I absolutely love to cook and am so glad I ran across your website! My husband asked me to make it again tonight, so I have to cut this short because I need to go back to the store! Love, Your Newest COOKIE+Kate Fan
This was AMAZING. No other words to describe. So good.
I have made this soup so many times, it’s delicious!! We have it with some bread on the side
I made this soup last week and my kids asked me to make it again. And it makes me feel good because they are eating good food. Excellent recipe.
Thank you, Tracey! I’m happy to hear that.
This is now my go-to soup recipe! The soup was delicious and so intuitive! I am not a great cook, but with a family of 6, I cook almost every meal so I cook exclusively from recipes. Lately, I have been trying to find recipes that can serve as a “base” for me to cook over and over again depending on what I have on hand. This soup covers all the bases!! I LOVE your recipes and I have actually made many of them. Thank you for the focus on veggies and health :)
Thanks, I enjoyed the minestrone a lot. It’s a great recipe and I will use it again. I added fresh thyme at the end, and that was great.
This is worth making – the flavors are outstanding. I’ve tried many different minestrone soup recipes and this is my favorite!
Incredible! This was so easy to make and delicious.
LOVED it! My husband wanted canned soup but gave me a try, and it was so delicious that we hummed while eating. I added potatoes and zucchini, had only one can of diced tomatoes but it worked so well. Thank you, it’s our new favorite!
Made this on Tuesday! Loved it and had leftovers today. Easy to make and great here in NJ being we have been having abnormally cold weather! I used some frozen veggies I had on hand so I didn’t have to run to the store and organic black beans.
Making this today for delivery to my personal chef clients tomorrow. I tossed in a parmesan rind. Using butternut and calabeza squash, and I may add some cooked Italian sausage at the end if my clients want meat. I don’t have beans or normal pasta but I’ll be using egg noodles – watching for the perfect al dente cooking time at the end, wish me luck! I’ll deliver with parmesan and some pita chips for crumbling on top.
I’ve never made Minestrone soup and a friend gave me the basics. But since I have trouble combining seasonings and amounts, I found your recipe and decided to follow it. Besides the carrots/onions and celery, I used rutabaga/zucchini/kale and green cabbage. I didn’t have dried thyme leaves, so I used ground thyme. I had leftover spaghetti and added it toward the end just to warm it (instead of cooking a pasta in the soup). Wow!. This turned out fabulous. Everyone loved it. I am usually not a fan of normal vegetable beef soup, so I was unsure if I would even like minestrone soup. I will definitely make this again. Thank you so much for sharing this with all of us!
Thank you for sharing your combination of vegetables, Annette! I’m excited it was a hit.
Absolutely loved it! I am not cooking skilled but this recipe it is really simple to follow ans delicious!
I’m happy you loved it, Alexa! Thank you for sharing.
Fantastic! So flavorful & easy enough that even I could make it. I did add a bit more veggies than 2 cups – but, it came out wonderfully. I see a lot of people mentioning throwing in a parmesan rind. When would you add that?
Hi Nicole! I know a lot of people have enjoyed that. You would add it in during the simmering step.
I’m in lockdown with my family of carnivores here in MA. Made this for lunch today and they loved it. I used potato, zucchini and baby arugula for the veggies/greens because I had them on hand. (The baby arugula was an instacart sub that I never thought I would find a use for!) The only additional step I did was to hit it with my immersion blender just a couple of times so there is a bit of a thicker texture to the broth. This recipe is wonderful.
Best minestrone I’ve ever made, flavourful and rich without being heavy.
I followed directions exactly as written, however, as I used one large potato as one of my ‘seasonal veg’ the soup needed more liquid. So I added two more cups of stock and heated through. Absolutely perfect.
OMG! I was so surprised on how wonderfully delicious this soup came out. I did use red kidney beans instead since it was all I had at the moment. Please note I’ve never made this soup before and it came out so delicious for a first timer. Thank you so much! I will definitely make this again.
Thanks for the detailed recipe. I really appreciate it. It came out delicious! I cooked the pasta on the side and added it after since someone commented about it soaking up too much broth. Thanks again!
This was so hearty, flavorful, and healthy! The soup is so versatile; you can use many types of veggies/beans based on what you have on hand. Will keep this recipe for sure! Thank you!
Made this recipe for a friend and a sick aunt. They both raved about it and once finished both asked me to make more. It has so much flavour and just really good comfort food. THANKYOU so much for all your awesome recipes kind regards Leisa
You’re welcome! I’m happy to hear that, Leisa. I appreciate your review.
SO GOOD. I didn’t end up adding the lemon (already tasted pretty bright to me). I also increased the garlic a little and used 1 leek instead of the onion – otherwise followed the instructions exactly.
Brilliant recipe, kids love it!, considering we could not get them to eat veg! Now we have the answers thankyou!
Just the soup flavour I was looking for. Absolutely delicious whole family loved it. Will be cooking again soon yum yum.
This has made me a minestrone convert. Somehow never really got how good minestrone is until this recipe. Thanks!
Delicious, thank you for sharing xxx
Great recipe! I made it out of dry beans, so I just let the whole thing cook for over an hour until the beans were cooked, and it turned out deliciously creamy and comforting.
I love this soup so much! I make it all the time now! I like to add mild Italian sausage taken out of the casing. As the recipe says, whatever is on hand for veggies makes for a different taste every time you make it so you don’t get bored. Such an awesome recipe! Thank you!
Love this classic minestrone soup it is our family favourite. Thanks so much for sharing.
Followed this recipe without the cheese and lemon juice, used fresh tomatoes in place of canned and horsegram instead of cannelini beans.
It’s come out perfect, our whole home is filled with the goodness of seasonal veggies and other heavenly flavors
Like everyone else in these comments, I substituted veggies and omitted paste as I didn’t have any, and it still was the best minestrone I ever made. Partner said better than our Italian take out last week! It’s the seasoning that makes this I think. Just a perfect blend of herbs and spices in your recipe.
I like the stewy consistency that develops. My variations: Instead of tomato paste, I sauteed thinly-sliced sun-dried tomatoes with the celery, carrots and Vidalia onion. Added vegies were diced sweet potato, chopped zucchini, partial bags of frozen sweet peas, butternut squash (which was soft and thickened the broth), thinly-sliced sun-dried red peppers. Put 28 oz. tomatoes through the food processor (daughter doesn’t like chunks of tomatoes). Less chicken broth, with leftover “broth” from steamed red beets & broccoli used for part of the water. Leftover cooked ground turkey (to use it up), no beans. For noodles, Ronzoni SuperGreens thin spaghetti, broken into 1-1/2 inch pieces (possibly about 1/2 cup broken). Shredded parmesan on top. To even out and speed cooking, I think I will pre-steam the carrots, sweet potatoes or winter squash. Soup is hearty, satisfying, tasty. The melted cheese kept sticking to my spoon and teeth. Will eat a hard cheese on the side next time, and cornbread sticks! Thanks for a great recipe!
Absolutely delicious! I used homemade chicken broth that I had a ton of and it made the soup even more hearty. I love how the vegetables stay somewhat firm even after simmering the soup… my hubby had 3 bowls! And we still have leftover. Thank you so much for a homerun recipe! This is staying in the vault.
OMG!!!! one of the best soups I made! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us