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.
Absolutely delicious!! I usually add a can of kidneybeans or chickpeas and a tablespoon of nutritional yeast. Top with some fresh basil and vegan parmesan
I’ve made this several times, and each time I rediscover how wonderful it is!
This was great! Thank you for sharing a great recipe. First time I’ve ever made minestrone soup and I will definitely make this again.
This soup is in our meal rotation all fall and winter. It freezes great – I just thaw and bring soup to a boil before adding dry pasta as the last step. I love that I can use whatever veggies I have in my fridge to make it.
Hi! Would sweet potato work. Is there a reason they wouldn’t
TIA
Sure! Let me know what you think.
I always use this recipe as my base. Depending what’s available on our island, variations of veggies. Don’t use pasta and sometimes no beans (hence minestrone). But best veggie soup ever.
I make this soup every week. My husband and I eat it over many lunches with warm sourdough bread. It’s our favourite meal! I use zucchini and green beans for the veg most weeks. Love it.
That’s great to hear, Andrea!
Is diced turnip ok in this soup.
I made this using what I had in the fridge — yellow squash and green beans for the vegetables, and kale and collard greens for the greens. It was amazing.
Great to hear, HB!
I am hoping to at least triple this for a big meal I’m preparing at a Ronald McDonald House. Any tips? Longer cook time, etc.? Thanks so much!
2 large can (56 ounce) diced tomatoes, with their liquid (or 2 small 15-ounce cans)— Kate, when i doubled this recipe, this is what my phone showed. Some calculation challenges here… Fyi
Turned out beautifully and flavorful! I substituted chard for the greens – worked well. I don’t see parsley on the ingredients list – should there be? Wondering how much fresh or dried and best time to add?
This is one of my all-time favorite recipes and my go-to winter soup! I use the recipe as a base and incorporate some of the commented suggestions, like starting by cooking some chopped thick cut bacon and using a couple tablespoons of the fat to sauté the onions, celery, and carrots before adding the bacon back in. I also add two bags of fresh spinach, two parmesan rinds, and a cup of orzo. It comes out perfectly every time and is even better the next day!
Great to hear, MB!
Such an amazing and versatile recipe. Perfect for all the leftover veg for a hearty, healthy and warming dish.
Making this today for the second time. First soup I’ve ever made and I loved it!
I learned some things about chopping veges my first time around, so I’m looking forward to an even more successful soup today. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Absolutely fabulous-recipe is in our Favorites File!
Wow, this made an amazing amount of soup. We love healthy soup for work lunches and this recipe provides enough delicious soup for a week. Even after the cooking the carrots still retained a lovely fresh crunch. The tomato paste truly added a bright flavor.
My wife would be happy for me to make this soup every other week. This and your amazingly delicious Miso Noodle Soup are her new lunch favorites.
Wait until I make the Chickpea Noodle Soup next week… this is soup season and so far all your recipes are delicious.
I just found this recipe a few months ago and I’ve made it 6 times already! I’ve tried it with green beans (fresh and canned), spinach or kale, and zucchini so far. When I make it with kale- I add the kale before the macaroni so the kale has more time to cook down.
Tried this soup tonight, it was hearty and nutritious everyone even the littles enjoyed it. Great use of need to use veggies. Thank you!
This soup is absolutely delicious! I didn’t have tomato paste on hand so used tomato sauce and the flavors were divine. I used some leftover roasted mini potatoes and zucchini as my seasonal veggies.
I always love making this super healthy soup for my family! Thanks, Kate!
This recipe is star of my Christmas potluck. Everyone loves it. Always looking for vegetarian recipes.
good recipe really enjoyed it
Great hardy soup—perfect for a cold, December evening! I went non-vegetarian and added a pound of turkey Italian sausage. It made it a complete meal! Thanks so much!
What kind of veggie broth do you use?
I loooove this recipe!!
I did it a lot of times and it’s always good
Thank for that!!
Yummy as written.
This is my favorite soup ever, and this is the best recipe. I don’t tweak the recipe at all, and it turns out amazing every time. So healthy, and so tasty. Can’t beat it.
This was delicious! We let it sit in the fridge overnight and that really developed the flavors. If you have time make it the day before! Added in extra veggies and cooked our pasta separately to keep it more “brothy”. Used spinach but next time I’ll sub in a heartier green like kale or add the spinach right before serving. Thanks Kate we loved it!
Made this tonight and it was delish. I used spinach and acorn squash as well as red kidney beans because that’s what I had on hand. I’ll be making this again for sure varying the ingredients based on what I have hanging around. The lemon juice adds a nice flavor. Thanks for a new family favorite.
Absolutely delicious, Kate. ALL of your recipes are delicious!
Made this today and it was absolutely delicious. All 4 of my kids liked it as well, which doesn’t often happen. So many veggies! A great recipe.
This is the perfect minestrone — hearty, nutritious, and delicious. Even my husband, who’s not huge soup fan, loved it. It freezes well also. Thank you, Kate!
This recipe is the bomb! I keep making it over and over. So good, perfect flavors and flexible ingredients. Can’t thank you enough for this fab recipe. 5 STARS!
I want to thank you again for this recipe. We make this in our home at least once per month and take extras to my in-laws. They’re always so excited to receive it! Anyone who eats dinner with us really loves it! And, it’s so nutritious you just can’t go wrong. We made it again last night and I added chickpeas for protein. Was amazing as usual!
I’m in heaven. So easy and so. Darn. Delicious. Thank you!
I have made this soup about half a dozen times. Love it! I made minor changes based on what was on the shelf. I used the 28 oz can of Cento San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes and snip each in 3 – 4 pieces. I swapped 1 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning for the herbs and tossed in a can of dark kidney beans. This soup freezes and reheats great.
delicious! My roommates loved it as well. I would add some more liquid next time as my soup was quite stew-like
This is one of my favorite recipes that I keep coming back to. I was skeptical because I didn’t particularly like minestrone soup before, but luckily I tried this recipe. The best part is that you can endlessly modify it based on what’s in your fridge
Here’s a tip. I wanted to freeze half of the soup, so first I cooked half the amount of the pasta and saved 2c of the pasta water. I used this as the 2c of water in the recipe. I froze half of the soup without pasta, and added the half measure of pasta to the half we are eating now. This way you still get the pasta starches to thicken up the soup.
Hi, just made your Classic Minestrone soup and loved it – such a rich taste. I found though that I couldn’t just add a total of 2 cups of vegetables – that would be about 1/4 cup. I ended up adding 6 cups of veggies – butternut squash, zucchini, onions, potatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers…I couldn’t help myself! I just increased the amount of liquid and upped the spices a bit. It tastes great and I have enough to share with a neighbor and some family members. Thanks for a recipe I’ll be sure to use again.
What a delicious soup! I have made this several times using zucchini, yellow squash, and fresh green beans as my additional veggies. I usually triple the recipe so that I can share with my neighbors. Whenever I send out a text asking if anybody would some, I receive immediate yes responses. We all love it. I also freeze some without the pasta. Thanks for the great recipe!
This soup is SO freaking delicious. I’ve made it countless times and my partner and I both love it. I usually use zucchini and either potato or sweet potato for the veg, and cook the noodles separately. I find the veggie chopping therapeutic. I’m eating it right now. Thank you for this recipe!
Amazing recipe, turns out delicious every time. Have been making this for many times and everybody loves it. Very comforting and nourishing.
I loved this recipe. I did add some dried basil to the herb mix – I actually think that the combination of oregano and basil gives a really deep rich flavor, but that was my only change. I will definitely be making this regularly going forward!d
I love the amazing flavor of this soup! I have sent to 6 friends it’s a fan favorite for all families! Some have added beef & beef broth, some add additional spices…ALL agree it’s the Best Recipe!!
Absolutely love this soup! I used hunts fire roasted diced tomatoes
And two kinds of beans, (kidney and northern beans). This is not just delicious but helps to amp up the vegetable intake!
My husband loved it and wants it on the weekly winter rotation menu!
Amazing recipe, thank you for sharing !
Best Minestrone recipe. Made on repeat in my house. Freezes well. As soon as I run out , I make another batch to stick the freezer. Thanks Kate!
It was only after chopping up all my veggies and measuring everything out that I realized I didn’t have a can of diced tomatoes, or any tomatoes for that matter. I ended up using 3/4 can of jarred pasta sauce and it still turned out great! thank you :)
This is the best minestrone I’ve ever made. Followed the recipe pretty closely. I used peas, corn, green beans as my vegetables, along with small shells as the pasta. I did add parm cheese into the pot while cooking. I won’t be using any other minestrone recipe!
I wish I put the lemon juice but didn’t have lemons, next time for sure. I used potatoes, fresh green beans and canned kidney beans. It was good but needed more stock and the lemon.