Hearty Vegetable Soup
A filling, plant-based vegetable soup with potatoes, white beans, and greens in a savory tomato broth. It freezes beautifully.
- Total1 hr
- YieldAbout 12 cups
- LevelEasy
Not yet kitchen-tested This recipe is written from established cooking techniques and reviewed for accuracy, but our team hasn't cooked it from these exact instructions yet. How we test recipes
This soup gets its depth from a few simple techniques: slowly softening the onion, carrot, and celery, browning a spoonful of tomato paste, and finishing with lemon juice to brighten all the flavors.
Potatoes and white beans make it filling enough for dinner, and it tastes even better the next day.
Recipe
Hearty Vegetable Soup
A filling, plant-based vegetable soup with potatoes, white beans, and greens in a savory tomato broth. It freezes beautifully.
- Prep time
- 20 min
- Cook time
- 40 min
- Total time
- 1 hr
- Yield
- About 12 cups (6 servings)
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Course
- Soup
- Cuisine
- American
Ingredients
Scaling changes ingredient amounts only. Cooking times, pan sizes, and temperatures may need adjusting.
Makes: About 12 cups (6 servings)
Instructions
Soften the base vegetables. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until softened and the onion is translucent.
Add the aromatics. Stir in the garlic, tomato paste, thyme, and oregano. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring, until fragrant and the tomato paste darkens slightly.
Simmer the potatoes. Add the potatoes, diced tomatoes with their juices, broth, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 12 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are just tender when pierced.
Add the remaining vegetables. Stir in the green beans, zucchini, and cannellini beans. Simmer 8 to 10 minutes more, until the green beans are tender but still bright.
Wilt the greens. Stir in the kale or spinach and cook 2 to 3 minutes for kale, or about 1 minute for spinach, until wilted.
Finish and season. Remove the bay leaf. Stir in the lemon juice, then taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Broths vary a lot in saltiness, so taste before adding more.
Recipe Notes
Tips
- Cut the vegetables to similar sizes so they cook evenly.
- For a thicker soup, mash some of the potatoes and beans against the side of the pot before adding the greens.
Substitutions
- Vegetables: Use whatever is in season. Butternut squash, corn, peas, or cabbage all work. Add firm vegetables with the potatoes and tender ones at the end.
- Beans: Chickpeas or kidney beans can replace the cannellini beans.
Allergens: Contains none of the nine major U.S. food allergens, based on the listed ingredients. Always check product labels, especially broth.
Recipe from The Cozy Recipe Kitchen: https://cozy-recipe-kitchen.b-cdn.net/recipe/hearty-vegetable-soup/
Storage and Reheating
Refrigerate for up to 5 days. The soup thickens as it sits, so add a splash of broth or water when reheating.
Freezing
Freeze in airtight containers, leaving 1 inch of headspace, for up to 3 months. The potatoes will be a little softer after thawing.
Make Ahead
Make the full batch ahead. The flavor improves by the second day.
Troubleshooting
- The soup tastes flat.
- It most likely needs salt or acid. Add salt a pinch at a time, plus a little more lemon juice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this soup vegan?
Yes, as written, provided your vegetable broth contains no animal ingredients. Check the label.
Allergens and Food Safety
Allergens: Contains none of the nine major U.S. food allergens, based on the listed ingredients. Always check product labels, especially broth.
Food safety: Cool large batches of soup quickly by dividing them into shallow containers, and refrigerate within 2 hours.
Allergen notes are based on the listed ingredients. Always check product labels. See our Disclaimer.
Nutrition Information
We don't publish nutrition facts for this recipe yet. We'd rather share none than share numbers that haven't been calculated with a documented method. Learn more.
Made This Recipe?
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