Minestrone soup is so hearty it can stand on its own as the main dish! I fell in love with minestrone at the Olive Garden, so this is a pretty darn close attempt at copying the classic Italian soup.
If you want a few more Olive garden Copycats, here is the Best Alfredo Sauce and Zuppa Toscana recipe.
Minestrone soup is not just tasty, it’s healthy as well! The delicious tomato-y broth is chock-full of vegetables and beans. It’s the perfect dish to serve to kids who are finicky with eating produce.
Made in one-pot, healthy minestrone is a great option for a quick weeknight dinner as the weather starts to cool off and the kids gear up to go back to school. Sometimes knowing that I will have a quick clean-up is enough to motivate me to make a homemade dinner… just sayin’.
What is Minestrone Soup?
Minestrone is an Italian soup known for its thick tomato-based broth. It can be made with pasta or rice, and typically contains carrots, tomato chunks, kidney beans, celery, onions and potatoes. However, the creation of this soup came from a need to use up leftover vegetables. So, feel free to use any veggies that are taking up space in your refrigerator. Or, alter the recipe to whatever is fresh and in season. Seriously, you can’t go wrong!
Tips for Minestrone Soup
- Make Gluten-Free Minestrone Soup – Have gluten allergy? No problem! Substitute the pasta for wild or white rice.
- Make Minestrone Soup Spicy – Like it spicy? Add some red pepper flakes to your minestrone for the perfect touch of heat.
- Make Minestrone Soup Vegan – Easily make your minestrone vegan by using egg-free noodles (or rice!) and a vegetable-based broth. One of my new favorite products is Better Than Bouillon’s No Beef Base broth concentrate.
- Switch up the Vegetables You Use – Minestrone is extremely versatile. If you don’t have the exact ingredients this recipe calls for, don’t worry! You can use red or yellow zucchini, sweet potatoes, kale, spinach, butternut squash, broccoli, cauliflower… I mean, anything! The broth compliments any vegetable. Use what you have and don’t let anything go to waste.
- Noodles Make Broth Disappear! – Noodles are notorious for sucking up liquid. As your leftover minestrone sits in the fridge, you may notice that your noodles are slowly absorbing your broth. If this is a problem for you, add more broth to the soup.
Storing Minestrone Soup
- Keeping Minestrone Soup Fresh – Store your minestrone soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. The kicker? Minestrone gets tastier as it marinates in the fridge. That’s right…each bowl you reheat will taste richer and richer.
- Freezing Minestrone Soup – You probably know by now that I am the queen of having frozen, homemade food on hand. However, I would discourage you from freezing minestrone. The reason is that this soup contains fresh vegetables.
Serving the Minestrone Soup
Some freshly grated parmesan cheese is the perfect garnish for minestrone. After all, that’s what they do at Olive Garden! It wouldn’t hurt to add some chopped basil or cracked pepper to the mix.
Like I said before, minestrone is a stand-alone kind of soup. However, there is nothing like sopping up that hearty broth with nice piece of bread. Try making my Parmesan Garlic Flatbread Recipe or No Knead Bread.
Other Soup Recipes to Make
Share Some Love ❤️
Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 medium carrots (diced into small cubes)
- 2 small zucchinis (diced into small cubes)
- 1/2 large onion (diced into small cubes)
- 6 celery sticks (diced into small cubes)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
- 32 oz vegetable broth
- 15 oz canned great Northen beans (drained)
- 15 oz canned Kidney beans (drained)
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp dry basil
- 1/2 cup noodles
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups water
Instructions
- Preheat the pot with olive oil, add zucchini, carrots, celery and onions. Sautee for about 10 minutes, until vegetables soften.
- To the pot, add canned diced tomatoes. Season with Italian seasoning and dry basil.
- Add vegetable broth, noodles, kidney and Great Northen beans. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Depending on the thickness of the soup, you can add 2 more cups of water to the mix.
- Press garlic into the mixture and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Serve while the minestrone soup is still warm.
This is a great recipe!
Has anyone ever tried freezing this recipe for future meals? I imagine it would do ok without adding the pasta and saving the pasta for when it thaws and reheats?
I prefer this soup fresh over frozen since it has fresh vegetables in it, but what you've described sounds like it could work. Let us know how the soup tastes if you decide to freeze it for later!
Looks amazing and I can't wait to try it! What is the portion size?
Hello Patti- It's about one cup. Enjoy!
You can't call this copycat Olive Garden because you don't put spinach in it and they do
Hi Joanne- *almost* a copycat recipe then 😉 I do mention you can add spinach to this soup in the text above, this soup is versatile like that. Enjoy! 🙂
This was absolutely delicious! I followed the recipe as written, and added ground beef as we are meat eaters in our household! Thank you for putting this recipe together 🙂
You're so welcome, Richel. Glad your family loved it!
Fantastic.
Thank you!
I loved this recipe! Me and my family had a great and hearty dinner. 😊
Thank you, Theresa! I'm happy that you all loved it. 🙂
Oh, my was this ever yummy. I made 2 substitutions based on what I had in the pantry (crushed tomato & chicken broth) and because my husband has to have his meat, I added some sliced Hillshire Farm smoked sausage. Really really good. 🙂
Hi Cris- I'm so glad you enjoyed this soup! Thanks for commenting!
This was super simple and super hearty! I did not include the pasta but added some green cabbage leaves and a few mushrooms. Two words for your recipe: Home, Run!
YUM. That sounds awesome, Rick. I've actually made this soup without the noodles too and it's just as good. Cabbage sounds like a great addition. Hope you're having a wonderful Sunday and thanks for sharing some kind words with us. It's very appreciated.
Just made this by following your recipe almost exactly. I just added an old Parmesan rind. But it came out fabulous, thank you for the recipe!
Hi there- love that you added a parmesan rind to it, what a great idea! Thanks for commenting 😄
I wanted to make a minestrone using an Italian bean, Cicerchia, and found this recipe. It turned out fabulous. I left out the oil and dry sauteed the veggies. Added a piece of kombu in the broth and substituted wild rice which I cooked first instead of the noodles. I topped it with a sprinkle of nutritional yeast for the parmesan flavor. It's a keeper and especially nice since it's snowing!
Wow, Judy, sounds like quite a meal! This soup really is such a great cozy choice on a snowy day!
This Minestrone recipe is awesome and easy! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Anita! Glad you enjoyed it.
This recipe fits the elusive combination of cheap, easy, healthy AND delicious. It is also so similar to Olive Garden! I just added some canned green beans, a teaspoon of salt, and some fresh spinach at the end.
Hi Elizabeth- thank you for the feedback, so glad you enjoyed this recipe. It's a winner!
I have made this several times and it’s delicious. Love your recipes
Awwww thanks, Regina! That means a lot. Really appreciate it. Hope we can keep delivering! 🙂
Could I put in something other than zucchini? If yes, what?
Hi, Lynne. Sweet potatoes, squash, really any kind of vegetable can be substituted if you prefer! Hope this helps.
In the picture of the ingredients it shows a small dish with red liquid is that tomatoe sauce?
Hi Maria, it is tomato sauce. We have tested the recipe with and without tomato sauce, we prefer the flavors without it, so we removed it from the ingredients. Sorry about the confusion.
Hello, what should I bring the heat to?
Hello Azaria, the recipe doesn't specify a specific temperature other than to bring the soup to a "simmer' (a very light boil) in steps 3 and 4 of the recipe. For most stove tops this would be medium-low heat, adjust as needed. Hope this helps!
Thank you so much!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I just made it and it is SOOOOO GOOD! I added an extra couple of noodles and two extra cups of water. The total cost for all of the ingredients was only $12.80! 😊
Hi, Tee! Wow, what a great deal for an entire POT of soup! Cooking at home is so efficient like that! I'm glad you loved the recipe, thank you for taking the time to comment!
This is the second time making this. Added a few other veggies cauliflower and spinach at the end. Its my new favorite lunch leftover.
Hello, Grandma Debbie! I'm so glad you are enjoying this soup, thank you very much for your feedback!
YYYUUMMMM! My boyfriend loves this from Olive Garden so much that I hesitate to make it! Lol Going to grocery store today for sure! I do plan on using fresh tomatoes because I need to get rid of what I have in the fridge, tomato paste for flavor and thickness with a little Tomato knorr for added flavor and in place of salt. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
You are so welcome, Jessica! Thanks for commenting!
Made it for supper waa a great success.
Wooohoo! That's awesome to hear, Leanne. The leftovers are even better.
Do you think this would work in a crock pot?
Hi Stuffy - I've never tried it, but I bet it would. My suggestion would be to add in the noodles with 20-30 minutes of cooking time left so they don't turn mushy. Hope this helps!
I save my parm rinds just for this soup..😋
Hi Penny - Nice! That's a smart move. It's always a shame when people throw away the rinds. I should add this in as a tip to the recipe since folks are likely garnishing the soup with a little parm anyways. Thanks for the idea and Happy New Year!
I'm wondering if noodles have to be boiled separately before adding to soup
Hi Mayra - You add them straight into the soup! No need to boil them first. Happy New Year!
May I ask what the serving size is? 1 cup?
Hi Cher - You can serve 1 cup if it's a side dish or 2 cups if it's the main course. Hope that helps! Happy New Year!
But for the 152 calories which is the actual serving size? 1 or 2 cups/
Hello Robin- You can serve 1 cup if it’s a side dish or 2 cups if it’s the main course. Hope this helps!
Is 2 cups 152 calories or is 1 cup 152 calories? I think that’s what she was asking.
To be completely honest with you, it's kind of difficult to calculate the exact calories per serving size. We do our best with the nutrition facts, but we understand it's not as specific as some would like. Thank you for commenting, Holly!
I made this for dinner tonight. We loved it! I did it pretty much according to the recipe, except I don't really measure anything. So it might have had a tad more basil or Italian seasoning, or perhaps a bit more garlic, (ok, I know it had a bit more garlic, lol, we love garlic). But whatever, it turned out delicious. This will definitely be added to the rotation. We served it up with yeast rolls. Next time I make it I will top the bowls with some grated parmesan. Thanks for a great recipe!
Hi Jack - Haha! I'm the same way with garlic. When it comes time to add it, I typically eye ball it depending on how much I'm craving. You can't wrong! Love that you paired it with yeast rolls. You need something to sop up the tasty broth at the bottom for sure. Thanks for the kind words - much appreciated!
2nd time in two weeks. Oh my gosh, I had forgotten how special this EASY dish is. This time it is gifting, yes food this year as so many are in need. Made just as you called for, only thing is I did thicken to make what may be a hardy meal.
Hi Ruthie - Awww! Thank you for such sweet words. I 100% agree on so many people being in need of a warm, hearty meal this year. Everyone deserves to be well-fed. So wonderful you are giving back. XOXO and Happy Holidays!
I absolutely loved this. I added some extra spices such as, cumin, pepper, and salt. I also added ground Turkey which I seasoned with Italian seasoning and salt and pepper
Hi Ashley, I love the additional spices you added, sounds amazing! Thank you for sharing your variation on the soup, I'm glad you loved the results.
Nice, hearty minestrone soup but it definitely needs salt. I may even try a different brand of Italian seasoning to experiment with the flavor a bit next time. I used McCormack Italian seasoning this time. I also added the pasta too soon. I will add it right before serving next time.
Hi Lauren, thank you for that tip and feedback.
Am I the only one who thought this was lacking flavor?
I thought so too! I had such high expectations! It’s not horrible but I was definitely expecting more flavor. I used all the ingredients as mentioned. I just should’ve waited longer to add the pasta. I added to it the next day and I still like it but just not 5 stars for me.
Hey Rachel, sorry about that, to add a bit more flavor, you can add more broth concentrate, salt, or even lemon juice or even whatever spices you love.
Hi Amy - Sorry you found the soup a bit bland. We like to keep the salt to a minimum so our readers can adjust it to taste. Everyone's relationship with salt is so different! To add a bit more flavor, you can add more broth concentrate, salt, or even lemon juice (if you don't want added sodium). Hope this helps!
I added a "swirl" (one pass around the pot) of soy sauce to this. It adds umami and a hint of salt. Other than that, I followed this recipe and it is really good! Parmesan cheese garnish wasabi w touch.
Ooh that sounds good, Jill! I'm glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for commenting!
I have made this soup a few times now and my Husband & I absolutely love it! I let it simmer for a few hours to let the seasonings blend....and as you recommended, I waited till the end to add the cooked pasta. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipie!!
Ahhhh, thanks Priscilla! So happy you enjoyed this soup. It's a timeless one and it's so healthy. Glad you and your family gathered around it!