Authentic Italian Minestrone Soup Recipe

Authentic Italian Minestrone Soup is a hearty vegetable soup made with a tomato base, small-cut pasta, beans, and seasonal veggies.

One of the best parts about minestrone is that there are no real rules. It’s traditionally made with literally whatever you have left over at the end of the week: so think veggies, rice, pasta, and potatoes.

In the fall you can toss in some butternut squash, while in the summer zucchini is a perfect addition. This soup is so customizable that you’re going to love being able to play with it.

Authentic Italian Minestrone Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe:

Veggies: I’ll be using carrots, onions, celery, spinach and garlic

Potatoes: Peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces

Small-cut pasta: I’m using Ditalini

Tomato products: I’ll be using crushed tomatoes and tomato paste

Vegetable stock: For the broth

Beans: I’m using kidney beans

Herbs: Basil, dried oregano, and bay leaves

Parmigiano-Reggiano rind: For flavor

How to Make Minestrone Soup

Here’s how to make this recipe.

Step 1: Prep your ingredients

Start by chopping up your veggies and measuring everything out.

Step 2: Cook your soffritto

Add some olive oil to your pot and add your soffritto (aka the base of most Italian soups and sauces), which simply consists of carrots, onions, and celery. Cook until your soffritto begins to soften a bit, about 5 minutes. Then, add the garlic and cook until fragrant — about 1 minute.

Step 3: Make your broth

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, vegetable broth, potatoes, basil, oregano, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, and Parm rind. Bring the soup up to a boil, then lower a bit and partially cover. Cook for ~20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

Step 4: Add the beans and pasta

Now add the beans and pasta and cook for ~10 minutes.

Step 5: Add the spinach

When your soup is just about done, add two large handfuls of spinach, cover, and let wilt (this will only take ~3 minutes).

Print Recipe

Authentic Italian Minestrone Soup Recipe

Authentic Italian Minestrone Soup is a hearty vegetable soup made with a tomato base, small-cut pasta, beans, and seasonal veggies.

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: italian, minestrone, minestrone soup, soup

Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

• 3 celery stalks chopped
• 2 medium carrots chopped
• 1 yellow onion chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves chopped
• 2 russet potatoes peeled and cut into bite sized pieces
• 6 cups vegetable stock
• 1 28 oz crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbs tomato paste
• 8 fresh basil leaves torn
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 cup dried ditalini pasta
• 1 15-oz can kidney beans drained and rinsed
• 2 handfuls baby spinach
• 1 1-inch parm rind optional

Instructions

• Add a TBS of olive oil to a pot over medium heat. Add the soffritto (carrots, onions, and celery) and cook until they begin to coften (about 5 minutes). Add the garlic and cook until fragrant (about 1 minute).
• Add the potatoes, vegetable stock, tomato products, bay leaves, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, and Parm rind, if using. Bring to a boil, then lower slightly and partially cover. Let cook for ~20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
• Add the small-cut pasta and beans. Cook for 10 minutes, then add the spinach and cover for ~3 minutes, or until wilted.