This is the most flavorful vegetable soup recipe you’ll try! It’s a 100% vegetarian (and vegan, actually!) soup, but I promise you won’t miss the meat. Ready in 1 hour and freezer-friendly! Recipe includes a how-to video!
The (Actual) Best Vegetable Soup Recipe
If I’m being honest, I never really thought I’d be here sharing a vegetable soup recipe. Growing up (and beyond!), this was one of my least favorite meals. With a few tweaks and some crab meat I’d enjoy it as Maryland crab soup, but otherwise the flavor just fell flat and was always wanting… something.
But I’ve been wanting to up our veggie intake recently and is there an easier way to do it than by tossing a plethora of vegetables into a pot and serving it alongside some warm, buttered sourdough bread?
With some trial and error and plenty of determination, I finally developed a recipe that’s savory and satisfying, and simple to make with a technique and blend of veggies that gives it a truly amazing depth of flavor. We’ve been eating it on repeat this winter!
What’s to Love:
- Easy to make, since we’re using a combination of fresh and frozen vegetables. You will have some chopping to do though, so keep that in mind!
- LOTS of flavor! My husband, a hardcore carnivore who frequently likes to remind me that he’s not a rabbit, actually enjoys my vegetable soup. As in he goes back for seconds and asks when I’ll be making it again.
- Customizable. The blend of veggies I shared here today worked best for me and my family (we LOVE the sweet potato in it!), but you can of course mix and match. You can stick to whatever veggies are in season or simply use a combination of your favorites.
- Freezes well, so it makes a great meal-prep or make-ahead option. It’s also nice to keep individual servings in the freezer for when someone is feeling under the weather!
Ingredients
Look at all those veggies! Before we get started, let’s talk about a few of the key ingredients you’ll need to make this soup.
- Veggies. Including carrots, celery, onion, green beans, corn, and lima beans. You can customize these to your liking–I include a few more ideas in the FAQ section below.
- Potatoes. I like to use a combination of gold and sweet potatoes. I do not peel my gold potatoes, but I do recommend peeling the sweet potatoes (their skin is tougher). Russet potatoes will also work instead of the gold potatoes, but those will need peeled as well.
- Vegetable broth. I really like Kettle & Fire brand right now (I have no affiliation!), but you can use your favorite brand. Or if you’d prefer to use beef or chicken broth (or instant pot chicken stock!), feel free! If someone in the house is sick, I’ll usually use a bone broth, which adds even more flavor.
- Fire roasted tomatoes. One of my favorite soup ingredients, I use fire roasted tomatoes in quite a few of my soup recipes, like my chili and taco soup. They have more flavor than traditional canned diced tomatoes, but you can of course use the regular kind if that’s all you have on hand.
- Spices & herbs. Just a few! You’ll need some dried basil, black pepper, bay leaves, and thyme. If you don’t have any fresh thyme on hand, you can use a ½ teaspoon of dried thyme.
SAM’S TIP: Do not use a cast iron pot (unless it is enameled) or aluminum, as the tomatoes in the soup can react with it and make your soup taste metallic.
This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full vegetable soup recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Vegetable Soup
- Saute the onion, carrots, and celery in oil until softened, then add the garlic. Cook the garlic for a few seconds, stirring frequently. Keep the garlic moving so it doesn’t burn (that’ll make it bitter and can ruin your soup!).
- Add the potatoes and cook for a few minutes. This step won’t significantly soften or really cook the potatoes much, but it will infuse flavor into them.
- Stir in the tomato paste and spices and stir frequently as they cook and caramelize. Caramelizing the tomato paste (cooking it til it’s a deep red color) and adding the spices at this stage rather than after the broth helps infuse so much flavor into the veggies and the soup as a whole.
- Add the remaining ingredients, then let the soup simmer until all of the veggies are fork-tender, about 30 minutes or so. Make sure to remove your bay leaves and thyme and check for additional seasoning before enjoying.
And let me stress… don’t skip the simmering! This soup needs a good 30 minutes to fully develop the flavor!
SAM’S TIP: Some broths are saltier than others, so I recommend you always taste-test your soup before serving. If yours tastes flat, it just needs more salt, I promise!
Frequently Asked Questions
The kind you like to eat! Or you can use whatever is in season. Obviously what you add will change the flavor (and sometimes texture) of the soup, but this recipe is pretty versatile. I shared my favorite combination of veggies today, but some other great options include shredded/chopped cabbage, frozen or fresh peas, diced parsnips, zucchini, and turnips.
You don’t have to, though I do recommend trying the soup as written at least once. If you want to omit the sweet potatoes, you can add an equal amount of your favorite veggie (or additional gold potatoes) instead.
This soup is not meant to be thick and hearty (like a corn chowder or potato soup), but if you’d like to thicken it up a bit, you can use this guide on how to thicken soup.
Vegetable soup can be served as the main course or as a side dish. We usually enjoy it as a whole meal, always with a carb-y side like crusty artisan bread, biscuits (or drop biscuits if I’m feeling lazy), saltine crackers or sourdough crackers! It also pairs nicely with grilled cheese, my homemade pizza rolls (recipe coming soon!) or garlic knots.
Enjoy!
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Vegetable Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- 1 (200 g) medium yellow onion diced (about 1 cup)
- 2 (150 g) carrots cut into coins (1 cup)
- 2 (140 g) celery ribs diced (1 cup)
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 cup (130 g) small-diced sweet potatoes cut into ½”/1.5cm cubes
- 1 cup (160 g) small-diced gold or russet potatoes cut into ½”/1.5cm cubes
- 1 ½ Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
- 1 ¼ teaspoon table salt plus more to tate
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper plus more to taste
- 1 14.5 oz (411 g) can fire roasted diced tomatoes undrained
- 1 ½ cups (185 g) fresh or frozen cut green beans
- 1 ¼ cups (175 g) fresh or frozen sweet corn
- ½ cup (80 g) fresh or frozen lima beans
- 6 cups (1.5 L) vegetable broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 thyme sprig or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
Recommended Equipment
- Large soup pot (must be non-reactive, ex: not un-enameled cast iron or aluminum)
Instructions
- Add oil to a large soup pot and heat over medium heat until shimmering.3 Tablespoons olive or avocado oil
- Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook until softened (about 5 minutes).1 (200 g) medium yellow onion, 2 (150 g) carrots, 2 (140 g) celery ribs
- Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant (about 30 seconds).1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- Add potatoes and cook several minutes longer, stirring occasionally (about 3-5 minutes).1 cup (130 g) small-diced sweet potatoes, 1 cup (160 g) small-diced gold or russet potatoes
- Add tomato paste, dried basil, salt, and pepper and stir until tomato paste is deepened in color (about 60 seconds).1 ½ Tablespoons tomato paste, 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil, 1 ¼ teaspoon table salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Add tomatoes, green beans, corn, lima beans and broth, then add bay leaves and thyme. Stir well and bring to a simmer.1 14.5 oz (411 g) can fire roasted diced tomatoes, 1 ½ cups (185 g) fresh or frozen cut green beans, 1 ¼ cups (175 g) fresh or frozen sweet corn, ½ cup (80 g) fresh or frozen lima beans, 6 cups (1.5 L) vegetable broth, 2 bay leaves, 1 thyme sprig
- Simmer uncovered for 30 minutes/until potatoes and green beans are tender when pierced with a fork. Don't skip the simmer, it's necessary for the soup to develop its full flavor
- Taste-test and add additional salt and pepper as needed (if the soup seems even slightly bland, it just needs more salt!). Serve.
Notes
Parmesan rind
If you have a saved parmesan rind, toss it into the pot while the soup is simmering for added flavor.Storing
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 6 days. This recipe also freezes well and will keep for several months in the freezer.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
David Romano
Full of flavor. Hearty and delicious. Potatoes were a nice addition.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, David! 🙂
Kimberly Stockdill
DELIOUSIOSO!!!
Carolyn Kelty
Tried a few of these recipes and completely happy with them.
Sam
This is so nice to hear, Carolyn! Thank you so much for trying my recipes and letting me know how they turned out, I really appreciate it and hope you find more on my website that you love just as much!
Molly
“WOW!!!!” was the exact word I got from my husband after he tasted this. We both absolutely love this soup. It’s such a unique, flavorful soup. I hardly put any salt in it, which is so unusual for soup. I had made fresh chicken bone broth/stock the day before, so I used that in this soup. That was the only deviation from the recipe. I have no need for vegetable broth, so I always use chicken. My first bite of this soup sort of shocked me, it’s so unique, full bodied, and the broth is actually quite sweet. I think from the sweet potatoes? I know my bay leaves were brand new from my fav spice company, and I used fresh thyme, and the best canned tomatoes out there (Muir Glen). All made for so much flavor. Thank you, I’ll be making this often.
Sam
I’m so glad this was such a hit, Molly!
Randy Dobrowsky
Sam,
We got 5″ of snow here in Knoxville, TN. today this was an absolutely delicious soup.
My wife is talking to me again after that soup 🙂
Also used the parm rind adds a lot of flavor.
Thanks for this recipe
Randy
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Randy! 🙂
Chrissy
We will definitely do again. I substituted the Lima beans for a small zucchini. I also added a Parmesan rind while simmering. It was what we needed on a snow day. Tasted even better the next day!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Chrissy! 🙂
Lyn
absolutely delicious. followed recipe exact. ready in no time
Sam
I’m so happy to hear this, Lyn! Thank you so much for trying my recipe and letting me know how it turned out! 🙂
Leslie
Full of flavor and delightful to eat! My husband doesn’t love a lot of soups and he loved this! Bookmarking for sure to use again in the future. Perfect timing as a delicious meal on a cold icy day here!
Sam
I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed, Leslie! Thank you for trying my recipe, I hope you find more recipes on my website that you love just as much!
Lori
Hi Sam,
Is there a way to save the recipe to Facebook? I haven’t tried this recipe yet but definitely will soon. Thank you & I hope you have a beautiful Sunday 🌷🌿
Sam
Hi Lori! Do you follow me on Facebook? You could save the post from there, but I’m not sure of another way to do it.
Melissa
Can this recipe be done in the crockpot?
Sam
Hi Melissa! You would have to do through step 5 on the stove top and then you could finish it in the crockpot. 🙂
Michael
Yummy
Sam
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed the soup, Michael!
Chris
Excellent soup. Pretty easy to make. Me kids loved it!!
Kdt
Why is the sodium so high?
Sam
Hi Kdt! All nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact ingredients you use. Most of the sodium comes from the vegetable broth, if I’m not mistaken. You can try using a low-sodium version if you prefer.
Karen
I needed a good veg only soup recipe Thanks!
Sam
So glad you enjoyed, Karen! Thank you for trying my recipe!