Minestrone Soup

Cuisine: Italian

Cook Time: 1 Hour

Serves: 6

Loaded with veggies with pasta or rice, this yummy Italian Minestrone Soup is sure to find its place among your favorite recipes. This wholesome dish can keep you going for a considerable time. Learn how to make this delicious recipe.

Pasta – 1 cup
Olive oil – 4 tablespoons
Dry thyme and oregano( dry) – ½ teaspoon each
Bay leaves – 1 or 2
Red pepper flakes – a pinch
Salt and pepper– as per taste
Parmesan cheese – to garnish
Lemon juice – 2 teaspoons
Water – 2 cups

Veggies required

Seasonal vegetables ( potatoes, zucchini, peas, etc.)- 2 cups
Yellow onion – 1
Chopped carrots– 2
Celery – 2 bunches (chopped)
Garlic (minced) – 4 cloves
Chopped greens – 2 cups
Tomato paste – ¼ cup
Diced tomatoes ( tomato puree) –2 ½ cups
Vegetable broth – 4 cups
Cannellini beans- 1 can or 1 ½ cups cooked beans

Delicious Italian vegetable soup with pasta in a tomato-y broth

Warm some olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped onions and sauté until translucent.
Add the minced garlic, tomato paste, carrots, and celery.
Add the seasonal vegetables, dry oregano, thyme, and cook until it turns aromatic.
Add the tomato puree, vegetable broth, and water.
Add salt to taste, red pepper flakes, bay leaves, and freshly ground pepper, and allow it to boil.
Cook for 15 minutes with the lid partially closed on simmer.
Remove the lid and add the pasta, greens, and beans.
Cook till the pasta is soft and the greens get tender. This may take around 20 minutes. Turn the heat off.
Remove the bay leaves. Add the lemon juice and top it with a dash of olive oil.
Garnish with grated Parmesan and celery and serve.

Chef Tip:

You may skip Parmesan if you want an all-vegetarian Minestrone soup ( Parmesan contains animal rennet)
You may add rice instead of pasta or add both.

Some recipes are not just quick and easy but also delicious and healthy. Don’t miss trying this wholesome delicacy!

Quick Bites

Fun Fact

• In Italy, minestrone is still known to belong to a way of cooking called “Cucina povera” which literally translates to “poor kitchen”, to retain the original rural roots of the soup and signify the rustic cooking tools the dish was created with.

• This term opposes “Cucina nobile” which means the cooking style of nobles. You go, Italy! Modesty is the highest form of elegance after all!

Historical Fact

• The word got attested in English in 1871. Owing to its simplicity, initially, it became known as a meal mainly for poor people.

• Tomatoes and potatoes were later introduced in the recipe by Americans in the mid 16th century and since then the two ingredients have become staples.