My favorite Homemade Vegetable Soup Recipe! So easy and a million times better than anything you’ll get from a can, this comforting vegetable soup is filled with delicious fresh vegetables simmered in a light and deeply flavorful tomato-based broth.
About This Recipe
This is the easiest and most delicious homemade vegetable soup recipe, ever! But, wanna know the very best part? You can make it with anything you want. It’s completely customizable. Add beans, or meat, or pasta! You could even blend the whole thing together if chunky veggies aren’t your thing.
Top Cooking Tip
You can add just about any vegetable you like to a pot of homemade vegetable soup, but adding them at the right time is essential. When I’m planning what to toss in, I like to break the veggies into categories and add them accordingly:
- The beginning veggies: Your classic onions, carrots, and celery (aka mirepoix), but may also include leeks or bell peppers. You’ll want to add these first.
- The middle veggies: Any veggies that need between 10-25 minutes to cook. Think tomatoes, butternut squash, potatoes, green beans, cucumber, eggplant, or cooked beets.
- The last ones in the pot: Corn, peas, zucchini, cabbage, spinach, bok choy, kale, fresh herbs. Things that need a quick stir and a few minutes to soften.
Key Ingredients
To make this homemade vegetable soup gather the following ingredients.
- Onion, carrots, celery – also known as your mirepoix, this flavor foundation is found in countless recipes including jambalaya, chicken soup, and stews of all kinds. A simple base made from finely diced vegetables (the mix of vegetables will often vary by country and cuisine) that are cooked in butter or oil, low and slow as to sweeten the ingredients rather than caramelize them. In this particular vegetable soup, I started with onion, celery, and carrots. Other popular mirepoix vegetables include bell peppers.
- Garlic – flavor! Fresh is best.
- Tomatoes – I didn’t have any fresh tomatoes so I added canned tomatoes instead. Just as delicious and totally convenient, I recommend adding at least 2 cans (with their juice!).
- Herbs – I like to add simple dried herbs to my vegetable soup recipes. Here I added dried basil and my homemade Italian seasoning recipe.
- Broth – I added vegetable broth, but feel free to add water, chicken broth, or bone broth.
- Potatoes – I had a few red potatoes that were about to go bad so I tossed them in. In general, waxy potatoes (Yukon Gold or baby potatoes) are best for soups and stews.
- More vegetables – I also added green beans, cucumber, and cabbage. But don’t let my vegetable selections stop you from adding your favorite vegetables.
Vegetable Soup Variations
Here are some easy and delicious ways to customize your vegetable soup:
- Protein: Add cooked chicken, ground turkey, sausage, shredded rotisserie chicken, or canned beans like kidney, chickpeas, or cannellini for a heartier, more satisfying soup.
- Adding Pasta: Stir in cooked pasta such as elbow macaroni, orzo, or small shells. I like to cook the pasta separately to prevent it from soaking up too much broth or becoming mushy.
- Adding Rice: Pre-cooked white, brown, or wild rice can be added at the end of cooking for extra bulk and texture without over-thickening the broth.
- Making it Creamy: Add a splash of heavy cream, half-and-half, or coconut milk at the end, or purée a portion of the soup and stir it back in for a naturally creamy consistency.
- Frozen veggies: Mix in your favorite veggies like corn, peas, and green beans.
RECIPE CARD
Homemade Vegetable Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions - finely chopped
- 6 stalks celery - chopped
- 6 carrots - peeled and chopped
- 6 cloves garlic - minced
- 2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 10 cups vegetable broth - plus more as needed
- 3 red potatoes - scrubbed and chopped
- 2 cups green beans - trimmed and chopped
- 1 English cucumber - sliced and quartered
- 1 medium green cabbage - roughly chopped
- fresh chopped parsley - to garnish
Instructions
- Cook the mirepoix. In a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or stockpot (I used my 8-quart Dutch oven with plenty of room) warm 1-2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and sauté for 3-4 minutes or until soft and translucent. Add the celery and carrots and continue to cook the vegetables (aka mirepoix) low and slow for an additional 6-8 minutes, stirring often. Add the minced garlic and cook for an additional 1 minute or so.
- Add the tomatoes and herbs. Stir in the diced tomatoes, salt, pepper, dried basil, and Italian seasoning. Mix well to combine. Increase heat to high and add the vegetable broth. Bring to a boil.
- Add the potatoes, green beans, and cucumber. Add the chopped potatoes, green beans, and chopped cucumber to the pot. Cover and reduce heat low. Simmer for approximately 20 minutes.
- Add the cabbage. Add the cabbage, carefully stirring to combine. Recover and continue to cook for an additional 15 minutes.
- Garnish and serve. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley, green onions, red chili flakes, or shredded cheese (if desired).
Jessica’s Notes
- Other vegetables that would be delicious in this soup- turnips, sugar snap peas, artichokes, zucchini, bell peppers, etc.
- Originally published January 9, 2017.
Nutritional Information
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and specific brands of ingredients used.)
Freezing Instructions
Vegetable soup is fantastic leftover for up to 4-5 days or frozen and reheated.
- For best results, allow the soup to cool in the refrigerator completely before transferring to freezer-friendly containers.
- Double-bag in freezer-friendly zip-lock bags. Remove most of the air, leaving just a small amount of space to allow the liquid to expand as it freezes.
- To reheat, allow the soup to thaw in the fridge overnight, then transfer to a pot and cook until heated through.
More Soup Recipes,
If you’re craving more cozy, comforting soups, I’ve got you covered with a variety of delicious options to try next. For something classic, start with my Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe or this rich and flavorful Italian Wedding Soup. Craving something creamy AND healthy? This Butternut Squash Soup Recipe and Homemade Tomato Basil Soup Recipe are both smooth, comforting, and full of flavor.
Looking for something a little different? Try this fragrant and soul-warming Pho Recipe or my nourishing Ginger Garlic Noodle Soup with Bok Choy. If you’re after something hearty and filling, check out this Lentil Soup, Split Pea Soup, or my simple but satisfying Cabbage Soup Recipe. There’s something here for every kind of soup lover!
If you try cooking this Vegetable Soup Recipe, please leave me a comment and let me know! I always love to hear your thoughts.
A very easy to make and tasty soup. ๐ฅฃ so pleased I found your recipe. Noels
Thanks for the tasty feedback and rating, Noels ๐
I love this recipe. Very easy to follow and prepare.
Thanks, Linda ๐
I just made this soup and thought it was really good. I didn’t add cabbage because I didn’t have that but used chard and kale instead. I added it about 5 minutes before the soup was done. About 2 cups packed. I also added yellow squash, zucchini, orange bell pepper and 3 cans of white beans. Very tasty ๐
Thanks for the really good feedback and rating, Wendy ๐
I would buy it but the sodium level is way to high
Jessica
I was wondering if I could can this vegetable soup .
Hi Mary,
I do not see why not. Just make sure you follow best safety practices for canning ๐
How many carbs in this soup if you donโt mind me asking looks delicious
Hi Mildred,
Per the recipe card at the bottom of the post, Carbohydrates: 31g per serving ๐
Absolutely the first recipe Iโve EVER left a comment on – but I had to! This. This is the perfect brothy soup to make your own – use any veggies you have to clean the frig out. I use Italian chicken sausage in it too. People are always raving when I make this soup for them! Thank you for the perfect COVID soup!
Thanks, Suzi, I am honored to be your first ๐
Have wanted to be able to make this type soup for years, with crunchy veggies. Finally, the secret of three divisions of veggies! And the taste is perfect. Thank you so much, Jessica.