How to Make Vegetable Soup (Easy Recipe)

Soup is easy to make and is great anytime of the year, but especially in the Fall and Winter. I am not much of a cook but I can make vegetable soup and you can too. Here is a photo of the vegetable soup I made just last week, all from scratch. I even threw in leftover steak from a dinner we had out at a restaurant the night before.

For cutting vegetables and meat into small pieces, I highly suggest the J.A. Henckel 8″ Chef”s knife. Cut using a rocking motion so your hand won’t get tired and the vegetables will come out evenly sized.

easy vegetable soup recipe

Easy Vegetable Soup Recipe

If you want your soup to be more tomato, leave out most of the vegetables. You can change up the type of vegetables you add if you don’t like what I used. You can also use two cans of Veg-All instead of the vegetables listed and add a can of tomatoes. It all depends on what you like.

 Ingredients:

  • 2 Tablespoons olive oil
  • one small to medium white or red onion
  • 2 Tablespoons crushed garlic
  • two 16 oz cans of vegetable stock (or one 28 oz can)
  • one can of diced tomatoes
  • one can sweet corn (not creamed)
  • green beans (fresh is possible, frozen or canned if not)
  • 1-1/2 cups diced potatoes (or a can of sliced potatoes)
  • 1/2 cup chopped celery
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons of chopped garlic
  • 2 Bay leaves
  • salt and pepper to taste

Tips:

I cut all of my vegetables into bite-sized pieces, even if they came in a can.

If you don’t have enough liquid, add more vegetable stock. Try not to add just water because it won’t add any flavor. If you don’t have vegetable stock, make up some using a bouillon cube. You should always keep those on hand. They are a cheap alternative to canned stock or making your own stock.

We like to use fresh green beans or cut green beans. French-style do not work so well but if that is all you have, you can use them.

I like to keep a jar of fresh chopped garlic in the refrigerator. It’s rather cheap and you will always have some on hand. Garlic is great to add flavor to lots of dishes.

If you are adding meat, make sure you cook it most of the way during the saute portion. I would suggest just using one chicken breast, small amount of steak or hamburger. Don’t overdo it because you will end up with steak soup and not vegetable soup.

Directions:

1. Saute onion and garlic using olive oil in the bottom of a 1-1/2 to 2 quart saucepan.

2. When onions are cooked down a bit, about 10 minutes, add vegetable stock, vegetables and meat if you like. Put the bay leaves in.

3. Simmer for about 25 minutes. Check the green beans if you are using fresh. Once those are done, your soup is ready!

Remember to remove the Bay leaves before eating.

Leave a Comment