This easy Instant Pot minestrone soup is loaded with chock full of healthy vegetables, beans, and pasta, making this is a hearty, comforting, and delicious meal all by itself!
I’m sorry guys, I’ve been away from blogging! We moved back to Mumbai, and you know how hectic moving can get! There are so many things on my radar here that have kept me off blogging. It may be a while before things get back to normal on the blogging front. I’ll still try to post something here every few days. The good news is that I have quite a few posts stocked up and I can’t wait to share them with you!
It’s not really cold here in Mumbai and never really does get that cold, but that doesn’t mean we don’t like soups! Soups are one of those food categories that we can enjoy all year round! We can literally make a meal out of it, especially if it is this easy, Italian minestrone soup.
Soup season or not, classic Minestrone soup is one of our favorites. It is packed with vegetables, beans, and pasta making it a complete meal on its own. So when I don’t feel like preparing an elaborate meal, I simply make this easy minestrone soup and call it a day!
Table of Contents
WHAT IS MINESTRONE SOUP?
Minestrone is a classic Italian tomato-based soup made of vegetables, beans with the inclusion of pasta or rice. There is no fixed recipe to make this hearty soup. You can make a summer, spring, or winter minestrone depending on the availability of seasonal vegetables making this soup truly versatile and adaptable.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED TO MAKE THIS EASY INSTANT POT MINESTRONE SOUP
Like I mentioned above, you do not need to stick to the vegetables I’ve used. Feel free to leave or add your preferred vegetables. Here’s what went into my homemade minestrone soup recipe.
Olive oil
Aromatics like onion and garlic, a must for a flavorful soup in my opinion. And don’t just dump them, a quick saute adds a wonderful depth of flavor.
Lots and lots of vegetables and leafy greens. I’ve used celery, carrots, green beans, zucchini, red potatoes, and baby spinach. Kale is another great substitute. The traditional minestrone soup recipe calls for cabbage too. Cabbage is not an ingredient you will find in the minestrone served at Olive garden, but it tastes delicious. I didn’t have it at hand, and so I’ve skipped adding it.
I’ve added the vegetables in 2 parts in this recipe. In the first part, I’ve added carrots, celery, and potatoes and sauteed them for a few minutes. I, then added zucchini and green beans in the second part as they didn’t need to be sauteed much.
Diced tomatoes and tomato sauce for that tomato-y flavor. For a more intense tomato taste, add in a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste. This is totally adaptable, you can also use only diced tomatoes, or crushed tomatoes or tomato puree or whatever it is you have sitting in your pantry. Or simply dice up fresh tomatoes and use that instead.
Beans: I’ve used canned kidney beans here. Feel free to use your favorite type of bean or a combination of beans. You can also use freshly cooked beans, but making an Instant pot minestrone soup with dry beans is a bit far fetched for me, and I’ll explain why below.
Veg stock or water plus better than bouillon stock base. Feel free to use chicken broth or stock or any other stock of choice.
Seasoning, I’ve used Italian seasoning, you could do a mix of individual Italian herbs as per your preference.
Parmesan rind. Stock up on parmesan rinds instead of thrashing them. Save them in a ziplock bag and freeze, then just throw a rind into a soup, it adds a rich, savory flavor to the soup. Whole Foods even sell a container of these rinds, it is worth buying one, especially during this season when you know you will be making more soups.
Pasta– Authentic Italian minestrone soup recipe calls for short pasta noodles such as ditalini, and that’s what I’ve used. Not that it makes a difference in taste, you can also use other pasta’s like elbow macaroni, small shell, mini farfalle, mini penne or mini wheels etc to name a few.
RECIPE FOR MINESTRONE SOUP IN THE INSTANT POT
You are just a few steps away from making the best minestrone soup! Here’s a gist of what you need to do,
- Saute aromatics
- A brief saute of carrots, celery, and potatoes.
- Season
- Add the zucchini and green beans
- Add your tomato-based products
- Next, go in the beans, pasta, and liquid
- Don’t forget to throw in the parmesan rind. A few bay leaves don’t hurt either :p
- Pressure cook
- Natural pressure release for 1-2 minutes followed by a quick release.
- Add baby spinach and parsley
- Squeeze in some lemon juice, dish out, sprinkle parmesan and dig in!
TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST INSTANT POT MINESTRONE SOUP RECIPE
Making minestrone soup in the Instant pot is so simple and it turns out delicious every single time. Having said that, you don’t want a pot of mushy vegetables and liquid along with overcooked pasta. To stay clear of these debacles,
- Avoid dicing the vegetables too small.
- Pasta like dried tortellini, are best-cooked separately and then added into individual bowls at the time of serving the soup.
- Skip the pasta completely if you do not intend serving the soup. As it will do nothing but absorb the stock and turn mushy. You may need to add more stock to thin out the soup.
- Avoid pressure cooking your greens. Add it in the end, to add a fresh element to the soup.
- Add a small amount of acid like red wine vinegar or a squirt of lemon juice to the finished soup. The acidity brightens the flavors and elevates the soup to a whole new level.
- Definitely use the parmesan rind for that umami flavor.
HOW TO FREEZE MINESTRONE SOUP?
Hold off adding the pasta if you intend freezing the soup or else the pasta will turn mushy on reheating. Once the soup has completely cooled down, transfer 1-2 serving size portions into a freezer-safe bag or containers. Remove as much air as possible. Seal the bags and remember to label the contents, especially the date, lest you forget and wonder if it is still good to consume. Lay the bags flat in the freezer.
Thaw in the refrigerator the night before. Re-heat in the microwave or transfer to a small pot over low heat, stirring occasionally.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH THIS PRESSURE COOKER MINESTRONE SOUP?
Minestrone soup is a pretty hearty and filling, standalone dish on its own, in my opinion as it packed with veggies, beans, and pasta. Though you can’t go wrong if you pair this soup with some breadsticks, crusty bread or cheesy garlic rolls. Yumm!
HOW CAN I CUSTOMIZE THIS PRESSURE COOKER MINESTRONE SOUP?
Vegetarian/Vegan: Parmesan is not a vegetarian cheese, so skip using the rind here. You can sprinkle some nutritional yeast or vegan parmesan cheese.
Gluten-free: Use gluten-free pasta that is easily available across most stores.
No beans: Simply skip adding any beans without altering anything else.
Meat: For a version with meat, saute about a pound of ground beef, ground chicken, or Italian sausage in the first step and then proceed with the rest of the recipe.
Dry beans: Cook the dry beans separately and add them to the soup. The reason is pretty simple here, whether you soak or don’t soak the beans, the time range required to cook the beans implies that you will have to compromise on the integrity of the vegetables.
Vegetables like potato, celery, and carrots may still hold their shape, but zucchini, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, etc will turn to mush.
The shortest time I’ve encountered while cooking beans is the cannellini beans, that were soaked and required about 8 minutes to cook. 8 minutes would do no good to the veggies or pasta here unless you are cool with it and their tender texture doesn’t bother you.
Minestrone soup is a pretty healthy dish as it is prepared with so many veggies and beans. For a healthier take, use whole wheat pasta, or lentil pasta, or skip them altogether and use quinoa or bulgar.
My family absolutely loves this IP minestrone soup. They devour bowlfuls of this hearty and delicious soup. And I encourage you to try it out too, it may quickly turn into one of your favorites. Skip the trip to Olive garden and enjoy your very own delicious, homemade minestrone soup!
DON’T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THESE DELICIOUS INSTANT POT SOUP RECIPES TOO
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE INSTANT POT MINESTRONE SOUP
INGREDIENTS
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup each diced onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, green beans, and zucchini
- 1.5 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 8 oz tomato sauce or puree
- 1/2 cup ditalini pasta
- 15 oz can kidney beans drained and rinsed, or 1 & 3/4 cup cooked beans
- 1-quart vegetable stock
- 1 cup water *refer notes
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 small parmesan rind
- 2 oz baby spinach
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese, for garnishing, as required
DIRECTIONS
1.Press ‘SAUTE’ button, and set it to ‘NORMAL’. Once its displays, ‘HOT’, add olive oil, add diced onions along with minced garlic, saute until the onions are translucent.
2.Press ‘CANCEL’, and add 1 cup each of diced carrots, celery, and cubed potatoes. Saute for 2-3 minutes.
3.Season with Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper.
4.Add diced zucchini and green beans.
5.Add diced tomatoes, along with tomato sauce.
6.Add canned, drained kidney beans, ditalini pasta or any other short pasta of choice.
7.Add veg stock or broth and water, along with parmesan rind, and 2 bay leaves. Give everything a good mix.
8.Close the lid of the Instant Pot. Set the valve to ‘SEALING’. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes. It will take some time for the pressure to build up (about 25 minutes), after which the timer will begin.
9.Let the pot depressurize for 1-2 minutes. Then do a quick release as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Once the silver pin drops, turn the knob to ‘VENTING’ and open the lid away from you.
10.Add the baby spinach in batches, mixing well with each addition until the spinach wilts.
11.Also, add chopped parsley along with the last batch of baby spinach, mix well.
12.Discard the bay leaves before serving. Discard the parmesan rind if it’s still hard. If it is soft, you can dice it up into small pieces and add it back to the soup. Stir in the lemon juice and mix well. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed.
13.Dish out and serve topped with parmesan cheese, fresh basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.
NOTES:
1.We love the consistency of the soup the way it is in this recipe. If you prefer a really thick minestrone soup, skip adding one cup of water. You can always adjust the consistency of the soup by adding more water or stock later.
If you try this easy Instant Pot Minestrone Soup, I would love to hear from you! I’d appreciate it if you could leave a review below in comments, as it helps others know the recipe better too. You can also share your feedback and suggestions at [email protected]. Thanks so much 🙂
HOW TO MAKE PRESSURE COOKER MINESTRONE SOUP?
Instant Pot Minestrone Soup Recipe
Equipment
- Instant Pot DUO60 6 Qt 7-in-1
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup diced onions 155 grams
- 1.5 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 cup diced carrots 120 grams
- 1 cup diced celery 110 grams
- 1 cup cubed potatoes 130 grams
- 1 cup chopped green beans (2-inches) 110 grams
- 1 cup diced zucchini 150 grams
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
- 8 oz tomato sauce or puree
- 1/2 cup ditalini pasta
- 15 oz can kidney beans drained and rinsed, or 1 & 3/4 cup cooked beans
- 1 quart vegetable stock
- 1 cup water refer notes
- 1 (2-inch) parmesan rind
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 oz baby spinach
- 2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese, for garnishing, as required
- Fresh basil leaves, for garnishing, as required
Instructions
- Press 'SAUTE' button, and set it to 'NORMAL'. Once its displays, 'HOT', add olive oil, add diced onions along with minced garlic, saute until the onions are translucent.
- Press 'CANCEL', and add 1 cup each of diced carrots, celery, and cubed potatoes. Saute for 2-3 minutes.
- Season with Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper.
- Add diced zucchini and green beans.
- Add diced tomatoes, along with tomato sauce.
- Add canned, drained kidney beans, ditalini pasta or any other short pasta of choice.
- Add veg stock or broth and water, along with parmesan rind, and 2 bay leaves. Give everything a good mix.
- Close the lid of the Instant Pot. Set the valve to 'SEALING'. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes. It will take some time for the pressure to build up (about 25 minutes), after which the timer will begin.
- Let the pot depressurize for 1-2 minutes. Then do a quick release as per the manufacturer's instructions. Once the silver pin drops, turn the knob to 'VENTING' and open the lid away from you.
- Add the baby spinach in batches, mixing well with each addition until the spinach wilts.
- Also, add chopped parsley along with the last batch of baby spinach, mix well.
- Discard the bay leaves before serving. Discard the parmesan rind if it's still hard. If it is soft, you can dice it up into small pieces and add it back to the soup. Stir in the lemon juice and mix well. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with more salt and pepper if needed.
- Dish out and serve topped with parmesan cheese, fresh basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.
Notes
PIN IT FOR LATER
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Regards,
Freda
mimi rippee says
This is so funny cause I’ve been thinking of making minestrone for lunch the day after Thanksgiving. My pescatarian daughter will be visiting, and I know she’d love this idea, plus I can offer grilled sausages, sliced, for non vegetarians! Great recipe – thanks!
Freda Dias says
That sounds like a great plan! Thanks for stopping by 🙂