How to make Vegetable Soup? (Fresh, Wholesome Flavors)

• Food: Vegetable Soup
• Writer: Nicolas Wilson
• Content-Type: Food Blog

Isn’t it true that most vegetable soups are weary and “blah”? This isn’t it! Fresh, wholesome tastes abound in this hearty homemade vegetable soup.

This veggie soup dish excites me to share it with you. I honestly believe it’s the best I’ve ever had, and I hope you agree. You might already have all of the ingredients on hand to prepare this simple soup.

There are so many reasons why I want to make this soup. On a cold day, a huge bowl of vegetable soup will keep you warm.

Make it for someone who isn’t feeling well. This soup is exactly what we need right now because my spouse has a cold and it’s snowing outside as I type.

Make a big quantity and you’ll have a nutritious side dish for the rest of the week. This soup is a delicious way to lighten up heavy meals, especially as the holidays approach.

Did I mention it’s vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free for everyone’s enjoyment?

Vegetable Options for Soup

This homemade vegetable soup is designed to be adaptable, so you can have it all year long. As a basis, we’ll use onion, carrots, and celery.

To make this soup more hearty and intriguing, we’ll add two cups of seasonal veggies. Pick from your garden or go to the shop for your favorites. Any of the following will suffice:

• 1/2-inch pieces of sweet potatoes or ordinary potatoes
• 1 1/2-inch piece of butternut squash
• clipped and cut into 1-inch-long segments of green beans
• Cauliflower, sliced into extremely little bite-sized pieces,
• bell pepper, chopped
• sliced zucchini or yellow squash
• Greens that are still fresh: Kale, collard greens, chard, or spinach are all good options.

What’s the Best Vegetable Soup Recipe?

As we make this soup, we’ll employ a few easy strategies to add flavor. Here’s how to do it:

Begin with the vegetables.

With a pinch of salt, we’ll sauté chopped onion, celery, carrots, and seasonal veggies in olive oil. This softens them and brings forth their natural flavors.

When you add salt at different stages of the cooking process, you get more flavor than if you do it all at once.

Combine fresh minced garlic, curry powder, and dried thyme in a mixing bowl.

Sautéing these items for approximately a minute brings out their flavors, but not for long enough to burn the garlic (burnt garlic tastes awful).

Curry powder is the key to this soup’s delectability. We aren’t making any changes. Although you won’t be able to identify the flavor, it adds a layer of subtle intrigue and warmth to the soup.

I’ve also used curry powder in lentil and chickpea noodle soups, and it always turns out delicious.

Pour in the liquids from the canned diced tomatoes.

To eliminate any tinny flavors, we’ll simmer them all together for a few minutes. For these photographs, I used fire-roasted diced tomatoes, but regular diced tomatoes worked just as well.

I always recommend Muir Glen tomatoes since they have the best flavor and are packaged in BPA-free cans.

Nearing completion—add some veggie broth, water, and other seasonings.

This soup is vegetarian/vegan thanks to the vegetable broth. Bay leaves, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt will be added as well. Reduce or remove the red pepper flakes if you’re sensitive to heat.

If you appreciate spicy food as much as I do, you might want to double the amount towards the end (add to taste). In any case, we’ll let the soup gently simmer for 25 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.

Finish with some fresh lemon juice and chopped fresh greens.

Finally, for added health benefits, we’ll add chopped greens and cook them for 5 minutes to soften them. Before serving, we’ll add another splash of olive oil for rich flavor and brighten the soup with a hefty squeeze of lemon juice (one of my other go-to soup tactics).

You’ll notice a tremendous change in the soup before and after these additions! Finally, season with salt and pepper to taste, if necessary.

Vegetable Soup

This veggie soup dish is incredible! It’s simple to make and packed with vegetables and flavor. This soup is perfect if you’re feeling under the weather or just want to lighten up your meals. This recipe makes 6 soup bowls.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 cups chopped seasonal vegetables, such as sweet potatoes, green beans, butternut squash, potatoes, bell pepper, zucchini, or yellow squash
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided, to taste
• 6 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• ½ teaspoon curry powder
• ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 large can (28 ounces) of diced tomatoes
• 4 cups (32 ounces) of vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, reduce or omit if sensitive to spice
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 cups chopped kale or collard greens or chard (thick ribs removed), or spinach
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions For Vegetable Soup

1. In a large Dutch oven or soup pot, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrot, celery, seasonal vegetables, and 12 tsp of salt once the oil is shimmering. Cook, stirring frequently, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the onion has softened and turned translucent.
2. Combine the garlic, curry powder, and thyme in a mixing bowl. Cook for 1 minute, stirring regularly, until aromatic. Cook for a few more minutes, stirring often, after adding the diced tomatoes with their juices.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the broth and water. 12 teaspoons more salt, 2 bay leaves, and red pepper flakes Season with freshly ground black pepper to taste. Raise the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil, then drop the heat to low and keep a slow simmer.
4. Remove the lid after 25 minutes and stir in the chopped greens. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes or until the greens have softened to your preference.
5. Remove the bay leaves and turn off the heat. Combine the lemon juice and the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a mixing bowl. Season with extra salt, pepper, and/or red pepper flakes to taste. (Depending on your veggie broth and personal preferences, you may need up to 12 tsp extra salt.) Enjoy by dividing the mixture into bowls.

NOTES

STORAGE SUGGESTIONS: This soup keeps for about 4 days in the refrigerator. If you wish to save additional pieces for later, it freezes and defrosts wonderfully!