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Home / Comfort Food

Hearty Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup

4.31
/5
6 hours 20 minutes
65 Comments
Jump to Recipe Print Pin
By: The Chunky Chefpublished: 03/28/2018

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

Incredibly flavorful and rich, this minestrone soup is every bit as hearty as it is beautiful. Made easily in the slow cooker, this soup is perfect for a busy weeknight!

Made with minimal effort, this minestrone soup is one of the most flavorful soups I’ve ever made!  Full of protein and fiber rich beans, nutritious vegetables and filling pasta, it’s a complete meal in a bowl!

Bowl of rich and hearty minestrone soup

How’s your Spring going so far?  Ours has been absolutely crazy, with snow storms hitting us several times within the last two weeks.  Now this week it’s cold and rainy.  BLAH!!  The good news is, it’s still soup weather!

Honestly though, I still make soup year round… it’s just great comfort food.  Especially this minestrone soup.

Ladle of minestrone soup in crockpot

I’ve made a lot of soups over the years… some of our favorites are tomato basil, zuppa toscana, and beef barley… but this one, it might just be my absolute FAVORITE!!  Normally vegetable soups always leave me feeling hungry about an hour after.  But this one doesn’t do that to me; it’s hearty, rich, and FULL of flavor.

WHAT IS IN A MINESTRONE SOUP

Minestrone is typically a vegetable soup, usually with beans, and pasta.  Traditionally ditalini (the small little tubes) is used, but mini shells, mini penne, or any other really short pasta will work.

IS MINESTRONE SOUP GOOD FOR YOU

In many ways yes!  It’s low in fat and calories and loaded with healthy vegetables.  If you’re following a low-carb way of eating, the beans and pasta will make this higher in carbohydrates.

Bowl of minestrone with parmesan cheese on top

HOW DO YOU MAKE MINESTRONE

This recipe is super easy to make… the slow cooker does the work for you!  The only “work” involved is chopping the carrot, celery, onion and zucchini and most of that can be prepped ahead of time.  Just add the ingredients in the crockpot, cover, and switch it on!  There’s a trick to the timing of adding certain ingredients, but it’s all detailed in the recipe at the end of the post 😉

IS THIS AN OLIVE GARDEN COPYCAT RECIPE

Not technically, but from looking at other copycat recipes, it has extremely similar ingredients, so it will probably taste pretty close.  I’ve never actually had the minestrone soup from Olive Garden, so I can’t say with certainty how close the flavors are.  Try it and let me know!

Spoonful of crockpot minestrone soup

Even though we may be heading into warmer weather, I hope you give this hearty and comforting minestrone soup recipe a try… I know you’ll love it!!

Try this soup with my no-knead artisan bread or semi-homemade garlic bread for a great treat!

HELPFUL TOOLS

  • Large slow cooker – I have the 6 and 8 quart version of this slow cooker and it works amazingly well.  I love that the lid latches down.
  • Vegetable base –  this is what I mean when I say vegetable base, it adds SUCH flavor to soups and stews.  Your grocery store might have it in stock, but in case it doesn’t, this link is to the exact version I use.

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!

Way better than the soup from that popular Italian restaurant chain, this minestrone soup is bursting with hearty flavors and is made easily in the slow cooker!  Vegetables, beans and pasta are simmered in a rich vegetable broth to make a soul-warming soup. | #minestrone #soup #slowcooker #crockpot #copycat #souprecipe

Hearty Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup

4.31 from 33 votes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 20 minutes
Calories: 270
Servings: 8 servings
(hover over # to adjust)
Print Rate Pin
Incredibly flavorful and rich, this minestrone soup is every bit as hearty as it is beautiful. Made easily in the slow cooker, this soup is perfect for a busy weeknight!

Ingredients

  • 1 cup carrots, sliced
  • 1 cup celery, sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups yellow onion, diced
  • 28 oz can diced tomatoes, with juices
  • 2 Tbsp tomato paste
  • parmesan rind, or 1" chunk of parmesan
  • 2-3 Tbsp minced garlic
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 1/4 Tbsp dried Italian seasoning
  • pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 4 cups fat free vegetable stock or broth
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable base
  • 15 oz can dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 15 oz can cannelini beans, drained and rinsed

ADD 20-25 MINUTES BEFORE SERVING

  • 1 cup diced zucchini
  • 1 1/2 cups dried ditalini or other small pasta

ADD 5 MINUTES BEFORE SERVING

  • 1 cup frozen cut green beans
  • 1 1/2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped

Instructions

  • Add first 15 ingredients to 6 quart or larger slow cooker.  Stir to combine, cover, and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours, or HIGH for 3-4 hours.
  • 30 minutes before you want to serve the soup, add zucchini and ditalini pasta, stir, cover and cook on HIGH for 20-25 minutes.
  • 5 minutes before serving, add in frozen green beans and baby spinach, stir, cover and cook on HIGH for 5 minutes.
  • When serving, if desired, grate parmesan cheese over the soup and enjoy!

Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!

Chef Tips

As written, the green beans are semi-crisp.  If you prefer softer green beans, add them when you add in the zucchini and pasta.

Video

Nutrition Disclaimer

The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

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Way better than the soup from that popular Italian restaurant chain, this minestrone soup is bursting with hearty flavors and is made easily in the slow cooker!  Vegetables, beans and pasta are simmered in a rich vegetable broth to make a soul-warming soup. | #minestrone #soup #slowcooker #crockpot #copycat #souprecipe

Way better than the soup from that popular Italian restaurant chain, this minestrone soup is bursting with hearty flavors and is made easily in the slow cooker!  Vegetables, beans and pasta are simmered in a rich vegetable broth to make a soul-warming soup. | #minestrone #soup #slowcooker #crockpot #copycat #souprecipe

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Recipe Rating




  1. Sharon says

    Posted on 5/22 at 8:42 pm

    I made this for guests on a busy weekend. They loved it. One comment was that it was even better the second day. It made a lot, perfect for those days you don’t have time to make dinner. Paired with salad and bread, it was a great meal.

    Reply
  2. David L says

    Posted on 4/16 at 8:33 pm

    I just bought the fixings for my 2nd batch ——loved the recipe but added baby potatoes and mushrooms. I is so very nice and thick and completely healthy. David

    Reply
  3. Lakota says

    Posted on 3/5 at 11:14 pm

    I just made this recipe and I can saw this was delicious. I had two bowls and I am now full. Thank you for sharing this recipe. I am definitely going to be making this in the feature and try other recipes of yours!

    Reply
  4. Robin says

    Posted on 1/14 at 8:39 pm

    Thank you! Love the heartiness and loads of veggies – you made me leave my old well-loved minestrone recipe behind! I invested in the better than bouillon vegetable base you suggested and liked the additional depth of flavor. I don’t have a crock pot so I did this on the stove and used diced tomatoes with basil garlic and oregano because that is what I had but those were minor changes. This is the second recipe in a row that I have tried of yours that was a big family hit (other was your instant pot chicken and dumplings) so I am looking forward to trying more. I usually am disappointed with so many online recipes. Thank you for sharing these!

    Reply
  5. Carol says

    Posted on 1/4 at 6:15 pm

    Amazing! Outstanding! Delicious! Shared it with my friends and then shared the recipe with them.

    Reply
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