If you think vegetable soup is boring, get ready for a change of heart.
This is – as the title states – honestly, the BEST vegetable soup we’ve ever tried. And we’ve tried A LOT of vegetable soups!
Besides the obvious plethora of fresh vegetables, it’s the broth that puts this one over the top. The secret ingredient is white wine vinegar and it makes all the difference in the world.
First, let’s talk veggies. The soup is packed with fire roasted diced tomatoes, fresh cherry tomatoes, sweet potato, carrot, celery, zucchini, green beans, and kale. There’s also a good helping of chickpeas for more fiber and a protein boost. And no soup is complete without onion, garlic, and other seasonings – they’re in there, too.
For the broth, the juice from the fire roasted diced tomatoes combines with vegetable broth (we like Swanson’s), then it’s kissed with some white wine vinegar. The result is SO good. You expect an okay-tasting soup and you get something so much better.
And it’s an easy soup to make. Chopping the veg is the most time consuming part. Then it’s sauté, season, add broth liquids, simmer till veg is tender, season some more, add kale, and finish with white wine vinegar.
Serve it hot with some warm Italian bread or multigrain bread.
What a delicious way to up your veggie intake!
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The BEST Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- kosher salt
- 1 medium carrot, diced
- 1 rib of celery, diced
- 1 small sweet potato, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1 14.5-ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes, see Notes
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup chopped green beans, fresh or frozen
- 1 medium zucchini, diced
- 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 3 tbsp. white wine vinegar
- 1½ cups chopped kale
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots, celery and a big pinch of salt and sauté for about five minutes, or till the onions are translucent and the carrots and celery begin to soften.
- Add the garlic and a few grinds of black pepper and sauté for another 30 seconds, then add the sweet potato. Continue to sauté for another two minutes.
- Stir in the oregano and red pepper flakes, ensuring the spices are well incorporated. Then add the fire roasted diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, and bay leaves.
- Give everything a good stir and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, or till the sweet potato is tender.
- Add the green beans, zucchini, chickpeas, and cherry tomatoes and continue to simmer till the green beans are tender.
- Then add the white wine vinegar and kale. Simmer for a few more minutes, till the kale is wilted, but still bright green.
- Taste and adjust seasonings as needed and serve.
Notes
- The recipe calls for one 14.5 oz. can of fire roasted diced tomatoes, but sometimes we use two. If you do opt to use a second can, just be sure to adjust the seasonings (salt, pepper, oregano, garlic) to keep the flavor profile in balance.
- If you’re making the soup the day before you plan to eat it, shorten the cook time and leave the veggies a little firm. They’ll absorb some of the broth and continue to soften in the refrigerator overnight. They’ll also soften more when you reheat the soup. Leaving the vegetables a little undercooked helps keep them from becoming mushy.