This slow cooker minestrone soup is one of those wonderfully comforting meals that’s perfect for busy days. Filled with vegetables, beans and pasta in a rich tomato broth, it slowly cooks away while you get on with everything else.
With just a little preparation at the beginning, the slow cooker does the rest of the work. By the end of the day you’ll have a warm, hearty soup that’s filling, wholesome and perfect for sharing with family, and like many soups, it tastes even better the next day.
If you’re new to slow cooking, you might also find my Slow Cooker Cooking Times Chart helpful.
- Jump to:
- Why You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
- Ingredients for Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
- How to Make Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
- Tips for the Best Minestrone Soup Flavor
- How to Store Minestrone Soup
- The Recipe Card
Why You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
- A hearty vegetable soup packed with flavor
- Perfect for the slow cooker with minimal hands-on time
- Budget friendly and filling
- Naturally vegetarian
- Tastes even better the next day
What Is Minestrone Soup?
Minestrone soup is a traditional Italian vegetable soup made with beans, vegetables and pasta in a tomato-based broth. It’s a hearty soup that adapts well to the slow cooker or crockpot.
Ingredients for Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
This slow cooker minestrone soup uses simple vegetables, beans and herbs to create a rich and satisfying meal.
- olive oil
- onion
- carrots
- celery
- garlic
- tomato paste
- sweet potato or potato
- zucchini
- green beans
- cannellini beans
- chopped tomatoes
- vegetable broth
- oregano and basil
- small pasta or rice
- baby spinach
- fresh herbs
- parmesan to serve
- To Finish
- baby spinach
- fresh parsley or basil
- parmesan
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
Sweet Potato (or Potato)
Both work beautifully in this soup. Sweet potato adds a little sweetness, while regular potato gives a more traditional minestrone flavor.
Cannellini Beans
These creamy white beans add protein and help make the soup filling.
Vegetable Broth (or Chicken Broth)
Vegetable broth keeps this soup vegetarian, but you can easily use chicken broth instead if you prefer. It adds a slightly richer flavour and works beautifully in this slow cooker minestrone soup. Just take care with salt levels at the start
Pasta or Rice
Small pasta shapes such as macaroni, risoni or small shells are perfect. Short-grain rice is also a lovely alternative.
Fresh Herbs and Spinach
Stirring these through at the end brightens the soup and adds a lovely freshness.
Why Cook the Vegetables First?
Cooking the onion, carrot and celery in olive oil before adding them to the slow cooker helps build a richer flavor base for the soup.
This classic combination is known as soffritto, a traditional Italian starting point for many soups and sauces. Taking a few minutes to sauté the vegetables first makes the finished slow cooker minestrone much more flavorful.
How to Make Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
This slow cooker minestrone soup is essentially a hearty Italian-style vegetable soup filled with beans and vegetables.
Step 1 – Prepare the vegetables
Finely dice the onion and cut the remaining vegetables into roughly 1.5 cm pieces.
Step 2 – Soften the base vegetables
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook gently for 5–7 minutes until softened but not browned. This adds heaps of extra flavor to the final result!
Add the crushed garlic and cook for a further 30 seconds.
Step 3 – Add the tomato paste
Stir in the tomato paste and cook for about 1 minute to deepen the flavor.
Transfer everything to the slow cooker.
Step 4 – Add the remaining ingredients
Add the sweet potato or potato, zucchini, green beans, cannellini beans, chopped tomatoes, vegetable broth, salt, pepper, oregano, basil and bay leaf.
Stir well to combine.
Step 5 – Slow cook
Cover and cook on LOW for 6–7 hours or HIGH for 4 hours, until the vegetables are tender but still holding their shape.
Step 6 – Add pasta or rice
Stir in the pasta or rice, cover and cook on HIGH for a further 25–30 minutes until just tender.
Step 7 – Finish the soup
Stir through the spinach and fresh parsley or basil. Allow the soup to stand for about 5 minutes before serving and remove the bay leaf.
Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Serve hot with freshly grated parmesan and crusty bread.
Tips for the Best Minestrone Soup Flavor
- Dice the vegetables evenly so they cook at the same rate.
- Sauté the carrots, celery, onion etc at the beginning to develop richer flavour
- Add pasta near the end so it doesn’t become too soft.
- Use a good quality vegetable broth for the best flavor.
- Finish with fresh herbs and parmesan for extra richness.
Variations
Make it gluten-free
Use rice instead of pasta or choose gluten-free pasta.
Add extra vegetables
Chopped capsicum (bell pepper), cabbage, peas, corn, squash or leeks are all lovely additions.
Add extra protein
Add extra beans or lentils to make the soup even more filling. If you prefer, you can also add shredded chicken or a small bacon hock for extra flavour.
How to Store Minestrone Soup
This soup stores beautifully and often tastes even better the next day, allow the soup to cool to room temperature before storing.
You can refrigerate it for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
For freezing, it is best to leave out the pasta and add freshly cooked pasta when reheating. Freeze for up to 3 months in airtight containers or ziplock bags then reheat it gently until it is piping hot
What to Serve With Minestrone Soup
This hearty soup is delicious served with:
- crusty bread or focaccia
- garlic bread
- grilled cheese sandwiches
- a simple green salad
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I freeze minestrone soup?
Yes, it freezes well for up to three months. For best results freeze without the pasta.
Can I cook pasta in the slow cooker?
Yes, but it should be added near the end of cooking so it doesn’t become overly soft.
Can I make this soup ahead of time?
Absolutely. Minestrone soup often tastes even better the next day once the flavors have developed.
Ready to Make This Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup?
This hearty slow cooker minestrone soup is packed with vegetables, beans and pasta in a rich tomato broth. It’s a simple, comforting meal that cooks gently in the slow cooker.
Scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, measurements and step-by-step instructions.
If you try this recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out. Leave a comment and rating below!
Easy Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup
A comforting slow cooker minestrone soup made with vegetables, beans and pasta simmered in a flavorful tomato broth. An easy crockpot vegetable soup the whole family will love.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely diced
- 2 carrots, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1½ tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 medium sweet potato OR potato, peeled and diced
- 1 zucchini, diced
- 1 cup green beans, chopped
- 1 × 400 gram can (14 oz) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 × 400 gram can (14 oz) chopped tomatoes
- 1.5 litres vegetable broth, 6 cups
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup small pasta (about 100 grams / 3.5 ounces) such as macaroni, small shells or risoni
- OR
- ¾ cup short-grain rice
To Finish
- 2 cups baby spinach (about 60 grams / 2 ounces), roughly chopped
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or basil (about 16 grams / ½ ounce)
- Freshly grated parmesan cheese, to serve
Instructions
- Finely dice the onion and dice all other vegetables to approx 1.5 cm
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook gently for 5–7 minutes until softened but not browned.
- Add the crushed garlic and cook for a further 30 seconds.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute to deepen the flavour.
- Transfer everything into the slow cooker.
- Add the sweet potato or potato, zuchinni, green beans, cannellini beans, chopped tomatoes, vege broth, salt, pepper, oregano, basil and bay leaf. Stir well to combine.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 6–7 hours or HIGH for 4 hours, until the vegetables are tender but still holding their shape.
- Add the pasta or rice, stir well, then cover and cook on HIGH for a further 25–30 minutes, until just tender.
- Stir through the spinach and fresh parsley. Stand for 5 minutes before serving.
- Remove the bay leaf.
- Taste to test the levels of salt, add ¼ of a teaspoon at a time if required.
- Serve hot with plenty of freshly grated parmesan and crusty bread. A drizzle of olive oil is optional but lovely.
- For storing, cool soup to room temp, then refrigerate for up to 4 days or you can freeze for up to 3 months in airtight containers or individual ziplock bags. (best to freeze without pasta)
- Reheat gently until piping hot.
Notes
- Pasta tip: Add the pasta near the end of cooking so it does not become too soft.
- Rice option: Short-grain rice can be used instead of pasta for a slightly heartier soup.
- Freezing tip: For best results, freeze the soup without the pasta and add freshly cooked pasta when reheating.
- Flavor tip: This slow cooker minestrone soup tastes even better the next day as the flavors develop.
- Soffritto: Taking a few minutes to sauté the onion, carrot and celery first helps build the flavor base of the soup and makes the finished slow cooker minestrone much richer and more flavorful.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 287Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 639mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 10gSugar: 8gProtein: 12g
This nutrition calculation for Just Slow Cooker Recipes has been automated, please use your discretion with the calculation and use your own if unsure.
More Slow Cooker Soup Recipes
If you enjoy this slow cooker minestrone soup, you might also like these other easy slow cooker soup recipes.
- Easy Slow Cooker Pumpkin Soup
- Slow Cooker Tomato & Basil Soup
- Slow Cooker Potato & Leek Soup
- Slow Cooker Carrot & Ginger Soup
How easy does that look? If you have a favourite crockpot soup or recipe you’d like to see next, let me know in the comments below.
Thank you so much for visiting and exploring my slow cooker recipes. If you enjoyed this one, don’t forget to save it for later or share it with someone who loves easy slow cooker meals too.
Happy cooking!
Anna
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