Vegan Rustic Vegetable Soup 🥕 A delicious, nutritious one-pot stew-like soup abundant with a bounty of hearty veggies & flavor. Easy to prepare & oh so satisfying. Gluten-free. Oil-free option.
This beautiful vegetable soup is one of my all-time favorites. It's loaded with chunky fresh veggies and tomatoes cooked until tender in a delicious 100% plant-based vegetable broth. If you like Marie Callender's Vegetable Soup, then you are really going to love this.
Serve with a loaf of freshly baked artisan bread or a crusty baguette and you'll have a budget-friendly and simply heartwarming meal to enjoy on a chilly night! Just like this protein rich easy vegan lentil soup, vegan Congressional bean soup, or hearty vegan chili.
My mom aka Mama Love, was a fantastic cook. She had an uncanny knack at pulling together whatever was in the pantry and making something scrumptiously good.
Growing up on a small farm in Idaho during the Great Depression, she learned to make a meal out of what few ingredients were available. Nothing went to waste. Wilted vegetables, potatoes, carrots, or onions from the root cellar became one-pot meals. Her soups and stews would feed the family for days, like this wonderfully hearty vegan rustic vegetable soup, which is her recipe.
Why you'll love this veggie soup recipe
- It's delicious & nutritious!
- Everything goes into one pot
- So filling & satisfying!
- Add or substitute ingredients as needed
- Makes several servings - freeze some for later!
- Serve as a meal in itself
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See the printable recipe card below for quantities and complete details
🥕Ingredients
- Olive oil - or avocado or canola oil (See notes below for oil-free option)
- Onion - sweet, brown or yellow
- Celery - fresh
- Carrots - fresh or frozen
- Italian seasoning
- Basil - dried or fresh
- Bay leaves
- Salt - I use coarse sea salt
- Black pepper - freshly ground
- Garlic - fresh or powder
- Vegetable broth - fresh or packaged
- Vegan bouillon - paste, powder or cubes
- Zucchini
- Yellow squash - or any small squash variety
- Russet potatoes - preferred or substitute with Yukon gold or new potatoes
- Kidney beans - canned or pre-cooked
- Sweet corn - off the cob, fresh or frozen
- Whole tomatoes - canned or bottled. Substitute with diced or stewed.
🥕Instructions
- Gather ingredients
- Prep veggies
- Dice onions, celery, and carrots (also known as "mirepoix" - see FAQ's below to learn more.)
- Use a large (7 qt. or more) stove-top dutch oven or soup pot.
- Begin heating 3 tablespoons olive oil over med-low temperature (or water for oil-free version)
- Add onions. Sauté until onions begin to look transparent.
- Add celery & carrots. Continue cooking over med-low until slightly tender.
- Add dry spices. Add garlic, making sure it doesn't burn *(add 1 extra tablespoon oil or water if needed).
- Pour in broth & bouillon. Turn up heat to medium-high. Stir.
- Gradually add zucchini, squash, potatoes, kidney beans, corn, & tomatoes.
- Using a long spoon, stir from the bottom of the pot, incorporating the spices throughout.
- Cover pot and bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low.
- Keep an eye on the soup so it doesn't boil over. If needed, reduce heat and move lid enough to allow steam to escape.
- Stir occasionally. Continue cooking for about 30-40 minutes, or until potatoes are tender but not mushy.
🥕 Oil-free Option
You can prepare this vegan rustic vegetable soup recipe oil-free simply by replacing the olive oil with water or vegetable broth. Add more as needed, one to two tablespoons at a time. Be sure to stir or turn onions & veggies frequently so they won't burn.
🥕Variations
Add or adjust ingredients to your liking, such as:
- Green beans
- Peas
- Lentils
- Chickpeas
- Bell pepper
- Kale
- Pasta
- Mushrooms
- Red pepper flakes
Ladle into soup bowls (remove bay leaves before serving). Add salt & pepper to taste. Serve with a warm sourdough baguette & your favorite vegan butter. M'mm good!
🥕Souper Secret
Sometimes I like to add a teaspoon or two of maple syrup, agave nectar, vegan honey, or sugar to tomato-based soups and sauces. The touch of sweet helps offset the acidity of the tomatoes.
🥕Equipment
You'll only need a few items to make this simply delicious soup!
- One large (7 qt. or more) stove-top dutch oven or soup pot.
- Vegetable peeler
- Chef's knife
- Measuring spoons
- Cutting board
- Long handled spoon (for stirring)
Clean up is easy since everything goes into one pot . . . one BIG pot. This vegan rustic vegetable soup recipe will easily serve twelve or more portions. You'll love having leftover soup, since you can freeze individual servings for later.
🥕FAQ's
The term rustic, as it relates to food, can best be described as simple and unpretentious. This soup is just that, as the primary ingredients are basic staples like onions, carrots, celery, and potatoes, items you might keep on hand. This recipe is so easy to prepare! Most of the fresh ingredients are cut into chunky pieces, which means very little mincing or dicing. The flavors and appearance of this soup are robust and full of texture and variety, certainly not fussy or fancy.
I prefer enameled cast iron cookware and here's why:
You can't beat it for soups and stews, as the even heat distribution will let your food cook uniformly.
It will retain heat long after you take it off a burner.
The enameled surface is a big plus, as it is easy to clean and care for.
One disadvantage about cast iron is the weight, so if you are concerned about lifting a large, heavy pot full of hot soup, you might want to consider a deep stainless steel soup pot instead of cast iron.
This recipe is created with a base flavor made from three common vegetables - onions, celery and carrots. Commonly known in French cooking as "mirepoix", this simple combination of ingredients or aromatics is made from finely diced vegetables that are cooked at a low temperature in butter or oil, to sweeten the ingredients rather than caramelize them. These slow-cooked vegetables form the first layer of flavor to many recipes.
Learn more at theforkedspoon.com
If you enjoyed this recipe, you'll love these easy & delish dishes!
- Easy Garden Fresh Gazpacho
- Easy Vegan Sautéed Vegetables
- Garden Zucchini Squash Casserole
- Easy Vegan Chili
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you’ve enjoyed this recipe, please rate it in the comments below. Sharing your experience helps others decide if they should give it a try too. Thanks a bunch!🥕
Recipe
Vegan Rustic Vegetable Soup
Equipment
- One large (7 qt. or more) stove-top dutch oven or soup pot.
- Vegetable peeler
- Chef's knife
Ingredients
- 3-4* tablespoon olive oil 🥕See notes below for oil-free option
- 1 sweet onion peeled & diced
- 4 stalks celery diced
- 4 carrots peeled & cut into ½" rounds
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dried sweet basil
- 3 whole bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 2 cloves fresh garlic finely minced
- 32 oz vegetable broth fresh or boxed
- 1 tablespoon vegan bouillon
- 3 medium zucchini cut into ½" rounds
- 3 medium yellow squash cut into ½" rounds
- 4 russet potatoes peeled & cut into roughly 1" x 2" pieces
- 1 15 oz can kidney beans drained
- 1 C sweet corn off the cob, fresh or frozen
- 2 28 oz cans whole tomatoes
Instructions
- Use a large (7 qt. or more) stove-top dutch oven or soup pot.
- Begin heating 3 tablespoon olive oil over med-high temperature.
- Add onions. Sauté until onions begin to look transparent.
- Add celery & carrots. Continue cooking over med-low until slightly tender.
- Add dry spices. Add garlic, making sure it doesn't burn *(add 1 extra tablespoon of oil if needed).
- Pour in broth & bouillon. Stir. Turn up heat to medium-high.
- Gradually add zucchini, squash, potatoes, kidney beans, corn, & tomatoes.
- Using a long spoon, stir from the bottom of the pot, incorporating the spices throughout. Cover pot and bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low. Stir occasionally.
- Keep an eye on the soup so it doesn't boil over. If needed, reduce heat and move lid enough to allow steam to escape.
- Continue cooking for about 30-40 minutes, or until potatoes are tender but not mushy.
- Ladle into soup bowls (remove bay leaves before serving). Add salt & pepper to taste.Serve with a warm sourdough baguette & your favorite vegan butter. M'mm Good!
Notes
- Green beans
- Peas
- Lentils
- Chickpeas
- Bell pepper
- Kale
- Pasta
- Mushrooms
- Red pepper flakes
Nutrition
These are estimated values generated from a nutritional database using unbranded products. Please do your own research with the products you're using if you have a serious health issue or are following a specific diet.
Food Safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Don’t leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
connie🥕
This easy & delicious soup has been a favorite in my family for three generations. It’s hearty, healthy and full of flavor!
Kathy
Made this and it was delicious.. I didn’t have any kidney beans so I used canned lentils... my family loved it.. even my 10 year old grandson!!! 🙂
Thank you!!!
Connie Edwards McGaughy
Kathy, I'm so happy you enjoyed the soup! The addition of lentils is a great idea. You know a recipe is a winner when It's kid approved!❤️ Thanks a bunch for sharing! 🥕