This hearty vegetable soup is packed with tender beef and veggies simmered in a flavorful broth. It’s a simple and nourishing soup recipe ready in an under an hour!
Other cozy soups that warm us up on chill days include crockpot beef stew and chicken and rice soup, especially when paired with a dinner roll.
Table of Contents
Hearty Vegetable Soup
This hearty vegetable soup recipe is one of my favorite cozy soup recipes! It’s similar to my delicious hamburger soup or even this albondigas soup with meatballs, but with a few more seasonings and veggies like my favorite cabbage soup.
Beef and vegetable soup is one of my favorite soups to make during the winter to serve with Lion House rolls or sweet cornbread. It’s a Whole 30 recipe that’s made with wholesome yet hearty ingredients.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy. No complicated steps or ingredients and this hearty vegetable soup is easily made in one pot on the stovetop!
- Versatile. Adjust the spices and veggies to what your family likes and you have on hand.
- Soup that freezes well. This soup freezes well for meal prep! Make a big batch to have on hand all winter long.
Vegetable Soup Ingredients
The best thing about this hearty veggie soup is that you can add in any vegetables that you have on hand and it always tastes delicious!
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Meat: I used lean ground beef, but ground turkey or a combination of the two could be used for a lighter beef vegetable soup. You could also make a chicken vegetable soup!
- Vegetables: I used onion, bell pepper, celery and carrots but cauliflower, spinach, zucchini, squash, peas, green beans, corn and cabbage also work. Frozen vegetables add near the end of coking time.
- Potatoes. Russet potatoes are a popular choice for vegetable soup, but red potatoes or Yukon gold also work.
- Tomato broth: Rotel, or a can of diced tomatoes and green chiles, tomato sauce, balsamic vinegar and water (or chicken broth, beef broth, vegetable broth etc).
- Seasonings: Simple yet flavorful chili powder, salt and black pepper.
How to Make Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup
Prep veggies. Heat oil over medium heat in large pot or Dutch oven. Add onions and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Then stir in ground beef and cook until browned. Drain remaining fat.
Add in potatoes, celery, carrots, rotel, tomato sauce and water and bring to a simmer. Then add balsamic vinegar, chili powder, salt and pepper and stir. Turn heat to low and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes, until root veggies are fork tender. Stir occasionally.
Top this comforting soup with fresh basil, fresh parsley, and Parmesan cheese if desired.
Tips and Variations
- Consistency. Add vegetable broth or beef broth to thin out the consistency and make this hearty vegetable soup stretch even further.
- Meatless. If you would like to make a plant based hearty soup recipe, omit the meat and add in beans or chickpeas.
- Scrape sides of pan: When adding your liquids, scrape the bottom of the pot incorporate the browned bits from your meat and onion for even more flavor.
- Time-saving tip: Look for pre-cut onion, carrots and celery in your produce department or use frozen, no need to thaw first.
- Spices. Add a dash of hot sauce or a sprinkle of red pepper flakes for a little heat. Substitute the chili powder for Italian seasoning for a different flavor.
- Garnish. Top with fresh herbs for more flavor (basil, oregano or parsley taste great). Freshly grated Parmesan cheese or avocado slices also taste delicious on top.
Serving Suggestions
This vegetable beef soup recipe is great with some fresh bread to soak up all the juices! Try some garlic bread, breadsticks, or rolls. Our family favorite is to serve it with grilled cheese!
Looking for more easy soup recipes? Try this corn chowder, chicken tortilla soup, or creamy sweet potato soup!
More Easy Soup Recipes
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Hearty Vegetable Beef Soup Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 small onion , diced
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic , more if desired
- 1 pound lean ground beef , or turkey
- 2-3 small potatoes , peeled and diced
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 14.5 ounces rotel , or can of diced tomatoes and green chiles
- 15 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 ½ -2 cups water , more as needed (can also use broth)
- 1-2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1-2 teaspoons chili powder , more or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt , more to taste
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper , more to taste
For serving (optional): Fresh basil or parsley, parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Brown ground beef. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the 1 small chopped onion and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in 1 teaspoon garlic and 1 pound ground beef and cook until browned. Drain any remaining fat. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
- Add veggies. Stir in 2-3 small diced potatoes, 1 cup celery and 1 cup carrots, rotel, 1 can rotel and 1 can tomato sauce and 1 1/2 cups – 2 cups water (or broth). Bring to a light simmer and then stir in 1-2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1-2 teaspoons chili powder and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add more water or broth as needed, depending on preference.
- Simmer. Reduce the heat to low and let simmer for about 30-45 minutes (or until the potatoes and carrots are fork tender), stirring occasionally. Add more water as needed. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Top with fresh basil or parsley and parmesan if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
FAQs
That should work. You will still need to brown your meat first, than add all ingredients to your crock pot and cook on low 6-7 hours until your potatoes are tender.
Soup refers to your ingredients being cooked in liquid until tender, it is usually thinner and contains more broth or liquid. Stew on the other hand means stewing your ingredients which includes submerging your ingredients in just enough liquid to cover them. The result is that your stew is very thick.
Vegetable beef soup is so versatile and that include the type of beef used! You can use beef stew meat or chuck roast instead of ground beef but you will need to simmer your beef in the tomato broth mixture for about 30 minutes until it becomes tender chunks of beef before adding remaining ingredients.
This hearty veg soup will keep for about 3 to 4 days in the fridge in an airtight container. You can also freeze the soup for up to two months. When you’re ready to eat, thaw in the fridge overnight. Then reheat in a pot in the stove until warm. You may need to add in a little water or broth to thin out the consistency.
Categorized as: American, Beef, Beef, Dairy-Free, Dinner, Freezer-Friendly, Freezer-Friendly, Gluten-Free, Kid-Friendly, Meal Prep, One Pot, Soups, Stovetop, Stovetop, Whole 30
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
This is great! I’ve made it numerous times. I use zucchini and cauliflower (and 1lb of local ground beef) along w/ carrots and celery. This really chunks it up, so I end up adding about 3 cups of chicken broth, and after I pour in the tomato sauce, I fill the can with water and add that. I would hold off on the additional salt until the end due to the chicken broth (unless it is low sodium). Also, if I have it on hand, I break off a piece of dark chocolate (88% very dark, about a 1″ square). I learned that from another recipe for chili that called for 1 C. coffee, 1 bottle of beer, and some chocolate. Adds a bit of depth! (I do not add coffee or beer to this recipe tho).
Can I use my crockpot for this? :)
Sure! Brown the meat, onions and garlic on the stove first, then transfer to the crockpot with the remaining ingredients and cook on high for 3-4 hours or 5-6 hours on low.
When you say tomato sauce, do you mean literal tomato sauce like ketchup?
Tomato sauce from the can, not ketchup :)
This is such a delicious soup that is very easy to adapt to what is on hand.
I don’t eat meat so I leave that out and I add whatever veggie I happen to have in the fridge!
I’m so glad you were able to modify the soup without the meat, Abigail!
Delicious! We really enjoyed this soup.
It tested great! What’s the serving size??
It serves 6!
Sounds great iam making it tomorrow with hone made rolls
I hope you enjoy it! :)
I made this meatless….both my daughters loved it! Served it with grilled goat cheese and fig jam sammies…the sweetness of the sandwich was a great compliment to the hearty soup that had a little kick to it. Great recipe! Thank you…
Sounds delicious! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Would you use veg broth in place of water and tomato soup.
Hi Patricia! You can use vegetable broth in place of the water, but I would leave the tomato sauce.
Delicious
How long would this last in the fridge?
Hi Sarah! It should last for 3 to 4 days in the fridge!
Absolutely delicious!
Our family makes this soup so much! It is delicious!!! I was wondering though what the serving size is based on the nutritional information.
I’ve made this 3 times now and it is so easy and flavorful. I have had to add more chicken stock to make it more “soup” like, otherwise it is more like chili. That just depends on preference. If you add more stock you will have to play with adding more spices. This time I also googled what spices compliment chili powder and cinnamon and cumin came up, so I decided to add in just a bit of both. I just sprinkled it in until I liked the flavor. I think they worked well! Also, this soup is good on day one, but the spices meld over night, so day two it’s even better. Oh, I also use zucchini and green beans (and a carrot/celery) as my veggies.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! :)
I thought this was a great soup recipe. I’ll definitely make it again.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I absolutely love this recipe! I want to make it again this week, was wondering if I can make this in a crockpot to save some time from a busy work day?
Definitely! I would recommend cooking the ground beef before adding to the crockpot. :)
Could I sub chicken or vegetable broth for the water? Can’t wait to try the recipe!
Yes, that should be fine! :)
This recipe is delicious and is my go to veggie soup. I lived in New Mexico for almost 8 years so I love all things spicy, so I cut up a jalepeño or habañero pepper and add it in with the rotel with chiles and I top it off with a little dollop of sour cream and cheese to balance out the spice and its soooooo good. Mmm….
Sounds delicious! So glad you enjoyed it. :)