Easy vegetable soup recipe that's produce-packed and customizable using any vegetables, fresh or frozen! It's naturally vegan, gluten free, made for Instant Pot or stove, and tastes just like grandma's homemade vegetable soup.
This healthy vegetable soup is naturally vegan and low carb, made with fresh vegetables, veggie broth, and a few pantry ingredients. It’s budget-friendly, freezer-friendly, and can be made with always-available grocery store produce or garden veggies during the summer. This easy soup recipe includes Instant Pot and Stove Instructions. You'll feel like you're eating grandma's homemade vegetable soup, especially with French bread, croutons, or crostini!
Vegetable Soup Ingredients
- olive oil
- onion
- celery
- carrots
- garlic
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- cabbage
- zucchini
- fresh tomatoes (or canned tomatoes)
- vegetable broth
- Italian seasoning
- salt and black pepper
- bay leaf
How to make vegetable soup on the stove
- Heat OLIVE OIL in a 4-quart soup pot on medium-high heat.
- Add ONION, CELERY, CARROT, and GARLIC; sauté until tender for about 5 minutes, stirring as needed.
- To the pot, add BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER, CABBAGE, GREEN AND YELLOW ZUCCHINI, TOMATOES, VEGETABLE BROTH, and SEASONINGS; stir to combine.
- Turn heat to HIGH and heat the soup it starts to boil; then turn heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes until all veggies are tender.
How to Make Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot
- Sauté onions, celery, carrot, and garlic in olive oil in the Instant Pot on ‘sauté’ setting (I use the 6 quart Duo).
- To the cooker, add broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, zucchini, tomatoes, vegetable broth, and seasonings.
- Select MANUAL or PRESSURE COOK on high pressure for 1 minute followed by a 10-minute natural pressure release. Carefully turn the knob to release any remaining pressure, if any.
- Open the lid, serve warm, and devour!
Is homemade vegetable soup healthy?
An honest answer to this question is easy to find by looking at the ingredient label on a can of soup. Unless it’s an organic or all-natural brand, you will likely see a lot of man-made, artificial chemicals on the list. The beauty of this homemade veggie soup is that it's made with real ingredients hand-picked by you and no one else. So yeah, we like to think of this as a healthy vegetable soup, just like my scrumptious Minestrone Soup.
Here's what goes into my vegan vegetable soup recipe:
- Fresh vegetables - I use 10 different veggies in this recipe, but use what you like, or what you have on hand. This vegetable soup is customizable, so any fresh or frozen veggies can be used.
- Vegetable broth - packaged broth is usually very high in sodium. To avoid this, make sure you grab the broth labeled "reduced-sodium" or "low-sodium".
- All-natural seasonings - Salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning
How to make vegetable soup more flavorful?
There are a lot of ways to boost the flavor of homemade soups. In the case of a vegan soup recipe like this one, get an extra flavor boost from ingredients such as:
- Aromatics - garlic, onions, shallots will give your soup rich flavor
- Fresh herbs and bold spices - If you have access to them, stir in some fresh herbs such as parsley, thyme, and oregano. Or add a kick of flavor and heat by adding some cayenne pepper or fresh chile peppers.
- Legumes - Black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and lentils will not only boost the flavor but will also add nutrients and heartiness to the soup.
- Meat - This is a vegan vegetable soup recipe, but if you are a meat eater, try this Chicken Veggie Soup recipe for the Instant Pot or slow cooker!
Can you freeze vegetable soup?
Yes! Soups with a clear broth, such as this vegetable soup, or even this Southwest vegan tortilla soup, freeze very well for up to 3 months.
If possible, avoid freezing cream-based soups, which can sometimes separate as they thaw. If this happens, the soup will still be safe to eat, just not as pretty. Simply stir to incorporate the cream or milk back in with the stock.
Veggie Soup Reheat Instructions
A day or two before you want to serve the soup, transfer the container of frozen vegetable soup to the fridge to thaw. Reheat the soup in a saucepan on the stovetop, in a microwave, or even in a slow cooker.
Serve the soup with a garden salad or some vegan sandwiches.
Grab these easy soup recipes
- Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana
- Minestrone Soup [Instant Pot or Stove]
- Tomato Soup [Instant Pot or Stove]
- Chickpea Kale Soup
- Crockpot Chicken Vegetable Soup
- Lasagna Soup [Instant Pot or Stove]
- Vegan Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Thai Coconut Curry Soup
Recommended Tools
- chef knife and cutting board
- 6-quart Instant Pot or 4-quart soup pot
- stirring utensil
- serving ladle
Easy Vegetable Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- ½ Onion, diced (1/2 cup)
- 1 rib(s) Celery, chopped (1 cup)
- 1 large Carrot, diced (1 cup)
- 5 cloves Garlic, chopped
- ¼ lb. Broccoli, chopped (2 cups)
- ¼ lb. Cauliflower, chopped (2 cups)
- ¼ lb. Green Cabbage, chopped (2 cups)
- ½ lb. Zucchini, chopped (4 cups)
- ½ lb. Whole Tomatoes, chopped (or 14oz can Diced Tomatoes with juice)
- 4 cups Vegetable Broth
- ¼ tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- ½ tsp Black Pepper
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1 Lemon, zested for garnish
- 1 handful Fresh Parsley, for garnish
RECIPE VIDEO
Instructions
Vegetable Soup (Instant Pot Instructions)
- Select "Sauté" on the Instant Pot and heat the OLIVE OIL.
- When the display reads "Hot", add ONION, CELERY, CARROT, and GARLIC; sauté until tender, stirring as needed.
- Add BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER, CABBAGE, GREEN and YELLOW ZUCCHINI, TOMATOES, VEGETABLE BROTH, and SEASONINGS. Stir to combine.
- Press the "Cancel" function on the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and turn the pressure release valve to the "Sealing" position.
- Select "Manual" or "Pressure Cook" and cook on "High" pressure for 1 minute.
- When the cycle completes, allow the Instant Pot to sit for 10 minutes, undisturbed, for a natural pressure release (NPR).
- Carefully turn pressure knob to "Venting" position to release any remaining steam.
Vegetable Soup (stove instructions)
- Heat OLIVE OIL in a 4-quart soup pot on medium-high heat.
- Add ONION, CELERY, CARROT, and GARLIC; sauté until tender for about 5 minutes, stirring as needed.
- To the pot, add BROCCOLI, CAULIFLOWER, CABBAGE, GREEN AND YELLOW ZUCCHINI, TOMATOES, VEGETABLE BROTH, and SEASONINGS; stir to combine.
- Turn heat to HIGH and heat the soup it starts to boil; then turn heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes until all veggies are tender.
Vegetable Soup Serving and Storage Instructions
- Serve veggie soup warm. Garnish options: lemon zest, fresh parsley, croutons, or grated parmesan cheese.
- Refrigerate veggie soup in an airtight container up to 5 days or in the freezer up to 3 months.
Recipe Notes from TKG
Nutrition
Nutrition data provided as courtesy estimates using unbranded ingredients from a nutrition database. Please consult preferred resource for precise data.
Cristina says
How long for the crockpot?
The Kitchen Girl says
Hiya, not all slow cookers are equal so I would plan on 3-4 hours on HIGH or 6-8 hours on LOW, or until the veggies are cooked to the texture you like. Let me know if you have more questions 🙂 Thanks!
Chelsa says
My whole family including our two little boys loved this soup! We never had to ask them to eat because they liked it so much. Thank you!
The Kitchen Girl says
Wow Chelsa, I always love it when the kids sign off on a recipe. Thanks for letting me know! Glad y'all enjoyed it!
Denay DeGuzman says
I made this vegetable soup last week and it was delicious! I felt the need to come back here to tell you how great it was. It always feels so good when serving healthy recipes to the family.
Traci Antonovich says
Wow, thanks Denay! I love it that you came back...much appreciated! So glad you like the vegetable soup...I'm ALL in on this one
Kristen says
Love how many veggies are in this soup. It was delicious!
Traci Antonovich says
Awesome, Kristen! Thanks so much for letting me know! 🙂
Tracy says
10 veggies! Yessss this is my kind of soup. I try to avoid cans as much as possible because of all of the added crap and this is going to be perfect for the cold days. Can’t wait to make a big batch and freeze!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Tracy! So glad you can enjoy this one 🙂
Lisa | Garlic & Zest says
I feel like I've been eating too many rich dishes lately and this vegetable soup recipe is exactly what I need to get myself back on track. Besides, it looks so hearty and flavorful. Your photos are gorgeous, Traci!
Traci Antonovich says
Aww thank you, Lisa! I'm honored by the compliment 🙂 And this is def the get-back-on-track vegetable soup. Cheers!
Heidy L. McCallum says
This veggie soup was totally awesome! My entire family loved it and asked I make if for them again!!!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Heidy! Lovvvvve hearing that 🙂
Valerie says
We love soup in our house. My husband would really enjoy this as it has cauliflower and zucchini and I don't put them in my chicken vegetable soup.
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Valerie! Yes...we LOVE the addition of zucchini and cauliflower to our veggie soup 🙂
Alisa Infanti says
The smell of this recipe is amazing. I made sure to make extra so I can freeze. So good!
Traci Antonovich says
Yay!!! So glad you're enjoying this one. You will LOVE thawing and eating this on a busy weeknight 🙂
Michelle says
So many veggies! I love using this recipe to use up leftover veggies that might otherwise go to waste. And then it makes a perfect lunch!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Michelle...so glad to hear it! We empty the fridge with this soup recipe 😉
Emily says
I love that this is loaded with TEN different vegetables! Perfect for soup season this year!
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Emily! Yep, you can pick any vegetables you want for this one 🙂
Angela says
So much flavor and so good for you! I love this recipe! Thanks so much for sharing 🙂
Traci Antonovich says
Thanks, Angela! Love hearing that 🙂