Vegan minestrone alla Genovese is a rich and fulfilling soup that's filled with nutritious goodness. This is vegan Italian food at its best and also the best way to use up any excess veggies. Serve it with a dollop of vegan pesto on top, and get ready to be amazed by the flavours.
Why not try my delicious Italian patate e riso next?
I love soups that are hearty enough to be a meal on their own, and I make one at least once a week. My Vegan Creamy Pasta e Fagioli and Tuscan Chickpea Soup are two such delicious, wholesome soups that I have on rotation.
This minestrone alla Genovese takes the idea of a hearty soup and bumps it up to a whole new level. If you look at the list of ingredients, you'll see that this vegetable soup has everything in it, from carrots, celery and potatoes to beans, cabbage and pasta.
It sounds like a lot, but trust me on this - it's going to be the best vegan Italian soup you've ever tasted.
Even though it has such a long list of ingredients, the good news is that apart from chopping them all, this soup requires very little hands-on time. It's basically a one-pot vegan soup that you can have ready in about an hour, but you don't have to babysit the pot most of that time.
What do you need to make this vegan minestrone?
As mentioned above, there's a lot going on with this soup, but you can easily make substitutions and take out some veggies if you don't have them. This is the perfect soup to make when you have veggies left from other recipes.
The ingredients that you shouldn't remove or substitute are the herbs, which give the minestrone so much flavour. I use a mix of fresh parsley, rosemary, and basil. If you don't have fresh ones, you can use dried herbs instead, but I recommend that at least the basil be fresh.
I use ditalini for the pasta in this recipe, but you can substitute it with any other small pasta type. You don't want to add large pasta to this kind of soup because it will absorb too much liquid. If all you have are penne or fusilli, you can break those down and use them in the minestrone.
I make the soffrito with vegan butter for a bit of creaminess, but you can safely use extra virgin olive oil instead - it will still taste amazing.
It wouldn't be minestrone alla Genovese without pesto. You can use any type of pesto here, either shop-bought or homemade. Make sure it's vegan, though, as Genovese pesto typically has parmesan or pecorino cheese in it. I use the vegan pesto from Sacla and I find the flavor to be spot on.
How do you make minestrone alla Genovese?
To make the vegan minestrone, you start by melting the vegan butter in a large pot. Then you fry the onions, garlic, and fresh herbs to make the soffrito.
After that start adding the veggies one by one (except for the shredded cabbage). Pour the stock and bring to a boil. Simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender.
Next, add the pasta and cabbage to the pot and cook for another 10-15 minutes until the pasta is cooked.
I don't like to make this soup with pesto stirred inside. I serve it with a dollop of pesto for each bowl for extra flavour, but if you want, you can stir 2-3 tablespoons of pesto in the minestrone.
Recipe notes and tips
- Don't add the shredded cabbage with the other veggies because it will be overcooked. Overcooking cabbage will also release an unpleasant smell that's caused by the sulfur compounds.
- The pasta should be al dente when you turn off the heat. Remember that it will continue to absorb liquid after you finish cooking.
- If you think that there's not enough liquid for the amount of veggies you use, add some more veggie stock.
If you liked this vegan minestrone alla Genovese, you might also love some of my other quick and easy vegan recipes:
Creamy Vegan Artichoke and Spinach Pasta
Vegan Sweet Potato Chickpea Stew
Don't miss out on any new recipes! Follow Vegan Cocotte on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.
Vegan Minestrone alla Genovese
Ingredients
- 1 ounce (30 g) vegan butter
- 1 large onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
- 1 medium carrot, diced
- 2-3 celery sticks, diced
- 3 medium potatoes, cut in 1-2 inch cubes
- 1 can (14 oz / 400 g) chopped tomatoes
- 6 basil leaves, roughly shredded
- 1 can (14 oz / 400 g) borlotti beans
- 3.5 oz (100 g) fresh green beans, roughly chopped
- 2 small courgettes, diced
- 4 cups (1000 ml) vegetable stock
- 3.5 oz (100 g) ditalini pasta
- ¼ cabbage, finely shredded
- Vegan pesto, to serve
Instructions
- Melt the vegan butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions and fry for 2-3 minutes until they soften. Add the garlic and continue to cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant. Stir in the parsley and rosemary and cook for another minute.1 ounce vegan butter1 large onion4 garlic cloves2 tbsp fresh parsley1 tbsp fresh rosemary
- Next, add the carot, celery, potatoes, chopped tomatoes and basil leaves. Give it a good stir, then add the borlotti beans, green beans, and courgettes.1 medium carrot2-3 celery sticks3 medium potatoes1 can (14 oz / 400 g) chopped tomatoes6 basil leaves1 can (14 oz / 400 g) borlotti beans3.5 oz fresh green beans, roughly chopped2 small courgettes
- Pour in the stock and bring the pot to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender.4 cups vegetable stock
- Add the pasta and cabbage to the pot and cook for another 10-15 minutes or according to the instructions on the package. Make sure you stir occasionally so the pasta doesn't stick to the bottom.3.5 oz ditalini pasta¼ cabbage
- Season to taste and serve with a dollop of vegan pesto on top (optional).Vegan pesto
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