Usually making a minestrone soup can take quite some time, but thanks to the Instant Pot you can enjoy this healthy recipe in only 20 minutes!
Minestrone is a perfect hearty, delicious meal to warm you up during the cold season.
This Instant Pot Minestrone Soup recipe is loaded with hearty beans and healthy vegetables which makes it even more tasty.
Table of Contents
Is it Vegan?
As long as you exclude the optional parmesan cheese, then yes, this dish is completely vegan! With cheese, it is still vegetarian friendly.
Can I Use Italian Seasoning?
Yes. Italian seasoning blends usually contain basil, oregano, and thyme, in addition to smaller amounts of other dried herbs such as rosemary or sage.
If you’d like, you can omit the dried oregano, basil, and thyme in the recipe and use a tablespoon of Italian seasoning instead. It will taste very similar!
Do I Need to Drain the Canned Tomatoes?
No. For this recipe, you want to use the whole can of diced tomatoes along with their juices. This is partly because pressure cookers require a certain amount of liquid to function properly.
The tomato juices with the vegetable broth will also become the base of the soup broth in this pressure cooker recipe. Yum!
What Kind of Beans Should I Use?
This recipe calls for red beans. I like to use canned small red beans in my Instant Pot Minestrone, but you could also use light or dark red kidney beans in this recipe.
You could even substitute an equal amount of white beans such as cannellini or great northern beans. Really any type of bean would work and each will give you a slightly different flavor.
How Should I Prep the Zucchini?
The zucchini should be diced into bite sized pieces. You could either dice the zucchini into cubes, or slice it into half-moons.
To cut half-moon shapes, first slice the zucchini lengthwise and then thinly slice the other way. If your zucchini is on the larger side, you may want to cut it into quarters lengthwise first, then slice.
Do You Need to Peel Carrots Before Chopping?
While you don’t absolutely need to, I prefer to peel carrots prior to dicing for a smoother texture. Either way, you should wash carrots and all other produce before prepping.
You can also peel celery if you want to remove some of the excess stringiness. I find it’s not totally necessary though and is easier not to worry about it.
What Type of Pasta Should I Use?
This recipe calls for a long pasta—I typically use spaghetti or bucatini, which is similar to spaghetti but with a hollow center.
You can substitute any type of dried pasta for this recipe, even short pasta. Traditional minestrone recipes usually use short pasta such as ditalini or elbow macaroni.
More Recipes Like This
If you like rich soups, here are some more options:
Instant Pot Vegetable Beef Soup
Instant Pot Beef and Barley Soup
Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup
Instant Pot Minestrone Soup
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 medium carrot chopped
- 1 cup celery stalk chopped
- 2 teaspoon basil dried
- 1 teaspoon oregano dried
- ¾ teaspoon thyme dried
- 32 ounce canned tomatoes
- 3 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 cup vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 medium zucchini
- ¼ cup red beans cooked or canned
- ¼ cup long pasta of your choice
- ½ cup fresh Parsley chopped
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 cup parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
- Turn on the Instant Pot and select sauté.
- Add olive oil, onions, garlic and sauté for 3 minutes.
- Add the remaining ingredient (Except the zucchini, beans and pasta)
- Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- When cooking cycle ends, do a quick pressure release.
- Open the lid and add zucchini, beans and pasta.
- Press sauté and let it sauté for 6 minutes while stirring.
- Stir in parsley, balsamic vinegar and mix well.
- Add more water if you want the soup the be thinner
- Serve hot and garnish with Parmesan cheese.
Two questions:
1. If I want to increase the amount of soup I am making – say, double/triple the size – do I simply double/triple the ingredients?
2. If I am using a standard covered pot on a stove, should I cook it on a low flame & for how long?
Many thanks for all your recipes.