This slow cooker beef minestrone soup is hearty and delicious. If you want to make it vegetarian friendly, omit the ground beef and swap out the beef stock for vegetable broth. Serve it with some Homemade French Bread and you have the perfect meal.
Recipe Ingredient Notes
To make our beef minestrone soup, you need the following ingredients:
- Ground beef
- Diced tomatoes
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Celery
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Italian seasoning
- Salt
- Pepper
- Beef stock
- Water
- Tomato juice
- Red kidney benas
- Cannellini beans
- Zucchini
- Ditalini pasta
- Green beans
Equipment Needed
For this recipe, you only need a few simple kitchen tools. We recommend using the following equipment:
How to Make Beef Minestrone Soup Recipe
- In a medium skillet, brown ground beef until completely cooked.
- Place your ground beef, diced tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper into your slow cooker.
- Add in beef stock, water, and tomato juice.
- Cover and cook on low heat 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.
- After cooking time is up, add in red kidney beans, cannellini beans, zucchini, pasta, and green beans. Cook on high heat for an additional 15 minutes or until pasta is tender.
Instant Pot Modification
To make this recipe in the Instant Pot, there are a few modifications. The recipe is just a little too big for my 6-quart Instant Pot. Here are the changes you would make:
- Instead of adding all 4 cups of beef broth, only add 2 before it cooks! When it is done pressuring and cooking, go ahead and all the other 2 cups of beef broth in.
- Completely omit the 3 cups of water. I feel it gives it more flavor and makes it more of a chunky soup!
- Use pre-cooked lean ground beef.
- You are going to add EVERYTHING into your pressure cooker at once. Put it in your pressure cooker and push the manual button or pressure cook button for 6 minutes. When it is done, let it release on its own for about 15 minutes and then turn the knob to venting. Add 2 more cups of beef broth and serve with salt and pepper if desired.
Recipe Notes
I don’t know about you, but all the different types of beef can be a little overwhelming at the store. It gets a little frustrating looking at all of them and they all look slightly different, but the meat could make or break dinner. If you are anything like me, you need exact names. Here are a few different types of beef I have used in this recipe, and they all tasted amazing.
- Lean Ground Beef. Ground Beef is definitely preferred in this recipe I go for as lean of ground beef as the store offers. Many stores carry ground beef that is 80 percent lean 20 percent fat. I always try to find a beef that is 10 percent fat, or lower.
- Ground Turkey. If you are looking for a lighter option, you could also use a ground turkey.
- Stew Beef. Many beef packages will say right on them, a stew beef. We also recommend using a boneless chuck roast.
Explore More Delicious Soup Recipes
Explore our collection of soup recipes made in the stovetop, slow cooker or Instant Pot. For more soup inspiration, check out our full list of soups.
- Beef Lasagna Soup
- Pasta Fagioli
- Cabbage Roll Soup
- Cheeseburger Soup
- Cheesy Ham and Potato Soup
- Creamy Ground Beef and Macaroni Tomato Soup
- Disneyland’s Loaded Potato Soup
- Dump and Go Meatball Soup
- Ham and Bean Soup
- Lasagna Soup

Beef Minestrone Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes, 1 can, do not drain
- 2 cups carrots, chopped
- 2 cups potatoes, chopped
- 1½ cups celery, chopped
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 4 cups beef stock
- 2 cups water
- 3 cups tomato juice
- 15 ounces red kidney beans, 1 can (drained and rinsed)
- 15 ounces cannellini beans, 1 can, (drained and rinsed)
- 1½ cups zucchini, diced
- 1 cup ditalini pasta, uncooked
- 15 ounces green beans, 1 can, (drained)
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, brown ground beef until completely cooked.
- Place your ground beef, diced tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, celery, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper into your slow cooker.
- Add in beef stock, water, and tomato juice.
- Cover and cook on low heat 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.
- After cooking time is up, add in red kidney beans, cannellini beans, zucchini, pasta, and green beans. Cook on high heat for an additional 15 minutes or until pasta is tender.
Notes
- Instead of adding all 4 cups of beef broth, only add 2 before it cooks! When it is done pressuring and cooking, go ahead and all the other 2 cups of beef broth in.
- Completely omit the 3 cups of water. I feel it gives it more flavor and makes it more of a chunky soup!
- Use pre-cooked lean ground beef.
- You are going to add EVERYTHING into your pressure cooker at once. Put it in your pressure cooker and push the manual button or pressure cook button for 6 minutes. When it is done, let it release on its own for about 15 minutes and then turn the knob to venting. Add 2 more cups of beef broth and serve with salt and pepper if desired.



















Questions & Reviews