See my guide on how to use an Instant Pot.

This Vegetable Beef Soup is filled with vegetables and tender pieces of beef in a rich and flavorful broth. It’s a hearty soup recipe that’s perfect for Sunday dinner.

Vegetable beef soup in a Dutch oven pot.

Soup recipes keep us going through the cold fall and winter months, warming us from the inside out. This vegetable beef soup is one of our favorite satisfying soup recipes. It’s similar to our well-loved Instant Pot Beef Stew, only it’s heavier on the broth and includes a few more veggies. The other big difference is that this veggie beef soup is made on the stove, although it could easily be adapted for the Instant Pot or slow cooker (see my notes below).

We love this recipe because it’s packed full of healthy vegetables and wholesome ingredients, so it’s both nourishing and flavorful. The soup is seasoned with plenty of garlic and dried herbs, plus balsamic vinegar and tomato paste for rich, robust flavor. Grab your soup pot, gather your ingredients, and let’s make vegetable beef soup!

Vegetable Beef Soup Recipe Ingredients

Ingredients for vegetable beef soup recipe.

Here’s what you’ll need to make this beef soup recipe, plus ingredient notes and substitution options.

  • Olive Oil: For browning the meat and sautéing the veggies.
  • Beef Stew Meat: There’s plenty of simmering time to make beef stew meat ultra tender. You can also use beef chuck roast and cube it yourself, if you have a few extra minutes to spare.
  • Salt and Pepper: Adjust the amounts to your tastes.
  • Onion and Celery: Creates a flavorful base for the soup.
  • Balsamic Vinegar: Adds richness and depth of flavor. If you don’t have any on hand, you can leave it out or add 1 cup of red wine instead (not red wine vinegar).
  • Garlic: We used 4 cloves. If you really love garlic you can add a few extra cloves.
  • Seasonings: In addition to salt and pepper, the soup is seasoned with Italian seasoning, dried thyme, and a bay leaf.
  • Tomato Paste and Diced Tomatoes: The tomato paste makes the broth extra rich and flavorful.
  • Beef Broth: Using beef broth enhances the soup’s beefy flavor. I recommend using low sodium so that you can better control the amount of salt in the soup.
  • Yukon Gold Potatoes: While russet potatoes tend to fall apart and turn mushy in soup, Yukon golds hold their shape well and are deliciously rich and buttery.
  • Carrots, Green Beans and Frozen Peas: This soup is a great clean out the veggie drawer recipe! Feel free to substitute other vegetables as desired. See my notes below for suggestions.

How to Make Vegetable Beef Soup

There’s a fair amount of chopping involved in preparing this soup, but it’s worth it to pack in all of those delicious vegetables! Most of the cook time for this recipe is the time it takes for the soup to simmer on the stove.

  1. In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot, brown the beef cubes in two batches, seasoning with salt and pepper. Browned beef in Dutch oven pot.
  2. Add the onion, celery and balsamic vinegar and cook until the veggies soften. Onion and celery in pot.
  3. Stir in the garlic, Italian seasoning, dried thyme and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.
  4. Add the beef broth, diced tomatoes, bay leaf and browned beef. Broth, diced tomatoes and seasonings added to pot.
  5. Simmer the soup, covered, for 1 hour.
  6. Stir in the potatoes, carrots and green beans. Simmer the soup, covered, for 35-45 more minutes, until the meat and vegetables are tender. Add the frozen peas during the last 5 minutes of cook time. Carrots, green beans and potatoes added to soup.
  7. Remove and discard the bay leaf. We like to serve the soup with a bit of fresh chopped parsley to brighten up the flavors.

Recipe Tips

  • Adding the carrots, potatoes and green beans after the first hour of simmer time ensures that they won’t become too soft or mushy.
  • If you want to thicken the soup up more like a beef stew, you can simmer it uncovered after adding the potatoes, carrots and green beans.
  • Before serving the soup, taste it and add more salt and/or pepper if needed.
Ladle full of vegetable beef soup held over soup pot.

Recipe Variations

  • Other vegetables: Mushrooms can be added along with the onion and celery. If you prefer to use chopped sweet potatoes instead of Yukon gold potatoes, they will take 20-25 minutes to cook in the soup. Chopped fresh spinach or kale, or frozen corn can be added during the last 5 minutes of cook time.
  • Add red wine: You can add up to 1 cup of red wine along with the beef broth, for extra flavor. The alcohol will cook off as the soup simmers.
  • Slow cooker instructions: To make vegetable beef soup in the slow cooker, first complete steps 1-3 of the recipe in a pot on the stove. This builds flavor. Then combine the remaining ingredients in the slow cooker (except for the frozen peas) and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours, until the vegetables and meat are tender.
  • Instant Pot instructions: Complete steps 1-3 of the recipe in the Instant Pot using the sauté function. Then add 1 cup of the broth and stir well, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Stir in the rest of the broth and remaining ingredients, except for the green beans and peas. Pressure cook at high pressure for 15 minutes. When the cook time ends allow the pressure to release naturally. When the pin drops down, open the Instant Pot. Press Cancel and then press Sauté. Add the green beans and peas and cook on sauté for about 5 minutes, until tender.
Vegetable beef soup served in bowls with crackers on the side.

Storage and Reheating Instructions

  • Refrigerator: The soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
  • Freezer: The soup can be stored in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen soup overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
  • To Reheat: Reheat in a covered pot on the stove over medium heat until hot, or heat in the microwave.

What to Serve with Vegetable Beef Soup

Serve this hearty soup with some sliced crusty bread, Garlic Bread or Dinner Rolls and a salad. Try our Green Salad or Italian Salad.

Pot of vegetable beef soup.

More Hearty Soup Recipes

Keep this vegetable beef soup recipe in your back pocket for those cold, dreary days when all you want to do is snuggle up with a blanket and a steaming bowl of comfort food.

Vegetable beef soup in a Dutch oven pot.
4.75 from 4 ratings

Vegetable Beef Soup

Servings: 8 servings
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
This Vegetable Beef Soup is a hearty and warming meal, filled with vegetables and beef in a flavorful broth. It's a delicious soup recipe that's perfect for Sunday dinner.
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Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 pounds beef stew meat
  • ¾ teaspoon Kosher salt, or to taste
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion
  • 3 ribs celery, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 4 cups low sodium beef broth
  • 15 ounces diced tomatoes
  • 1 bay leaf
  • ½ pound Yukon gold potatoes, about 2 medium, chopped into ¾-inch pieces
  • 3 carrots, chopped into ¼-inch pieces
  • 1 cup chopped green beans, 1-inch pieces, fresh or frozen
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • chopped fresh parsley, optional, for serving

Instructions
 

  • Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium heat. Once hot, brown the beef in two batches, seasoning each half of the beef with half of the salt and pepper when you add it to the pot. Remove the meat to a clean plate.
  • Add the onion, celery and balsamic vinegar to the pot. Cook until softened, 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Add the garlic, Italian seasoning, dried thyme and tomato paste. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
  • Add the beef broth, diced tomatoes, bay leaf and browned beef plus any juices from the plate to the pot. Stir. Bring the soup to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low so that it maintains a low simmer and cover the pot. Cook at a low simmer for 1 hour.
  • Stir in the potatoes, carrots and green beans. Cover and simmer until the carrots are tender, about 35-45 more minutes, adding the frozen peas during the last 5 minutes of cooking.
  • Remove and discard bay leaf. Taste and add more salt and/or pepper if needed. Serve soup garnished with chopped fresh parsley, if desired.

Notes

  • The soup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen soup overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. Reheat in a covered pot on the stove over medium heat until hot, or heat in the microwave.
Calories: 281kcal, Carbohydrates: 18g, Protein: 30g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 70mg, Sodium: 572mg, Potassium: 1132mg, Fiber: 4g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 4257IU, Vitamin C: 25mg, Calcium: 84mg, Iron: 4mg
Nutrition information is an estimate.
Cuisine: American
Course: Main Course, Soup
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