Step-by-step recipe for classic Italian vegetable soup Minestrone

Minestrone: preparing an Italian mystery according to the rules

Italians are very fond of thick and rich minestrone soup, which is the most popular dish in Italy - just like our borscht.
Interestingly, minestrone in Italian means “big soup” or “soup”, since it contains a huge number of different ingredients. According to tradition, it is boiled in a large saucepan, and then the whole family is invited to the table. Children, parents, grandparents noisily and cheerfully taste a delicious dish, enjoy life and enjoy communication. It’s probably no coincidence that minestrone is called the soup of long-livers, because a good mood at the table contributes to longevity. Minestrone is made from seasonal vegetables that can be found at the market at this time of year, so its composition may vary. It turns out that there are no strict recipes for preparing minestrone, and each housewife can cook it in her own way. It is for this versatility that Italians value their “soup,” which perfectly satisfies hunger and satisfies the refined tastes of gourmets.

How to cook minestrone: choosing vegetables

The most suitable period for preparing this dish is the second half of summer and autumn, when markets and stores are full of vegetables, since vegetables are the main component of minestrone. But this does not mean that you need to give up this dish in winter and spring. No Italian would ever make such sacrifices! Since minestrone is a universal dish, you can use any vegetables, however, this does not mean that you can mix them thoughtlessly. If you follow some rules accepted in Italian cuisine, the taste of the dish will only benefit from this.

Zucchini, eggplant, sweet peppers, green peas, tomatoes, fresh and green beans are suitable for summer-autumn minestrone. Winter and spring soup is cooked with chard beets, dry beans, broccoli, white cabbage, cauliflower and savoy cabbage. Italians add onions, garlic, carrots and celery to the dish all year round. However, taking into account Russian conditions, we can make some changes to the classic minestrone recipe by adding potatoes, pumpkin, zucchini, corn, asparagus, fennel, spinach, lentils and other seasonal vegetables growing in our area to the soup. In winter versions of the soup, you can add regular beets, frozen and canned vegetables, although Italian gourmets are against frozen vegetables. As they say, there is no arguing about tastes!

A few more interesting points. Rarely do any Italian chefs use Brussels sprouts and arugula for minestrone - it is believed that they interrupt the taste and aroma of other vegetables and the soup smells only of Brussels sprouts or arugula. However, if you really love these vegetables, why not add them to minestrone? Chicory, artichokes and radicchio add a bitter taste to the dish and are therefore not usually used.

What to put in minestrone

The advantage of minestrone is that it can be made from almost anything. Initially, it was made from what the housewife had in her kitchen. The main ingredients of the soup, in addition to vegetables, are pasta and beans. But even they can be replaced if desired.

For minestrone you will definitely need:

1 onion;
1–3 carrots;
a few cloves of garlic.

In addition, Italians almost always add 2-3 stalks of celery to their soup.

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Next, choose your vegetables based on the time of year and availability. During the cold season, you can add cabbage, a few beets, frozen broccoli, cauliflower and green beans to the soup. In summer and early autumn, zucchini, zucchini, eggplant, sweet peppers, tomatoes, green peas and pumpkin are suitable for minestrone.

Avoid Brussels sprouts and arugula as they may overpower the flavor of other vegetables.

The most commonly used herbs are spinach, parsley, rosemary, basil and thyme.

Potatoes, legumes (such as beans, chickpeas and lentils), pasta, rice and even barley will make the soup rich.

How to cook minestrone: broth, spices and additives

This light soup is cooked in vegetable, meat or chicken broth. Italians themselves love broth made from pancetta - Italian bacon or ham on the bone. Sometimes a little dry wine is added to the broth for piquancy and refinement of taste.

Spices and seasonings are a mandatory ingredient in minestrone, since without spices the soup will lose its flavor. It may turn out tasty, but it won’t be minestrone. Italians mainly use rosemary, garlic, parsley, basil, thyme, bay leaf, oregano and pesto. To add richness to the soup, different types of legumes, curly durum wheat pasta in the form of butterflies, shells, bows, feathers or spirals and arborio rice, which is usually used for risotto, are added to the soup. Fried meat and ham make the soup more satisfying and appetizing, and grated cheese gives it a tender and thick consistency.

Interestingly, the light version of the soup has its own name - minestrina, as the Italians affectionately call it. This soup, cooked with water or vegetable broth, is wonderfully refreshing on a hot day, especially if served chilled. Meat minestrone is more suitable for cold weather, as it warms well and satisfies hunger for a long time.

Despite the fact that Italian chefs adhere to certain rules for preparing this dish, historically, minestrone was a peasant soup, so everything that was at home was added to it. It was somewhat reminiscent of our solyanka or okroshka.

Some tips on how to make minestrone soup

There are several secrets on how to cook minestrone so that it turns out tasty and appetizing.

Secret 1. Vegetables, cut into cubes, are placed in boiling salted water and cooked until tender, but the pan should not be covered with a lid. The water should be 5 cm above the level of the vegetables. The finished soup is poured into bowls, seasoned with olive oil, allspice and grated cheese. This dietary method of preparing minestrone is suitable for those who are watching their figure.

Secret 2. Vegetables are boiled in the same way as in the first recipe, and then half of them are crushed in a blender, and this puree is added to the soup. In this case, vegetables can be fried or not - it’s all a matter of taste.

Secret 3. Minestrone soup with vegetables fried in olive oil is richer, brighter, butterier and more satisfying. However, vegetables should be fried very slowly, almost simmering - this is exactly what is recommended in the classic minestrone soup recipe. However, given the modern rhythm of life, this is not always possible.

Secret 4. Cereals, pasta and legumes are added to the pan during the cooking process. In this case, beans and dry peas must be boiled in advance.

Secret 5. Minestrone is called the soup of the second day, because it is on the next day that it acquires a special richness. The fact is that vegetables give their aroma to the broth, and it acquires an appetizing taste that cannot be compared with anything.

How to serve minestrone

Minestrone is called a second-day soup because after a few hours it becomes even richer and tastier. But you can serve it on the table immediately after cooking.

In Italy, soup poured into bowls is lightly sprinkled with olive oil, sprinkled with grated Parmesan and garnished with basil leaves. Some people add a little pesto sauce to the finished minestrone.

A few more Italian subtleties

In Italy, there are many different recipes for classic minestrone - for example, in Milan it is prepared with bacon, sage and Parmesan, in some Mediterranean areas with peppers and eggplant, and there are rural areas in Italy where the main ingredient in the soup is turnip. In Tuscany, cooks always add white beans to minestrone, in Sardinia - chickpeas, and in Liguria, pesto sauce is a mandatory addition. Italian minestrone is always very thick, so you can fill up even with one bowl of soup.

Description of preparation:

Thick vegetable stew soup is very popular in Italy.
In different areas of this country it is prepared with different additives. Rice or pasta is added to the soup for thickness and cooked in vegetable or meat broth. Classic Minestrone soup is made from vegetables: the more, the better. In this simple recipe I will tell you how to make classic minestrone. Vegetables for soup are available at any time of the year, but it is still better to prepare the dish during the vegetable season. Purpose: For lunch / For dinner Main ingredient: Vegetables / Legumes / Beans / Peas / Cabbage / Potatoes / Carrots / Zucchini / Cauliflower Dish: Soups / Minestrone Geography of cuisine: Italian / European Diet: Lenten dishes / Vegetarian food

Classic minestrone soup from Liguria

Try making Ligurian-style minestrone to understand why Italians are so fond of this dish. Chop 100g of pancetta into small pieces, which can be replaced with brisket or bacon, and fry in a pan with a little olive oil. Next, chop any seasonal vegetables, such as one carrot, one celery root, one zucchini, onions and leeks, 200 g of green beans, and also chop the beet tops. Add the onion to the pancetta, when it becomes slightly golden, add the carrots and celery to the pan. After 10 minutes of stewing, add all the other vegetables, add water so that it is 3 fingers higher, add salt and cook for an hour. Pour the small curly pasta into the pan and cook for 5-6 minutes until al dente - when the pasta is ready, but not overcooked, maintaining elasticity and a slightly hard core. Some Italian housewives add 2-3 peeled potatoes along with other vegetables, and then simply mash them with a spoon. By the way, bacon is not a necessary ingredient for this recipe. When the minestrone is ready, add 4 tbsp. l. pesto sauce and cool before serving - it will be much tastier!

Minestrone in Genoese style

Another interesting Italian minestrone recipe that your family will certainly enjoy. This is how minestrone is brewed in Genoa, the capital of Liguria. Take a heavy bottom pan and fry a clove of garlic, diced small carrots and onion in a little olive oil, adding some fresh rosemary for flavor.

Next, fill the vegetables with water (about 1.5–2 liters), add 100 g of pre-boiled green beans and diced vegetables - 3 medium-sized potatoes, 50 g pumpkin, 1 zucchini, 100 g savoy cabbage, 1 fennel. Mix the vegetables with 3-4 finely chopped celery stalks and 1 leek (the white part), add the pasta, salt and pepper and cook until tender.

Pour the finished soup into plates, add 1 tbsp to each of them. l. fresh spinach and grated parmesan, drizzle with olive oil and enjoy the exquisite taste of minestrone!

Minestrone soup - classic recipe with broth

Minestrone sounds almost like Italy! You simply must try it. Because in Italian cuisine the recipe for this soup occupies a special place. This nutritious and healthy soup will surely please your loved ones. Let's prepare it according to another classic recipe - this is how it is prepared in one of the most beautiful cities of this Mediterranean country, Genoa.

Ingredients:

meat broth - 400 ml;
carrots - 2 pieces;
bacon - 150 g;
celery stalks - 3 pieces;
zucchini - 1 piece;
sun-dried tomatoes - 300 g (if you don’t have them, then canned tomatoes without skin in tomato sauce will do);
garlic - 3-4 cloves;
bay leaf - 2 pcs;
spinach—50 g;
boiled beans - 50 g;
olive oil - 2 tbsp;
butter - 1 tbsp;
pasta - 100 g;
dried Italian herbs - 2 tbsp;
salt pepper;
Parmesan cheese.

How to cook

Cut carrots, onions, celery stalks, and onions into small cubes.

Chop the garlic cloves.

Place vegetable oil and butter on the bottom of a thick-bottomed pan and turn on the stove. Add the carrots, celery and onion and simmer for about 5 minutes until the onion appears translucent.

Add chopped garlic, simmer for another half a minute.

Fill with broth.

We wait until the broth boils, add the remaining ingredients to it, except pasta, beans and spinach. Cook for 10 minutes over low heat with the lid on.

Now add the pasta (it is better to choose small ones - for example, horns or shells). Cook them until al dente. To determine the time, carefully read the packaging, see how many minutes the manufacturer recommends to cook them after the water boils. We take about 3 minutes from this time. If pasta needs to be cooked for 12 minutes, then cook for 9.

Add spinach, beans, seasonings, salt and pepper.

If the soup resembles to a large extent a stew rather than a soup, then dilute the minestrone with broth or water. But remember that this Italian soup should not be too thin.

Serve in bowls, garnish with grated Parmesan.

Minestrone with chicken breast

Minestrone with chicken, although not an Italian classic, is very popular in modern European cuisine. Children love this soup, so make it for your little gourmets.

Cook chicken breast broth with bay leaf, onion, cloves and peppercorns. For one breast, take about 2 liters of water and let the broth simmer for about 40 minutes, then strain it and cut the chicken into cubes.

Also chop the vegetables into cubes or strips - 1 zucchini, 1 carrot, 1 onion, 2 celery roots, and disassemble half a head of cauliflower or broccoli into inflorescences. In a frying pan, fry the onion with 2 tbsp for a few minutes. l. butter and olive oil, add celery and carrots to it and after 3 minutes - zucchini. When the vegetables have simmered for a few more minutes, add them to the broth along with the chicken pieces and cook for a quarter of an hour.

Pour boiling water over 2 tomatoes, carefully peel them, chop finely and add to the soup along with cauliflower, add 100 g of fresh or frozen green peas and 150 g of small pasta. Cook the minestrone for another 7 minutes until the pasta is ready, season the dish with dry herbs, such as dill, parsley and basil, and let it brew.

Serve the flavorful minestrone with fresh herbs, grated Parmesan and fresh minced garlic.

Minestrone soup recipes

Despite the multiplicity of recipes and soup options, there are general principles that are always taken into account by chefs who take on the preparation of Minestrone. Firstly, all products are cut very finely. Secondly, they are fried in olive oil. Of course, this is an Italian dish, and this oil is traditional for Italy.

Well, cutting into small pieces allows the products to be thoroughly saturated with oil. Now that you have a general idea of what Minestrone is, you can move on to practice. So, the minestrone soup dish is a classic recipe in three versions.

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The easiest preparation

First of all, you need to prepare the necessary set of ingredients:

onion – 1 large piece;
carrots – 1 large;
zucchini - one young one;
sweet pepper – 1 piece ;
tomato – large 1 piece ;
green peas – about 100-150 g ;
potatoes - a couple of large tubers;
garlic - one or two cloves;
celery – 1 root;
pasta (preferably small in size) – 1-2 handfuls;
olive oil – about 50 ml ;
Water – approximately one and a half liters;
cheese (preferably Parmesan) – 100 g ;
salt, pepper, seasonings to your taste.

As already noted, all components must be crushed. The smaller the pieces, the better.

The preparation is complete, you can begin the process:

Add oil to a preheated deep frying pan and fry the onion until transparent. Add carrots there, stir and continue frying;
Next add bell pepper and celery. Mix and fry again;
It was the turn of the zucchini. A young zucchini will certainly give juice. You can cover the pan with a lid and let the vegetables simmer for about twenty minutes;
The potatoes can be fried separately or added to the vegetable mixture. And simmer everything together, remembering to stir carefully so as not to burn. Lastly add green peas and tomato;
Now you can move all the prepared vegetables into a saucepan of the appropriate size, then add hot broth or water. The amount of liquid is determined by your preference. If you like it thicker, you can add less liquid;
There was some pasta left. Their quantity is a matter of taste;
Now you need to bring the soup to a boil over low heat and cook until the pasta is ready;
the final touch is salt, allspice, herbs according to your preferences.

You can, of course, serve it right away, sprinkled with grated Parmesan already on the plate. But if you let the soup brew, it will taste even better. Fragrant fresh herbs (parsley, dill, basil will not be superfluous, but will give the dish a unique aroma).

Minestrone with bacon

As already noted, there is no single, generally accepted recipe for the dish. And if the first option is simply vegetable, we will add our own “zest” to this one - bacon, which we will add to the already familiar ingredients. The main thing in cooking technology is fine cutting.

So let's get started:

cut into small pieces: onion, carrot, potato, bell pepper, zucchini, garlic, tomato, celery stalk;
fry all this sequentially in vegetable oil;
Fry finely chopped bacon (about two hundred grams) in a separate frying pan and add to the soup at the very end of cooking.
and don’t forget about the green stuff (dill, parsley, green onions – whatever you like best).

Tomato minestrone Bolzano style

This soup, according to the recipe of the residents of Bolzano, is incredibly nourishing, appetizing and tasty. Fry 100 g of ground beef in 1 tbsp. l. olive oil with finely chopped onion and 2 cloves of garlic. Add diced carrots and half a celery root to the minced meat, fry a little more and add 2 tbsp. l. tomato paste, and then pour 2 liters of meat broth over the meat and vegetables, add 1 tbsp for sophistication. l. dry white wine and cook the minestrone for 15 minutes. Pour 200 g of any curly pasta into the pan and continue cooking until it is ready. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with a sprig of basil and sprinkle with grated Parmesan.

Ingredients:

Potatoes – 200 grams
Cauliflower – 200 grams
Carrots – 200 grams
Zucchini - 2 pieces (young and small)
Onion – 1 piece
Celery – 100 grams (stem)
Fresh spinach – 50 grams
Green peas – 50 grams
Boiled beans - 50 grams
Tomatoes – 100-150 grams
Garlic – 1 clove
Parsley - 10 grams (several sprigs)
Basil – 10 Grams
Olive oil - 2 tbsp. spoons
Salt - 1 teaspoon (to taste)

Number of servings: 4

Minestrone with products from “Eat at Home”

On the website “Eating at Home!” you will find a recipe for minestrone with rice from Yulia Vysotskaya and many other interesting variations of this Italian soup. There are very unusual recipes with omelet, mushrooms, fish, seafood, lard, pearl barley, nuts and fruits. And the most delicious minestrone will be the one you prepared yourself for your beloved family. If you don't have fresh vegetables on hand, you can very easily replace them with frozen mixed vegetables. Make minestrone more often, because this soup is eaten so quickly!