Best Pasta Fagioli Recipe
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The Best Pasta Fagioli Soup recipe – WAY better than Olive Garden! Easy to make on the stove, crockpot or instant pot. Secretly healthy too!
This post was originally shared in January of 2019 but has since been updated.
If you’re looking for a cozy, delicious meal that’s budget friendly- you’ll definitely love this Pasta Fagioli!
With over 250 5-star reviews, it’s the ultimate comfort food: thick, hearty, and loaded with beans, pasta, a rich tomato base, and a blend of spices —way better than anything from Olive Garden.
This one pot meatless soup is simple, super flavorful, and filling! Proof you don’t need a ton of ingredients to make something delicious.
If you want other cozy meals check out Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup, Meatball Soup, or 15 Bean Soup!
Liz’s Tips for Making the Best Soup
- Cut your veggies ahead of time – You can keep them in the fridge for 24 hours so all you need to do is cook! I also use my food processor to make chopping carrots, onions, and garlic SO quick.
- Use canned beans to save time – I try to find ones that are low sodium and always rinse/drain them.
- If using dried beans, make sure to cook them ahead of time – Store in a container in your refrigerator until you’re ready to cook.
- Add a parmesan cheese rind – You can find these in the cheese section in most stores. They add so much flavor to soups!
Ingredients
Substitutions
Olive Oil: Use a good quality oil. If you don’t have olive oil, sub avocado oil or melted butter.
Onion/Garlic: I haven’t tried making this recipe without onion/garlic. It adds a lot of flavor, so I wouldn’t omit them. You can sub onion powder and garlic powder if you don’t have fresh. Use 1 teaspoon of onion powder and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder.
Beans: I usually use cooked canned cannellini beans (with no or low salt) to save time. You can cook your own, or sub with navy beans or great northern beans. Make sure to drain and rinse off canned beans.
Dried Beans: If you’d like to use dried beans in this recipe, cook them before adding them to the soup. You’ll need about 1.5 cups of cooked beans.
Dried Herbs: Substitute 2 tablespoons of fresh herbs for each 1 teaspoon of dried herbs.
Pasta: You can use any small pasta. Ditalini are my favorite. You can also use elbows, baby shells, or any shorter, small pasta.
Tomato Sauce: You want to use canned tomato sauce, not pasta sauce.
Broth: Any broth or stock (broth and stock are the same) can be used in any soup recipe. Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, or vegetable broth all work interchangeably. I always use low or no salt broth.
Adding meat: If you’re not vegan, you can sauté bacon or pancetta when sautéing your veggies. It does add flavor, but I honestly prefer it without. Additionally – you can add cooked ground turkey or beef to this soup and it would be delicious! Cooked shredded chicken or even chopped rotisserie chicken is delicious in this recipe too.
Spinach or extra veggies: Chopped spinach is a great addition to this recipe, I add it right before serving!
Low Sodium: Canned tomatoes, broth, and canned beans all typically have high levels of sodium. Look for no or low sodium. Feel free to add salt to taste as needed.
Extra Flavor: You could also add a parmesan cheese rind to the soup as it cooks. Parmesan cheese rinds add extra flavor! Remove it at the end like you would a bay leaf.
How to make Pasta Fagioli
Making pasta fagioli is SUPER simple. You just need to do a little bit of work to chop your veggies, but a food processor can make this *so speedy*.
- Sauté your veggies.
- Add your spices + broth.
- Stir in your cooked beans + raw pasta.
- Bring to a boil and cook it until it’s al dente!
There are instructions for making pasta fagioli in the instant pot and in the slow cooker included in the recipe below.
All are equally as simple – and the instant pot is the fastest way to make this healthy pasta fagioli.
Can you make this in the crockpot?
Yes, you can make pasta fagioli in the crockpot, but I would really recommend making it on the stovetop. It’s super quick! When you cook pasta in the crockpot, it is hard to time it correctly; it can either be al dente, or mushy!
If you are making pasta fagioli in the crockpot, add your pasta during the last hour of cooking to avoid the pasta from getting too mushy.
Can you make This in the instant pot?
Yes, you can make pasta e fagioli in the instant pot! See below for instructions. Here are some tips for making pasta fagioli in your instant pot:
Be aware of the order of the ingredients. Tomato sauces tend to trigger a burn warning in the instant pot.
This was tested with regular macaroni. I would highly recommend a short cut like Ditalini or Macaroni.
Very important note on the pasta – I would warn against using pastas with cook times lower than Ditalini or Macaroni because that could result in over cooking. Similarly, a thicker one requiring more time would undercook. Stick to pastas that cook in the 7-9 minute range for this one!
What is pasta fagioli?
Pasta fagioli is a traditional Italian soup/stew made with beans and pasta. It originated as a ‘peasant dish’ because it’s made with inexpensive ingredients.
Depending on the region of Italy you’re from, it can be thick like stew or thinner. Some people add meat to it, while others keep it vegetarian.
No matter how you make it, it’s delicious. And if you were wondering: how do you pronounce pasta fagioli soup – there are a few ways you can say it
- fah- zool (rhymes with school )
- fah- jole (rhymes with soul)
If you love healthy Italian recipes, try our Chicken Cacciatore.
What do you eat with this soup?
Pasta e fagioli is meant to be very thick! You should almost be able to eat it with a fork! If you prefer it soupier, just add more broth when it’s done cooking, or cook your pasta in a separate pot.
Pasta fagioli is best served with:
- a big piece of crusty bread
- lots of grated parmesan cheese on top!
- Fresh basil and cracked black pepper also add a lot of flavor!
- with a salad, this honey mustard chicken salad is delicious!
Storing and Freezing
Refrigerator: This Vegetarian Pasta Fagioli will last in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The pasta will absorb some of the broth, so you can add more broth to make the soup thinner when reheating.
Freezing: You can freeze this soup, but it isn’t as good once it has been frozen. The pasta can get a little mushy – but it’s still totally edible! I love these containers for freezing soup. For all my freezing tips, check out my post on How To Freeze Soup.
Reheating: You can reheat it in the crockpot, microwave, or on the stove. The pasta will absorb some of the liquid overnight so you can just add some broth when reheating or enjoy it thicker.
Pasta Fagioli Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 cup quartered carrots
- 2 15 oz cans cooked cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
- 1 dried bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup dry ditalini pasta
Instructions
Stove Top Instructions
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
- Sauté the onions, garlic, and carrots for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent and softened.
- Add beans, tomato sauce, basil, parsley, oregano, black pepper, red pepper, vegetable broth, and water to the pot. Stir together.
- Cover the pot and turn the heat to high. Bring the soup to a boil. Stir occasionally to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. The soup should take about 10 minutes to come to a boil.
- Once the soup reaches a boil, remove the lid and reduce the heat to medium.
- Add dry pasta and stir together. Cook over medium heat for half the recommended cooking time on the package (cook time will vary depending on the pasta shape you use).
- Important: you must undercook the pasta!
- Discard the bay leaf before serving.
Instant Pot Instructions
- Important: This recipe is best when made on the stovetop. The pasta can easily get overcooked in the instant pot.
- Set your Instant Pot to Sauté for 8 minutes. heat olive oil over medium heat for 3 minutes or until oil starts to shimmer. Sauté onions, garlic and carrots in olive oil for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent and softened.
- While veggies cook, drain + rinse beans.
- Make sure to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the instant pot to avoid a burn notice. Add in the pasta, beans, seasonings, water and broth to the pot. Pour the tomatoes on top. Do not stir it.
- Set the instant pot to Sealing. Cook on High Pressure for 2 minutes. Once the soup and do a quick release once the soup has cooked.
- Once the soup has cooked, do a quick release. Discard bay leaf. Stir + enjoy!
- Optional but recommended: You can cook your pasta on the side to avoid it being over cooked. Depending on the pasta size, this can easily over cook in the instant pot.
Crockpot Instructions
- Important: This recipe is best when made on the stovetop. The pasta can easily get overcooked in the crockpot.
- In a large pot on the stove, heat olive oil over medium heat for 3 minutes or until oil starts to shimmer. Sauté onions, garlic and carrots in olive oil for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent and softened.Add to crockpot base.
- While veggies cook, drain + rinse beans.
- Add tomato sauce, spices, stock, water and beans to the crockpot base. Do not add pasta! Stir until combined and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
- The last hour of cooking, add your raw pasta to the crockpot. Stir to combine. Cover and cook for the remaining hour. You can also cook your pasta in a separate pot and stir it in the soup.
- Important: you should undercook the pasta. Once you remove the crockpot from the heat the pasta will continue to cook and absorb the broth. Feel free to add more broth to your liking if soup becomes too thick.
- When ready to eat, discard bay leaf. Serve + enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Cut your veggies ahead of time -You can keep them in the fridge for 24 hours so all you need to do is cook! I also use my food processor to make chopping carrots, onions + garlic SO quick.
- Use canned beans to save time: I try to find ones that are low sodium and always rinse/drain them.
- Add a parmesan cheese rind– You can find these in the cheese section in most stores. They add so much flavor to soups!
- This is best cooked on the stovetop! The past can easily overcook in the instant pot or crockpot.
Soooooo good! Healthy, but yummy.
Best soup recipe ever and tasted better than a restaurant!
I absolutely Love this recipe! Very simple ingredients, easy and quick to make. I’ve tried one recipe out there with the addition of Kale and this one is sooo much better. Simplicity brings out the true authentic Italia cooking style. Thank you for posting this recipe, I’m making it again today 🙂
Excellent..
Similar to our family recipe.
It was perfect.
Thank you.
Great taste, so easy to make, and healthy! This will certainly get added to our meal rotation!!
This soup reminds me of a favorite from a local Italian restaurant that has since closed. It is so easy to make and delicious! Sprinkle parmigiana cheese on top! Freezes well too.
Winner! So yummy and perfect for a chilly fall evening at home. Not a bean fan so subbed in ground turkey for a protein punch and gotta say we are fans! My daughter loved the flavor and pretty much finished it all. Will definitely make again!
Made this recipe the other night! It is super delicious and easy to make!!! This will be a new staple recipe in my house!
One of our new favorite recipes! We add a little extra spice for additional heat, spicy sausage + spinach. Make this, you won’t be disappointed
This was so easy to make and absolutely delicious!!! I’ll definitely be making it again!
So easy and so delicious! I will definitely make this again….
Delicious! I added fresh basil and parsley as a topper, along with some parmesan cheese. So yummy!
Delish!! That’s all
Very delicious! My family loved it. Only thing I was confused about was, the recipe calls for tomato sauce but the video shows crushed tomatoes. So I added both.
This was delicious! What a great dinner! A definite make again!
I’m trying this with homemade noodles, so I am assuming just putting in the noodles at the last moment for a couple of min. then removing from fire. Hoping for the best! LOL… Smells amazing though!
Did anyone else’s gram blend the sauce and beans before adding the pasta? Sneaking some nutrition in to the kids? 😂
I don’t know why I waited so long to make this recipe!!! It’s delicious and so easy to put together. I’m excited to try it for work lunches because I have a feeling it will be better next day. Thanks for another great recipe!!
This was so good that I ate so much of it tonight, that I felt nauseous, lol!! I could not put it down!!
I followed this exactly, minus a few tiny things – used chicken broth instead of veggie stock, 2 beef cubes + 2 cups of water instead of just water, and added a bunch of kale just because I love the nutrients and texture, and didn’t drain the beans because my mom likes a “thicker” soup.
I HATE when people write about how they changed a recipe, but my “changes” were so minute, that I doubt it changed much. I just wanted to write though, that this was absolutely fantastic!! I have made pasta e fagioli quite a few times in the past, and I feel like I always do more to it than I should, and the simplicity is lost..
This is the best, most flavorful, hearty, comforting recipe I have used. The spice measurements were perfect and the tomato sauce to broth ratio was spot on. I will never use another recipe. My mom loved it too. This will be going into my rotation.
Oh! One last thing, I am so weird when it comes to pasta texture, so I didn’t mix the pasta and broth, served it separately so it didn’t bloat.. tomorrow I will be using all of the left over broth to make a tortellini soup. I bet I could even cook up some linguine and make an Italian ramen like dish, lol! I am Italian, so please don’t hate me for that comment!
Thank you so much! I rarely comment on recipes, but I just had to this time.
I made your Pasta Fagioli soup tonite for dinner. I did substitute with chicken broth & added Italian sausage. My husband & I both loved it!!
Fantastic!!
I made your Pasta Fagiole tonite for dinner….it was fantastic!!
Delish!!!
Delicious soup and so easy to make! Used a mix of cannellini and kidney beans. Otherwise, followed the recipe and it was so hearty!!
So delicious!! Added it to the cookbook!
I made this last night for our bday dinner for our neighbor Miss Judy . This is the BEST recipe for pasta fagioli by far. Everyone absolutely loved it. Will be making this again and again in the future ❤️🧡💛💚🩵💙💜🩷🤍🩶