Pasta Fagioli Recipe

The Best Pasta Fagioli Soup recipe that is better than Olive Garden! Healthy, vegetarian & easy to make on the stove, crockpot or instant pot

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Total Time35

Servings: 2 cup servings

Calories: 337kcal

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.

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.

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!

Liz's Helpful Tips:

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.