When I think of a healthy dish, vegetable minestrone is the recipe that comes to mind immediately. Minestrone, the great classic of Italian tables, is a recipe capable of changing appearance according to the season. Served cold in summer and warm in winter, minestrone changes its “clothing” wearing the scents and colors of the vegetables that the garden offers.
Today I intend to offer a winter version, excellent to be enjoyed hot and steaming. This minestrone soup, just like the potato soup or the tomato soup, will surely be able to warm you when the weather forces you to take refuge in front of the fireplace.
The preparation of this healthy minestrone is simple and fast due to the vegetables already cut and frozen. Therefore, you avoid a long and laborious path, of cleaning and cutting the ingredients that compose the minestrone. I guarantee, however, that it is really worth taking the time to taste this simple first course of vegetables because it is a recipe capable of combining goodness and authenticity. Make way for vegetables in the kitchen because today we prepare a delicious vegetable soup!
Before moving on to the recipe, a little consideration for this recipe: minestrone is a real exercise of the imagination. Once the basic recipe has been acquired, you can play with the ingredients in order to create a personalized and unique dish.
Ingredients for minestrone
Which are the ingredients for the fast & healthy minestrone? Simply vegetables, water, olive oil, and salt. There is nothing lighter in the Mediterranean diet.
The minestrone can be enriched if desired with legumes and someone also adds cereals to transform it into a full-fledged soup, a real main dish. There is no better comfort food for healthy food lovers.
- 2 medium potatoes
- 1 carrot
- 1 small/medium onion
- 30 grams of celery ribs
- 200 grams of cauliflower
- 150 grams of beans
- 100 grams of pasta
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- Salt as needed
- 100 grams of tomato sauce or passata
- parmesan to taste
Of course, minestrone made out of fresh vegetables is a better option if compared to frozen vegetables. However, frozen vegetable minestrone can be an excellent solution when you have limited time. Nonetheless, when you have time on your side, try to make one minestrone by cutting all the vegetables. You will surely notice the difference.
How to cook minestrone in instant pot?
Peel the onion and carrots. Chop the vegetables of the same size. The vegetables must all be cut in the same way so as to allow homogeneous cooking;
It is always essential to choose seasonal vegetables so as to get the most out of your soup: in winter, zucchini and peppers are certainly not appropriate as cabbage is not appropriate in summer.
Fry the chopped onion, carrots and celery and then, when the onion has become golden, add all the other vegetables except for the tomatoes;
Pour 1.5 liters of lightly salted water, and let it cook for about 30 minutes on the “soup” regime stirring occasionally. If necessary, add slightly lukewarm water; Also, make sure that the vegetables are not submerged and float but still remain compact. Add the pasta to cook for the necessary time according to the package instructions.
At the end of cooking add the tomato or tomato puree in quantities to taste. Salt if necessary.
To thicken the minestrone, take a quarter of the minestrone and whisk it, then put it back in the pan and cook for another 5 minutes. To avoid the minestrone coming out too dense, remember to add water as the cooking goes on.
How to serve Minestrone?
Serve hot on its own. You should absolutely add Parmesan on top of it. Serve with bread or croutons.
A good minestrone is better the day after preparation than the day it is prepared. For this reason, it is a good idea to prepare it the evening before for lunch the next day or, why not, also for dinner. If you opt for this solution, heat it for a few minutes on a low flame and possibly without adding too much water at this stage.
It is possible to store the minestrone directly in the cooking pot or in a hermetically sealed container, always in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
If you want to freeze the soup, use an airtight container and freeze the product only when it is completely cold. You can consume it within 4 weeks, leaving it to thaw directly on the stove over low heat to prevent it from filling with water.
I can conclude saying that very often the vegetable minestrone is seen as a sad and depressing dish. However, minestrone represents the opportunity to eat a lot of vegetables at once.
The more you put in, the better. So with some grated parmesan on top and a couple of croutons, minestrone becomes also an appetizing yet healthy dish.
If you are looking for more complex soups with a more piquant taste you may also consider the cheese soup or the seafood soup with tomatoes. Bon appetite!
BASIC & COMFORTING INSTANT POT MINESTRONE
Equipment
- instant pot
Ingredients
- 2 medium potatoes
- 1 medium carrot
- 1 medium onion
- 30 g celery ribs
- 200 g cauliflower
- 150 g beans
- 100 g pasta
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 100 g tomato sauce
- 50 g parmesan
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Peel the onion and carrots. Chop the vegetables of the same size
- Fry the chopped onion, carrots and celery until the onion becomes golden
- Add all the other vegetables (fresh or frozen) except for the tomatoes
- Pour 1.5 liter of lightly salted water, and let it cook for about 30 minutes on the “soup” regime. Stir occasionally
- Add the pasta and let it cook for the time indicated on the package
- Finaly add the tomato or tomato puree
- Add water if too thik
- Press the "off" button and open lid
