Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup
Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup
This Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup is hearty, flavorful, and filled with sausage, fresh vegetables, tomatoes, Italian seasonings, and optional white beans. It’s an easy pressure cooker soup that makes a warm and satisfying lunch or dinner without spending hours at the stove.
The combination of Italian sausage, zucchini, carrots, sweet onion, garlic, and stewed tomatoes creates such a flavorful broth. Adding white beans makes the soup even heartier, but they’re completely optional.
One of the things I love about this recipe is that it’s packed with vegetables but still feels like comfort food. Serve a big bowl with warm crusty bread, garlic bread, or crackers, and you have an easy meal the whole family can enjoy.
Why You’ll Love This Italian Vegetable Soup
This is one of those simple soup recipes that’s especially nice to have around during fall and winter. The sausage makes it filling, while the zucchini, carrots, tomatoes, and beans add plenty of vegetables to every bowl.
- Easy to make in the Instant Pot
- Loaded with fresh vegetables
- Made with Italian sausage
- Uses simple pantry ingredients
- White beans are optional
- Hearty enough for dinner
- Great for meal prep
- Delicious with crusty bread
- Perfect for chilly fall and winter nights
- Easy to customize with vegetables you have on hand
Ingredients for Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup
Italian Sausage
You’ll need 1/2 pound of sausage. Italian sausage adds plenty of savory flavor to the soup and makes the broth taste like it has been simmering much longer than it actually has.
You can use mild or hot Italian sausage depending on your preference.
Sweet Onion
One large sweet onion is chopped and sautéed after the sausage is browned.
Letting the onion cook until it begins to turn golden adds another layer of flavor to the soup.
Carrots
Four large carrots add color, texture, and a little natural sweetness.
Slice the carrots into relatively even pieces so they cook at the same rate.
Zucchini
You’ll need three zucchini squash cut into bite-size pieces.
Zucchini cooks quickly under pressure, so don’t cut the pieces too small. Larger bite-size chunks will hold their shape better in the finished soup.
Stewed Tomatoes
Use one large can of stewed tomatoes, including the juice.
The tomatoes and their juices create the base of the Italian-style broth and add lots of flavor.
Garlic
A teaspoon of minced garlic adds savory flavor and pairs perfectly with the tomatoes and Italian seasonings.
White Beans
White beans are optional, but they’re a delicious addition if you want a heartier soup.
Cannellini beans, Great Northern beans, or navy beans will all work.
Drain and rinse canned beans before adding them to the Instant Pot.
Chicken Bouillon
One chicken bouillon cube adds extra flavor to the broth.
If you prefer, you can replace the bouillon and water with chicken broth.
Italian Seasonings
Italian seasoning, oregano, garlic salt, seasoned salt, and seasoned pepper give this soup plenty of flavor without requiring a long list of ingredients.
Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup Ingredients
- 1/2 pound Italian sausage
- 1 large sweet onion, chopped
- 4 large carrots, sliced
- 3 zucchini squash, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 large can stewed tomatoes, including juice
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 can white beans, drained and rinsed, optional
- 1 chicken bouillon cube
- 3 cups water
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon ground oregano
- 1 to 2 teaspoons coarse ground garlic salt
- 1 to 2 teaspoons seasoned salt
- 1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
How to Make Italian Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot
Step 1: Brown the Sausage
Turn the Instant Pot to the Sauté setting.
Add the sausage and cook until completely cooked through and nicely browned, breaking it into crumbles as it cooks.
Carefully drain the excess grease from the Instant Pot.
Browning the sausage first is worth the extra few minutes because it creates so much flavor for the soup.
Step 2: Sauté the Onion
Add the chopped sweet onion to the Instant Pot.
Continue cooking on Sauté until the onion has softened and begins to turn golden brown.
Add the minced garlic near the end and stir until fragrant.
Turn off the Sauté setting.
Step 3: Deglaze the Pot
Pour in the 3 cups of water and add the chicken bouillon cube.
Use a wooden spoon to scrape any browned pieces from the bottom of the Instant Pot.
This is an important step because those browned bits contain lots of flavor, and making sure nothing is stuck to the bottom can also help prevent a burn notice.
Step 4: Add the Vegetables
Add the sliced carrots, zucchini, and stewed tomatoes with their juice.
If you’re using white beans, drain and rinse them before adding them to the pot.
Stir everything together.
Step 5: Season the Soup
Add the Italian seasoning, oregano, garlic salt, seasoned salt, and seasoned pepper.
Stir until the seasonings are distributed throughout the soup.
Because sausage, bouillon, garlic salt, and seasoned salt can all contain sodium, you may want to start with the smaller amount of salt and add more after cooking if necessary.
Step 6: Pressure Cook
Place the lid on the Instant Pot and lock it into position.
Set the pressure valve to Sealing.
For more predictable results across Instant Pot models, cook on High Pressure for 4 minutes rather than relying on a preset Soup button.
Remember that the four-minute cooking time begins only after the Instant Pot comes to pressure.
Step 7: Release the Pressure
When the cooking cycle is complete, allow the pressure to release naturally for about 5 minutes.
Carefully turn the valve to Venting to release the remaining pressure, keeping your hands and face away from the steam.
Once the pressure indicator has dropped completely, carefully remove the lid.
Stir the soup well.
Taste and add additional salt or seasoning if needed.
Serve immediately.
Can I Use the Soup Button on the Instant Pot?
Yes, if your Instant Pot has a Soup/Broth preset, you can use it, but preset behavior varies between models.
I prefer specifying a manual pressure-cooking time because it’s easier for readers with different Instant Pot models to reproduce the recipe.
If you use the Soup setting on your particular model, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for that setting.
Can I Use Chicken Broth Instead of Bouillon?
Absolutely.
Replace the 3 cups of water and chicken bouillon cube with approximately 3 cups of chicken broth.
Low-sodium chicken broth is especially helpful because the Italian sausage and seasonings already add salt to the soup.
You can always add more salt after pressure cooking.
What Kind of Sausage Should I Use?
Italian sausage is my favorite for this vegetable soup because the seasonings in the sausage complement the tomatoes and vegetables.
You can use:
- Mild Italian sausage
- Sweet Italian sausage
- Hot Italian sausage
- Turkey Italian sausage
- Chicken Italian sausage
If you’re using sausage links, remove the casings before browning the meat.
What Kind of White Beans Are Best?
Cannellini beans are especially good in Italian-style soups.
They’re creamy and mild and pair beautifully with tomatoes, sausage, and zucchini.
Great Northern beans or navy beans are also good choices.
Since canned beans are already cooked, drain and rinse them before adding them to the soup.
Can I Leave Out the Beans?
Yes.
The white beans are completely optional.
The soup is still hearty and delicious with sausage, carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, and onion.
Leaving them out also makes this a good recipe for families where not everyone likes beans.
Can I Add More Vegetables?
Definitely.
Vegetable soup is one of the easiest recipes to customize according to what you already have in the refrigerator.
Try adding:
- Celery
- Green beans
- Yellow squash
- Bell peppers
- Spinach
- Kale
- Cabbage
- Corn
- Mushrooms
Keep in mind that softer vegetables cook very quickly under pressure.
Spinach and kale are best stirred into the hot soup after pressure cooking rather than cooking them for the entire cycle.
Add Pasta to Make It Even Heartier
If you want to turn this into an Italian vegetable and pasta soup, add a small pasta such as ditalini, small shells, or elbow macaroni.
I recommend cooking the pasta separately and adding it to individual bowls.
Pasta continues absorbing broth as it sits, so storing it separately prevents leftover soup from becoming too thick.
Make It a Minestrone-Style Soup
With just a couple of additions, this recipe can easily take on more of a minestrone flavor.
Add the white beans and stir cooked ditalini or another small pasta into each serving.
You can also add chopped celery and green beans.
Finish each bowl with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
How to Make the Soup Spicy
Use hot Italian sausage instead of mild sausage.
You can also add crushed red pepper flakes with the other seasonings.
Start with about 1/4 teaspoon and add more according to your preference.
What to Serve with Italian Vegetable Soup
A big bowl of this soup is filling enough to serve on its own, but bread makes it even better.
Serve it with:
- Crusty Italian bread
- Garlic bread
- Homemade bread
- Dinner rolls
- Breadsticks
- Crackers
- Grilled cheese
- Caesar salad
- Garden salad
I especially love serving it with thick slices of crusty bread for soaking up the tomato and Italian herb broth.
Add Parmesan Before Serving
Fresh Parmesan is a simple way to finish this soup.
Ladle the hot soup into bowls and sprinkle freshly grated or shredded Parmesan over the top.
The cheese begins melting into the hot broth and adds another layer of savory flavor.
You can also add fresh parsley or basil for a little color.
How to Store Italian Vegetable Soup
Allow leftover soup to cool and transfer it to an airtight container.
Store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days.
The flavors often become even better after the soup has been refrigerated overnight.
How to Reheat Vegetable Soup
Reheat individual portions in the microwave until steaming hot.
For a larger amount, transfer the soup to a saucepan and warm over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through.
If the soup has thickened in the refrigerator, add a small amount of water or chicken broth while reheating.
Can You Freeze Italian Vegetable Soup?
Yes.
This soup freezes well, although zucchini can become softer after freezing and thawing.
Allow the soup to cool completely before transferring it to freezer-safe containers.
Leave a little room at the top of each container for expansion.
Freeze for up to about 3 months for the best quality.
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat until steaming hot.
Recipe Notes
Cut the zucchini into larger bite-size pieces so it doesn’t become too soft during pressure cooking.
Drain excess grease after browning the sausage.
Be sure to scrape the bottom of the Instant Pot after adding the water to remove anything that became stuck during sautéing.
White beans are optional. Cannellini or Great Northern beans work especially well.
You can replace the water and bouillon cube with chicken broth.
Because sausage, bouillon, garlic salt, and seasoned salt contain varying amounts of sodium, start conservatively with the salt and adjust after cooking.
For an even heartier soup, serve it with cooked ditalini or another small pasta.
Easy Italian Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot
This Instant Pot Italian Vegetable Soup is exactly the kind of recipe I love when I want something warm and comforting without making a heavy dinner.
The Italian sausage gives the broth plenty of savory flavor, while carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, onion, and optional white beans make every bowl hearty and satisfying. Italian herbs and garlic bring everything together into a simple soup that tastes like it has been simmering on the stove all afternoon.
And because it’s made in the Instant Pot, most of the cooking happens hands-off.
Serve it steaming hot with crusty bread or crackers, add a little Parmesan on top, and you’ve got an easy bowl of homemade comfort food that’s perfect for a chilly day.
