Our 32 Best Vegetarian Soup Recipes

Oct 14, 2023

Few dishes are as versatile, adaptable, and accessible for vegetarians as soup. From hearty stews laden with pulses, vibrant summer vegetables blended into creamy bowls, or aromatic broths laden with fiery spices, one of our recipes is bound to tantalize your taste buds.

Let's set the record straight: Have you ever believed that soups are exclusively eaten in the winter months? While it's undeniable that there's something comforting and cozy about those dishes, prepare to be pleasantly surprised by the delicate, light, and refreshing qualities a bowl of soup can offer. Furthermore, there's no reason why cooking soup has to be a labor-intensive process. In fact, we'll delve into soups made with numerous cooking methods: traditional one-pot soups, time-saving pressure cooking, resourceful slow cooking, and oven-roasting components to infuse them with a smoky char.

Then there are all the myriad cuisines soups can encompass — Perhaps you prefer authentic Italian soups? How about Moroccan soups laden with parsley and fresh lemon bubbling away on the stovetop? That's not to mention the Asian-fusion recipes, which capitalize on the deep, savory, and umami-rich flavors of miso, soy sauce, and coconut milk, nor the Mexican-inspired soup bowls studded with mixed beans, dotted with sour cream and garnished with slices of creamy avocado.

With such a vast array of options, there's a distantly mouth-watering soup to fulfill every craving. All you need is the perfect recipe. So, if you're seeking dinner inspiration tonight, continue reading.

If you're craving a bowl packed with the vibrant flavors of Mexico, this hearty tortilla soup loaded with protein-rich beans is an ideal nutritious choice for dinner.

The soup base is simple; sweet red peppers, onions, garlic, and punchy jalapeño sautéed in oil until fragrant. The meal comes alive when fire-roasted tomatoes, earthy spices, nutty black beans, and umami-rich broth simmer to infuse those flavors before being topped with zesty cilantro, corn, and lime juice. Garnish it with creamy avocado and crispy tortilla strips for that wow factor.

Recipe: Hearty Vegetarian Tortilla Soup

Do you relate to constantly feeling as if there's not enough time to cook, yet still wanting to serve nourishing, healthy, and tasty meals? With a slow cooker, you can prep this recipe in the morning, and you'll have ready-to-eat steaming hot soup when you come home.

Once you've diced some onions, celery, carrots, and garlic, add them to the slow cooker with a packet of 15-bean soup mix (Yes, 15!), vegetable broth, and plenty of dried herbs for aroma. Finish with fresh spinach and serve with crusty bread.

Recipe: Vegetarian Slow Cooker 15 Bean Soup

There's something special about digging into a bowl of thick, velvety, warm soup on a cold day. This vegetarian soup made from seasonal fall vegetables is all that and more. You only need a few ingredients — onion and leek as aromatics, carrot and butternut squash as natural thickeners, and potato to thicken — in addition to seasonings, and in no time at all, you've got yourself a comforting bowl of goodness.

We recommend serving it with fresh bread (seeded is particularly good) and grated cheese.

Recipe: Fall Vegetable Soup

Why stick to European flavors when you crave a steaming bowl of soup? Traditional Thai tom yum soup is perfect when you need a spicy broth with a real depth of flavor to perk up your mood. Loaded with intense flavors from shiitake mushrooms, lemongrass, fiery chillis, and curry paste, it somehow still manages to strike a flavor balance.

Add chunks of fresh tofu for vital protein and a liberal dash of coconut milk to mellow the spice with a creamy sweetness. Finally, sprinkle over fresh cilantro and a splash of lime.

Recipe: Tofu Tom Yum Soup

If you've never tried pizza soup, you should change that today. This Italian fusion recipe is perfect for vegetarians as it's adaptable — the base recipe includes sweating off onions, garlic, peppers, and mushrooms in olive oil before adding a large can of juicy tomatoes, pizza sauce, and vegetable broth. From there on out, the additions are up to you. We recommend adding loads of spinach, dried oregano, black olives, and plenty of cheese. You could also add vegetarian sausages. Once cooked, mop it up with garlic knots or breadsticks.

Recipe: Best Pizza Soup

Italians knew what they were doing when they first created minestrone soup. This vegetarian recipe is robust and comforting thanks to the warming tomato-pesto broth, rough-chopped vegetables, whole pasta, and white beans. As it's an Italian soup, you can't miss garnishing it with fresh basil leaves or chopped parsley and then mopping the whole thing up with toasted artisan bread.

Minestrone is particularly well suited to meal prep, as it can be made in advance, frozen, and defrosted when needed. Properly stored leftovers last for up to a week in the refrigerator.

Recipe: Hearty Minestrone Soup

It's incredible how something with so few ingredients can taste so sophisticated. Cream of celery soup is perfect for busy nights and beginner chefs.

Begin by sweating off onions, garlic, cubed potatoes, and herby celery stalks in oil before adding vegetable stock for depth of flavor. Blend it to a smooth, ultra-silky consistency, then pour in milk for a boost of creaminess. Finish with crispy croutons and an elegant swirl of cream, and you have a delicately seasoned, visually impressive dinner option.

Recipe: Silky Cream Of Celery Soup

We all love peanut butter — whether it's in a jelly sandwich or used to make homemade fudge cups. But have you ever used peanut butter in soup?

Surprisingly, it's a real stroke of genius, adding rich nuttiness to the soup base and pairing beautifully with vibrant sweet potatoes, earthy cumin, curry powder, bold jalapeños, and creamy coconut milk. Nuts supply essential protein and healthy fats, while handfuls of leafy green kale mixed through is a vitamin powerhouse. To match the Asian flavors, garnish with cilantro leaves, raw peanuts, and chili flakes.

Recipe: Hearty Peanut Butter Soup

Celery is a wholesome yet often overlooked and underutilized vegetable. Make it the star of the show with this nourishing, buttery soup perfect for the instant pot. Cooked under pressure, it's ready in just 12 minutes.

Half the soup is blended while half remains chunky for the optimum creaminess-to-rustic ratio, and it's loaded with freshly cracked black pepper and herby Italian parsley for freshness. To make the flavors of this vegetarian soup sing, add a dash of lemon juice before grabbing a spoon and digging in.

Recipe: Instant Pot Celery Soup

Vegetarian food has an undeservedly harsh reputation for lacking flavor, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Ready to right that wrong is this shiitake mushroom soup, bursting with rich, savory umami from miso paste, meaty mushrooms, and soy sauce. Ginger adds sharpness, baby bok choy contributes a vibrant crunch, and tofu soaks up all that delectable broth.

If you like your meals fiery, add a splash of homemade chili oil, or to round out the flavors, pour in some soy sauce. Finish with fresh scallions and serve alongside rice, if desired.

Recipe: Shiitake Mushroom Soup

Don't relegate soup to only being a winter meal. Contrarily, this vegetarian soup, based on the authentic flavors of Mexican gazpacho, should be your go-to for stifling hot summer days.

There's no cooking involved — simply mix juicy tomatoes with cucumber, red onions, jalapeños, garlic, and zesty cilantro. To make those flavors pop, season with lime zest, piquant vinegar, tomato juice, punchy Tabasco sauce, and vegetarian Worcestershire sauce (regular contains anchovies). Chill the mixture and serve as a refreshing appetizer to a Mexican feast, or light main.

Recipe: Mexican Gazpacho Soup

Forget spinach smoothies: The best way to add extra greens into your diet is undoubtedly this light, fresh, healthy soup brimming with spinach and bright parsley. There's a lot of green here — delicate, mild, and creamy leeks, six whole cups of spinach (we all know how much it shrinks), and plenty of fresh herbs. That's in addition to buttery potatoes to thicken, garlic, and a splash of lemon to add vibrancy.

We recommend serving spinach soup topped with roasted mixed seeds like hemp, pumpkin, and sunflower. Who's getting hungry?

Recipe: Easy Sautéed Spinach Soup

There are a lot of things you can make with a can of chickpeas. Indian chana masala, Middle-Eastern hummus, Moroccan chickpea salad – but if you're in the mood for soul food without making lots of effort, this soup is the way to go.

Imagine hearty chickpeas, nutrient-packed baby kale, orzo, and chunks of fresh vegetables swimming in a thin, wholesome broth infused with bay leaf, fresh thyme, and a secret ingredient: miso. The miso imparts a greater depth of seasoning to this vegetarian soup, the salty umami contrasting beautifully with zesty lemon.

Recipe: Chickpea Orzo Soup

If you've ever eaten in a Japanese restaurant, you've probably become partial to a bowl of warming miso soup. Luckily, there's no need to head out each time a craving hits; you can make this simple vegetarian crowdpleaser at home.

You'll only need a few ingredients, including miso (we recommend white for its subtler flavor) dissolved in balanced vegetable broth; shiitake mushrooms, which supply earthiness; spicy ginger, a dash of salty soy sauce, and soft tofu. Serve miso soup with fresh scallions for lunch or alongside steaming rice for more bite.

Recipe: Simple Miso Soup

Sometimes we crave our childhood favorites. If you're anything like us, that includes a steaming-hot bowl of hearty minestrone soup filled with perfectly al dente pasta, tender beans, fresh greens, and melt-in-your-mouth vegetables.

If you don't have time to stand over the soup pot stirring, consider making it in the slow cooker instead. Except for some rudimentary prep work, there's very little to do; the pasta and beans get added just before serving to avoid overcooking, but the full-bodied taste develops over three hours of long, slow cooking.

Recipe: Slow Cooker Minestrone Soup

Vibrant sweet potatoes take center stage in this luscious vegetarian recipe overflowing with warming spices and mellow sweetness. The method is uncomplicated; add cubed sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, seasonings, vegetable broth, and plenty of creamy coconut milk to a pan. Let it simmer before blending until silky.

Where this recipe glows is the addition of crispy spice-roasted chickpeas as a garnish, which add a delightful crunch and harmonize with the fragrant, robust flavors. We suggest serving it with a drizzle of coconut cream, buttery naan, roti, or steamed basmati rice.

Recipe: Sweet Potato Curry Soup

Cozy, piping hot, and comforting are all words that we associate with soup. If you ask us, there's no recipe that better embodies those descriptors than a classic vegetarian potato and leek soup. The authentic French recipe puts the velvety flavor of leeks at the forefront, perfectly complimented by buttery potatoes, garlic, and rich vegetable broth. It's as simple as can be, only needing a sprig of dried thyme and freshly ground black pepper to finish.

Once puréed until smooth, drizzle over some olive oil and scoop it up with crusty bread.

Recipe: Classic Potato Leek Soup

Is there anything that pairs together better than tomato soup and grilled cheese? This vegetarian soup is unctuous and sweet, with a hint of spice from a tiny pinch of red pepper flakes. We start by frying off soup staples of onions, celery, carrots, and garlic in olive oil, before adding copious amounts of high-quality Italian tomatoes and deep vegetable broth. Purée it until silky, then stir through butter until emulsified for a gorgeous mouthfeel. Add freshly chopped chives to garnish, and serve with a crispy, melty grilled cheese sandwich.

Recipe: Grilled Cheese And Tomato Soup

Ginger wellness shots are all the rage nowadays, but if that's not your thing, you can get your fill of remedial nutrients in a much tastier way: vegetarian carrot ginger soup. Since it demands only a modest number of ingredients, it's well-suited for when your supplies run low.

To draw out the utmost honeyed notes from carrots and onions, we'll gently roast them before finishing the process in a soup pot with copious amounts of minced ginger, seasonings, and vegetable stock. Cooking takes less than 20 minutes, and then it's ready to eat.

Recipe: Carrot Ginger Soup

For centuries, individuals worldwide have relied on split pea soup as an affordable, palatable source of protein. Here, the traditional recipe gets a modern-day makeover. Instead of standing over the soup pot, throw the green split peas, onions, celery, carrots, garlic, potatoes, spices, and dried herbs into a slow cooker. It takes around 7 hours to cook on low — so convenient.

Add lemon on the side and chopped parsley to garnish. We enjoy serving vegetarian split pea soup with wholesome rye bread or a crisp green salad.

Recipe: Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

If you're struggling to find a vegetarian soup recipe that's fulfilling and hearty enough to stand alone as a main dish, we're here to help. This Mexican rice soup is chunky, thick, nourishing, and ideal served with a stack of toasty hot tortillas.

Aside from the rice, the main ingredients in this soup are aromatics, beans (which provide body), fire-roasted tomatoes, and hominy. Simmer for 30 minutes until the rice plumpens and absorbs all those lovely flavors. Don't forget the garnishes — cilantro, avocado slices, red onion, and lime won't go amiss.

Recipe: Mexican Rice Soup

Everyone loves tomato soup, but not everyone knows how to make an exceptional one. The key to success is using the freshest high-quality ingredients, keeping it simple, and extracting as much flavor as possible from those tomatoes.

We roast whole tomatoes with onions, garlic, and olive oil, until blistered and aromatic. The tomato skins will pop right off, ensuring a flawlessly smooth finish when puréed alongside vegetable stock, heavy cream, and plenty of fresh basil. All that's needed to finish is more fresh basil, a drizzle of pesto, or cheesy toasted bread.

Recipe: Roasted Tomato Soup

Sure, you can buy cream of mushroom soup canned from the grocery store. But we can guarantee it won't match the depth of flavor in this sumptuous recipe, which blends traditional European ingredients with umami-crammed Japanese tamari and miso paste.

Two types of mushrooms — classic white and woody dried porcini — contribute meaty earthiness, while marsala wine brings caramelized sweet notes. Adding the richness we expect is abundant butter, garlic, and heavy cream. Reserve some butter-seared mushrooms to serve on top of the bowls for visual effect.

Recipe: Umami-Rich Cream Of Mushroom Soup

There's something about cheesy dishes that always catches our eye. If you're anything like us, you won't be able to resist this broccoli soup laden with sharp, tangy mature cheddar, melt-in-the-mouth broccoli florets, and chunks of sweet carrots, onions, and potato.

If that didn't already sound tempting enough, the creamy soup is ready to be scooped up with crusty bread in less than 30 minutes. It also freezes well, meaning you can grab a pot and heat it in the microwave whenever you need some of that melty, cheesy goodness.

Recipe: Classic Broccoli Cheddar Soup

When you're in the mood for tomato soup with just a little extra oomph, there's only one thing to do: Whip up a batch of this creamy, ambrosian tomato tortellini soup. Utilizing both canned tomatoes, tomato paste, and tomato puree, the intensely sweet flavors of tomato are really at the forefront.

Punctuating the tartness are generous amounts of cream and parmesan cheese. And that's not to mention the tiny tortellini parcels oozing with cheese in each bite. With fresh spinach stirred through, it's a complete meal. Serve with a simple salad.

Recipe: Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup

There's a secret ingredient in this spicy sweet potato soup. It's not curry, cumin, or chili powder (although these are all essential) — it's an apple. This may sound unconventional at first glance, but the naturally sweet tartness of the apple compliments the earthy spices wonderfully and plays on the honeyed notes of sweet potato. Coconut cream and red wine vinegar stirred through at the end add to the complexity at work, mixing nutty creaminess with a punchy tang.

For an added savory touch, sprinkle over everything bagel seasoning and chopped chives.

Recipe: Spicy Sweet Potato Soup

The enduring status of leek and potato soup as a classic is not without reason. When we all start reaching for winter coats and cozying up with blankets, it's undisputedly time to chop up some potatoes, onions, garlic, shallots, and leeks. You'd be hard-pressed to find anything that smells better than those gorgeous aromatics melting into a base.

Uniquely, the buttery smooth texture of this soup derives from creamy coconut milk and a dollop of sour cream when plated. You can also add grated cheddar, as leeks and cheese is always a winning combination.

Recipe: Creamy Potato Leek Soup

Of all the assorted lentils, one variety wins the award for ease of cooking and versatility. Yes, you guessed it: Red lentils. Not only are these pulses affordable and readily available in most grocery stores, but they also thicken wonderfully in less than 20 minutes of cooking, eliminating the need for any thickeners in your soup.

This recipe is perfect for anyone who loves Indian dal but isn't ready for fiery spice. The seasonings used here; cumin powder, smoked paprika, and generous amounts of lemon add a homely warmth.

Recipe: Red Lentil Soup With Lemon

The mild creaminess of black beans marries delightfully with more intense, picante, and fiery seasonings such as a trio of chipotle chilis, adobo sauce, and crushed red pepper flakes. Further amping up the fullness of flavor in this vegetarian soup are sweet bell peppers and smoky paprika.

Perhaps the best part of this recipe is how adaptable it is. You can blend it thoroughly or leave half chunky. You can garnish with cilantro, queso fresco crumbles, or scallions. You can eat it all, or ... On second thought, you'll definitely be eating it all.

Recipe: Spicy Black Bean Soup

Vegetable soup is undeniably mouth-watering, but if you find yourself in a rut, there are many more possibilities than meets the eye. For example, this red pepper soup isn't your typical affair; loaded with extra nutrition from mild zucchinis and intensely acidic sun-dried tomatoes., it's seriously inviting.

Furthermore, another positive: There's no need to turn on the oven to make this vibrant soup since the vegetables are all cooked in one pan, along with vegetable broth and coconut milk. It's easy, quick, and delicious — what more could you ask for?

Recipe: Hearty Red Pepper Soup

As soon as you smell the subtle earthy aroma of roasted butternut squash wafting through your house, you'll know this bowl of soul will be a winner. After roasting, it's blended with gently-fried ginger, shallots, garlic, chili, lemongrass paste, and turmeric powder, along with copious amounts of fresh cilantro, umami-laden soy sauce, creamy coconut milk, and zesty lime juice.

If you haven't found yourself itching to cook this recipe already, picture this: A swirl of crème fraîche, fresh chilis, and a loaf of good seeded bread ready to dip into the robust, aromatic soup.

Recipe: Thai-Style Butternut Squash Soup