Vegetable Beef Soup is made with tender chunks of slowly simmered chuck roast with onions, celery, carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, and green beans. I love to serve this tasty soup with crusty baguettes or cornbread with soft sweet cream butter.
This Vegetable Beef Soup is a wholesome, hearty fall and winter meal that you can feel good about serving your family. Nothing warms the soul like a hot bowl of soup.
Fall is right around the corner, and with it comes all things soup, stew, and chowder. Oh, have I mentioned this is my favorite time of the year? My idea of heaven is an endless fall. If you are like me, then you can not get enough fall recipes.
You are going to really love this slow-cooked hearty Vegetable Beef Soup. I like to make this soup with a slowly simmered chuck roast. It tastes so much better and is more tender than using beef stew meat or sirloin steak. Wholesome fresh vegetables are then added for optimum flavor and nutrition. Prepare to go down memory lane with a soup just as tasty as Grandma used to make.
HOW TO MAKE VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP
Start by browning the chuck roast in a Dutch oven or heavy stock pot right on your stovetop. Then add some beef broth, fresh ground black pepper, and bay leaves. Let it simmer for about 2 1/2 hours or until it is fork-tender.
Meanwhile, in a separate Dutch oven or large pot, heat a little canola oil over medium heat. Now add the onions, celery, and carrots and cook until the onions and celery are tender. Then add the minced garlic, parsley, oregano, marjoram, thyme, and basil. Cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Next, add the remaining beef broth, potatoes, green beans, diced tomatoes, and Worcestershire Sauce. Now spoon in about 1 1/2 cups of the broth that you cooked the chuck roast in, being careful to discard the bay leaves. Simmer until everything is tender.
Remove the chuck roast from the pot and let it cool on a cutting board. Then shred it with two forks discarding the fat and the cartilage. Now add the shredded beef to the pot of soup and warm for a few minutes.
WHAT CUT OF BEEF IS BEST FOR THIS SOUP?
I personally think chuck roast is the best for Vegetable Beef Soup because of its flavor and tenderness. Chuck roast has fat and cartilage, and that is what makes it so tender after it is slowly simmered. However, you can also use beef stew meat or sirloin. Both of those cuts of beef can be cooked in the same Dutch oven as the soup. Simply brown the meat first, then plate it. Then add it back when simmering the vegetables.
You can also use ground beef. Simply brown it first, then plate it. Remove excess fat from the pot before proceeding with the rest of the recipe. Add the cooked ground beef back when simmering the veggies.
RECIPE NOTES AND HELPFUL TIPS
Slowly simmer the chuck roast until fork tender. Do not boil.
Add about 1 1/2 cups of the broth that you cooked the chuck roast in back to the soup. It has a lot of fat in it, so I don’t add the whole thing back. If you have the time for added flavor, refrigerate the broth, skim off the fat, and add it all back to the soup.
If there is a vegetable that you do not like, replace it with something that you do like. For instance, replace the green beans with frozen peas; however, add them about 5 minutes prior to the soup being ready,
Russet potatoes are great for baking and mashing but not for soups. Use Yukon Golds or red potatoes, as they hold up very well in soups and stews.
I like my soup chunky, but if you don’t add more beef broth.
Season with plenty of fresh ground pepper, but go easy on the salt. Even low-sodium beef broth has plenty of sodium in it.
To make it easy, you can substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons of Italian Seasoning for the oregano, marjoram, thyme, and basil.
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop on low so as not to overcook any ingredients or in the microwave at reduced power.
Vegetable Beef Soup freezes well for up to 3 months. See my section on freezing and reheating the soup.
HOW TO FREEZE AND REHEAT SOUP
Step 1: Start by cooling the soup. If hot soup is placed in the freezer, it could potentially warm the freezer and cause other foods to defrost, thereby leaving them vulnerable to bacteria. For a quick cool down, place the pot in an ice bath and stir to cool. However, do not submerge it or allow any of the ice water into the soup pot.
Step 2: Ladle the cooled soup into quart or gallon-size freezer bags. Be sure to mark the bags with the date and the contents. Keep in mind that liquids expand when frozen, so leave about an inch at the top of the bag for expansion. On the flip side, you don’t want it to get freezer-burnt, so remove any excess air.
Step 3: Lay them down in a single layer on cookie sheets in the freezer. Once fully frozen, stack the bags in the freezer to save on space.
Step 4: Thaw in the fridge overnight. Reheat on the stovetop on low so as not to overcook any ingredients or in the microwave at reduced power.
HOW DO YOU ADD FLAVOR TO BEEF SOUP?
Add fresh cracked black pepper, salt, garlic, oregano, marjoram, thyme, and basil. You could also add a little Worcestershire Sauce, soy sauce, tomato sauce, seasoned salt, or even a few pinches of Cajun seasoning.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
- 3–4 lb chuck roast
- 7–8 cups low sodium beef broth
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 2 ribs celery chopped
- 2 carrots peeled and chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes diced
- 1/4 pound green beans trimmed and cut in 1-inch segments
- 1 can (14.5 ounce) petite diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
Step 1: Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of canola oil in a Dutch oven or heavy stockpot over medium to medium-high heat. Add the chuck roast and sear to brown each side. Add about 3 cups of beef broth (or enough to cover it), black pepper, and bay leaves. Simmer for 2 1/2 – 3 hours or until fork tender.
Step 2: After the beef has simmered for about 2 hours, heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a separate Dutch oven or heavy stockpot over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and carrot; cook for 5-7 or until onions and celery are tender. Reduce heat to low and add garlic, parsley, oregano, marjoram, thyme, and basil; cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
Step 4: Add 4 cups beef broth, potatoes, green beans, diced tomatoes, and Worcestershire Sauce. Ladle in 1 1/2 cups of the broth that you cooked the chuck roast in, being careful to discard the bay leaves. Simmer until the vegetables are tender; 20-30 minutes.
Step 5: Remove the chuck roast from the pot and let it cool on a cutting board. Shred it with 2 forks, discarding the fat and the cartilage. Add the shredded beef to the pot and warm for 5 minutes.
