Features of the preparation of Italian soup. TOP 5 minestrone recipes that are most popular. How to serve a dish correctly?
Minestrone is a traditional Italian dish. It is also often called the village soup. In Italy, it is no less popular than pasta, risotto or pizza.
Features of cooking minestrone
Minestrone is known all over the world as a soup that, thanks to its rich broth, has a very thick consistency. Moreover, there should not be a lot of broth. Unlike other soups, it should be boiled in a little water, and vegetables should be stewed rather than boiled in it.
Minestrone can also be made closer to regular vegetable soup and boiled simply in water, then it will turn out to be more liquid. In this case, vegetables do not need to be boiled. The cooking process will accordingly take less time.
This soup is famous for its abundance of seasonal vegetables, and the more the better. For cooking, they use: potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, onions and cabbage of various types, celery, zucchini, bell peppers and eggplants.
The secret of cooking minestrone is that the vegetables in this soup should be stewed well. In their consistency, they should be like mashed potatoes.
Thanks to the combination of a large amount of vegetables and a puree-like consistency, the minestrone soup turns out to be incredibly fragrant, tender and just melting in the mouth.
Pasta or some kind of cereal is added to the dish. Most often rice. Almost every region of Italy has its own special recipe and secret ingredient that is added during cooking. It can be some kind of spice or a certain combination of vegetables.
For the preparation of this soup, as a rule, a large volumetric saucepan is used, since there will be a lot of ingredients. Cut vegetables into very small pieces. Beforehand, you can fry them a little in olive oil. This will give them a special flavor and speed up the process of making the soup itself.
Minestrone takes much longer to cook than any other soup, since the vegetables in this case should be almost completely boiled.
You need to cook the dish over low heat. You can speed up the process if you boil some of the vegetables a little, remove from the pan and beat with a blender. But in this case, the main thing is not to overdo it. Do not beat the vegetables until a homogeneous consistency, let the pieces remain, not completely ground.
If earlier minestrone was a purely vegetable soup, now housewives add meat to it. This can be chicken breast, bacon, or other meats. This will not spoil the soup at all, but on the contrary will further emphasize its incredible taste.
The main secrets of making minestrone soup:
- Don't be afraid to overdo it with the amount and combination of vegetables. Previously, this soup was considered a meal for the poor. Vegetables were added to it, which were literally at hand.
- Minestrone should be quite thick, even a little puree. You can add a little more water to it and it will be thinner.
- To speed up the cooking process, you can take out some of the vegetables and beat them in a blender for a couple of minutes. They do not have to be all of the same consistency.
- You should not add special pressed seasonings in cubes to the broth. Due to the large number of different vegetables, the soup will be very fragrant anyway.
- Minestrone will cook faster if the vegetables are cut into small pieces. They should be partly even boiled.
- For Italian soup, use only fresh, seasonal vegetables. Frozen ones will spoil the taste of the dish. Only green peas can be used from frozen vegetables.
- Do not use canned beans or vegetables for cooking.
- The soup can be cooked not only in vegetable, but also in meat broth.
Note! Minestrone should not be stored for more than 4 days.
TOP 5 minestrone soup recipes
We bring to your attention the most popular minestrone recipes - TOP-5 delicious dishes. It is believed that the Italian soup should be well infused and its true taste appears only on the second day. It can be served hot or cold.
Classic italian minestrone
The classic Italian minestrone is a rather relative concept. It is different in almost every region of Italy, and every housewife has her own special recipe. The cooking technology is practically the same, only the ingredients change.
- Caloric content per 100 g - 69 kcal.
- Servings - 2
- Cooking time - 2, 5 hours
Ingredients:
- Water - 700 ml
- Cauliflower - 400 g
- Tomatoes - 350 g
- Potatoes - 330 g
- Pumpkin - 250 g
- Fresh beans - 200 g
- Green peas - 200 g
- Leeks - 150 g, onions - 80 g
- Smoked pancetta - 110 g
- Zucchini - 100 g
- Celery - 60 g
- Carrots - 80 g
- Olive oil - 60 g
- Rosemary - 6 g, parsley - 1 bunch, garlic - 1 clove
- Ground black pepper, salt, nutmeg - to taste, bay leaf - 2 pcs.
Step by step preparation of the classic Italian minestrone:
- First you need to prepare the vegetables. They must be rinsed under running water, then cut into small cubes. Tie the bay leaf and rosemary with a thread. This is done so that after cooking they can be reached, since there should be no leaves in the soup when serving.
- We take a sufficiently large and deep saucepan. Pour olive oil on the bottom. Approximately 2 tablespoons. Also put celery, onions and carrots on the bottom of the pan. Fry for 7 minutes, until golden brown.
- Then add finely chopped garlic, pancetta and leeks to the pan. Fill with a glass of water and cook over low heat for 5-7 minutes.
- Next, according to the classic minestrone recipe, add pumpkin and beans and leave for another 5 minutes.
- Finally, add cauliflower, potatoes and zucchini. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix all vegetables thoroughly and add water. The amount of water depends on how thick you want the soup. Cook for about 10-15 minutes.
- Next, add green peas and about half a glass of water. Cover with a lid and cook over low heat for about 40 minutes.
- We take out the bay leaf and rosemary. Add some more fresh herbs and cook for another 10 minutes.
- Before serving, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to the soup and mix everything well.
- Pour into deep bowls, sprinkle with cheese and serve.
Spring minestrone with asparagus
Another option for making Italian minestrone soup is with asparagus and seasonal spring vegetables.
Ingredients:
- Water - 2 l
- Bacon - 6 slices
- Asparagus (green) - to taste
- Green peas - 1 tbsp
- Carrots - 4 pcs.
- Zucchini - 1 pc.
- Onion - 1 pc.
- Tomato - 2 pcs.
- Garlic - 3 cloves
- Basil - 1 pc.
- Grated Parmesan - to taste
- Pasta - 150 g
- Olive oil - 3 tablespoons
- Salt, pepper - to taste
Step by step preparation of spring minestrone with asparagus:
- Prepare your vegetables. They must be rinsed well under running water and cut into small pieces.
- Next, you need to take a large deep saucepan, pour a couple of tablespoons of olive oil on the bottom, put the bacon and fry for 3 minutes.
- According to the recipe for minestrone soup with asparagus, add the onion and garlic, stir well and leave on the stove for 5 minutes.
- Then add the zucchini and carrots and leave on the stove for 3-5 minutes. Vegetables should be soft.
- Then add herbs, asparagus and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour 1.5 liters of water into a saucepan and cook for 10 minutes over medium heat.
- Next, add the green peas and pour out the rest of the water. Leave on the stove for 15-20 minutes. The water should boil.
- Then add a thin paste and cook for another 5-7 minutes.
- Remove the soup from the stove and add the finely chopped basil leaves. Leave it to sit for 5-10 minutes. Then pour into plates, garnish with grated cheese and serve.
Minestrone with lentils
Minestrone with lentils is a fairly light, but at the same time hearty vegetable soup.
Ingredients:
- Red onion - 1 pc.
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Bulgarian pepper - 1 pc.
- Zucchini - 1 pc.
- Green lentils - 50 g
- Tomato - 1 pc.
- Potatoes - 1-2 pcs.
- Green peas - 1/2 tbsp
- Olive oil - 3 tablespoons
- Garlic - 2 cloves
- Thyme - a few twigs
- Basil leaves - to taste
Step by step cooking lentil minestrone:
- First you need to cook the lentils. To do this, rinse it and fill it with cold water for 10 minutes. Then boil, maintaining a ratio of 1 to 2 (1 glass of lentils to 2 glasses of water). Cook for 10-15 minutes.
- At this time, you need to prepare vegetables. Cut them into small cubes. Grate garlic, onions and carrots on a fine grater.
- Add a few tablespoons of olive oil to the bottom of a deep saucepan. We spread the onions and carrots and leave for 3-5 minutes. Then add the pepper and zucchini and leave for another 5 minutes. Then add the tomato, mix everything well and leave for another 5 minutes.
- Pour 1.5 liters of water, add potatoes and already cooked lentils. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook over medium heat for 15-20 minutes. The water should boil.
- Then add green peas and garlic and cook for another 5-7 minutes.
- At this time, chop the basil and thyme. Remove the pan from the stove, add the herbs and cover. We leave for 10 minutes.
- Then pour into plates and serve. You can add grated cheese.
Quick minestrone with pesto sauce
Minestrone soup is often served with Italian pesto. It is easy to prepare and gives the dish a delicate fresh taste.
Ingredients:
- Broccoli - 300 g
- Zucchini - 1 pc.
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Bulgarian pepper - 1 pc.
- Green peas - 1/2 tbsp
- Beans - 1/2 tbsp.
- Onions - 1 pc.
- Garlic - 3 cloves
- Celery (stems) - 2 pcs.
- Water - 2 l
- Tomatoes - 2 pcs.
- Cauliflower - 300 g
- Basil - 1 bunch (for the sauce)
- Olive oil - 4 tablespoons (for the sauce)
- Parmesan - 100 g (for the sauce)
- Roasted pine nuts - 2 tablespoons (for the sauce)
- Garlic - 2 cloves (for the sauce)
- Salt, pepper - to taste (for the sauce)
How to prepare a quick minestrone with pesto sauce step by step:
- First you need to make the pesto sauce. To do this, put all the ingredients in a blender bowl and beat, gradually adding a little olive oil. Then transfer it to a small bowl, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 10-15 minutes.
- Before preparing the minestrone, finely chop the onion and garlic and fry in olive oil until golden brown.
- At this time, you need to cut the vegetables into small pieces and add all the vegetables except the tomato to the pan. Cover with water, add salt and pepper to taste. Cover and bring the soup to a boil.
- After boiling, add the tomato and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Then remove from the stove and leave for another 10 minutes. This minestrone soup has a very liquid consistency.
- Pour the soup into bowls. Pesto sauce can be added in portions to each plate or placed in a small bowl on the table. Decorate the dish with fresh herbs and serve.
Diet minestrone in a slow cooker
This is one of the easiest and fastest cooking options for Italian vegetable minestrone soup. It is perfect for those on a diet or nutritional basis.
Ingredients:
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Celery (stems) - 2 pcs.
- Leeks - 50 g
- Tomato - 2 pcs.
- Green beans - 50 g
- Olive oil - 2 tablespoons
- Water - 1.5 l
- Salt to taste
- Greens to taste
Step-by-step preparation of a dietary ministrone in a multicooker:
- We wash the vegetables well. Peel the carrots and cut into strips, the celery into slices, the onion and tomato into small squares.
- Pour 100 ml of water into the bottom of the multicooker bowl and add vegetables. We set the "Fry" mode and fry the vegetables until golden brown.
- After that we fill everything with water. Add salt and pepper to taste. We put on the “Multipovar” mode - 25 minutes. And close the lid of the multicooker.
- At the end of the time, turn off the multicooker. Pour the soup into plates, decorate with herbs and grated cheese on top. You can also add cashew nuts.
How to serve minestrone soup?
Minestrone can be served not only hot. For example, in the summertime, cold soup will be very useful. It is served in special deep bowls for the first course. Before serving, you can sprinkle with fresh herbs, grated Parmesan cheese or pine nuts.
It is believed that the taste of minestrone soup is revealed only on the second day. It is impossible to store this dish for more than 3-4 days, as it completely loses its taste.
Italian soup can be served with ciabatta or garlic croutons.
