Description
Most warming and comforting pasta-and-bean meal of a soup, Instant Pot Pasta e Fagioli recipe should be on rotation in your kitchen. Known also as pasta fazool, this Italian stew-like soup is hearty, budget-friendly, vegetarian and vegan-friendly. Great for making ahead and freezing, too.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
2 small carrots, finely chopped (about 1 cup chopped)
1 large rib celery, finely chopped (about 1 cup chopped)
1 teaspoon salt
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili flakes or powder
2 teaspoons Italian mixed herbs (or dried thyme or oregano, we love this one)
1/3 cup roasted red pepper strips (like these) – optional!
1 + 1/2 cups (about 6 ounces) elbow macaroni pasta (get it here)
2 cans (14-15 ounces each) cannellini beans or navy white beans, Great Northern beans, or chickpeas, rinsed and drained (or about 3 cups of cooked beans)
1 can (15 ounces/ 425 g) crushed canned tomatoes
5 leaves of Tuscan kale (cavolo nero), remove the tough stem first and diced
2 cups vegetable stock
3 cups water
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Pre-chop all the ingredients.
- Press Saute and allow the Instant Pot to heat up. Add the olive oil, chopped onion, carrot, celery and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring a few times, for about 5-6 minutes, until the vegetables have softened.
- Add the garlic, pepper, chilli and herbs and stir through. Press Cancel to stop the Saute process.
- Add the pasta, chopped kale, roasted red peppers and most of the beans. Reserve about 1/3 of the beans for later.
- Add the stock and canned tomatoes, stir through. Finally, add the 3 cups of water and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pot.
- Secure the lid and set to Pressure Cook/Manual for 4 minutes on High pressure. Due to the amount of liquid, the IP will take about 12-15 minutes to come to pressure and then the timer will begin.
- Once the timer is done, leave undisturbed for 5 minutes and then release the pressure manually.
- Open the lid and stir the soup. Scoop about a cup of the stock into a measuring jug or a bowl. Don’t worry if some of the vegetables or beans end up in the liquid. Add the reserved beans to the broth and puree using a blender or a food processor. This step is optional but adds amazing creaminess and body without using cream, cheese or flour.
- Finally, pour in the pureed bean broth into the soup, along with lemon juice and stir through. Taste for salt and pepper and top with parsley.
- Serve with extra parsley on top and grated Parmesan cheese, if using.
Notes
Saute: 6 minutes | Pressurizing: 12-15 minutes | Pressure Cook: 4 minutes | Release: natural for 5 minutes followed by quick release.
Pasta: You can any small variety of pasta like small shells, cavatelli, ditalini, or ziti.
Tuscan kale: you can use regular curly kale, Swiss chard or collard greens here.
Optional garnishes: Additional chopped parsley, black pepper and grated Parmesan cheese. For a slightly non-conventional Italian but that works well here is some cream or sour cream.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 cups of soup (without Parmesan)
- Calories: 309
- Sugar: 5.7 g
- Sodium: 559.2 mg
- Fat: 6.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 51.3 g
- Fiber: 9.4 g
- Protein: 14.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: Pasta, Beans, Italian Soup, Tuscan Kale, Italian Pasta Soup, Italian Bean Soup, Pasta Bean Soup, Vegetarian Soup, Vegan Soup, Vegan Italian