Quick Mixed Vegetable Soup
A speedy, silky mixed vegetable soup ready in 25 minutes — bright tomato and courgette with basil; perfect for weeknights and packed with veg.
This quick mixed vegetable soup is exactly what you want on a busy weeknight: minimal fuss, maximum veg, and proper comforting flavour. It uses simple storecupboard ingredients and a short simmer so it’s on the table fast.
Tomato gives body and brightness, courgette keeps it silky, and lemon with fresh basil wakes everything up. Blitz it smooth for lunch or leave it a bit chunky for a heartier supper.
Ingredients
- 30 ml olive oil
- 1 brown onion — medium
- 3 garlic cloves
- 150 g carrots — peeled, cut into small dice
- 300 g potatoes — peeled, cut into 1–2 cm dice
- 200 g courgette — trimmed and roughly chopped
- 400 g tinned chopped tomatoes
- 900 ml vegetable stock — hot
- 5 ml dried oregano
- 5 ml smoked paprika
- 1 bay leaf
- 5 ml fine sea salt
- 5 ml black pepper — freshly ground if possible
- 15 g fresh basil — leaves plus a few extra for garnish
- 15 ml lemon juice — about 1 tbsp
Equipment
- immersion blender
Instructions
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the brown onion and sweat gently, stirring, until soft and translucent — about 3 minutes.
Add the garlic cloves, carrots and potatoes to the pan and cook for 2 minutes, stirring, to coat in the oil and begin to soften. Keep the heat moderate so the garlic does not burn.
Stir in the courgette, tinned chopped tomatoes, vegetable stock, dried oregano, smoked paprika, bay leaf, fine sea salt and black pepper. Increase heat to bring to a gentle simmer, cover with a lid and simmer for 9 minutes, until the potatoes and carrots are tender.
Remove and discard the bay leaf. Add the fresh basil and lemon juice, then use an immersion blender to blitz the soup to your preferred texture — about 1 minute for a smooth finish or 20–30 seconds for a looser, chunky soup.
Taste and adjust seasoning with more fine sea salt or black pepper if needed. Ladle into warmed bowls and finish with a few whole basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil if you like.
Tips
- Dice all the vegetables uniformly (1–2 cm) so they cook evenly during the short simmer.
- If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer the soup in batches to a blender — cool slightly and cover the lid with a tea towel to avoid splashes.
- Make ahead: cool completely, then store in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Reheat gently on the hob.
- For extra richness, stir in 30–50 ml double cream or a spoonful of crème fraîche at the end (note: this changes dietary tags).
- If the tin tomatoes taste acidic, add a small pinch of caster sugar to balance the flavour.
Substitutions
potatoes → sweet potato, same weight (300 g)
Noticeably differenttinned chopped tomatoes → fresh tomatoes, 500 g chopped and cooked down briefly
Stays closeolive oil → rapeseed oil, same quantity
Stays closefresh basil → fresh parsley, same weight
Noticeably different
Nutrition
Per serving · estimated
- 195
- Calories
- 5 g
- Protein
- 29 g
- Carbs
- 7 g
- Fat
- 5 g
- Fibre
- 7 g
- Sugar
- 600 mg
- Sodium
FAQ
Can I make this soup in a slow cooker?
Yes — brown the onions first, then transfer everything to the slow cooker and cook on low for 4–5 hours. Texture will be slightly softer and you can skip the blitzing for a rustic finish.
How do I make the soup chunkier?
Blitz for only 20–30 seconds with an immersion blender, or mash roughly with a potato masher to keep more texture.
Can I freeze this soup?
Absolutely. Cool fully, portion into freezer-safe tubs and freeze for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge before reheating gently on the hob.
My soup is too acidic — what can I do?
Stir in 1 tsp caster sugar or a splash more olive oil, and a little extra salt to balance acidity from the tomatoes.
Community Photos
No photos yet
Be the first to share your creation!
