Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone soups This Chicken minestrone is a hearty Italian soup / stew made with tender chicken, vegetables, beans, and pasta in a flavorful broth. soups with pasta, Italian soups Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone chicken

This Chicken minestrone is a hearty Italian soup / stew made with tender chicken, vegetables, beans, and pasta in a flavorful broth. I’m always craving minestrone and this simple version using precooked chicken makes it especially easy and quick to make. Onions, carrots, and celery add depth of flavor to its herby tomato broth, and starchy beans and pasta make it nice and thick. It’s loaded with all the veggies, and nourishing and delicious. We love to finish the soup by stirring in a tablespoon of pesto for instant flavor boost then we like to serve it with a drizzle of olive oil, fresh parsley or basil and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone

Chicken Minestrone Soup Recipe Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this chicken minestrone soup recipe:

  • CHICKEN: For a speedier version of the soup I use precooked chicken or rotisserie chicken breast - or leftover cooked chicken or turkey chopped or shredded and stirred into the soup. You will need 3-4 cups cooked shredded chicken. If you are precooking chicken you will need approx 1½ lbs raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs.
  • PANCETTA: It adds so much flavour. You could use bacon in its place or even Italian sausage.
  • POTATO: All you need is one small potato for this recipe. Adding potato to soup primarily
  • acts as a natural thickener, releasing starch during simmering to create a creamier texture without needing dairy.
  • ZUCCHHINI: I like to add zucchini or yellow squash in this chicken version or you could also use chopped cabbage, fennel or green beans as some other versions of minestrone.
  • ONION, CARROTS & CELERY: These vegetables create the aromatic base of the soup, known as a soffritto in Italian also known as mirepoix. They get sautéed in with the olive oil and the pancetta before adding the other ingredients.
  • GARLIC: Garlic adds additional depth of flavor to the soup.I always use fresh. Add as little or as much as you like.
  • TOMATOES & TOMATO PASTE: For sweet, tangy flavor. I always have a can or two in my pantry. I like to add canned finely diced tomatoes plus tomato paste for richness.
  • WHITE WINE: I love to deglaze the pan with a little white wine but that is optional. Use a little broth instead if you prefer to skip the wine.
  • WHITE BEANS: Canned is easiest but feel free to cook your own if you prefer. Minestrone soup typically features cannellini beans (white kidney beans), kidney beans, or borlotti beans (cranberry beans) to add creamy texture and substance. Other common options include navy beans, black beans, great northern beans, or chickpeas / garbanzo beans, which can be used interchangeably based on preference.
  • BROTH/STOCK: Chicken broth or vegetable broth works well. Use store-bought, or homemade
  • HERBS & SPICES: Bay leaves, chili flakes/red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning is what we use for this soup along with salt and pepper. You can also use a store-bought blend of Italian seasoning as well and use as little or as much as you prefer. Or you could create your own Italian blend using the classic Italian seasoning blend of herbs - basil, oregano, thyme, marjoram, rosemary, sage, and savory.
  • PASTA: I use ditalini pasta but any small pasta will work like elbow macaroni, mini shells, or orecchiette I like to cook it right in the soup so that it releases its starches into the broth, making it a one pot meal. I use gluten free. if you wanted to swap the pasta for a grain feel free to use farro, barley or even pearled couscous. You may have to precook the grains.
  • PARMESAN RIND & CHEESE: This salty, umami garnish takes the soup over the top. I also like to add in a piece of parmesan rind to the soup as it simmers for extra flavour but that is optional.
  • GREENS: I love to use fresh spinach or kale. You can also add in frozen if that Is what you have.
  • PESTO: I love to add a tablespoon of pesto to the soup to finish it off and it adds loads of flavour to the soup. Use store-bought or homemade. It is optional to add but recommended.

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone

How to Make Chicken Minestrone Soup

  1. BROWN PANCETTA WITH MIREPOIX: Heat olive oil then cook pancetta until golden and crispy then add veggies and spices and cook until tender
  2. ADD REMAINING INGREDIENTS: Stir in tomato paste, deglaze with wine then add broth, diced tomatoes, Parmesan rind, bay leaf ditalini.
  3. SIMMER UNTIL VEGETABLES ARE TENDER: Bring everything to a boil then reduce heat and simmer soup gently for 10 min
  4. ADD WHITE BEANS, CHICKEN & SPINACH: Add the chicken, white beans and spinach and simmer 5 mins
  5. ADD PESTO: Stir in the pesto
  6. SERVE: Ladle into bowls and enjoy warm sprinkled with fresh herbs, parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone

Chicken Minestrone Soup Make ahead, Storage & Freezing Instructions:

  • MAKE AHEAD: This soup is a delicious meal prep recipe idea because it just gets better with time so you can definitely make it ahead of time. If you know you’ll be enjoying the soup at a later date, you can cook the pasta a minute or two less than al dente as the noodles will continue to soak up the liquid as it sits, OR cook it separately and add it in when you serve it for BEST results.
  • STORAGE: This minestrone soup will stay good in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-5 days.
  • FREEZING: You can store this easy minestrone soup for up to 3 months in an airtight container in the freezer. But - if you’re planning to freeze this soup, I do not recommend adding the pasta. The frozen pasta doesn’t hold up well when it’s reheated in the soup. If you know you’ll be freezing this soup, leave out the pasta when cooking it. Then when you reheat and serve the soup, add cooked pasta into each serving.
  • REHEATING: If thawing from frozen, allow to thaw in the fridge overnight. Then reheat soup stove top. You will likely need to add a little extra broth or water when reheating.

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone

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Recipe

Servings: 6
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 40 mins
Total Time: 55 mins

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4-5 ounces diced Pancetta or bacon
  • 1 onion, peeled and small diced
  • 2 carrots, peeled and small diced
  • 2 celery, diced
  • 1 medium zucchini, diced
  • 1 small potato, small diced (peeling is optional)
  • 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
  • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon Chili flakes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • ¼ cup white wine to deglaze (optional)
  • 6 cups chicken broth, plus more if needed
  • 1 (28 oz) can finely diced tomatoes
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 piece (2 inches) Parmesan rind (optional)
  • 1 cup dry ditalini pasta
  • 1 (19 oz) can canellini beans (white beans), drained
  • 3-4 cups cooked chopped or shredded chicken
  • 1 cup packed chopped greens (spinach or kale)
  • 1 heaping tablespoon prepared pesto

For Serving

  • Fresh basil, or parsley minced for garnish
  • Grated Parmesan cheese
  • Chili pepper flakes
  • Drizzle of olive oil

Directions

  1. In a large pot or dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat to medium high heat and add pancetta and cook until fat is rendered and golden, for 5-7 minutes.
  2. Add in garlic, carrots, onion, celery, zucchini, potato, Italian seasonings, chili flakes, salt and pepper and cook until onions and veggies are softened, and aromatic, about 8-10 minutes. If the bottom of the pot is dry feel free to add a splash of broth and continue to cook stirring often.
  3. Stir in tomato paste then deglaze with wine, simmer 1 minute scraping bottom of pot
  4. Add broth, diced tomatoes, Parmesan rind and bay leaf and bring to a boil and simmer 5-7 minutes.
  5. Add ditalini and cook until pasta is just about al dente, approx 8-11 minutes or according to package instructions.
  6. Reduce heat to medium low. Add canellini beans, shredded chicken and spinach and let simmer another 5 minutes or until potatoes, and pasta is cooked through and spinach is wilted.
  7. Finish by stirring in 1 tablespoon of pesto - optional but recommended. Taste and check if soup needs additional salt and black pepper and adjust to taste.
  8. Remove bay leaf and Parmesan rind, serve warm into bowls with a sprinkle of fresh chopped basil or parsley, grated Parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.

Recipe Notes

  • We like to dice our veggies small (especially the carrots and potatoes) so that they cook through properly since this is a quicker recipe. It’s important to saute them until tender and almost caramelized at the start that is why we usually say 8-10 minutes for the saute.
  • Related to that: If your pasta is quick cooking I would add it towards the end of the boiling time given in recipe to account for this. Most packages are 8-11 minutes so if yours is shorter than that - simmer/boil soup alone first then add pasta half way or later so that it doesn’t become too mushy. It’s good to check the doneness of the potatoes to help make that decision. Usually finely diced veggies take 10-15 minutes of boiling/simmering.

Easy Quick Chicken Minestrone