This vegetarian vegetable orzo soup packs in lots of veggies, orzo, and white cannelini beans. It's so cozy and comforting, and also makes for a filling and healthy lunch or dinner.
There's something just so cozy and comforting about soup. This vegetable orzo soup is no exception! Filled with the goodness of veggies like onions, celery, carrots, bell peppers, and diced tomatoes, there's a variety of flavors and nutrients.
To make it extra filling and satiating, this veggie soup is packed with fiber and plant-based protein from the whole wheat orzo and cannelini beans, making it a complete (meat-less!) meal. The lemon juice and parsley finishes it off with a delicious freshness and zing.
Ingredients
- Veggies: Onion, celery, and carrots make up the mirepoix for the soup, but there's also bell peppers, garlic, and diced tomatoes.
- Whole wheat orzo: Whole wheat orzo has a hearty and chewy texture in this soup recipe.
- Cannelini beans: These nutritious beans have so much plant-based protein and fiber, adding so much filling power in this soup!
- Vegetable broth: Since vegetable broth has a considerable amount of sodium, I usually feel like salt isn't totally necessary in this soup, but you can season with salt if you prefer.
- Spices and herbs: Dried oregano added in with the garlic gives this soup a flavor boost right away, and the fresh parsley is a delicious finisher and garnish.
- Lemon juice: Freshly squeezed lemon juice brings a brightness to the soup.
How to Make Vegetable Orzo Soup
First, chop and dice your veggies. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add onions, celery, carrots, and bell pepper. Cook for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and oregano and cook for 1 minute.
Add diced tomatoes, broth, orzo, cannellini beans, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for 8-10 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente.
Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve in individual bowls and garnish with more parsley. Enjoy!
Storage Tips
Prior to storing, allow the soup to cool for 10-20 minutes. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.
You can also freeze the soup to enjoy at a later date! Pour the soup into resealable plastic bags, removing any air. When you're ready to eat, simply heat in a pot or microwave until hot.
Expert Tips
- Orzo has a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pot, so make sure to stir the soup occassionally. When you stir, make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot too.
Variations and Substitutions
You can play around with different variations to make this soup work for you!
- Make it vegan: This soup is vegan as-is, so no changes are necessary.
- Make it gluten-free: Orzo contains gluten, but if you follow a gluten-free diet, you can substitute orzo with your preferred gluten-free pasta.
- Change up the veggies! You can add whatever veggies sound good to you. Broccoli, mushrooms, spinach, and kale would all work well in this soup. For the leafy greens such as kale and spinach, I would recommend adding them in the last 1-2 minutes of cooking.
- Don't have cannelini beans? Try swapping with chickpeas (garbanzo beans) instead.
- Don't have whole wheat orzo? You can swap out orzo for any small pasta shape or use regular orzo instead of whole wheat.
- Don't have oregano? Swap with ½ tablespoon Italian seasoning instead!
What to Serve with Vegetable Orzo Soup:
- A piece of crusty bread
- A handful of crackers
- If you're a soup and salad kind of person (me too!), this vegetable orzo soup would be absolutely delicious with this Mediterranean Shrimp Salad.
If you made this recipe, I’d love to see your creation! Don’t forget to snap a picture and tag me @thebalancedbite on Instagram. Follow along on Pinterest and Facebook for more healthy & tasty recipes!
More Easy Orzo Recipes:
Vegetable Orzo Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 cup diced celery (about 3 stalks)
- 1 cup diced carrots (about 2-3 carrots)
- 1 medium bell pepper, cored and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 6 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup whole wheat orzo
- 1 15.5-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- Juice from ½ lemon
- 3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add onions, celery, carrots, and bell pepper. Cook for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and oregano and cook for 1 minute.
- Add diced tomatoes, broth, orzo, cannellini beans, and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer for 8-10 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente.
- Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve in individual bowls and garnish with more parsley. Enjoy!
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Chase Mazur says
I'm not normally a soup guy, but it's easy to make an exception for something so delicious and hearty.