Minestrone in the UK: what it is, how to order it, where to find it
Quick answer
Minestrone is a thick vegetable soup with beans and pasta or rice, changing with the season and the region. There is no fixed recipe; it is a soup of whatever vegetables are good, made substantial with beans and a starch. It is peasant food at its best, and in the UK it is a reliable, healthy starter or a light meal, though the tinned version bears little relation to a fresh one.
Calories and nutrition
- Calories
- 250
- Protein
- 10 g
- Carbs
- 38 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Salt
- 1.4 g
180–340 kcal
Portion: One bowl, about 400 ml.
High in fibre and vegetables; a lighter start to a meal than most.
Estimates for a typical portion, based on standard UK and USDA food composition data. Actual values depend on the recipe and the restaurant.
What minestrone is
A soffritto of onion, carrot and celery is the base; then seasonal vegetables (courgette, beans, potato, cabbage, tomato), borlotti or cannellini beans for substance, and small pasta or rice cooked in near the end. It is simmered until everything is soft and the broth is rich, and finished with olive oil and Parmesan, sometimes a spoon of pesto (the Genoese version, minestrone alla Genovese, always has pesto). It varies by season: summer minestrone is lighter and greener, winter is heartier with cabbage and beans. A good one tastes of many vegetables cooked together into something greater.
How to judge it
It should be thick with vegetables and beans, not a thin broth with a few bits floating, and the flavours should have melded rather than tasting like boiled separate vegetables. Fresh, seasonal and made in house is obvious against the tinned or catering version. A drizzle of good olive oil and grated Parmesan at the table is the finish. It should be substantial; minestrone is a meal in Italy, not just a starter.
Minestrone versus other soups
Ribollita is the Tuscan bread-and-bean soup, thicker still. Pasta e fagioli is pasta and beans, a cousin. Minestrone is the vegetable-led one, the most varied and the most adaptable. It is vegetarian by default (though sometimes made with a ham stock) and easily vegan without the cheese.
Where it is done well in the UK
Trattorie that cook seasonally make the best minestrone; it is a good test of a kitchen's vegetable cooking. Our directory lists areas with the most Italian restaurants.
How to order it
Order minestrone as a hearty starter or a light meal; the fresh version is far better than tinned. It should be thick with vegetables and beans. Add the Parmesan and olive oil that come with it. The Genoese version with pesto is worth seeking.
Where it's done well
UK councils with the most minestrone specialists, by restaurant name, in our directory.
Restaurants near you
Search by postcode or use your location to find restaurants likely to serve minestrone near you.
Make it at home
Serves 6 · 60 min
Ingredients
- 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 celery stick, chopped
- 1 courgette, 1 potato, diced
- 100 g green beans, chopped
- 400 g tinned borlotti or cannellini beans
- 400 g tinned tomatoes
- 1.5 litres vegetable stock
- 80 g small pasta or rice
- olive oil, Parmesan, salt, pepper, basil
Method
- Soften the onion, carrot and celery in olive oil for ten minutes.
- Add the potato, courgette, green beans, tomatoes and stock, and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add the drained beans and the pasta or rice and cook until the pasta is done, about ten more minutes.
- Season, stir in torn basil, and serve with olive oil and grated Parmesan. A spoon of pesto is the Genoese finish.
Cut the vegetables evenly and do not rush the simmer; the flavour comes from cooking them together. Add the pasta late so it does not turn to mush.