Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup

Vegetable Beef Soup Recipe

Freezing weather like we’re having today calls for something warm and comforting, and this homemade Vegetable Beef Soup is just the thing! Perfect for chilly, wet days (which seem to be all we’ve had lately), this hearty soup is easy to make and can feed a crowd. One pot is more than enough for a couple of meals, and there’s usually plenty left to freeze for later. Whether you’re battling winter’s chill or just craving a cozy meal, this recipe will hit the spot!

Ingredients

Step 1

Start by browning the stew beef in a skillet with a bit of vegetable oil. Season the meat generously with salt and pepper. Cook the beef until it’s nicely browned on all sides, then remove it from the heat and drain any excess oil.

If the chunks of meat are larger than you’d like, feel free to chop them into smaller pieces—either before or after cooking. Don’t worry if the beef isn’t tender right away; it will become tender and flavorful as it simmers in the soup!

No stew beef? No problem! Ground chuck works just as well. Simply cook it in a skillet, but try not to break it into too many small pieces as it browns. Once cooked, be sure to drain it thoroughly before adding it to the soup pot. It’s a great alternative that’s just as hearty and delicious!

Step 2

1. Add the Liquids and Vegetables: Pour the container of beef broth into a large pot, followed by the four cans of tomatoes. Add the bag of frozen vegetables. (I used Pictsweet, but any brand or size close to 28 oz will work. Adjust the quantity to suit your needs—even smaller amounts are fine!)
2. Add Fresh Ingredients: Chop the onion and celery and add them to the pot. I used about half an onion and two celery stalks, but feel free to adjust based on your taste or skip the celery altogether if you prefer.
3. Add the Meat and Seasonings: Stir in the browned stew meat and, if desired, a package of Knorr Vegetable Mix (the same one used for the classic dip—it’s optional but adds great flavor). Otherwise, season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add Water: Pour in four cans of water to balance the flavors and give the soup its base.
5. Cook the Soup: Bring the pot to a boil, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cover the pot with a lid and let it cook until everything is tender and the flavors meld together.

Enjoy the comforting aroma as it simmers! 🍲

Step 3

Let the vegetable soup simmer gently for a while. There’s no set time for this recipe—it’s all about achieving the right texture and flavor. The frozen vegetables, onions, and celery will cook fairly quickly, but you’ll want to give the soup enough time for the beef to become tender. I let mine simmer for at least an hour, but feel free to adjust based on your preference. The longer it simmers, the more the flavors meld together, making it even more delicious! 🍲

Serve

Serve your vegetable beef soup with crackers or, for a true Southern touch, cornbread. Typically, we always pair ours with cornbread, but I didn’t manage to snap a photo the night I prepared it. The image you see was taken at lunch a few days later when we enjoyed it with crackers—sometimes convenience wins out!

If you’re looking for a great cornbread recipe, I haven’t posted one for plain cornbread yet, but my Kentucky Cornbread recipe is a delicious option and pairs beautifully with this soup or just about anything. Give it a try! 🍲🍞

Confession

I’ll admit, I probably don’t make vegetable beef soup the same way every time! It’s one of those recipes that, once you’ve made it a few times, you don’t really need a recipe anymore. You just use whatever you have on hand and adjust as you go—it always turns out comforting and delicious! 🍲

Options

This recipe is flexible, so you can customize it to your liking:

• Skip the Beef Broth: If you don’t have beef broth, you can still make it, but tomatoes are a must.
• Canned Tomatoes: Use seasoned canned tomatoes for extra flavor, or mix one can of seasoned with plain ones.
• Fresh Vegetables: Swap the canned or frozen veggies for fresh ones if you prefer.
• Simplify It: Sometimes, we make it with just tomatoes, potatoes, and onions for a lighter version.
• Season to Taste: Add salt and pepper as needed. Keep in mind that beef broth adds salt, so taste as you go. I often add extra salt and pepper at the table, especially since I prefer more seasoning than my husband.
• Make it your own and enjoy experimenting! 🍲

another option: use leftovers

Another great option is to use leftovers! While I’m not the best at this—I tend to toss anything that’s not enough for another full serving—I have a friend who’s a pro at it. She keeps a plastic container in her freezer specifically for those tiny bits of leftovers, like corn, peas, or lima beans. Whenever there’s a little extra, she adds it to the container. When it’s full (or close to it), she uses it to make vegetable soup. She doesn’t waste a thing! I really should strive to be more like her! 😊

Soup and Sandwich: The Perfect Pair

Soup and a sandwich are a match made in comfort food heaven! 🍲🥪 Pair your vegetable beef soup with my Masters-style pimento cheese sandwich spread for a delicious and satisfying meal. It’s creamy, flavorful, and the perfect complement to a hearty bowl of soup. Check out the recipe and give it a try!

Growing up on vegetable soup

When I was growing up, vegetable soup was always made without meat. In the summertime, when the garden “came in,” it was time to make vegetable soup to can in Mason jars and store in the pantry for those cold winter days.

It was a lot of work! We peeled and chopped tomatoes, cut corn off the cob, shelled peas and butterbeans, and pulled onions and carrots from the garden to chop. Occasionally, my mom would add okra or green beans, but not always.

Everything was mixed in a big galvanized tub—a tub so large that two kids could bathe in it! And yes, I’ve done that at my aunt’s house! Though I grew up with a bathtub in the house (my parents built a new house the year I was born), those memories of making soup in that giant tub stick with me.

Making vegetable soup with fresh vegetables was hard work, but the reward was rows of jars filled with hearty soup to warm us all winter long.

The Garden

The image isn’t of my family’s garden but one that resembles the ones I grew up with. Back then, we didn’t have anything like an irrigation system—if it rained, the garden thrived; if it didn’t, there wasn’t much you could do. I vividly remember storms washing away freshly planted seeds or young plants, and having to replant everything by hand.

In those days, no one thought to take pictures of the garden, the dairy barn, or the cotton fields. Film was saved for Sunday clothes or special occasions. That said, there were exceptions—sometimes someone snapped a picture of a favorite dairy cow! 😊 It’s funny how we treasure those simple things now.

Canning the Vegetable Soup

Once the vegetable soup mix was ready, Mother would carefully fill quart and pint Mason jars. She’d place a flat lid on each jar and screw a ring on top, being careful not to tighten it too much.

Then came the canning process. She used a pressure cooker to preserve the soup. While some people used boiling water bath “canners,” which were just large pots with lids, pressure cookers were more precise. They had to be sealed properly and came with gauges and pressure release valves to ensure everything was safely processed.

It was a methodical process, but it ensured we had hearty, homemade soup ready to enjoy all winter long.

Canning with a Pressure Cooker

The pressure cooker was a bit terrifying to me as a child. It had a jiggler on top that released steam, and if the pressure or temperature got too high, the jiggler would rattle nonstop! Mother kept a close eye on it, adjusting the temperature and carefully releasing the pressure when the time was up. The steam would spew out in a loud, hot burst, and we were always told to stay out of the way.

Removing the blazing-hot jars from the pressure cooker was a delicate process. If you weren’t careful—or if you tried to use a leftover mayonnaise jar instead of a Mason canning jar—a jar could break. Once the jars were safely on the counter, Mother would tighten the rings and let the jars cool. As they sealed, we’d hear a satisfying pop, pop, pop—a sound that let us know everything was done correctly.

The next day, we’d remove the rings and store the jars on pantry shelves, saving the rings to reuse for the next batch. Flats, however, were single-use and always replaced for safety.

Canning vegetable soup was hard, hot work, but it was so rewarding. On a cold winter’s day, all you had to do was grab a jar, heat it up, and whip up a pan of cornbread for a comforting, homemade meal. Those memories—and that soup—were worth every bit of effort! 🍲🍞

Grace

I hope you’ll extend me a little grace when I blog about recipes. I’m not a food blogger, and while I do my best to write accurately, I know I make mistakes! My posts are checked for errors, but occasionally, I might use the wrong word or explain something in a way that’s unclear. If something doesn’t make sense, please don’t hesitate to call me out—I’d much rather answer your question than have you try something that leaves you confused.

Thank you so much for visiting my blog—I truly appreciate your support! 😊