Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup
My Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup recipe makes a pot full of soul-warming goodness. This hearty, satisfying soup is very versatile and a great option for lunch or dinner on a chilly evening.
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A few weekends ago we had a dreary, rainy, overcast Sunday. It really felt like fall was on the way.
Living in the south, though, I should know better. Fall is a real tease. She shows up for a day, maybe two, then summer takes over again and the temperatures soar back into the 90s. Fall and summer compete for our attention for weeks, sometimes months, before fall ultimately wins out and summer fades away.
Those rare fall-is-coming days always start me thinking about the delicious, comforting soups and stews that come with that time of year. One of our favorites is a good, old-fashioned vegetable beef soup recipe.
This is a dish that will satisfy all your needs for comfort food. With the added bonus of wonderful smells that fill your home while the soup simmers away on the stove top.
❤ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A classic cold-weather soup.
- Really easy to prepare and leave simmering.
- Super simple ingredients make this recipe a breeze.
🛒 Ingredient Notes
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- Beef – Choose from beef stew meat, short ribs, oxtails, or even a piece of chuck roast. If using short ribs, cut the meat from the bones before cooking. If using oxtails, leave them whole and remove the bones from the meat before serving.
- Onion, Celery, Potatoes, and Carrots – The aromatic vegetables you’ll add to the soup.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes – Be sure to add the juice along with the canned tomatoes.
- Canned Cut Green Beans – I always add these to vegetable soup and include the liquid from the can with them.
- Beef Broth or Stock – Beef broth or stock serves to enrich and enhance the beefy flavor of the soup. If you don’t have canned, you can always use one or two bouillon cubes.
- Mustard Seed and Celery Seed – I’ve always added these spices to my old fashioned vegetable beef soup for a little subtle flavor in the background. If you don’t have them on hand, don’t worry. Just leave them out.
- Salt and Pepper – Add to taste. Keep in mind that it takes a good bit of salt to season this quantity of soup.
You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe at the bottom of this post.
🥄 How to Make Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup
Prep and Brown the Beef
- Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces. Heat the oil in a very large dutch oven. Add the beef and cook until browned.
👉 PRO TIP: If using short ribs, you can also add the bones to brown with the meat for a little extra flavor. Just remember to remove them before serving. If using oxtails, leave them whole and remove the meat from the bones before serving.
- Add the onion, celery, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, and green beans.
- Add the beef broth and enough water to cover all the vegetables. Add the mustard seed, celery seed, salt, and pepper. Stir well.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour or longer.
❗ Recipe Options
It’s super easy to adjust this recipe using whatever your family likes. If you like peas, add them! If you want some turnips in your soup, then add those. Canned corn, baby lima beans, and sliced fresh or frozen okra are all tasty additions. The one thing I always include is at least one can of diced tomatoes with their juice.
Change the seasonings. Sometimes I’ll add some dried thyme or a couple of bay leaves. Mixed Italian seasoning or herbes de Provence are also really good options.
🍽 How to Serve
This soup is so good with some garlic bread or, my favorite, cheese toast on pumpernickel. Or just plain old saltine crackers.
🍚 How to Store
Allow the soup to cool completely and then store the leftovers in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator for up to three days. It may also be frozen for up to three months.
🍲 Crockpot Method
To make slow cooker vegetable beef soup, brown the beef and then transfer it along with all the remaining ingredients to a slow cooker. Cook for 4 to 6 hours on low.
📖 Recipe
Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef stew beef, oxtails, short ribs
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 large onion roughly chopped
- 2 ribs celery roughly chopped
- 4 cups potatoes in bite-size pieces
- 1 cup carrot slices
- 14.5 ounces canned diced tomatoes with their juice
- 14.5 ounces canned cut green beans with their juice
- 1 quart beef broth or stock
- 1 teaspoon mustard seed
- 1 teaspoon celery seed
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Water as needed
Instructions
- Cut the beef into bite-sized pieces (if using oxtails leave them whole and remove the meat from the bones before serving). Heat the oil in a very large dutch oven. Add the beef and cook until browned.
- Add the onion, celery, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes and green beans. Add the beef broth and enough water to cover all the vegetables.
- Add the mustard seed, celery seed, salt, and pepper. Stir well.
- Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for 1 hour or longer.
Notes
- Allow the soup to cool completely and then store the leftovers in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator for up to three days. It may also be frozen for up to three months.
- To make in the slow cooker, brown the beef and then transfer it along with all the remaining ingredients to a slow cooker. Cook for 4 to 6 hours on low.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
More Questions? I’m happy to help!
If you have more questions about the recipe, or if you’ve made it and would like to leave a comment, scroll down to leave your thoughts, questions, and/or rating!
Thanks so much for stopping by!
— This post was originally published on September 14, 2010. It has been updated with new photos and additional information.
It’s been a long time since I’ve had beef stew — this one looks fabulous.
The step-by-step photos are very helpful and make the recipe so appealing. I’m going to work this recipe into my menu plan for next week. Thanks for sharing.
Judi
I’m a little stunned. My husband just told me that this soup is the best beef vegetable soup he has ever tasted. He comes from a family very skilled in the kitchen, especially with seasoning. He’s pretty critical and I just wish he would learn to cook and stop with his complaining.
I made the soup exactly as instructed. The only place I veered off was cooking the stew beef. I didn’t think it would tenderize in an hour so I boiled it for a while before I added it to the other ingredients.
It seems like beef vegetable soup is hard to come by these days and it’s so delicious. This is far and away the best.
Thank you very much, Anna! I’m so glad your husband enjoyed the soup.
Yum!! This actually makes me look forward to chilly weather because this is the perfect dish for cold nights on the couch :)
OMG this looks good!
I just love home made soups, with nice crusty bread! This is very close to my recipe! I will have to try it!
sprucehillblog.com
I’m with you on having a hankering for a good fall stew, even though our Florida weather is still in the low 90s and likely to remain there for months to come. We don’t even get one of your GA “teases” until November. Love your tip about adding mustard and celery seed and will try it in my next pot of veggie soup.
This looks like the perfect recipe for fall!
Hi !! I stumbled over here from Happier than a Pig In Mud’s barnyard bash! I thought it was a comment I had left and didn’t remember!! Great name you got there!! The soup looks heavenly!! I just wish we could get some cooler weather in Texas so I can start cooking up a batch! I hope you will Hop over and check out my blog!! http://www.never-enough-thyme-creations.blogspot.com
I’m glad you are able to use oxtail successfully. I’ve given up, too much fat to drain off LOL This soup looks marvelous!
I cant wait for Fall weather and good soups like this!
I sure do enjoy checking out your recipes. We seem to have learned how to cook in the same area of the country. I haven’t shown them to Tommy yet, he might make me cook more. Anyway, I enjoy your blog and your pictures are great. Keep up the good work. You have a real talent for this.
Thank you so much, Sandra! And, yes, I imagine we did learn to cook in about the same area ;-)