With a few shortcuts, this Quick and Easy Vegetable Beef Soup leaves you with the delicious flavor of Mom’s vegetable soup but in 45 minutes or less!
Nothing beats my Mom’s slow-cooked vegetable soup. It’s a labor of love that starts with stew meat in the slow cooker overnight and is finished the next day with tons of fresh veggies. You can find this recipe in my cookbook.
As a kid I would often convince her to add macaroni too. It’s amazing and so chock full of flavor. It’s my favorite cold-weather food. Nothing says “home” quite like it.
But it takes a lot of time to whip up my Mom’s original recipe, and I don’t always have time to invest into a recipe quite like that one. So I took her classic recipe, altered it a bit, and made it super simple and pretty dang quick. With a few shortcuts, you can have the delicious flavor of Mom’s vegetable soup ready on your stove top in 45 minutes or less!
As with most all my soup recipes, I love to serve this with some delicious cornbread (be it my Hot Water Cornbread or Elmer’s Cornbread). The combination of this soup and delicious cornbread might actually be one of my ALL TIME favorite meals ever!
Why is my vegetable beef soup bland?
If your vegetable beef soup is turning out a bit bland, fear not—it happens to the best of us. One common culprit is not using enough seasonings and other flavorful ingredients. Since this recipe calls for a quick cook time, you want to make sure to follow my exact recipe while paying special attention to the quantities of all the ingredients.
Now, here’s a secret ingredient you absolutely can not skip – vinegar! I’ve received many questions about that tablespoon of vinegar at the end of the recipe. Trust me, it adds a bright pop of flavor, especially since this soup has a short cook time. Surprisingly, you won’t taste the vinegar itself, but it works magic to enhance the overall taste of this vegetable beef soup recipe. So, next time you whip up that beef vegetable soup, don’t forget the vinegar. It can be key to a delicious, well-balanced flavor!
Tips for the Best Vegetable Beef Soup
Make sure to pay attention to the type of mixed veggies you buy! There are some varieties out there that are a mix specifically for soups. It might have some onion already in there, so you’ll need to decide if you want to eliminate the fresh onion called for in this recipe. It’s up to you! The bag I used for this recipe had lima beans, green beans, carrots, corn, peas, and okra in it. It was the PERFECT blend!
You can pick fresh or frozen potatoes! Some of the frozen bags of soup vegetables already have potatoes in them, so that can be another time saver. I just prefer the texture of fresh potatoes and typically like lots of them in my vegetable soup. But, the decision really is up to you.
Recipe Card
Quick and Easy Vegetable Beef Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 (32-ounce) carton beef broth (4 cups)
- 2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into 3/4-inch chunks
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
- 1 (16-ounce) package frozen mixed soup vegetables
- salt
- pepper
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
Instructions
- In a large stock pot, brown the ground beef over medium heat. Drain any excess fat away.
- Return the meat to the pot and add the onions. Cook for about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly for about a minute. Add the beef broth and chopped potatoes. Bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the tomato sauce, tomatoes (undrained), and frozen mixed vegetables. Return to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cover.
- Cook until the potatoes and vegetables are tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then stir in a tablespoon of white vinegar just before serving for an added boost of flavor.
Nutrition
* If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. The values do not include optional ingredients or when ingredients are added to taste. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
Nay-Nay
Followed your recipe and glad I did! It was soooooo good. My family & I loved it. Thank you so much!
Sweet! Glad it turned out great for you!
Joanne Stewart
Happened across your recipe. So glad I found it. It was delicious. I too was surprised by the vinegar, but it really did add something to the soup. This one’s going in my keeper file for sure. Thanks for a great recipe!
It really makes a difference! So glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Lisa
Made it tonight. Yummy
Glad you enjoyed it!
Lisa
If I want to double recipe, just double ingredients? Cook time same?
That’s correct!
Barbara Musgrove
Yummy soup!! The vinegar was the trick!! This will be added to my make again recipe file!
So glad to hear you enjoyed it! It really makes a difference, doesn’t it??
Jerome Albert
I use steaks instead of hamburger. I add fresh celery, carrots, corn, and green beans. The vinegar at the end is a wonderful splash of flavor! Great soup!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Jerome! I think lots of folks are afraid of that vinegar, but it really adds a punch of flavor.
jeanne fisher cullen,
Very good however, we did not put any vinegar in! Used stew meat cut into bite size pieces and pressure cooked them for around 4 minutes just to be sure they were tender. I have instructions from my husband to NOT give any of this soup away as he wants it ALL!
So glad to hear y’all enjoyed it!
Mary
Quick, simple and tasty. Great with buttered cornbread or bread. Yum!
Thank you Mary!
Suellen
Gotta have cabbage and homemade noodles.
Joan in VA
This is basically the soup I’ve made for years. The only difference is that I sometimes add some pre-cooked elbow macaroni before serving. I love this soup.
It’s so good, right!?
jeanne fisher cullen,
I meant to add my precooked elbow macaroni, but I forgot! Might do that when we have more soup today!
Debbie
Look forward to making this as it’s so close to my ‘quick’ Vegetable Beef Soup recipe.
I usually add Worcestershire & a splash of steak sauce but am intrigued with the vinegar!
Will definitely try that!
Thank you so much Debbie! Let us know how you like it!
Penny
This soup, is so delicious, thanks for sharing….
So glad you liked it!
Melissa Renee
Oh. My. Goodness! This soup was perfect! Absolutely 100% delicious! & I can’t lie I was definitely skeptical about adding in the apple cider vinegar at the end but WOW was I wrong.. the ACV really gave the soup a brightness and brought every flavor together perfectly! I wont ever go back to not adding it in. 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing this yummy recipe with us, it will now be my go to for vegetable beef soup! & In return you gained a loyal follower out of me!
Take care!
Melissa
Thank you so much! So glad you loved it with this special ingredient!
Renae
THANK YOU! This was exactly the kind of recipe I was looking for. It’s easy and can be modified to fit all sorts of needs. I accidentally left out the vinegar and it was still good. Served it with grill cheese because why not?! I’ll definitely make it again.
Veggie soup and grilled cheese are the perfect combo! So glad to hear it turned out great for you!
Ash & Josh
My husband and I enjoyed this soup, but for some reason, we didn’t love the broth as much as we thought we would. Ground beef in beef broth makes sense, but something was a bit off for us. We followed the recipe (except adding about 4 more ounces of veggies), so we aren’t sure why we didn’t like the broth that much. I think next time we are going to try chicken broth. It may be a disaster lol 😆 but worth it to give it a try. Thanks for the quick and easy recipe!
Hey Ash and Josh! Next time, you could also try a different brand of broth. There are some out there that I just don’t care for. Since a lot of the flavor comes from the broth, another brand might suit you better.
Lisa
This was so easy and delicious! My daughter took home leftovers, sorted into individual servings, and took to work as her lunch for several days. She loved it too. I would like to know how many carbs, calories and protein are in each serving if possible. Thank you for sharing!
Hey Lisa! I’m so glad to hear y’all enjoyed it! When it comes to nutritional content, I don’t include that because many of the ingredients my recipes frequently call for can vary in nutrition based on the brand. I wouldn’t want to include the nutritional facts for one brand and folks use a different one and it have vastly different ingredients. With that being said, it’s super easy to pick your favorite brands and plug them into a nutritional calculator like the one on myfitnesspal.com to get accurate info. Hope that helps!
Ann
We had this for lunch today and it was delicious. Who would have thought adding just a little white vinegar would help it, but it did! Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes!!
Thanks so much, Ann! Glad to hear y’all enjoyed it!
Gayla
Made as directed. Loved this recipe. Thank you Stacey. Gayla
Awesome! Thanks for letting me know!
BECKY HAYES
I was surprised that you called this beef soup… Isn’t this hamburger soup? Beef soup would use the beef like you use in a roast, wouldn’t it?
Hamburger is a type ground beef but not all ground beef is hamburger. Being that the recipe calls for a lean ground beef, it doesn’t make sense to call it hamburger soup since we don’t use hamburger. Hope that helps!
Alice Adams
So glad I found your recipe for guidance. My grandmother used to make this & it was always a favorite among the family & farmhands alike. She always made hers using fresh or frozen vegetables out of her vast garden, but I am nowhere nearly as industrious as she was, even into her late 80s! There was never any sort of recipe; whenever anyone asked her she say, “It’s easy. Just throw whatever vegetables you have into some stock, but be sure to add tomatoes, potatoes, and okra to thicken it just a tad.” To her, those seemed like perfectly clear directions but she vastly overestimated my cooking experience & confidence. I like being able to so easily customize it to taste/season/mood, but really need the guidance your recipe provides. So thank you for helping me to at least partially recreate some wonderful food & memories of my grandparents and time spent visiting their farm – and I say partially because it’s just not the same without them there. .
I understand that sentiment exactly! So glad we could get you even a little close!
Shelley Hyatt
I made this and it was really good! I used stew meat instead of ground beef. Added fresh herbs like basil and thyme. The veggies I used were carrots, peas, corn, lima beans, green beans, and okra.
Glad to hear it turned out great for you!
Shelia
We are a household of 2 so we have plenty of leftovers and I freese them. Everytime I take the next batch out my husband says ” this soup is so good – did you keep this recipe so you can make it again?”. This has happened for the 2-3 times I’ve made this soup! Needless to say – it’s a favorite it our house.
Ha! Love hearing that! Thanks, Shelia!
Mary Jo Connell
I would love to find your mix of vegetable for soup. The only thing here in MD is corn, green beans and peas. I do like to chop up a little cabbage in my soup. I keep a jar of hot peppers in vinegar and I like to put a spoon of that in my soup.
What’s available even varies by grocery store here. Good luck finding the right one! Love the pepper vinegar idea!
Suellen Dehnke
Great minds think alike. I started pouring a dollop of liquid from a jar of pepperoncini peppers in my Vegetable Soup a few years ago. Try it.
Such a fantastic idea! Yum!
Linda B Brewer
About a year ago I searched for an easy vegetable beef soup. Your recipe looks delicious and easy. I found it was also cost friendly! I make it often and have shared with my family and friends. They love it and many have asked for the recipe. I am cooking a pot right now while my cornbread is in the oven. If you have any other recipes such as this one, please share!
Thanks, Linda! I’m so glad to hear you’ve enjoyed this!
lin mac
made it just like your recipe said and it was super super good …thank you so much for sharing
So glad it turned out great for you!
Ellen Gwaltney Bales
My vegetable beef takes about two and a half hours but it’s worth it. I would never think of using ground beef–just don’t like it in soups–must be small chunks of stew beef. It always get SO tender. I use the 8-oz. cans of veggies. That way I get what I want. Fresh potatoes, carrots, onions and cabbage, sometimes celery if I have it. I love using barley for thickening and V-8 juice for the liquid. A couple of bay leaves or maybe some oregano. It’s always a bit different every time but always perfect.
becky
This was my mom’s recipe almost to the tee. But she put fresh squash i use a can of the squash and okra plush i use fresh frozen tomatoes. But Thank you you brought me a smile thinking about my mom instead of sadness because she passed away 6 months ago. Thank You and God Bless.
becky
Sorry my auto correct is haywire on this phone. But that is suppose to be english. LOL
I’m so sorry to hear about your mom, Becky. Hopefully great memories like this will comfort you in this difficult time.
Adina Stein
This was very good. I added different veggies & used Italian seasoning. The okra was a nice touch.
Awesome! So glad it turned out great for you!
Marty McDaniel
I am going to make this in the crockpot and my dad always liked using Brussels sprouts and I’ll use that and cut up chunks of beef chuck instead of the ground beef and frozen medallion onions. My question is: will the frozen veggies hold up to a long slow cook? Thank you for the recipe!
Hmmm… I think it should probably work.
Marthaelaine Brown
I love this soup, I made it with out the hamburger . My family wants me to make it right by the recipe
hamburger and all. This is what they will have for supper tomorrow , along with your corn bread and Pineapple Juice Cake . Thank you so much for all of the wonderful recipes you share with us.
Oh I almost for got to tell you my granddaughters love Behind the Recipe . They say you are so cool
{ my translation}.
I’m so glad y’all have enjoyed the recipes! Having all those recipes on your table is the ultimate compliment for me! And please tell your granddaughters I said hello!
Debra finney
I’d love to have the reciepe of the pineapple juice cake
You can find it here:
Sandi
Can you use sweet potato instead of russet?
Absolutely!
Dawn
I make this about twice a month, freeze the leftovers. Perfect.
Love hearing that!!
Sandy Schnieders
Looking forward to trying this recipe! Okra? Maybe not! ???? love your recipes and sweet nature!
Anecia
I love the simplicity of this recipe!!! I’m amazed how many people question the vinegar… I always incorporate savory, sweet and tang… it just does something “ magical “ to the flavor… waiting on another great video Stacey!!!!
Ha! Thanks, Anecia! We’ve got more in the works!
Debra
Do you have the sodium amount? I am on strict diet but could tweak it.
It will all depend on the the brands of the ingredients you use.
Karol Sullins
POMI brand tomatoes have a very low sodium content and they are delicious! This recipe is almost exactly like my Mom’s and the one I have made for years. Only difference, no garlic in our recipe and I use a pepper vinegar (mixed peppers from the garden…jalepeno, bananna, etc….with apple cider vinegar for canning) for the tablespoon of vinegar. DELICIOUS! 🙂
I’ve seen the POMI brand in the tore, but never tried it. Thanks for the tip!
Marygrace
This would be awesome made in an instapot. To bad there are no directions how long to cook or the order of ingredients.
Shouldn’t be too hard to adapt it. Soups are usually pretty easy to convert.
Ben Stewart
Could you give a ball park amount of salt (and pepper) to start with for this recipe? I realize that it’s a “to taste” type of thing, but it’s always difficult for me to gauge how much to start with for large amounts of liquid such as this. A recommended starting point would be helpful to prevent under or over salting.
Sure thing! I’d start with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper and increase each by about 1/4 teaspoon until you get it where it tastes good to you.
Renae
Thank you. I struggle with “to taste” instructions as well.
I know it can be frustrating. The thing for me is that many of the convenience products (like broth) have different levels of salt. So, if I say 1 teaspoon of salt, it might be just right if you’re using one brand of broth but too much if you’re using another. Then everyone would complain that the recipe was too salty.
WENDY
Can you give additional information on the package of frozen mix veggies? I am located in Virginia and cannot find ” lima beans, green beans, carrots, corn, peas, and okra in it”. I agree that would be the perfect blend!
Can you give the information on where you buy them and what brand? If not, do you have suggestions on how to make a perfect blend?
Some brands call it a soup mix. It’s really just up to you. Find a pack of frozen veggies you like and it should works just fine in most cases. The brand I buy most commonly is PictSweet.
Cindy D
Stacey, have you published the recipe for your mom’s slow cooked vegetable beef soup? Would like to make that one!!!
Hey Cindy! It’s not on the blog, but is in my cookbook, if you have that. If not, let me know.
Cindy D.
I don’t have your cookbook. Just get your blog posts by email
Shoot me a message to stacey@southernbite.com and I’ll get you fixed up.
Cindy D.
Thank you. Just sent the email.
Marla Maynard
Do you need the vinegar if you are going to cook in a crockpot?
Thank you
I think I would still include it.
MDUNN
instead of using white vinegar, I have subbed it with lemon juice straight from a lemon, and really does a better job for flavor then white vinegar. I also increased my broth intakate, so I can add rice into the soup.
MDUNN
Also adding in some dried thyme, and a bay leaf also helps improves the dullness to this soup. The first time I made it, it lacked flavor, until I improvised on the recipe.
I’ve never found it dull, but I’m glad to hear you’re making it your own.
Lindsay
If I double this recipe, should I put 2 tablespoons of vinegar in at the end (instead of just 1 tablespoon)?
Yes, I would add 2 tablespoons. Enjoy!
Jen from Birmingham
This is a simple and delicious soup recipe!!! It tastes just like the vegetable beef soup my grandmother used to make many years ago. I love macaroni noodles in my soup so I threw in a small handful while it was simmering and it was just perfect.
Thanks for sharing!
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it!
Angela Fields
Hi Stacey, thanks for the recipe (-: Can I use Apple cider vinegar instead of white? I ran out and have to get more but Im already cooking.
Thanks,
Angela
Sure!
Leigh
Just moved to Nevada from California, not used to the snow yet, it’s COLD here ???? thought of my moms veggie soup I grew up with but couldn’t remember all ingredients. Here it is, can’t believe it !!! Never leave out the vinegar, it’s a must, I add a little more than it calls for and to change it up add pasta instead of potatoes . Thank u thank u thank u Stacey ????????
So glad you’ve enjoyed this one! Stay warm!!
DOROTHY
I’m going to try this recipe today will let you know later how it turned out
Hope you’ll enjoy! Please do!
Carol
I always add a small can of sauerkraut, you don’t taste the sauerkraut but if gives the soup a great boost of flavor. You can start with a few spoonfuls depending on the size of the pot and taste. Never had a request to leave it out, actually had requests to add more.
Love sauerkraut! Interesting addition!
Marthaelaine
Would it be alright if I left the hamburger out? Unfortunately I can’t eat meat , I have found that I can handle beef and chicken stock in small amounts. I know I sound like an odd duck ( as my mother would say) . Thank you so much .
No worries! Yes, you can leave the beef out. Enjoy!
Marthaelaine
I made this soup for my husband and granddaughter by your recipe they loved it. I took some out for me before I added the hamburger it was wonderful. My granddaughter ask for your recipe, so she could make it for her family. Thank you Stacy for sharing with us.
I’m so happy y’all enjoyed it!!
Barb
Made this soup today and added cabbage but not the vinegar. Why vinegar? The soup is delicious and easy! My favorite combination!
It helps to boost up the flavor since it doesn’t cook for very long. It won’t taste like vinegar at all.
Bobbie
Made it, loved it! Even stirred some leftover black eyed peas into it for the new year! Can’t taste the vinegar at all! Thanks, Stacey! 🙂
Glad you enjoyed it!!
Kathie
Can you tell us more about how your mom cooked the stew meat overnight? I’d like to give it a try. Did she cook it in broth, or what?
Broth or water, salt, garlic, pepper – just barely covered with liquid. On low for 6 to 8 hours.
Becky
I don’t have tomato Sauce but I do have tomato juice could I use a little bit of that?
Carrie
Love this staple recipe and been making it shortcut for years…. thanks for posting! One more thing I add is during the ground beef browning toss in a tablespoons of Italian seasoning , so it flowers during the sautée with the meat and also can even use a can of diced Italian flavored hunts tomatoes to boost even more. I promise it isn’t overpowering at all. It’s a perfect blend for more flavor punch. Love the vinegar tip thanks!! I agree 200 on the fresh potato’s and texture a must and I also do a couple fresh carrots in the sautéed portion for sweetness flavor. Thanks again for posting
Thanks for adding your tips and tricks! These sound like great additions!
Amy
I made this for dinner tonight and it was amazing! I didn’t ha e any white vinegar so I subbed with a splash of dill pickle juice, (nobody noticed at all), and it still turned out perfect! 🙂
Sounds delicious to me! I just love some pickle juice!
Billy R Blair
The wife had me make this for us on my day off. First time, but added cabbage and broccoli looks good so far.
Those both sound like great additions! Hope y’all enjoyed it!
Janet
Love this recipe.. easy and so good! I browned my meat as directed and the soup has been simmering for about 2 hours but the meat is not tender . What should I do??
What kind of ground beef did you use?
Joan Pope
Instead of the vinegar I use a half a can of Coors light in my soup. It enhances the flavor of the veggies.Plus it tenderizes the beef. I serve it with lime flavored chips. This also is good with kidney beans in it.
That’s super interesting!
Becky Coers-Smith
I would add a can of okra with tomatoes.
Sounds like a great addition!
Kristin
Can you make this in the crockpot? If so…how do I go about it? Thanks a million!!:-)
Sure! Just dump it all in the crock pit for about 4 hours on low. That should work. 🙂
Agh
I”ve made soup this way for a long time. I add about 1 tbs. of sugar when I add the vinegar – sweet/sour combo I guess. Just the way we like it.
Yum!
pictaram
It sounds so good! Nothing better than soup in this cold breeze. Thank you for sharing! Gonna try it!
Totally agree! Enjoy!
marie
Thanks Jimmie
Jimmie Archie Harris
The vinegar keeps the steamed okra from being slimey.
Carole
No okra for me, add corn and also shredded cabbage, at the end of cooking a small can cream corn , delicious
I really love the addition of cabbage!
Angie G
I’m home w/the flu and nothing sounds better to me than my grandma and mom’s beef vegetable soup… and then your post arrives! I think to myself, “self, this is a quicker, easier version of that soup!” Even with the flu, I could pull this together. It looks delicious, thank you!
Goodness! The flu is everywhere! I sure hope you feel better soon!
Robert Farrington
Pro top. If you want a cleaner brighter look to your soup, add peas at the end. Peas will thaw by the time you serve and they will be a bright green that pops in your soup!
Great tip! Thanks for sharing!
marie
I,ve never added vinegar. What does it do for the soup?
It also gives it a little punch of flavor. You won’t actually taste the vinegar.
Carole
Add corn and at the end a small can cream corn, delicious