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★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
You'll love the tender chunks of stew meat and how it's packed with healthy veggies all in a light, beefy-tomato broth.
Make this vegetable beef soup in your crockpot or on the stovetop.
Easy Old-Fashioned Vegetable Beef Soup
This vegetable beef soup is made from scratch but it's very easy to make. Do you remember the mixed veggies that your mom made you eat when you were little? Well, they're back. And your adult-self will love how they add to the health and flavor factor of this soup.
Tastes like Grandma's recipe.
This homemade, old-fashioned vegetable beef soup brings back warm, nostalgic vibes with cozy pot roast flavor and tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture—just like grandma used to make, but without needing the oven (unless you’re baking some warm bread to go with it, which I highly recommend!).
Hearty and Healthy
This hearty vegetable beef soup is packed with tender stew meat, rustic potatoes, and vitamin-rich mixed veggies. Simmered in a light beefy-tomato broth, it’s a filling, nourishing meal perfect for a chilly day.
A One-pot Meal
You can make this soup in a slow cooker—use the sauté feature if it has one. If not, you can still sear and saute slowly in the crockpot, it takes about an hour.
I usually use a Dutch oven so I can sear the beef, sauté the veggies, and simmer everything in one pot.
Pack leftovers for lunch.
This soup stores well and makes a great to-go lunch. Just pack it in a glass container and reheat in the microwave for a quick, hearty meal.
Enjoy with fresh-baked bread.
Frozen bread dough is a nice little cheat for quick and easy fresh-baked bread on weeknights. You could also grab a loaf of bakery bread or try my 5-ingrdient milk and honey bread.
Add a salad and dessert.
This vegetable beef soup goes great with my quick and easy cranberry-apple blue cheese salad and why not a giant Twinkie bundt cake for dessert?!
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
The beauty of my vegetable beef soup recipe is that you don't need a ton of ingredients to get a ton a flavor.
Here's everything you'll need:
- Beef broth and beef bullion. For more flavorful stock we are using both.
- Diced potatoes. Leave the skin on for added flavor, texture and vitamins.
- Frozen mixed vegetables. Easy! Healthy!
- Canned diced tomatoes. The beef and tomatoes create a lovely broth as the base for this soup.
- Stew meat. You can buy this packaged, already cut into bite-sized pieces or you can use ground beef.
- Butter. I like to sear the meat in butter for added creamy flavor.
- Worcestershire sauce. This brings out the "meaty" flavor of the beef.
- Onion, bay leaves, salt and pepper all add layers of flavor to finish off this soup.
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
This soup is easy to prepare using one pot. Here's a look at the steps.
- First, sear the stew meat.
- Add chopped onion, frozen mixed vegetables, and diced potatoes.
- Add diced tomatoes.
- Add Worcestershire sauce, beef broth and beef bullion.
- Add bay leaves.
- Bring to a boil then simmer until vegetables are soft and flavorful.
Simple and easy!
★ Tips & FAQs ★
How to Tenderize Meat in Soup
- Sear First: Brown the meat before simmering to lock in juices and boost flavor.
- Simmer Low and Slow: Cook the soup over low heat for at least 2 hours (up to 4 for tougher cuts like stew meat). This breaks down connective tissue and makes the meat tender.
- Keep It Covered: Cover your pot to trap moisture and maintain a steady simmer.
Just remember: Sear + Simmer = flavor-packed, juicy beef. Totally worth the extra step!
I like using pre-cubed stew meat for its tenderness and hearty texture—it’s easy to find at most grocery stores. Ground beef works great too and gives a similar flavor with a different texture. Plus, it’s more budget-friendly. For a natural option, try grass-fed beef—I recently picked some up at a new local market and loved it.
You can make this soup as a one-pot recipe using a Dutch oven. Just sauté the stew meat first to lock in flavor, then add the rest of the ingredients and simmer. I love using my 6-quart Lodge Dutch oven because it lets me sauté, boil, and roast all in one pot—great for soups and roasts.
If you're cooking ahead, you can sauté everything in a skillet or Dutch oven and then transfer to a slow cooker to simmer. Use whatever method fits your schedule—just don’t skip the sauté step for the best flavor. I have a 6-Quart Lodge Dutch Oven that I love.
Yes! You can sear the meat on the stovetop, then finish the soup in a slow cooker. It’s perfect for busy days—just prep in the morning and come home to a ready meal. If buying a crockpot, look for one with a built-in timer that switches to “keep warm” to avoid overcooking.
Yep! The great thing about an Instant Pot is you can sauté and cook in one pot. Use the sauté setting to sear the meat and onions, then add the rest and pressure cook on high for 12–15 minutes. The longer you cook, the more tender everything gets. Be sure to follow your Instant Pot’s directions for sautéing, heating, and safely releasing pressure.
Shop Instapots on Amazon and get one fast!
Here’s the secret to super flavorful soup: bouillon! Even with beef broth, a little extra bouillon adds a big boost. Just match the flavor—beef bouillon for beef broth—and start with a teaspoon at a time, tasting as you go. You can always add more at the end.
Want even more flavor? Try deglazing your skillet. After sautéing, remove the solids, add ½ cup beef broth to the pan, boil, and scrape up the browned bits. Pour that rich liquid into your soup—so good!
Stew meat adds some natural juice, but for a rich, beefy broth, you’ll need more. Use beef bouillon + water, canned broth, or beef stock paste. I like starting with bone broth for flavor and nutrients, then add bouillon for an extra boost—that’s my secret to a broth so good you could sip it on its own!
You can easily boost the flavor and heat of this soup with hot sauce, jalapeños, banana peppers, chipotle, or green chiles. For more depth, try Italian seasoning, tomato or orange juice, soy sauce, garlic powder, red wine, cilantro, parsley, or green onion—so many tasty options!
Sautéing veggies first helps release flavor, aroma, and softens them so they cook faster and aren’t crunchy later. It’s optional, but if you have time, try it and taste the difference!
This soup can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days. it can also be frozen and reheated.
Store in an airtight container and freeze for up to three months.
★ More Beef Recipes ★
Love soup? Browse my other easy soup recipes to Pin for later.
Have a craving for beef? Browse all my beef recipes.
This old fashioned vegetable beef soup was featured on South Your Mouth!
Old Fashioned Vegetable Beef Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 lb stew meat or 2lb pot roast, cubed
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 tablespoon butter
- 2 cup mixed vegetables (corn, carrots, green beans and peas)
- 3 large potatoes diced
- 3 ½ cups beef broth
- 1 beef bullion cube
- 14 oz can petite diced tomatoes not drained
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
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Instructions
- Sear beef. Heat butter in a dutch oven or large pot over high heat. Add stew meat and sear so that outside edges are brown, turning over as needed to brown all sides of the meat.
- Sauté aromatics. Add diced onion and saute while searing the beef. Continually stir onions to prevent sticking. Cook for about 3 minutes total.If finishing in a slow cooker*, transfer onions and beef to your crockpot set on low once fully seared.
- Add veggies and create broth. Add mixed vegetables, cubed potatoes, diced tomatoes, beef broth, beef bullion, Worcestershire sauce, and bay leaves.
- Simmer. Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer. Cover and simmer for at least 2 hours or until potatoes are soft all the way through and meat is desired tenderness.If using a crockpot, cook for 2 hours on high (or 4 hours on low). Check potatoes to be sure they are fully cooked through, then serve.
- Season and serve. Add salt and pepper to taste before serving. Remove bay leaves before serving.
Video
Notes
- Pre-heat your crockpot to reduce cook time.
- For more tender beef and vegetables, simmer soup for up to 4 hours or start with a tender cut of beef like a steak.
- I leave the skin on my potatoes like my grandma did for extra vitamins and flavor but you can peel them if you prefer.
- For extra flavor, deglaze the pan after cooking the meat. Remove the beef, add ½ cup broth, boil, and scrape up the browned bits. Then pour the flavorful liquid and beef into your soup.
Nancy says
This recipe is so simple but absolutely DELICIOUS!!!! It will be my go to vegetable beef soup recipe from now on!!!!
Taungi R Taylor says
Can I add barley to this recipe?
Angela G. says
Hi Taungi, Yes! You can add barley or replace the potatoes with barley.
Lois Harding says
The best vegetable beef soup ever. I love it. This is the 2nd time making it. My daughter Gina made for me when I was in Maryland. Sooo. Good. Thank you.