This pasta e fagioli has so much flavor, making it taste wonderful on a cold winter evening when you need a bowl of comfort to warm you up. The trick to getting the most flavor in this Pasta e Fagioli is to use homemade chicken bone broth that has been simmered with vegetable scraps like onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Storebought chicken broth works too, but I find that homemade chicken broth really elevates the flavor in this soup. This soup makes a nice amount and tastes great reheated, but you can also freeze it if you have leftovers. To reheat, simply thaw, then warm the soup back up on the stovetop or in the microwave, adding more broth if needed. Enjoy!

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Best Crockpot Pasta e Fagioli

marilynpeight

This Pasta e Fagioli is cooked low and slow to give it a rich and complex flavor. Use fresh ingredients and homemade chicken broth for the best results!

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 5

Course Soup

Cuisine Italian

Servings

Ingredients

1 pound ground loose sausage or 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 ground sausage
1 small diced onion roughly 1 cup
3 large garlic cloves minced
1 cup frozen kale with stems removed *see note
1- 14 oz. stewed tomatoes with juice *see note
3 cups chicken broth
1- 15 oz. tomato sauce
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
salt and pepper to taste see suggested amount below
1- 15 oz. red kidney beans drained
1- 15 oz. white cannellini beans drained

Add later:

6 oz. small pasta; Ditalini, Bow tie, Macaroni etc.

Instructions

Brown the ground sausage (and beef if applicable), then add onions a minute or two before the meat is fully browned. Place the ground beef mixture into a 5–7-quart crockpot, then toss in minced garlic.
Add frozen kale, stewed tomatoes, chicken broth, tomato sauce, seasonings and beans to the crockpot, then cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.
During the last 30 minutes of slow cooking, cook pasta separately according to package directions. Once the pasta is softened, add it to the crockpot and stir to combine. Allow to cool slightly, then serve with crusty bread, shredded or grated parmesan cheese or shredded mozzarella cheese (optional). Enjoy!

Notes

Instead of kale, you can use diced carrots, celery or spinach. Add the vegetables to taste.

If you don’t have stewed tomatoes on hand you can also use fresh tomatoes (roughly 1-2 cups) that have been chunked. You may need to use additional chicken broth if using fresh tomatoes.

I use 1 teaspoon salt (rounded) and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper in this recipe. Feel free to add to taste.

For a thicker base, you can add tomato paste. Add just enough to get the texture you desire.

Additional notes and step by step photos below.

Keyword Crockpot, Pasta e Fagioli, with Sausage, Slow Cooker Soup, Italian

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More soups to warm up with this winter:

Ingredients needed for this Pasta e Fagioli Soup: Red kidney beans and cannellini beans, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt and pepper, chicken broth, garlic cloves, Italian seasoning, onion, small pasta, ground sausage (I mixed mine with beef) and frozen kale.

Which ingredients can be switched up?

I find this soup to be very versatile, because you can adapt the ingredients as needed. Ditalini pasta is the authentic pasta to use in pasta e fagioli, but for the life of me, I could not find it in the supermarkets I shop in. I ended up settling for bow tie pasta and found my family loves it, yay! I also used home canned stewed yellow tomatoes, which are sweeter than storebought stewed tomatoes and found the flavor pairs very well with the beans and pasta. The vegetables can be switched up too, feel free to use carrots, celery or spinach instead of kale. I would recommend adding carrots and celery to preference because it may not take a full cup.

Step 1: Brown the ground sausage (and beef if applicable), then add onions a minute or two before done to soften the onions. Place the meat and onions into a 5–7-quart crockpot, then toss in minced garlic.

Should the garlic be sauteed with the sausage and onions?

I prefer not to saute the minced garlic because it lessens the flavor in the soup. If you prefer just a hint of garlic in your soup you can sauté it with the onions or add less garlic. You can also omit the garlic if you dislike any garlic flavor. Garlic powder can be used instead of garlic cloves in a pinch. Add 1 teaspoon, or to taste.

Step 2: Add frozen kale, stewed tomatoes, chicken broth, tomato sauce, seasonings and beans to the crockpot, then cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Tip for lessening the acidity of the tomato sauce:

As you can see in the ingredients photo, I used tomato sauce from Sam’s club which I find to be very acidic. To reduce the acidity, whisk a teaspoon of brown sugar into the can of sauce before adding it to the remaining ingredients in the crockpot.

Step 3: During the last 30 minutes of slow cooking, cook the pasta according to package directions, then stir it into the soup.

Can you toss the raw pasta directly into the crockpot?

Technically you can add the pasta directly to the crockpot an hour before the soup is done, but I have had too many bad experiences with crockpot pasta becoming mushy or not cooking evenly, so I recommend cooking the pasta separately. Rather safe than sorry!

Last but not least, allow the soup to cool for a few minutes, then serve with crusty bread and top with shredded or grated parmesan cheese. A chef’s salad pairs beautifully with this soup as well. Enjoy!

Storage notes:

Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The leftover soup tastes even better the next day in my opinion! You can also freeze the soup for up to 3 months.

Thanks for stopping by and stay warm! -Marilyn Stoltzfus Peight.

Best Crockpot Pasta E Fagioli