Craving Olive Garden pasta e fagioli soup? It's one of my favorites, and this hearty Italian recipe brings restaurant flavor right to your kitchen!
Packed with ground beef, red kidney beans, cannellini beans, cooked pasta, and tomatoes, this one-pot wonder comes together in just under an hour.
Don’t forget the creamy Parmesan rind and a final sprinkle of cheese for extra indulgence!
I love serving pasta fagioli on busy nights. Once you try this easy copycat recipe, you'll be hooked!
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Why You'll Love This Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
Perfect Copycat Recipe: This homemade version of pasta fagioli soup captures all the hearty, rustic flavors of Olive Garden's dish while letting you control the quality of ingredients and seasoning levels.
One-Pot: Everything comes together in a single pot, making cleanup a breeze. Spend more time savoring and less time in the kitchen!
Budget-Friendly: With affordable pantry staples like beans, pasta, and canned tomatoes, this dish is a budget-friendly way to feed the family.
Perfect for Leftovers: This soup tastes even better the next day. I love to make a big pot ahead of time to use for meal prep throughout the week.
Soup Ingredients
- Ditalini Pasta: Small, tube-shaped pasta adds texture and heartiness to the soup. I love how it absorbs the rich broth for extra flavor.
- Lean Ground Beef: Creates a meaty and savory base for this classic Italian dish. You can swap in ground Italian sausage or ground turkey if you prefer.
- Olive Oil: Used to brown the ground beef, adding richness and depth of flavor.
- Onion, Carrots, Celery Stalks, Garlic: The aromatic “soffritto,” which forms the flavorful foundation of the soup.
- Chicken Broth: Blends the ingredients into a cohesive and comforting soup.
- Tomato Sauce & Diced Tomatoes: Provide a robust, tangy tomato flavor for the soup's base.
- Parmesan Rind: Slowly infuses the soup with a nutty, savory depth, which makes it tase incredible.
- Red Kidney & Cannellini Beans: Add creamy texture, protein, and heartiness, making the dish filling and nutritious.
- Seasonings: I use a blend of dried basil, oregano, and thyme, for Italian flavor along with salt and black pepper.
- Grated Parmesan Cheese & Fresh Basil Leaves: I always use these as a garnish for touch of freshness and extra flavor.
How to Make Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
This tried-and-true soup is so easy to make at home! Serve it warm with fresh, crusty bread, and you won't see a drop leftover.
1. COOK the beef with olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Break it into crumbles until browned, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
2. SAUTÉ the onion, carrots, and celery in the same pot, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5-6 minutes. Stir in the garlic, basil, oregano, and thyme. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant, then return the ground beef to the pot.
3. ADD the chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, water, sugar, ditalini pasta, and Parmesan rind.
4. BRING to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring often, until pasta is tender.
5. STIR IN the kidney beans and Great Northern beans. Cook for 2-3 minutes until heated through.
6. REMOVE and discard the Parmesan rind. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
7. LADLE into bowls and garnish with Parmesan and basil, if desired.
8. SERVE warm with crusty bread and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
Ready in just 30 minutes, this copycat recipe makes the perfect cozy dinner for busy weeknights. Worried it won't taste the same? Check out these simple tips for success.
- Brown the beef properly. Fully brown the ground beef. Let it develop a nice sear before removing it from the pot for a deeper, meaty flavor.
- Prevent pasta sogginess. If you anticipate leftovers, cook the ditalini separately and add pasta to individual servings to prevent soggy noodles the next day. Omit the water in the recipe.
- No Parmesan rind? Stir in about 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan during the last few minutes of cooking for a similar cheesy depth.
- Pick your favorite pasta. Sometimes, I use small shells or elbow macaroni if I don't have ditalini.
- Go easy on the seasoning. Taste and adjust salt and pepper before serving since canned beans and tomatoes can vary in sodium and acidity levels.
- Spice it up. I love heat, so I usually add some crushed red pepper flakes with the soup simmers.
How to Store
Want to have your own Olive Garden unlimited soup fest at home? Follow these steps to store it.
To Store: Transfer cooled leftovers to an airtight container and store in the fridge for 1-2 days. If you make the pasta separately, the soup alone will be fine in the fridge for 3-4 days. Add the pasta to serve.
To Freeze: Since this soup contains pasta, I don't recommend freezing it. The pasta is likely to go mushy after thawing. But you can freeze it without the pasta! Transfer the cooled leftovers (without pasta) to an airtight container. Freeze for 2-3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
More Olive Garden Recipes You'll Love
Olive Garden Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
Recipe FAQs
The phrase simply means “pasta and beans” in English.
Follow these easy steps to make this soup in your slow cooker:
1. Prep the Crockpot: Add the browned ground beef, beans, diced tomatoes, broth, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and seasonings to the Crockpot. Stir well.
2. Slow Cook: Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours until vegetables are tender.
3. Add Pasta: About 30 minutes before serving, stir in the uncooked pasta. Cook until tender.
Serve the soup with crusty bread, breadsticks, garlic bread, and/or a side salad for the true Olive Garden experience.
Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
6
servings15
minutes30
minutes444
kcalThis Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli is a cozy and hearty soup with tender beef, beans, and pasta in a rich and flavorful broth. It's pure comfort in a bowl.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef or Italian sausage
1 medium onion, finely diced
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
2 ribs celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cups chicken broth
2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup water
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 cup dry ditalini pasta
1 Parmesan rind, optional
1 (15 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
grated Parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves, for garnish
Instructions
- Warm 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it into crumbles, until browned and fully cooked, about 4-5 minutes. Transfer the beef to a plate and set aside.
- In the same pot, add the diced onion, carrots, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, about 5-6 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic, dried basil, oregano, and thyme, and cook for an additional 1 minute until fragrant.
- Return the cooked ground beef to the pot. Stir in the chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, water, sugar, ditalini pasta, and Parmesan rind.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring often, until the pasta is tender.
- Stir in the drained and rinsed kidney beans and Great Northern beans. Continue cooking for 2-3 minutes, just until the beans are heated through. Remove and discard the Parmesan rind, then carefully taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and basil leaves, if desired. Serve warm with crusty bread, and enjoy!
Notes
- If you expect leftovers, cook the ditalini pasta separately and add it to individual servings. This prevents the pasta from soaking up too much liquid and becoming overly soft in storage.
- Experiment with ground turkey, chicken sausage, or vegetarian meat substitutes to tailor the soup to your taste and dietary preferences.
- Stir in baby spinach or chopped kale toward the end of cooking for an extra boost of color and nutrition.
Nutrition
- Total number of serves: 6
- Calories: 444kcal
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Cholesterol: 49mg
- Sodium: 1136mg
- Potassium: 1371mg
- Carbohydrates: 63g
- Fiber: 12g
- Sugar: 11g
- Protein: 32g
- Vitamin A: 5628IU
- Vitamin C: 17mg
- Calcium: 144mg
- Iron: 6mg
- Vitamin E: 2mg
- Vitamin K: 25mg
- Vitamin B6: .74mg
- Vitamin B12: 1mg
- Folate: 116mg
- Magnesium: 124mg
- Zinc: 5mg
- Selenium: 36mg
- Copper: .63mg
- Manganese: 1mg
4 Comments
Love this soup. In the future will keep pasta separate. I had salad and garlic knots with soup for dinner.i added cayenne pepper to my bowl for some heat. Thank you!
It looks absolutely delicious and healthy. Thank you ill make it this winter for sure
Delicious!
It was delicious my picky husband LOVED IT!! Followed the recipe exactly
Will definitely make it again
Thankyou.