This is my all-time favorite recipe for meatball veggie soup. It’s a healthy and delicious recipe that your whole family will love. Plus, it’s easy to make!
This recipe for slow cooker meatball veggie soup is a combo of my two favorite soup recipes: Italian Wedding Soup and Garden Vegetable Soup (from my Easy & Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook).
You’re going to love it because it’s an absolutely delicious meal that your whole family will eat.
Plus, it’s incredibly easy to make and versatile. Feel free to swap out the veggies for others that your family likes or whatever is in season. (I’ve tried combinations with kale, spinach, or yellow squash and they’ve all been great.)
You can even add a can of beans to make it a bit more hearty. Just make sure your slow cooker is big enough to hold all of the ingredients. This recipe fits perfectly in my 7-quart slow cooker but is a bit too much for my 4-quart model.
Slow Cooker Meatball Vegetable Soup
Yield: 8 servings 1x
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Pin RecipeDescription
Cook fresh or freeze to cook later. This soup tastes great with a piece of crusty bread on the side.
Ingredients
- 1 pound small meatballs (store bought or homemade)
- 24oz jar of pasta sauce (about 2.5 cups)
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped
- 3 cups green beans, ends cut off and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 medium-sized zucchini, ends cut off and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in slow cooker.
- Cover, and cook on “low” for 8 hours or until veggies are soft.
To Freeze and Cook Later
Combine all ingredients (except chicken broth) in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to three months. When ready to cook, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and add to slow cooker with chicken broth. Cook on “low” setting for 8 hours or until veggies are soft.
I am definitely going to try this one very soon. Got a question, though. Do you make this one and freeze it? The recipe didn’t say that you do…was wondering how the veggies hold up if you do freeze it. Sounds so delicious.
Yes, I’ve frozen it several times. The veggies freeze great! 🙂
Thanks, Kelly! Made this tonight and it was delicious! I’m adding it to great recipes that are easy to make for company, or for extra to give to a friend. Here’s what I added:
* 1 bag baby spinach, about 10 min before serving
* fun-shaped pasta (and ladled the soup over it) since serving to 2 kids
* 1/2 can garbanzo beans (had on hand, leftover from another meal)
*used vegetable broth instead (had on hand)
I only had 3 hours in crock pot, so made sure to dice carrots and zucchini small soas to cook faster.
Sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing, Angie.
Question: Can I put it all in a freezer bag before cooking it or should I cook it first, then freeze?
Thanks! I’m new to freezer cooking!
Freeze it raw (except the meatballs). So easy!
I thought it said to freeze everything except the Chicken Broth before making
Yes. You can add the broth to the bag if it will fit, but I normally wait to add until the day of cooking.
hi Kelly
Was searching for a new soup recipe and came across yours, going to give it a try….sounds delicious 🙂 With the store bought meatballs whenever I make meatballs for a party I always brown them first in the oven before putting them in the crockpot with my sauce for an hour on low and then keep it warm…….do you brown your meatballs before putting them in the crockpot for you soup? Thank you
No, I do not. The store-bought meatballs get really soft, and we like them that way. If you want a “crunchier” exterior, I’d brown them first. Hope that helps!
if i make my own fresh homemade meatballs- do i cook them in the oven or brown them in a pan before i add them to the crock pot? Do i need to refrigerate or freeze them 1st so they’ll hold together in the crockpot?
You can cook either way and they don’t need to be refrigerated or frozen. I’ve added raw fresh meatballs to the crockpot before.
Would it work if I cooked it all first in the crockpot, then put it into smaller bags to freeze and eat later?
Yep!
Eating this right now and it’s delicious. My girlfriend said “From now on I want all vegetable soups to have meatballs in them.” I have four other soups sitting in the freezer too. Love it! Thanks for the recipes. 🙂
Yay! I’m so glad you liked it, Chris. Thanks for letting me know. 🙂