I first tasted Pasta e Fagioli at Olive Garden during a snowstorm in December. My family and I had trudged through six inches of snow to get there, and that first spoonful of hearty, steaming soup was like a warm hug from the inside. The rich tomato broth, tender vegetables, and perfectly cooked pasta instantly became my cold-weather comfort food. After years of ordering it at the restaurant, I was determined to recreate this beloved soup at home—and dare I say, this version might just be better than the original!
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Homemade pasta e fagioli soup
This is a wonderful, hearty soup, perfect for a cold day. You could serve it with your favorite salad tossed with Olive Garden Italian Salad Dressing, or a hearty sandwich.
When you go to the olive garden, you have a first important choice: Are you a soup or salad kind of person? Olive Garden serves up four delicious types of soup. You can get the Chicken Gnocchi Soup, Zuppa Toscana, Minestrone Soup, or this Pasta e Fagioli.
All four soups are excellent. This one is hearty and perfect for enjoying with a large crowd.
Equipment Needed
- Large Dutch oven or stock pot (at least 8-quart capacity)
- Sharp knife for chopping vegetables
- Wooden spoon for stirring
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Can opener
Ingredients and Their Purpose
- Ground beef – Provides rich, savory flavor and hearty protein that makes this soup as satisfying as a main course
- Vegetable oil – Used to brown the beef and sauté the vegetables, creating a foundation of flavor
- Onion – Adds aromatic sweetness and depth to the soup base
- Slivered carrots – Contribute natural sweetness, vibrant color, and nutritional value
- Celery – Provides an earthy base flavor and pleasant texture contrast
- Canned diced tomatoes – Adds acidity, umami flavor, and creates part of the soup’s base
- Canned red kidney beans – They offer protein, fiber, and a firm texture that holds up well during cooking
- Canned white kidney beans (cannellini) – Provides a creamy texture and mild flavor that balances the heartier red beans
- Beef broth – Forms the savory liquid base and enhances the meaty flavor profile
- Dried oregano – Contributes classic Italian herbal notes that complement the tomato base
- Black pepper – Adds subtle heat and enhances the other flavors in the soup
- Tabasco sauce – Provides a hint of heat and depth without making the soup spicy
- Marinara sauce – Creates richness, body, and complex tomato flavor in the broth
- Small shell macaroni – Adds satisfying texture and makes the soup more filling
- Fresh parsley – Brightens the flavor and adds a fresh, herbaceous finish
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
For this soup, we are using canned beans to help reduce cooking time.
You can easily customize this fagioli soup recipe. Here are some ideas:
- Substitute the ground beef with Italian sausage, chicken, or turkey.
- Substitute beef broth with chicken broth.
- Substitute the white kidney beans with Great Northern beans.
- Substitute marinara sauce with tomato sauce.
- Substitute the small shell macaroni with elbow macaroni, ditalini pasta, or other small pasta.
- Substitute dried oregano with Italian seasoning.
- Add a little bacon or pancetta to the meat.
- Add some chopped cloves garlic to the meat after it has browned.
- Add other herbs such as basil and thyme.
How to Make Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli
Making Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli soup is so easy! Here’s how:
- Cook the beef in the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat, breaking it up as it browns.
- Add onions, carrots, celery, and tomatoes. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add white and red beans, beef broth, oregano, pepper, Tabasco, and marinara sauce.
- Simmer until celery and carrots are tender, about 45 minutes.
- Add the pasta and simmer until it is cooked.
- Stir in the parsley before serving.
- To serve, sprinkle more fresh parsley on top if desired.
CopyKat Tip: Do not add the pasta if you plan on freezing the soup. Pasta does not freeze well. Just cook some pasta to add to the soup when you thaw and reheat it.
What to serve with homemade Pasta Fagiioli
Enjoy this soup with Olive Garden Chicken Marsala or some eggplant parmesan. It also tastes delicious with a simple grilled cheese or panini.
If you want a lighter meal, all you need is a warm dinner roll, breadsticks, Olive Garden Salad, or garlic bread to accompany it!
Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli Soup (Copycat Recipe)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 12 ounces chopped onion
- 14 ounces slivered carrots
- 14 ounces diced celery
- 48 ounces canned diced tomatoes
- 2 cups cooked, drained red kidney beans
- 2 cups cooked, drained white kidney beans
- 2 3/4 quarts beef broth
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 1/2 teaspoons pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
- 48 ounces marinara sauce
- 8 ounces small shell macaroni (or other small dried pasta shape)
- 5 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Cook the beef in the oil in a large stockpot, breaking it up until it starts to brown. Add the onions, carrots, celery, and tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Add the beans, beef broth, oregano, pepper, Tabasco, and marinara sauce. Simmer until celery and carrots are tender, about 45 minutes. Add the pasta and simmer until it’s cooked.
- Stir in the parsley before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Do you love Olive Garden? Try these copycat recipes!
Popular Soup Recipes
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Be sure to check out more of my hearty soup recipes and the best Olive Garden copycat recipes here on CopyKat.com!
Storage and Reheating Instructions for Leftovers
- Refrigeration: Once cooled, store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
- Freezing: This soup freezes beautifully for up to 3 months—but leave out the pasta! Pasta doesn’t freeze well, so either add cooked pasta when reheating or freeze the soup base only.
- Thawing: Thaw frozen soup overnight in the refrigerator.
- Reheating: Warm on the stovetop over medium heat, stirring occasionally until heated. If the soup thickens too much during storage, add a splash of broth when reheating.
Scaling the Recipe
- Smaller batch: This recipe makes about 9 quarts, perfect for large families or meal prep. For a smaller amount, simply cut all ingredients in half.
- For a crowd: The recipe as written serves about 12 people generously. For larger gatherings, increase the ingredients proportionally and use multiple pots if needed.
I freeze cooked pasta all the time ,and it is excellent,with or without sauce.
when i make soup and freeze it with pasta in it . excellent taste.
Very tasty
Jean
is 88 oz. Beef stock accurate? Or is it 8 oz.?
it is 88 ounces, we want lots of stock.
The name of the small pasta that Olive Garden uses in their soup is Datilini…I have found it at Publix and Winn Dixie Supermarkets here in Florida (It is packaged in a clear cellophane bag). Always cook the pasta separately and add a small handful to each serving (just before serving)…never put it into the soup to cook or it will be mushy.
YES! I found this out the first time I cooked it. But the recipe is great, my son says it’s better than Olive Garden
Thanks for sharing this recipe! I don’t eat at the Olive Garden, but I’ve wanted to try a soup recipe like this. I used ground turkey instead of beef, and a can of crushed tomatoes instead of Marinara sauce because it is less sugar. It turned out amazing!
This soup is much better when one uses Italian sausage than the ground beef.
In Italy this would never be used.
Also increase the Oregano, Basal(fresh),garlic and a tsp. of minced ginger. This makes it authentic.
Santillio we were really trying to the Olive Garden’s version of the soup. I agree your soup sounds very tasty though!
What type of spaghetti sauce are you all using. Ragu. chunky, old world style,? Please be specific. thanks
Please use a Marina style spaghetti sauce.
Making this today in my slow cooker and used my homemade spaghetti sauce…. Smells delicious, can’t wait to try it. I’m sure your favorite spaghetti sauce old work fine
My pasta fagioli
This soup was amazing! Tastes just like OG. My whole family loved it!
What brand or type of spaghetti sauce is the best to use?
I generally buy a marina, the marina that is on sale, and then I will tweek the seasoning to my personal taste. ~Stephanie
This recipe is wonderful. I cook a lot in crock pots and had tried to replicate this soup from several other recipes, but this one is a winner. I think using spagetti sauce gives it the fuller, richer flavor. I did change few of things from comments below. Since cooking longer using a crock pot, I did add the pasta later – already cooked as Michelle suggested. I used Italian seasoning instead of oregano as Stacey suggested. I like Louisiana hot sauce better, so I doubled the amount on that. My girlfriend says it is better than Olive Gardens (she could be saying that to keep me cooking).
I’m a crock pot person also, could you send me your version that you cook?
Hi Randy, Can you send me your crockpot recipe as well. Thanks!
How long do you cook in the Crock Pot? I would love to put this on in the morning before work & have it ready when we get home. Thanks!!
RANDY WOULD YOU PLEASE SENT ME YOR RECIPE FOR THE SOUP OLIVE GARDEN PASTA-E-FAGIOLI IT SOUNDS SO GOOD AND I ALSO LIKE TO USE MY SLOW COOKER. THANKS SYLVIA.
This recipe is delicious. My family doesn’t care for the “bite” of the original OG Pasta e Fagoli so I have eliminated the hot sauce. I also added chopped bell peppers and garlic to give it my own flair. Have made it several times for a Soup and Salad Night at church and “MY” soup pot is empty within minutes. I don’t like the way the pasta gets mushy if there are left overs at home – so I cook the pasta separately and add it at the last minute. This soup can be frozen and used later if you’ve made too much as long as you haven’t added the pasta.
I really like your tip on cooking the pasta seperately. I don’t care for mushy pasta at all.
Yum… This was awesome! I will definately make it again.
This was great! I did add a bit more herbs though – a teaspoon of dried Italian Herbs and a teaspoon of dried basil. I also added a couple of cloves of minced garlic with the onions, celery and carrots.
This soup is to die for!! Cutting the recipe in half helps if you have a smaller family. I usually make the full recipe and then take 1/2 to work and share with my coworkers!!
I made this today. And it’s just like The Olive Gardens.
I LOVE IT! IT’S A KEEPER.
This soup is awesome, make it all the time. I add a can of veg all veggies to mine to make it a big heartier,
I have made this soup twice. Taste just like the Olive Garden’s. I only suggest boiling the noodles alone and then adding them to soup before serving. The noodles get way to big. I give this recipe a 10.
Excellant soup. I used sausage instead of the ground beef and it was better- a little zestier. I also make it thicker than Olive Garden
This soup is so delicious. I made a vat of it when we had the last snow storm and it all gone. my kids were eating it at midnight ! So easy to make.
This soup turned out very good. I wanted to serve it to guests in a few weeks and tried it out today….it will certainly be on the table then and later too.
This dish is Amazing!