Chicken Minestrone Soup
by Sommer Collier — last updated on May 28, 2025 
Best Minestrone Soup with Meat – This traditional minestrone soup is hearty but not heavy, and brimming with fresh veggies, beans, pasta, and your choice of meat. It’s easy to customize to make a rustic, comforting, and delicious minestrone recipe the whole family loves!
Why We Love This Chicken Minestrone Soup Recipe
Ideal for summer lunches and dinner – or to enjoy on any cooler evening – we love a lighter vegetable soup that eats like an entire meal! With plenty of chunky veggies and beans in a thin tomato broth, classic minestrone soup is a perfect, cozy dish that leaves you full but without feeling weighed down.
Sommer’s Recipe Notes
On the site, we have a delicious vegetarian and vegan copycat Olive Garden Minestrone Soup recipe that is always a crowd-pleaser. Today, we’re sharing a more protein-rich recipe for Minestrone Soup with Meat that’s also sure to be an instant family favorite!
Our traditional Italian soup features simple ingredients like fresh squash and frozen green beans, cannellini beans, tender pasta, and lean chicken breasts. This goodness simmers in a zesty and savory broth made with fire-roasted tomatoes, so every spoonful is bright and flavorful!
Best of all, minestrone soup with chicken is ready to serve in under an hour – and it’s even easier to make ahead for meal prepping.
Ingredients You Need
- Chicken – boneless and skinless breasts
- Olive oil – or other high-heat oil like canola or avocado oil
- Onion – peeled and chopped
- Garlic – minced
- Mushrooms – button mushrooms, sliced
- Carrots – sliced
- Chicken broth – or chicken bullion and water
- Fire-roasted canned tomatoes – for the most depth of flavor
- Red wine – or more chicken broth
- Italian seasoning – we love our homemade Italian seasoning
- Zucchini – quartered and sliced
- Summer squash – quartered and sliced
- Kidney beans – drained
- Cannellini beans – drained
- Macaroni noodles – or other small dried pasta
- Green beans – frozen (no need to thaw)
- Roasted red peppers – drained and chopped
- Salt and pepper – a bit of each to taste
We also add some sprigs of rosemary to the finished soup for a nice pop of fresh, herby flavor.
How to Make Minestrone Soup with Meat
Find the full Minestrone Soup recipe with ingredient proportions, detailed instructions, and a video tutorial in the printable form at the bottom of the post.
Protein Pointer: We’ve added chicken to this recipe to balance the pasta and veggies with protein. If you want to add even more protein, you can double the chicken in the soup, or add 1 pound of ground Italian sausage.
Recipe Variations
- Precooked Chicken – Save yourself some time by using precooked chicken breasts, or shredded rotisserie chicken.
- Other Protein – Use whatever meat you like to make this soup! Swap chicken for turkey breasts, or add cooked ground turkey or chicken. You can even make this a beef minestrone soup by adding good ground beef or mini beef meatballs! But then you might consider swapping chicken with beef broth for the most savory flavor.
- Without Meat – Skip meat altogether and use veggie broth to easily make this a vegan minestrone recipe. For more protein and heartiness, I suggest adding an extra can of cannellini beans to the soup.
- Veggies – Omit or swap any vegetables you like! Leave out yellow squash and use just zucchini, add chopped potatoes or celery, and/or feel free to leave out the mushrooms. This recipe is great to customize!
- Pasta – Use any small pasta noodles you like! We’re using traditional elbow macaroni, but other options include ditalini, small shells, or orecchiette.
- Gluten-free– Make gluten-free minestrone soup by using your favorite GF pasta noodles.
Serving Suggestions
Serve bowls of cozy minestrone with a basket of warm, fresh-baked bread. This Italian soup is perfect to enjoy with breadsticks, garlic knots (ready in an hour!), garlic bread, or a beautiful homemade focaccia bread with roasted garlic and olives.
And while there are plenty of hearty veggies in minestrone soup with meat, it’s always a good idea to have a crisp salad on the table, too! Serve a big bowl or individual servings of Caesar salad or fresh greens with balsamic vinaigrette.
I also suggest sprinkling on some shaved parmesan cheese, fresh rosemary, or chopped cooked bacon or pancetta to garnish.
Frequently Asked Questions
This fabulous chicken minestrone soup has just the right amount of Italian seasoning and uses canned fire-roasted tomatoes for the most flavor.
Both Italian soups include pasta and veggies in a tomato base. Classic minestrone consists of a variety of different vegetables in a thin tomato broth. Traditional fagioli, on the other hand, is more bean-heavy, with only a few veggies in a thicker, more stew-like broth.
Minestrone is a terrific soup to make ahead and include in your weekly meal prep! Store cooled leftovers in an airtight container and keep the soup in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
Yes, you can! Cool the soup completely before transferring it to a sealed freezer-safe container. I recommend wrapping the container in a layer or two of aluminum foil for extra protection from freezer burn. Minestrone soup with meat will keep well in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Defrost it in the fridge overnight before reheating the soup in the microwave or on the stovetop.
Looking for More Hearty Soup Recipes? Be Sure to Try:
- Ham and Cabbage Soup
- Greek Lemon Chicken Soup
- Chicken Gnocchi Soup
- Italian Sausage Tortellini Soup
- Italian Meatball Soup
- Chicken Tortellini Soup
- Cream of Chicken Soup (and Condensed)
- Traditional Lentil Soup
- Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup
- Bacon Cheeseburger Soup
- 15 Bean Soup
Chicken Minestrone Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion peeled and chopped
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces button mushrooms sliced
- 2 carrots sliced
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 6 cups water
- 2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes (15-ounce cans)
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 small zucchini quartered and sliced
- 1 small summer squash quartered and sliced
- 15 ounces kidney beans drained (1 can)
- 15 ounces cannellini beans drained (1 can)
- 8 ounce dried macaroni noodles could be gluten-free
- 1 cup frozen cut green beans
- 1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Set a large 6-8 quart soup pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil, onions, garlic, mushrooms, and carrots. Sauté for 5-8 minutes to soften the vegetables, stirring regularly.
- Place the whole chicken breasts down in the sautéed veggies at the bottom of the pot. Add in the chicken broth, water, canned tomatoes, red wine, Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the chicken breasts are cooked through.
- Remove the chicken breasts with tongs and set on a cutting board. Add the zucchini, summer squash, canned beans, macaroni, green beans, and roasted red peppers to the pot. Stir well. Bring to a simmer and cook for another 5-8 minutes, until the pasta is cooked through.
- Meanwhile, chop the chicken into bite-size pieces. Stir the chicken back into the soup. Taste, then salt and pepper as needed.
If you’re looking for a cozy, satisfying meal, this Chicken Minestrone Soup is it! So easy to make and incredibly delicious!!
I’m so glad I tried this recipe! The soup is rich, comforting, and loaded with chicken, beans, and pasta. It’s now my go-to recipe for meal prep, it reheats beautifully!
This chicken minestrone soup is absolutely delicious! It’s packed with flavor, healthy ingredients, and the perfect amount of heartiness. My whole family loved it!