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Key Points
Ina Garten shared five big-batch soups that are ideal for making ahead and freezing.
For best freezer results, keep veggies slightly al dente and add pasta, grains and greens after thawing.
Garten says soup stays good up to 5 days refrigerated or 6 months frozen; thin with stock if needed.
Soup season is underway, and there’s nothing quite as comforting as ladling up a bowl of tasty chicken noodle soup or sitting down with a bowl of hearty, high-protein stew. Add in the fact that most soups only get more flavorful as they simmer away on the stove, and it’s no wonder soup is such a popular make-ahead meal.
If you’re someone who loves prepping lots of meals at once and freezing them, you’re in luck. Many soups also freeze well, as long as you allow them to cool down before placing them into storage containers—and remember rules like keeping vegetables a bit al dente and storing grains and pasta separately so they don’t soak up all that delicious broth while in storage.
Need some inspiration for prepping a few soup dinners to serve up later? Ina Garten just shared a few of her favorite big-batch soups to make ahead and freeze in her Substack newsletter. “It’s cold and dark in East Hampton,” Garten wrote, “and there’s nothing more satisfying than a big bowl of hot soup.”
Garten said for soup to “feel like a meal,” it’s got to have plenty of texture. One of her all-time favorites? Winter Minestrone & Garlic Bruschetta, a soup she says makes a perfect dinner.
“It’s filled with tomatoes, pasta, beans, lots of butternut squash, pancetta and a dollop of pesto,” Garten wrote. The soup itself is best made in a Dutch oven, where most of the veggies and the pancetta get simmered in broth for a bit before adding in cannellini beans, pasta and spinach. (If you’re freezing the soup, we recommend adding those ingredients when the soup gets thawed and reheated.)
Garten serves her Winter Minestrone with a garlic baguette, which sounds perfect for sopping up that delicious broth.
Also on Garten’s list of freezer-ready soups? Italian Wedding Soup made with chicken meatballs, pasta and lots of delicious veggies. There’s also Chicken Ramen-Noodle Soup, which calls for a store-bought ramen noodle package with the seasoning packet discarded.
Next up is Garten’s 16 Bean Pasta e Fagioli, a soup that incorporates a package of 16 bean soup mix (from the grocery store’s dried beans section) with pancetta, San Marzano tomatoes, pasta, Parmesan cheese and more. In a Facebook video for Food Network UK, Garten says this soup’s “secret ingredient” is red wine vinegar because it “really wakes up all the ingredients.”
Garten closes out her list with Creamy Potato Fennel Soup, a puréed soup that the Barefoot Contessa garnishes with delightful toppings like goat cheese, bacon and croutons.
Looking for make-ahead storage instructions for all that delicious soup? Garten suggests storing soup in the refrigerator for up to five days, or the freezer for up to six months. If the thawed soup is too thick, she suggests adding more chicken stock or water to bring back its brothiness.
And, if you’re on the hunt for more delicious winter recipes from Garten, we recommend her Red Wine-Braised Short Ribs or Skillet-Roasted Lemon Chicken. After all, if you have to be cooped up inside due to the wintry weather, you might as well make a few comforting, cold-weather dinners to enjoy.
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Dining and Cooking