White Bean and Kale Soup is a one-pot, hearty, vegetarian comfort in a bowl. Packed with plant-based protein from quinoa and white beans.
author’s note
Comfort Food Without the Heavy Feeling!
When the weather turns cold, I always find myself reaching for big bowls of soup. One night, I had leftover kale in the fridge and a couple of cans of white beans in the pantry, so I decided to throw them into a pot with some quinoa. I wasn’t expecting much, but the flavor and heartiness completely won me over.
Now it’s one of those recipes I keep coming back to whenever I need something quick, filling, and warming.
My kids especially love scooping it up with bread, and I love that it’s loaded with veggies but still feels like comfort food.
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Swaps & Tips |
|---|---|
| Olive Oil | Any neutral oil like avocado or grapeseed works |
| Carrots, Onion & Celery | Save time with pre-chopped grocery store packs |
| Tomato Paste | Don’t skip cooking it briefly—it makes a difference |
| Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes | Regular canned tomatoes work; San Marzano is great |
| Quinoa | Rice or farro can be swapped in |
| White Beans | Try Great Northern, navy, or even chickpeas |
| Kale | Baby spinach can be stirred in at the end |
| Lemon Juice | A splash of red wine vinegar works too |
Quick Tip
Freshly chopped flat leaf Italian parsley and freshly grated Parmesan cheese makes the perfect finishing touch to this white bean and kale soup.
How To Make White Bean And Kale Soup
- Cook Veggies: Heat olive oil, then cook veggies until soft.
- Add Flavor: Stir in tomato paste and dried herbs; cook briefly to bring out flavors.
- Add Broth & Quinoa: Pour in tomatoes, broth, bay leaves, and quinoa. Bring to a boil.
- Finish with Beans & Kale: Stir in beans and kale, cook until quinoa is fully cooked.
- Adjust & Serve: Remove bay leaves, add lemon juice if desired, and top with Parmesan and parsley.
Variations
Switch Things Up
- Make it Thinner: Add extra broth if you prefer a lighter soup consistency.
- Boost the Protein: Stir in shredded rotisserie chicken if you’re not vegetarian.
- Switch the Greens: Spinach, Swiss chard, or collard greens all work beautifully.
Leftover White Bean and Kale Soup?
This soup thickens as quinoa expands and tastes great but is best within 2–3 days.
It doesn’t freeze well, as it keeps absorbing liquid and becomes too thick.
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White Bean and Kale Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 cup diced carrots 2 large carrots
- 1 cup diced onion 1 small onion
- 1 cup diced celery 3 celery stalks
- 1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic 4 cloves
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon dried crushed rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 (14.5-ounce) cans fire-roasted diced tomatoes I love San Marzano or Muir Glen
- 2 bay leaves
- 6 cups vegetable stock or broth; can use chicken stock/broth if not vegetarian
- 3/4 cup white quinoa see note 1
- 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans or Great Northern white beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 cups coarsely chopped kale loosely packed
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice optional
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Chopped fresh parsley optional
Instructions
- Add 3 tablespoons olive oil to a large cast-iron pot. Heat to medium, and once oil is hot, add diced carrots, diced celery, diced onion, and minced garlic. Add a tiny pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, until veggies are tender, about 7–9 minutes. Add in tomato paste and seasonings (dried parsley, dried oregano, dried basil, dried rosemary, dried thyme, pepper, Italian seasoning, and salt.) Cook and stir until fragrant, another 30 seconds.
- Still over medium heat, add both cans of undrained, fire-roasted diced tomatoes and stir 1 minute. Add in the 2 bay leaves and rinsed quinoa. Stir and add in vegetable stock. Increase heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes. (Soup should maintain a simmer but not a boil). Stir occasionally.
- After 15 minutes, add in drained and rinsed beans and kale. Stir and cook 3–4 more minutes or until quinoa has fully “popped” and kale is softened. Finish the soup with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and, if desired, 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Remove bay leaves.
- Garnish bowls of soup with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh chopped parsley, if desired.
- Slow Cooker Instructions: Follow step one, then transfer everything from that pot to a 6-quart slow cooker. Add in diced tomatoes, stock, rinsed quinoa, drained and rinsed beans, and bay leaves. Cook on high 2–3 hours or low 3–5 hours or until quinoa has popped and veggies are tender. Stir in kale, olive oil, and lemon juice. Remove bay leaves. Adjust salt and pepper. Serve in bowls garnished with Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Made the kale and bean soup. Fantastic! Thank you very much for sharing. I used a can if rotel tomatoes in place of one of the cans of tomatoes and I cooked the quinoa separately and put it in the bottom of the bowl before serving. I cooked the soup in the crockpot on a cold snowy day and served it with the quinoa and flatbread. Delicious! Thanks again for sharing! Will be making this again!🙂
Delish! So happy you loved this! Thanks so much RJ! 🙂
Delicious! Smelled so good cooking all
day as I worked in my office. I added the quinoa around noonish and we ate around 6. I might wait another hour next time but it made it thick and hearty which was yum!
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks so much Sarah! 🙂
I made this yesterday. It was easy and delicious!
Glad to hear it! 🙂
This soup is so delicious.it is a keeper.💟 didn’t have kale so I used spinach. Amazing
So glad to hear that! Thanks Angela 🙂
This soup looks so good! Does it store well or does the quinoa absorb all of the broth?
Unfortunately doesn’t store great; the quinoa continues to soak up the broth!
Can I add ground turkey to it?
I’d cook it beforehand in a skillet (season with salt + pepper), but I’m sure that would be great 🙂
This is the first recipe of your’s that I made, Chelsea, and it’s the one that inspired my current love of healthy cooking. I had never even tried quinoa or kale before making this recipe, nor had I made a soup (or really anything) from scratch. My family was skeptical based on the ingredients (particularly the kale) the first time I made it, so despite the fact that it probably wasn’t the healthiest choice, I served it in bread bowls. It was absolutely phenomenal and served the three of us for 2 days (although it didn’t make it past lunch the second day)! My dad actually commented that he liked it as much (if not more) on the second day after the quinoa had absorbed more of the broth and it had become more stew-y. We make this recipe constantly for guests now and love how easy it is. Thank you for inspiring my obsession with healthy recipes!
This comment makes my day! It really makes me so happy to hear this, so thank you so very much for sharing! I’m so, so happy this was a hit and has continued to be enjoyed. Thank you so much for the comment Cait!