Italian Bean Soup

This is pasta e fagioli stripped down to its essentials. Dried navy beans, vegetables, Italian herbs, and whole wheat macaroni simmered in a tomato-laced broth. No meat, no stock, no shortcuts with canned beans. Just patience and a dutch oven.

The quick-soak method saves hours: boil the beans for 2 minutes, cover, and let them sit for an hour. Drain off that starchy water and start fresh with 2 quarts of clean water. This gives you a cleaner-tasting broth and beans that cook more evenly.

Onion, green pepper, carrots, and garlic go in with the beans along with basil, oregano, a touch of dry mustard, and tomato sauce. The 1 ½ hour simmer breaks the beans down at the edges, releasing starch that naturally thickens the broth into something closer to a stew than a thin soup.

The whole wheat macaroni goes in during the last 10 minutes. Cooking it directly in the soup means it absorbs all that herby, tomatoey liquid instead of plain pasta water.

Kitchen Tips

• Don’t skip the drain-and-refresh step after soaking. The first water contains compounds that can cause digestive discomfort.
• Stir occasionally during the long simmer. Beans settle and can stick to the bottom.
• Add the macaroni at the very end, not before. Pasta added too early will bloat up and turn to mush.
• This thickens as it cools. Add water when reheating leftovers to bring back the right consistency.

Variations

• Add a Parmesan rind to the pot during simmering for a savory, umami-rich broth.
• Stir in a handful of chopped kale or escarole during the last 5 minutes for greens.
• Use cannellini beans instead of navy beans for a creamier, more traditional Italian version.