Copycat Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli is loaded with ground beef, veggies, beans, and tiny pasta for a soup that’s hearty, filling, and easy to make. This slow cooker version requires just a few minutes of hands-on prep!
Everyone loves the soup and salad from Olive Garden and this Pasta E Fagioli is always a favorite! Ground beef, onion, celery, carrots, seasonings, and two kinds of beans cook up with a little pasta to create a hearty and flavorful soup. This cooks up right in the slow cooker for a delicious, easy meal.
Why You’ll Love This Olive Garden Copycat
Here are a few reasons why I love this recipe so much.
- Hearty & filling. With beans, pasta, vegetables and ground beef, a single bowl of this soup is super filling. You definitely don’t need any sides, though we still love enjoying this with some breadsticks.
- Made in the slow cooker. This version of Olive Garden pasta e fagioli is made in the slow cooker. The only hands-on step is browning the beef so it’s really a “set it and forget it” type of meal.
- Stores well. If you’re lucky enough to have leftover pasta e fagioli, you can enjoy them throughout the week. It even freezes well!
If you love Olive Garden, be sure to check out my other copycat recipes like chicken pasta, lemon cream cake, chicken gnocchi soup, and zuppa toscana.
What Is Pasta e Fagioli?
Literally translated, pasta e fagioli means “pasta and beans” and those are the exact star ingredients of this Italian soup recipe. Made popular by Olive Garden, it’s a hearty soup with ground beef, veggies, tiny pasta, and beans in a rich tomato broth. Hearty, filling, and super yummy!
Recipe Ingredients
This hearty soup is made with ground beef, veggies, beans, and pasta. You can find the exact measurements in the recipe card below.
- Ground beef – I like to use lean ground beef, such as 90/10 or 80/20. It should be browned and drained.
- Veggies – Carrots, celery, and onion, all diced. (And the carrots peeled.)
- Crushed tomatoes – Add the rich, acidic tomato flavor to the broth.
- Beef broth – Use low-sodium if you can.
- Italian seasoning – You can also have a combination of the individual spices but I think Italian seasoning is just easier here.
- Beans – I added both white cannellini beans and dark red kidney beans to this pasta fagioli soup. Both should be drained.
- Ditalini pasta – Ditalini is a tiny pasta that cooks quickly. You can substitute other similar pasta as desired.
How To Make Pasta e Fagioli
Slow cooker pasta e fagioli is super easy to make. Here’s all you need to do.
- Combine the ingredients. Add all ingredients except for the pasta to the slow cooker.
- Cook. Cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours.
- Add the pasta. Add the uncooked ditalini pasta 30 minutes before the soup is done cooking.
- Enjoy. Season with salt and pepper to taste then ladle into bowls and enjoy!
Tips for Success
Here are a few things to keep in mind when making this copycat Olive Garden pasta e fagioli.
- Cook the beef. It’s important to brown the beef BEFORE adding it to the slow cooker. It adds flavor and ensures that the beef cooks properly.
- Add more veggies. Feel free to add any other veggies, such as spinach or kale. You’d want to add both of those at the same time as the pasta.
- Substitute another protein. Italian sausage makes a great substitute for the ground beef if you want a different flavor. Spicy Italian sausage would add some heat to the soup.
- Dice the veggies. You want to dice all of the veggies pretty small. The goal is not to have big chunks but so that everything is roughly the same size and you get a little bit of everything in each bite.
Serving Suggestions
Pasta e fagioli soup is hearty and filling on its own. I like to garnish it with some fresh chopped parsley and/or parmesan cheese.
And, of course, don’t forget the best part of the meal – Olive Garden breadsticks! Cheesy garlic bread is also a nice choice. You can also have your own soup & salad combo by serving smaller portions of this soup with a fresh garden salad.
How To Store & Reheat Leftovers
- Fridge. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Freezer. Allow the soup to cool completely then transfer to freezer-safe containers. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge.
- Reheat. Gently reheat the pasta fagioli soup on the stovetop until warmed through. Individual servings can also be reheated in the microwave. Keep in mind that the pasta will absorb the broth so you may want to add a splash more broth when reheating.
More Soup Recipes To Try
- 15 Bean Soup
- Best Potato Soup
- Green Chicken Enchilada Soup
- French Onion Soup
- Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup
- Minestrone Soup
Pasta e Fagioli (Olive Garden Copycat)
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef browned
- 2 carrots peeled and diced
- 3 celery stalks sliced
- 1 onion diced
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 2 cans beef broth 14.5 ounce each
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 15 ounces canned white cannellini beans drained
- 15 ounces canned dark red kidney beans drained
- 1 cup uncooked ditalini pasta
Instructions
- To your slow cooker add the cooked ground beef, carrots, celery, onion, tomatoes, beef broth, seasoning, cannellini beans and kidney beans.
- Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours.
- 30 minutes before serving stir in the uncooked pasta and cover and cook for 30 minutes or until pasta is tender.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Serve!
Last Step:
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Trying Tonight.