Easy and tasty Instant Pot Pasta E Fagioli Soup is full of comforting, savory flavors and ingredients — like garlic, Italian sausage and seasonings plus veggies and two kinds of beans — that will warm you all season long.
If you love Olive Garden recipes, you’ve gotta try my Easy Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup, Olive Garden Breadsticks, and Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup.
This Pasta E Fagioli features two kinds of beans, which you may already know are part of the pulses family. Pulses are completely delicious, protein-packed (hoorah!), and one-hundred-percent sustainable. It’s a win-win-win all around when you’re working pulses into your daily diet.
These days I am looking for any way I can to sneak more protein into my kids’ diets in particular because my twin toddlers are picky, picky, picky and I can hardly get them to eat typical proteins like meat. Luckily, they’ve started warming up to soup and I’m praising heaven for that since I often slip pulses, including split peas, lentils, chickpeas, and beans, into our soups at home.
But this soup in particular? It’s one of our favorites! It’s packed with savory Italian flavors and has the most amazing consistency: It’s the perfect balance between brothy soup and chili.
If that wasn’t tantalizing enough, this hearty soup is also a cinch to whip up in your Instant Pot (or slow cooker if you prefer – see more info on that below!) and will make your weeknight dinner routine a breeze.
I hope you give this easy recipe a try and that you enjoy this savory instant pot pasta e fagioli soup as much as we do!
HOW DO YOU MAKE PASTA E FAGIOLI SOUP?
The combination of Italian seasonings, garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes really make the flavors of this dish stand out. My family took a vote and we say it’s better than restaurant versions, plus cooking it in the Instant Pot means we can have our favorite soup that much faster!
Before you put the beans in the Instant Pot, you’ll need to soak them a bit by covering them with cold water and letting them soak the night before (or at least 6-8 hours). Then, after they have soaked, you should drain and rinse that water, add them to a large stock pot, and cover with fresh water. Bring them to a boil, then reduce heat and let them simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender and cooked all the way through. Drain again.
Set your Instant Pot to “saute” and add the Italian sausage and onions and saute those together for 3-5 minutes or until the sausage is browned. Add the garlic and cook that with the sausage and onions for about 1-2 minutes longer.
Switch the Instant Pot setting to “soup” and add the broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, celery, carrots, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, beans, and Italian seasonings and give it a good stir to combine.
Lock the lid in place and seal the pressure release or the valve to seal, depending on your make and model. Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. All the pot to manually release for 3-4 minutes, then turn the release valve all the way to “quick release” the rest of the steam.
Final step: Stir in the cooked ditalini pasta, garnish with cracked black pepper, fresh basil, and grated parmesan cheese if desired and serve!
HOW DO YOU MAKE PASTA E FAGIOLI SOUP IN THE SLOW COOKER?
If you’d prefer to make this in the slow cooker, you’ll want to still go ahead and soak and cook the beans as instructed.
Then, instead of sauteing the first few ingredients in the Instant Pot, instead do this on the stovetop. (So that would be all of step 4 on the stove.)
Then, add all of the ingredients listed in step 4 into the slow cooker, cover, and cook on high for 2 hours or on low for 4 hours. Stir in pasta at the end before serving as instructed in step 5.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PASTA E FAGIOLI AND MINESTRONE?
These two soups are very similar, but minestrone has a lot more veggies in it (what kinds of veggies varies). The name “pasta e fagioli” translates to “pasta and beans,” and so this soup’s two main components are just that, with all the other ingredients simply there for accompaniment.
Instant Pot Pasta e Fagioli Soup
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup dried white great northern or navy beans - *see notes
- ⅔ cup dried red kidney beans - *see notes
- 1 pound ground Italian sausage - (mild or spicy)
- ½ yellow or white onion - diced
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
- 1 15 oz can diced tomatoes - (not drained)
- 2 celery ribs - chopped
- ½ cup carrots - chopped or sliced
- 1 cup ditalini pasta - boiled til tender
- 1 teaspoon salt - or to taste
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried Italian blend seasoning - (OR substitute ½ teaspoon each dried basil, dried thyme, and dried oregano)
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- fresh basil, cracked black pepper, grated parmesan cheese (for topping) - to taste
Instructions
- First prepare the beans. Cover beans with cold water and soak overnight or 6-8 hours, then drain and rinse.
- Combine beans in a large stock pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat slightly and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally until beans are tender and cooked through. Drain beans. *The following instructions are for using an Instant Pot. For slow cooker instructions, check out the recipe notes.
- Preheat your instant pot using the “saute” setting, then add Italian sausage, and onions and saute for 3-5 minutes until sausage is browned. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes longer until fragrant.
- Switch instant pot to the "soup" setting. Add chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, celery, carrots, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, beans and Italian seasoning and stir to combine.
- Lock the lid in place and set the pressure release to “sealing”. Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. Allow the pot to sit for 3-4 minutes and then turn the release valve for a “quick release.”
- Stir in ditalini pasta, garnish with cracked black pepper, fresh basil, and grated parmesan cheese if desired and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
This post is in partnership with USA Pulses & Pulse Canada.
This is one of my go to recipes and I have made it for several potlucks and have taken it to friends when they are recovering from illness or surgery. It’s always a big hit!
Recipe was easy. I didn’t care for the sausage in it. It didn’t taste like Olive Garden to me. The recipe itself is good and I will use it again with ground beef.
Great flavors, easy to make once the recipe is simplified. There is no need to cook the beans separately. Just add the soaked beans with the other ingredients before pressure cooking and just set the timer for 15 minutes. Do a natural release (about 25 minutes). Finish by wilting some fresh spinach after the natural release is complete.
Really yummy, used canned beans. I’m sure fresh are fantastic.
This is a fantastic recipe. It’s absolutely delicious at one of my favorite soups!
Hi, I’m making your pasta y fagioli. Is the cup of pasta he after cooking measurement? Or is it one cup of dry pasta boiled?
Sorry for the confusion. It’s one cup of cooked pasta
This isn’t really an IP recipe… and didn’t work out as written.
The beans should be cooked in the IP as well, I don’t understand why that needed a separate pot/cook time. I followed the recipe and the white beans cooked way too fast and broke apart to mush, and the kidneys are too soft as well.
So disappointed!
I’m sorry you didn’t have a good experience with this recipe! I do want to clarify that you do put everything in the instant pot. I’m not sure what you mean by having a separate pot and cook time. You sauté the meat first but it’s done in the instant pot and then you throw everything in and cook it. There’s a video attached to this post if a visual will help.
I stumbled upon your website recently as I’m a new IP user, and I just have to say that I love your recipes. I made the Easy IP Pot Roast and it turned out great! I already know this one is going to be fantastic! I can’t wait to try it as well as many others! This is my go to recipe website. Thank you!
Oh you’re so sweet! Thank you! I’m glad you enjoy these recipes 🙂
When do we add the beans? At the end with the pasta or with the other stuff and cook in the pot?
They’re added in step 4 🙂
The ingredients don’t call for pepper, but the instructions to. I didn’t add any. After it’s done, I’ll add pepper when I transfer to the stock pot. Do you think 1 teaspoon is about right for a double batch?
The pepper is in the ingredients list. It’s at the bottom, as a topping.
I am doubling this recipe. Would it be okay, do you think, if I doubled everything in the Instant Pot except the chicken broth and just put it what I have room for (I know there’s a maximum line in the pot) and then added the rest of the chicken broth when I add the pasta afterward and let it simmer for a while, transferring to a stockpot if I need more room?
I haven’t personally tried that, but I think it would work!
Do you stir in the beans at the end with the pasta?
No, you add them before you lock the lid as stated in step 4. You can also watch the video in this post for visual help. 🙂
I make this wonderful meal every couple of months. My family loves it & it’s perfect for the fall. Sometimes we change it up & use hamburger instead of sausage.
Sounds good! Happy to hear that you and your family love it 🙂
I have made this for years it’s always a fall/winter hit
That’s wonderful 🙂 glad you enjoy it so much!
An FYI, Pasta e fagioli and minestrone were both prepared without meat. My parents were both from Italy, I owned an Italian Deli. The soups were greatly used during the depression, when meat was scarce, but in Italy these soups are prepared without meat to this day.