This bone broth vegetable soup with white beans, bacon, and tarragon is a comforting, warming soup for cold days.
This bone broth vegetable soup with beans is a staple in Romanian cooking. My grandmother used to cook it, mostly in winter.
This warm and comforting soup with beef bone broth, vegetables, and beans is perfect for cold winter days. It not only heats you from the inside, but it is often enjoyed with pickled hot peppers, making you sweat thoroughly.
And what can be better than a steamy soup full of beans, bacon, veggies, and potatoes on a snowy day with temperatures below 0 degrees?
Try more hearty beef soups, such as Instant Pot Vegetable Beef Soup, Beef and Bean Soup, or Beef Bone Soup with Lentils; they can all be made with beef bone broth.
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Recipe ingredients
Bone broth: I often make bone broth, simmering it for at least 12 hours. For more details, see my posts on making beef bone broth or turkey bone broth.
- Bone broth is very concentrated and more flavorful than other stocks or broths. However, you don't have to make it yourself. You can use a good-quality store-bought bone broth or regular beef broth. If using regular broth, taste the soup and add one or two beef bouillon cubes, if needed.
Beans: I usually make this bone broth soup with white beans, but feel free to use another type. While black beans have a distinct taste, pinto or kidney beans are great alternatives.
- Use more beef bone broth if you don't have bean cooking broth. If you have extra bean broth, use it all for the soup and adjust the amount of beef broth as needed. Cook more beans and make this Romanian white bean dip, too; it's so good!
Vegetables: The choice of veggies isn’t an exact science - my grandma would use whatever she found at the market. For a genuine taste, you should include root vegetables like carrots, celery root, and red bell peppers. You could also use zucchini in autumn or parsnips or parsley roots in winter.
- Potatoes aren’t essential; my grandmother never added them, but my children enjoy them.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Check out more of my grandma's traditional soups: Semolina Dumpling Soup, Romanian Meatballs Soup, or Romanian Spinach Soup.
Vegetarian alternative
This bean and vegetable soup isn't vegetarian, but you can easily make it vegetarian or vegan. Simply leave out the bacon and use vegetable stock or bean cooking water instead. Be sure to season the soup generously at the end.
How to make beef bone broth soup with vegetables?
- Step #1: Soak the beans overnight, cook them until soft but not mushy, drain them in a colander, but keep the cooking liquid.
- Step #2: Cook the bacon, then add the chopped vegetables and cook them for about 5 minutes.
- Step #3: Add the potatoes, then add the cooking water from the beans and the beef bone broth. Add herbs and cooked beans.
- Step #4: Cover and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently until all the vegetables are soft (about 20 minutes; check the potatoes; they should be soft).
- Step #5: Sour the soup (see below).
How to sour a soup?
Romanian soups (ciorbe) typically have a sour touch. In many regions, people use borsch, a fermented wheat liquid, to sour soups. However, borsch isn't common in our area, and my grandmother never used it.
Instead, she always used vinegar, a tradition I continue. For this soup, I used the vinegar from pickling tarragon leaves. While I pickle my own tarragon every summer, you can use dry or fresh tarragon and white wine vinegar instead.
Serve and store
I always serve this kind of soup with bread, such as Spelt Bread (I bake this bread about once a week), Yogurt Soda Bread, or Flaxseed Bread.
You can make the beef bone broth and vegetable soup in advance. I actually recommend cooking it one day in advance; it will taste even better when reheated. Let it cool, and refrigerate the covered pot.
Refrigerate leftovers for 3-4 days and reheat the soup on the stovetop or microwave before serving.
You can freeze the leftovers for up to 3 months, although I am not keen on freezing food containing potatoes. However, in this case, it works fine.
Bone Broth Vegetable Soup
Equipment
- Large soup pot or Dutch oven
Ingredients
Cook the beans:
- 1 ¼ cup white beans 250 g, Note 1
- 1 onion
- 2 bay leaves
Make the soup:
- 1 onion
- 1 carrot
- 1 small piece celeriac or 2 celery sticks
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3.5 oz bacon chopped or pancetta, 100 g
- 2-4 potatoes depending on size
- 2 cups bean cooking water 500 ml, Note 2
- 4 cups beef bone broth 1 liter, Note 3
- 1 teaspoon dried tarragon Note 4
- 1 teaspoon dried lovage
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme or savory
- 1 bay leaf
- 1-3 tablespoons white wine vinegar to taste
- fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Beans:
- Soak beans: Rinse the beans and place them in a large bowl. Cover them with water and soak them overnight. Rinse them again, place them in a large pot, and cover them with plenty of water. 1 ¼ cup white beans/ 250 g
- Cook the beans: Add the halved onion and the bay leaves, and bring to a boil. Cook for about 1 hour or until the beans are soft. The cooking time will depend on the size and age of the beans, so keep checking. Drain the beans, but keep the cooking water. Discard the onion and the bay leaves.1 onion + 2 bay leaves
Soup:
- Chop the onion finely and dice the carrot, celeriac/celery sticks, and red bell pepper.1 onion + 1 carrot + 1 small piece celeriac + 1 red bell pepper
- Saute: Heat the oil in the pot. Add the chopped bacon and cook it gently until it renders the fat. Add the vegetables and cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes until they start to soften.1 tablespoon vegetable oil + 3.5 oz bacon / 100 g
- Simmer: In the meantime, chop the potatoes into small cubes. Add the potatoes to the soup, stir for about 2 minutes more, then add the cooking water from the beans and the beef bone broth. Add all the dried herbs and the cooked beans. Cover and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently until all the vegetables are soft (check the potatoes), about 20 minutes or so.2-4 potatoes + 2 cups bean cooking water/ 500 ml + 4 cups beef bone broth/ 1 liter + beans + 1 teaspoon dried tarragon + 1 teaspoon dried lovage + 1 teaspoon dried thyme + 1 bay leaf
- Adjust the taste with salt, pepper, and white wine vinegar (Note 4).fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper + 1-3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
Notes
- Beans: Alternatively, you can use canned beans, about 2-3 cans or 1.5 oz/ 650-700 g.
- Bean cooking broth: If you don't have any, use more beef bone broth. If you have more bean cooking broth, you can use it all for the soup and adjust the beef broth quantity accordingly.
- Broth: You can also use regular beef broth to make this soup.
- Pickled tarragon: I pickle tarragon leaves every summer, but as I assume that most of you don't do that, use dried or fresh tarragon for the soup and white wine vinegar to sour the soup. If you are using pickled tarragon, leave out the dried tarragon and add the finely chopped pickled tarragon at the end of the cooking process. Use the pickling vinegar to sour the soup. Start with one tablespoon, taste the soup, and continue adding more, a little at a time, until the soup tastes to your liking. I do like mine rather sour, so I sometimes end up adding 4 or 5 tablespoons of vinegar.
Anu - My Ginger Garlic Kitchen says
I love beans and vegetables and this soup looks just so delish. Love how comfy and full of flavors this is. Your Grandmom sounded like a very person, Adina. Thanks for this wonderful recipe.
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Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says
It is cooooold here and we are finally supposed to get snow tomorrow, so I am in NEED of bowls of soup on repeat! This one looks delicious! I love a hearty, yet healthy bean and veggie soup, so this is right up my alley! Cheers and Happy New Year!
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
I bet it's particularly delicious with homemade broth!
Chris Scheuer says
I love foods that remind us of someone special and your grandmother sounds very special, as does her soup!