Zucchini soup is easy! And it's also incredibly creamy, tasty, healthy, and silky smooth.
Make this delicious soup in less than 20 minutes with fresh zucchini and a few other simple ingredients you already have at home. You'll be impressed by its flavor and simplicity.
Check out our Best Zucchini Recipes
Zucchini soup is one of the most underrated soups. Before making it our expectations were pretty low, but this recipe turned out to be one of our favorite soups we ever made.
This soup is best served warm as an appetizer, quick lunch, or light and healthy dinner. You can top it with homemade croutons, or if you want a little more protein try it with pan-fried tofu or cannellini beans.
But why should you make zucchini soup? First, it's so easy to make you'll never want to buy store-bought soup again.
Second, the zucchini gets silky smooth and we didn't even need to use a power blender. We used a basic immersion blender to blend the zucchini directly into the pot.
Third, with the right condiments, this zucchini soup tastes amazing. You don't need complicated ingredients, just some Italian seasoning and optionally some fresh herbs on top.
Finally, this soup is 100% healthy, dairy-free, and vegan despite the fact that it tastes and feels like there's butter and cream in it. The secret? Let's find out in the ingredients list below.
Ingredients
Zucchini
Use green zucchini squash to get a bright and colorful zucchini soup. Color is important in a recipe like this, it makes the dish more appealing.
If you don't care too much about the color, then you can use any other type of summer squash such as globe zucchini, yellow crookneck, yellow squash, yellow zucchini, and grey zucchini.
Potato
Potato is our secret ingredient to make the zucchini soup creamy and silky without adding cream, butter, or cheese. When blended, the starch in the potato binds with the other ingredients creating a velvety and creamy texture.
You can replace the potato with white beans (cannellini beans are best). When blended they also add a creamy texture, although less velvety and smooth than the potato.
Extra virgin olive oil
Use extra virgin olive oil to make the flavor base with garlic and onion. If you have good quality olive oil you can also drizzle a few drops on top of the soup before serving it. It'll add a delicate fruity aroma.
We prefer to use olive oil instead of butter because it's heart-healthy, packed with antioxidants, and a key ingredient in the Mediterranean diet (the healthiest diet in the world).
If you are on an oil-free diet, you can fry the onion on low heat in a dry pan. The natural oils contained in the onions will slowly come out and allow the onion to brown lightly without burning.
Garlic + Onion
Key ingredients to add flavor to the soup. We fry them gently in a little extra virgin olive oil. You can replace onion with shallots or leek.
Italian seasoning
Italian seasoning is the easiest way to add a variety of dried herbs and aromas to this zucchini soup. If you don't have Italian seasoning you can use a mix of dried herbs such as dried oregano, dried thyme, dried sage, and dried basil.
Vegetable broth
That's necessary to add depth of flavor to the soup. We tried making the soup with water, but it turned out a little too bland for our taste. Store-bought reduced-sodium vegetable broth is a good choice.
Salt + Black Pepper
Salt is necessary to add flavor. We recommend sea salt or kosher salt. Black pepper is optional. We like to sprinkle some on top of the soup.
If you like the zucchini soup a little spicy you can add some red pepper flakes.
Instructions
To a large saucepan, pot, or dutch oven, add olive oil, chopped onion, and chopped garlic.
Fry for 1 to 2 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring often.
Add chopped zucchini (cut in half lengthwise and sliced ¼ inch thick), a peeled and diced potato, vegetable broth, salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning.
Try to cut the veggies into pieces of the same size so they cook at the same time. Don't peel the zucchini. The peel is where color, flavor, and most nutrition are.
Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potato is fully cooked through and tender.
To check for doneness, pierce a few potato dice with the tip of a knife. The blade should slide in without any resistance.
Blend the ingredients for a couple of minutes, until creamy, silky, and smooth. Taste and adjust for salt before serving in a bowl.
Considerations: we try to avoid blending hot food in a plastic blender jar and prefer to use an immersion blender with a metal stick. If you use a regular blender you might need to work in two batches.
Serving suggestions
Serve zucchini soup warm; not too hot, nor cold. You can serve it as an appetizer or as a main dish and easy dinner, especially if topped with other ingredients such as croutons, white beans, or fried tofu.
Olive oil + fresh herbs
Most of the time we eat it with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil, some fresh herbs (fresh basil, fresh dill, fresh parsley, fresh mint, or fresh chives), and a pinch of red pepper flakes.
If you like you can of course add some grated parmesan cheese or some vegan cheese on top. Add a squeeze of lemon juice for freshness, or a dollop of plant-based yogurt or sour cream.
Croutons
Croutons are crunchy pieces of squared bread that are toasted in olive oil and spices. They are great with this soup because they create that crunchy contrast with the silky texture of the soup.
You can get store-bought croutons, or make them yourself at home in 10 minutes with bread, olive oil, salt, and optionally some dried herbs such as rosemary or thyme.
Check out our recipe for oven-baked or pan-fried croutons, or if you have one, air fryer croutons.
Crostini
Like croutons, crostini are often served with soups. They are crunchy slices of bread toasted in olive oil, salt, and spices. We love making crostini with soups because they add that crunch and salty spark to the dish.
Check out our recipe for homemade crostini. They only take a few minutes to make, you can even make them in the air fryer.
Cannellini Beans
Cannellini beans, a type of white bean, are delicious with this soup and are a great wholesome alternative to croutons or crostini. They make this soup more nutritious, adding some healthy complex carbs and protein.
Our recommendation is to first drain and rinse the canned beans under running water. Next, sautée them on a pan with a drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of salt, a twist of pepper or a pinch of red pepper flakes, and some sage if you have it.
Toss them around for a couple of minutes, then turn the heat off and add finely chopped flat-leaf parsley. Stir and add on top of the soup. Super healthy and crazy delicious!
More Zucchini Recipes
If you love cooking with zucchini, take a peek at our favorite zucchini recipes here:
- Zucchini boats: protein-packed stuffed zucchini with lentil-walnut filling.
- Sauteed zucchini: a basic recipe for zucchini and ready in 10 mins.
- Zucchini frittata: an egg-free frittata perfect for weekend brunch, and easy lunch.
- Zucchini pesto: a green condiment with bold flavor, a great addition to pasta and vegan salads.
- Roasted zucchini: easy baked zucchini in 2 ways that you can serve as a side dish or appetizer.
- Air fryer zucchini: the best of zucchini but with less added oil.
- Zucchini risotto: creamy, indulgent, and perfect as a Sunday night dinner.
More Soup Recipes
Soup is an easy, healthy, and satiating meal. Check out our vibrant soup ideas here:
- Tofu soup: this Asian soup with seasonal vegetables is ready in just 20 mins.
- Eggplant soup: aromatic herbs and roasted vegetables, perfect with croutons.
- Butternut squash soup: a one-tray recipe, velvety and endlessly creamy.
- Lentil soup: packed with veggies, healthy plant-based protein, and Italian herbs.
- Tuscan soup: simply the best, made with cannellini beans, kale, and cabbage, is the perfect soup for winter.
Storage
Store the zucchini soup in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, best if in an airtight container. Reheat only the portion you are going to eat. You can do so in a saucepan on the stovetop, or in a bowl directly in the microwave.
You can freeze the soup for up to 3 months. To do so, let it cool down completely, then transfer it to a freezer-friendly container and freeze it. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating it.
For many more dinner ideas, check out our mains category page.
Recipe
Zucchini Soup
Equipment
- Immersion blender or regular blender
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1½ pounds zucchini (about 3 medium ones)
- 1 medium potato
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
Instructions
- Add olive oil, chopped onion, and chopped garlic to a large saucepan, pot, or dutch oven. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes on medium-low heat, stirring often.
- Add chopped zucchini (cut in half lengthwise and sliced ¼ inch thick), a peeled and diced potato, vegetable broth, salt, black pepper, and Italian seasoning.Tip: Try to cut the veggies into pieces of the same size so they cook at the same time. Don't peel the zucchini. The peel is where color, flavor, and most nutrition are.
- Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the potato is fully cooked and tender.To check for doneness, pierce a few potato dice with the tip of a knife. The blade should slide in without any resistance.
- Blend the ingredients for a couple of minutes until creamy, silky, and smooth. Taste and adjust for salt before serving in a bowl.Considerations: We avoid blending hot food in a plastic blender jar and prefer to use an immersion blender with a metal stick. If you use a regular blender, you might need to work in two batches.
- Serve zucchini soup warm; not too hot nor cold. You can serve it as an appetizer or a main dish, especially if topped with other ingredients such as croutons, white beans, or fried tofu.
Notes
Nutritional Values
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Lindsay
I must say I was a little skeptical. I had a couple of monster zucchini’s from my garden that I needed to use up. This recipe was incredible! Thank you so much for sharing this… I will definitely be making this again!
Nico
Hi Lindsay, thanks so much for coming back after making the soup to leave a comment. I am really happy you liked the zucchini soup, it must have been incredible with homegrown zucchini!! Have a great day. Cheers, Nico