Busy Day Soup is perfect for those busy weeknights. It’s quick to make and requires little effort. Who loves easy recipes? Rich and savory broth, tender pasta, and loads of veggies and beef in each bite.
Busy Day Soup
What I love about Busy Day Soup is that you can throw all the ingredients into the pot and let your stove work its magic.
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It has a few low prep ingredients like ground beef, onion soup mix, mixed frozen veggies, diced tomatoes and macaroni.
It’s perfect for days where you don’t know what to make for dinner. If you’re like me, those days are frequent.
This fall is a busy season for our family. My youngest daughter rides horses a couple times a week and is also taking swimming lessons. She is in Bronze Medallion and hopes to be a lifeguard. It’s a lot of shuttling back and forth. Good times.
When I want a simple, hearty meal, I turn to this soup recipe. Serve it with soda crackers or a buttered roll. It’s so tasty and filling.
How to Make Busy Day Soup
Grab a large soup pot, and brown the ground beef. Drain off the fat after it’s cooked so your soup isn’t greasy.
Pour in the water, onion soup mix and tomatoes with their juices. Simmer for 1 hour on medium low heat.
After the 1 hour mark, add in the uncooked macaroni noodles and frozen mixed vegetables. Cook for another 15 minutes on medium heat. The noodles and frozen veggies will cook until they are tender.
You don’t need to thaw the vegetables. Just throw them in right from the freezer. That is what I love about this recipe, it truly is so simple to make and pull together.
Serve it up hot! It makes about 6 servings and tastes even better the next day heated up. It’s just the two of us at home now so we always have leftovers.
Can I Swap Meat in Soup
Sure, you are more than welcome to use ground turkey, pork, or even ground chicken. Just cook the meat until it is fully done. You could even take the skins off bratwurst and use them. I am sure it would add a nice level of flavor.
Or maybe you want to layer the flavor of two meats. Beef and sausage are always a fantastic pairing and really can elevate the flavor.
Vegetables in Soup
The veggies used in this soup can be adjusted to fit your tastebuds. If you have fresh veggies you want to prep and slice up, go for it. Or if you have a bag of frozen vegetables in the freezer that sound tasty, use them instead.
Feel free to raid your pantry or freezer and use what you have on hand. Just get creative and pick items that you like the flavor of. Then I think you will enjoy the flavor of the soup.
Can I Change Out the Pasta in this Soup
Yes, if you don’t have any macaroni on hand, feel free to change it up. Reach for shells, rotini, ziti, etc. Any pasta will work you just want to ensure your pasta fully cooks. You could even break up spaghetti noodles to place in the soup.
I do feel that depending on the pasta the flavor of the soup varies slightly. But, overall any flavor is amazing paired with all the broth and vegetables.
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Toppings for Busy Day Soup
- Sprinkle with fresh parsley or even Italian seasoning for color and flavor.
- Shred and sprinkle cheese that adds a nice cheesy flavor.
- Add on some crackers or even crunchy croutons to soak up the savory broth.
- Splash of hot sauce to elevate the heat factor.
You can truly do so much to this soup to elevate the flavor. I love it how it is, but sometimes we add on some toppings to change up the flavor of the soup.
Meal Prep with Leftover Soup
This soup is incredible for placing in single serve containers and storing in the fridge. Meal prep for quick on the go lunches for when you need something quick. I think the flavor just blends even more as it sits in the fridge.
In terms of freezing, you will find you can freeze this soup. The vegetables will change a bit in texture as they thaw, but the flavor of this soup is still amazing and tasty. Pasta, as well, can become a bit mushy, so if you know you are going to freeze, cook to al dente.
How to Make in the Slow Cooker
You can also make Busy Day Soup in the slow cooker. Cook the ground beef first on the stove. Add all the ingredients except the pasta to the slow cooker. Cook on low heat for 6 hours. Add in the uncooked pasta when there is only 30 minutes left of cooking time.
Craving More Soup Recipes
- Stuffed Pepper Soup | If you enjoy stuffed peppers, you will love this incredible soup recipe. You get all the flavors of stuffed peppers but without all the work.
- Dill Pickle Soup | Serve up this comforting and filling soup. If you know someone who loves pickles, this soup was made for them.
- Cauliflower Soup with Bacon | You have a creamy soup that is loaded with cauliflower flavor and then topped with crispy bacon in every single bite.
For other delicious soup recipes, try my Hamburger Soup, Cream of Celery Soup, Cream of Carrot Soup, Cheeseburger Chowder, Sausage & Cabbage Soup and Cabbage Roll Soup.
What are your favourite recipes for busy days?
Busy Day Soup
An easy soup recipe your family will love! It's quick to make and takes little effort. Perfect for those busy weeknights.
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 packet onion soup mix
- 1 3/4 cup mixed frozen vegetables
- 5 cups water
- 1 28oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup macaroni, uncooked
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, brown ground beef. Drain fat.
- Pour in water, onion soup mix and tomatoes with juice. Simmer for 1 hour on medium low.
- Add macaroni and frozen vegetables. Cook 15 minutes longer on medium heat. Serve hot.
Notes
If soup is too thick, add more water to thin out.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 bowlAmount Per Serving: Calories: 230Total Fat: 3.1gSaturated Fat: 1.3gTrans Fat: 0.1gUnsaturated Fat: 1.4gCholesterol: 45.2mgSodium: 522.4mgCarbohydrates: 28.5gFiber: 5.1gSugar: 5gProtein: 22.1g
Sonja says
how do you get it soupy? Mine turned out so dry.
Stacie Vaughan says
It shouldn’t be dry. I would try adding more liquid. Either water or beef broth.
Arlene says
What spice’s can you use instead of the onion soup mix? Thanks
Stacie Vaughan says
You could try onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, oregano. Any kind of savory spice!
Danny says
Made this last night. It was easy and delicious! It will definitely go into our future dinner rotation.
James says
Can an Instant Pot be used for this recipe?
Stacie Vaughan says
Yes, you can! This post here is a good one showing how to convert a soup recipe to the Instant Pot: https://www.kitchenstewardship.com/instant-pot-soup/
Jamie says
I saw this recipe this morning and had every thing i needed . It was very easy to make – thank you for that. I ldid add some oregano to spice it up a bit. My husband loved it and said to make it again. I was wondering if i omit the hamburger and use black beans instead would that change the nutritional information? I will be making this again.
Stacie Vaughan says
It would change the nutritional info, but there are free online nutrition calculators you could use to figure that out.
Teresa says
Can you use beefy onion soup mix instead of onion soup mix
Stacie Vaughan says
Yes, for sure!
Michelle says
Is there a way to add your directions to the recipe for the slow cooker so I would have it at a later time with the recipe? Also the other suggestions would be nice.
Stacie Vaughan says
I have tips and slow cooker directions in the post. This is what I say about the slow cooker:
How to Make in the Slow Cooker
You can also make Busy Day Soup in the slow cooker. Cook the ground beef first on the stove. Add all the ingredients except the pasta to the slow cooker. Cook on low heat for 6 hours. Add in the uncooked pasta when there is only 30 minutes left of cooking time.
Chelle says
Can you use venison instead of ground beef?
Stacie Vaughan says
Yes, for sure!
Courtney says
Just curious… why such a long simmer time on the front end? Wondering what the result would be if that were shortened to like 10 minutes, for when I need a quick dinner option.
Stacie Vaughan says
I do it because it gives the flavors a chance to blend and develop. You can definitely shorten it though if you like. Add the macaroni and then let it cook in the soup and serve.