Pressure Cooker Tuscan Bean Soup
Tuscan Bean soup was one of the first times I thought, “you know, with enough beans, I could probably be a vegetarian.”2 Or, at least it was one of the first vegetarian recipes that didn’t leave me saying “that was good. But I’m still hungry – can we stop on the way home and get something to eat?”
Ready to start dicing
This is also the recipe that introduced me to kale, back before kale was cool. I know kale is overdone – it has gone from “cool new healthy ingredient” to “New Yorker piece complaining about hipsters and their kale” in the space of a couple of years. That’s OK, because kale is in this recipe for old school reasons. This soup gets Tuscany through Italian winters. It’s a collection of odds and ends – dried beans, root vegetables, a Parmesan rind tossed in the pot to add flavor – and kale, a winter crop that loves growing in the snow.
Sautéing the aromatics
Cannellini beans are the traditional Tuscan white bean, but if you can’t find them, great northern beans make a good substitute.
Looking for a hearty, stick-to-your-ribs soup? Try Tuscan beans.
Recipe: Pressure Cooker Tuscan Bean Soup
Equipment
- 6 quart or larger pressure cooker (I love my Instant Pot Duo)
Pressure Cooker Tuscan Bean Soup
- Yield: 6-8 servings 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Pressure Cooker Tuscan Bean Soup recipe. A hearty vegetarian soup from the heart of Italy, done in no time thanks to the pressure cooker.
Ingredients
Soaked beans
- 1 pound dried cannellini beans, sorted and rinsed
- 1 tablespoon fine sea salt (or table salt)
- 2 quarts water
Soup ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (or table salt, or Kosher salt)
- Pinch 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 6 cups water
- 1 (14- to 16-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 parmesan rind (roughly 3 inches by 1 1/2 inches)
- 1 (2-inch long) sprig fresh rosemary
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 4 ounces kale, stems removed, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- Salt to taste
- Grated parmesan for garnish
- Minced parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Soak the beans: Sort the cannellini beans, removing broken beans, stones, and dirt clods. Rinse the beans put them in a large container with the fine sea salt, and cover with 2 quarts water. Let the beans soak for at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain and rinse the beans.
- Sauté the aromatics: Heat the olive oil in the pressure cooker pot over medium-high heat (sauté mode in an electric pressure cooker) until the oil starts shimmering. Add the onion, carrots, and garlic, and sprinkle with the ½ teaspoon salt and red pepper flakes. Sauté until the onions are softened, about 5 minutes.
- Pressure cook the beans: Add the drained cannellini beans to the pressure cooker and stir them to mix with the aromatics. Pour in the water and diced tomatoes, sprinkle with the baking soda, and stir. Add the parmesan rind, rosemary, and thyme sprigs. Lock the lid, bring the cooker up to high pressure, and pressure cook at high pressure for 20 minutes in an electric PC, or 16 minutes in a stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure. (Or, cook for 15/12 minutes at high pressure, then natural pressure release for about 20 minutes. ) Remove the lid carefully, opening away from you – even when it’s not under pressure, the steam in the cooker is very hot.
- Simmer the kale, then serve: Fish out the parmesan rind and discard. Turn the heat under the pressure cooker to medium-high (sauté mode on an electric PC) and stir in the kale. Simmer, uncovered, until the kale is tender, about 3 minutes. Stir the fresh ground black pepper and balsamic vinegar into the pot, then taste. Add more salt as needed – the soup will taste bland without enough salt. (I add 2 teaspoons of fine sea salt to the beans). Serve, sprinkling each bowl of soup with fresh grated parmesan and minced parsley.
- Category: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Italian
Notes
- I add baking soda when I’m cooking beans – beans get tough in acidic environments, and the baking soda helps neutralize the acid. (In this recipe, I’m trying to balance out the acid from the tomatoes).
Pressure Cooker Tuscan Bean Soup, ready to eat!
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Italian Meat Sauce
Pressure Cooker Pasta and Bean Soup (Pasta Fazool)
Pressure Cooker Beef Shank (Osso Bucco)
Looking for other pressure cooker recipes? Check out My Pressure Cooker Recipe Index
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Hi Mike,
Thanks so much for this Tuscan Bean Soup Recipe!
I love hearty soups like this one, especially on a cold day. Gotta try it sometime. 🙂
You gave me a good chuckle about hipsters and kale. Hehe~
Pinning this right now! 😀
Amy
Thanks, Amy – Love your site!
Any thoughts on cooking time/approach if you used canned beans?
I don’t always plan ahead to buy and soak dried, but I usually have a couple of cans on hand for a last minute cook.
Sorry, that’s such a different recipe that I can’t do it justice in a comment. Cook it on the stove, but be aware that the dried beans are the backbone of the soup – they give up starch and thicken the soup – it will come out thin without the dried beans.
I was surprised about the use of the Parmesan rind. I take it that it is removed prior to serving?
Have enjoyed your blog for many years.
Yes, it is. (Forgot to add that to the recipe – fixed. )
I will try this…with bacon…and possibly some celery.
Instant Pot 8 quart rules.
Can I suggest diced pancetta instead of the bacon, if you can find it? More “traditional Italian” that way.
Cotechino would be a terrific addition if you wanted meat… if you can find it. Generally the sausage is simmered whole in legumes, then removed, sliced into coins, and pan fried before topping each serving.
Also, in many Italian “meatless” dishes an anchovy fillet is added to the sauteing vegetables. It breaks down and disappears and adds no fishy flavor, but the Italians like the “umami” it adds, even if they never invented the word or the concept.
I doubt that you’d be able to tell much difference between pancetta and quality bacon chopped into 1/4 inch dice in a soup. Plus it costs at least 4 to 5 times as much.
How would this delicious recipe be cooked in a slow cooker?
I would not recommend it: https://www.dadcooksdinner.com/2010/09/slow-cookers-and-red-kidney-bean-poisoning.html/
what about if the beans are NOT SOAKED ?
Cannelini beans take a while – I’d go 40 minutes at high pressure with a natural pressure release…and then check them. Give them another 5 minutes under pressure (with a quick pressure release) if they still need it.
what purpose is the Parmesan rind for?
It adds flavor to the soup. (And uses up an old parmesan rind.)
This soup exceeded my expectations. Surprisingly rich and delicious. The carnivores in my family loved it too and didn’t miss the meat. I didn’t soak my beans long enough so they were a little sturdy, but didn’t take away from the tasty soup. I’ll up my time a little bit next time. I’ll definitely make again.
★★★★★
This was really good!
★★★★★
This is my favorite Instant Pot recipe so far. Thank you! I find I have to pressure cook for 22 minutes to get the right bean consistency.
★★★★★
This is a go to soup recipe for my family. I add celery to the aromatics and I also use my homemade chicken stock, since we aren’t vegetarians and I always have a big supply in my freezer.
★★★★★