Soupe au pistou is a vegetable soup from Provence, built around whatever is in the garden in summer: green beans, zucchini, carrots, potatoes and tomatoes, simmered with white beans and a little pasta. Pistou soup is undoubtedly the most iconic dish of Provençal cuisine. It’s a hearty dish made with fresh vegetables, green beans, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, and tomatoes, simmered for a long time before being finished with a paste of fresh basil, garlic, and olive oil.
That finishing paste, pistou, is what gives the soup its name and its character. The term denotes a Provençal condiment made from fresh basil, crushed with garlic and olive oil, and the word derives from pistar, to grind. The key difference between pistou and Italian pesto is the absence of cheese in pistou, though some modern versions do include it. One telling of its history traces it to Nice, where a version of the Genoese sauce was taken on and given a local dialect name.
Spooned into a bowl of hot vegetable soup, pistou melts slightly and turns the broth fragrant and green-flecked, with a sharp hit of raw garlic and basil against the soft vegetables and beans. Elizabeth David described it as “a famous Niçois soup of which there are many versions, the essential ingredient being the basil.” It’s a dish for the height of summer, served as a full lunch with bread rather than as a starter, and in some regions cooks stir in bacon, sausage or ham; this version leaves meat out entirely, which keeps it vegetarian and already halal, with no swap needed.
What you need
Fresh basil is non-negotiable here. Dried basil won’t give you the sharp, green flavour that defines pistou, so buy a generous bunch or a potted plant and use it the same day if you can. Garlic should be fresh and firm; old, sprouting cloves taste bitter when pounded raw.
For the beans, dried white beans soaked and simmered from scratch give the best texture, but canned beans are a fair everyday shortcut. The traditional method starts a day ahead by soaking dried white beans in cold water overnight, then simmering them separately before they go into the pot. If you’re short on time, canned cannellini or great northern beans, well rinsed, work fine stirred in near the end.
| Ingredient | Swap | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Dried white beans | Canned cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed | Skips the overnight soak; just stir in to heat through near the end |
| Fresh basil | Frozen basil cubes, thawed and drained | Pistou turns a slightly darker green but keeps a similar aroma |
| Small pasta (vermicelli, small shells) | Gluten-free small pasta, or a spoonful of rice added earlier | Makes the soup gluten-free; rice needs about 15 minutes to cook through |
| Parmesan in the pistou | Nutritional yeast, or simply leave it out | Makes the pistou dairy-free and vegan |
Soupe au pistou
A Provençal vegetable, bean and small pasta soup finished with a fresh basil, garlic and olive oil pistou stirred in at the table.
- Vegetarian
- Halal
Ingredients
For the soup
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 Onion, medium, diced
- 1 Leek, white and light green part, sliced
- 2 Carrots, medium, diced
- 2 Potatoes, medium, diced, about 300g/10oz
- 2 Zucchini (courgette), medium, diced
- 200 g Green beans, trimmed, cut into 2cm pieces
- 3 Ripe tomatoes, medium, chopped, or 400g/14oz canned chopped tomatoes
- 400 g Canned white beans (cannellini), drained and rinsed, 1 can
- 1½ l Vegetable stock or water
- 1 Bay leaf
- 2 sprigs Thyme sprigs
- 100 g Small pasta (small shells or broken vermicelli)
- to taste Salt and black pepper, to taste
For the pistou
- 40 g Fresh basil leaves, packed
- 3 cloves Garlic cloves
- 80 ml Olive oil
- 40 g Parmesan, finely grated (optional)
- to taste Salt, a pinch
Equipment
Large pot or Dutch oven, Mortar and pestle or food processor
Method
- Prep the vegetables. Peel and dice the onion, leek, carrots and potatoes into roughly 1cm pieces. Trim the green beans and cut into 2cm lengths. Dice the zucchini and chop the tomatoes, or measure out canned chopped tomatoes.
- Sweat the aromatics. Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and leek and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring, until soft and translucent but not browned.
- Add carrots and potatoes. Stir in the carrots and potatoes and cook for 3 to 4 minutes more.
- Build the broth. Pour in the stock or water, add the bay leaf and thyme, and season with a little salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer.
- Simmer the vegetables. Add the green beans, zucchini, tomatoes and white beans. Simmer uncovered for 25 to 30 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender when pierced with a knife.
- Cook the pasta. Stir in the small pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or according to the package time, until al dente, stirring now and then so it doesn't stick to the bottom.
- Make the pistou. While the soup simmers, pound the garlic with a pinch of salt in a mortar until smooth. Add the basil leaves gradually, pounding to a thick, bright green paste, then stir in the olive oil and parmesan. A food processor also works: pulse until combined but still a little textured.
- Finish and season. Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs from the soup. Taste and adjust salt and pepper, keeping in mind the pistou will add more flavour and saltiness.
- Serve. Ladle the hot soup into bowls, swirl a spoonful of pistou into each, and pass extra pistou at the table.
Contains: milk, gluten. Check the labels on packaged ingredients.
Written with AI assistance and reviewed by a human editor. This recipe has not been cooked in a home kitchen, so taste and adjust as you go. The header picture is an AI-generated illustration, a stock photo or an official press picture, not a photo of this exact recipe. Use halal-certified meat.
Tips for success
Keep the onion and leek pale. Sweat them gently over medium heat rather than letting them brown; a light-coloured base keeps the finished broth clean and golden rather than muddy.
Cut vegetables to a similar size. Small, even dice (around 1cm) means the carrots, potatoes and zucchini finish cooking together, instead of some turning mushy while others stay firm.
Add the pistou off the heat. Basil loses its colour and sharp smell quickly once it hits a simmering pot, so stir pistou into each bowl at the table, or swirl it into the pot only seconds before serving.
Taste before you salt heavily. Parmesan and garlic in the pistou add plenty of salt on their own, so season the soup itself lightly and adjust once the pistou is in.
Watch the pasta. Small pasta shapes keep absorbing liquid even after the pot is off the heat. If you’re not serving right away, cook the pasta separately and stir it into each bowl instead of into the whole pot.
Make extra pistou. It keeps well and is useful stirred into other soups, pasta or grilled vegetables through the rest of the week.
Storing and reheating
Cool the soup quickly and refrigerate within two hours of cooking, following general food safety guidance for cooked vegetable dishes. Stored in an airtight container, it keeps in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat on the stove until it is steaming hot all the way through before serving again.
The soup freezes well for up to 3 months, though it’s best frozen before the pasta goes in, since pasta turns soft and swollen once thawed; add freshly cooked pasta to each portion instead. Pistou can be refrigerated in a sealed jar with a thin layer of olive oil on top for a few days, or frozen in small portions for longer storage.
Serving ideas
A warm baguette or country bread is the natural partner, torn for dipping. Serve the soup with fresh baguette on the side, or on its own. A simple green salad with a sharp vinaigrette afterwards rounds out the meal without competing with the basil.
Diet and allergen notes
As written, this soup is vegetarian if you use vegetable stock. Leave the parmesan out of the pistou and it becomes vegan and dairy-free as well, with no real loss of flavour since the basil and garlic carry the sauce. It contains gluten from the pasta and, if used, dairy from the parmesan; swap in gluten-free pasta or skip the cheese as needed, using the table above. There is no meat in this recipe, so it is naturally halal; if you ever add a meat such as bacon or sausage in the regional style, use a halal-certified product.
Questions
Can I use ready-made pesto instead of pistou?
You can in a pinch, but it won’t taste the same. Jarred pesto usually includes pine nuts and sometimes other cheeses or oils that make it heavier and less sharp than a quick basil, garlic and olive oil pistou pounded or blitzed fresh.
Do I have to soak dried beans overnight?
No. Canned white beans, drained and rinsed, are a workable substitute and save most of a day’s preparation; just add them later in the cooking time since they’re already soft, so they only need to heat through.
Can I make this soup ahead for a dinner?
Yes, the vegetable and bean base can be made a day ahead and reheated gently; the flavour often improves overnight. Cook the pasta fresh and make the pistou just before serving, since both lose quality sitting in the pot for long.
Sources
- Source: Pistou soup: a traditional recipe from Provence, France
- Source: Pistou (Wikipedia)
- Source: Pesto (Wikipedia)
- Source: Soupe au Pistou (French vegetable soup with basil)
- Source: Pistou soup (Soupe au pistou) – Mrs Jones’s Kitchen
- Source: What is Pistou – The French Pesto Recipe & Translation
- Source: Authentic Soupe au Pistou: A Taste of Provençal Summer