Six Dollar Soup

Six Dollar Soup–a delicious, simple vegetable soup that is inexpensive and fast to put together. Make it in your Instant Pot or Crockpot.

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Six Dollar Soup

A pot of soup to feed 6 mouths for only $6! Can it be done? Yes! This soup is not only inexpensive to make it’s also very delicious. I loved this soup for dinner and can’t wait to eat it for lunch tomorrow. Even though my son is a meat eater he really loved this soup too.

This soup starts with water and Better than Bouillon Vegetable base. I love Better than Bouillon products and use them pretty much every day. First of all they take up a lot less space in your kitchen than cans and cartons of broth. Plus it is economical. You can make a cup of broth for about 16 cents (it’s even cheaper if you buy BTB at Costco).

Then you’ll add in diced tomatoes (I find these for about a buck a can) and tomato sauce (about 50 cents for each small can). The frozen vegetable aisle is my friend since I can find vegetables for cheap and they’re pretty much ready to go (all cut up!). I can always find frozen vegetables anywhere from 88 cents to 3 dollars per package, depending on what you get. For this soup, I opted for the California mix of broccoli, cauliflower and carrots ($1.69 at Smiths, would be cheaper at Winco). Finally you’ll add in a few teaspoons of easy-to-find seasonings. These seasonings are only about $1.50 for a whole 2 ounce container so each teaspoon is about 4 cents. If you’d like you can add in a half cup of orzo pasta and you’re ready to go! If you shop the sales at your grocery store this soup will be less than $6…with the prices I checked today it was about $5.17. Not bad!

Ingredients/Substitution Ideas

• Water
• Better than Bouillon Vegetable Base ($0.65)
• Petite diced tomatoes ($1.00)
• Tomato sauce ($1.18)
• Frozen vegetables–I used broccoli, cauliflower and carrot mix ($1.69)
• Garlic powder ($0.06)
• Onion powder ($0.06)
• Italian seasoning ($0.06)
• Black pepper ($0.02)
• Orzo pasta–optional ($0.45)

Steps

Pour water into Instant Pot. Add in bouillon.

Dump in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, vegetables, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, pepper and orzo, if using.

Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the SOUP button to 1 minute. When time is up let pot sit for 5 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid. 

Ladle into bowls and serve. 

Notes/Tips

• This soup tastes good with a bit of parmesan or mozzarella cheese on top.
• Serve with breadsticks, French bread, crackers or garlic bread.
• I used my 6 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 3 or 8 quart pot.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
• You can use 4 ounces of egg noodles in the place of orzo.
• Want to add in protein? Try adding in a couple cup so chopped, cooked chicken. I like the $5 rotisserie chickens from Costco and can usually get about 3 meals out of each chicken. Another idea is to add in a can of kidney beans. Make sure to drain them first.
• Other recipes you can make with orzo are Deceivingly Delicious Casserole and At the Lake Casserole.

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More Instant Pot Vegetable Soups…

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*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.