Slow Cooker Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
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Everyone’s FAVORITE Olive Garden soup made so easily in the crockpot! Just set it and forget it!
Guys, it’s snowing. No joke. It has been snowing two days straight in the midwest. And yes, Cartman has his winter beanie ready to go.
That being said, you can find me by the fireplace, chunky sweaters and all, with this Olive Garden favorite.
A quick and easy copycat recipe, you can throw this all in the crockpot. Extra bonus points if you have one of those saute features in your slow cooker, making this a one pot meal from start to finish.
Serve with the crustiest bread and extra shaved Parmesan on top that melts right into the warm, cozy goodness.
Slow Cooker Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound Italian sausage, casing removed
- 1 medium sweet onion, diced
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 16-ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 celery ribs, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¾ teaspoon dried thyme
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¾ cup ditalini pasta
- ½ cup shaved Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage and onion, and cook, stirring frequently, until sausage is browned, about 5-7 minutes, making sure to crumble the sausage as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Place sausage mixture into a 6-qt slow cooker. Stir in chicken stock, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, garlic, basil, oregano and thyme; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or high heat for 5-6 hours. Uncover and stir in pasta; cover and cook on high heat for an additional 30 minutes, or until tender.
- Serve immediately with Parmesan, garnished with parsley, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
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We used ground beef and it was absolutely delicious! And so easy. This has become one of our favorite slow cooker recipes ever.
This was excellent. I did a vegetarian version without sausage and using veggie stock. Super yummy soup, especially for a cold winter day! I also used protein pasta made from chickpeas that seemed to hold up better for the second day and not go mushy.
It’s rain/snowing here in chilly MN and this soup is guaranteed to hit the spot. I added one more can of cannellini beans and some extra chicken broth to feed more mouths. Extra credit for being a crock pot prep that can cook on it’s own and be ready when we all get home from work. Thank you
This smelled so fantastic that we couldn’t wait to eat it. I did one thing different with the pasta however. This makes enough that there are leftovers. I do not care for the texture of pasta after it’s been sitting in broth in the fridge. I cooked a pound of pasta and dressed it with a little olive oil and then let everyone add pasta to their preference. Some folks like a few pieces, some folks fill the bowl half with pasta before adding the soup. The leftover pasta and soup go into the fridge separately, and anyone warming a bowl for lunch or a snack can add as much pasta as they like.
Thank you for the idea!!! Genius
we did this as well, it made alot and all disappeared within a few days. gonna double batch it this week 🙂
really wish your star system went to 10…..5 just wasn’t good enough for this delicious soup.
I was craving pasta and beans, but since its been hot here in Boston I didn’t feel like standing over the stove. I was scrolling for recipes and came across this. Well, I made it and its fabulous! The only change I made was using ground beef because that’s what I had. Next time I’ll use the sausage. Your recipes never disappoint!
I love pasta e fagioli from the Olive Garden, and this recipe was fantastic! Thank you so much! I used half sweet sausage and half hot sausage- super tasty! Plus, it was so easy to make! I will definitely be sharing this recipe with others and making it again for my family!
This soup is simple to make and so so good! Perfect for a cold day with fresh bread. Love the parmesan on top- don’t skip this step!
So easy to make. I served it crusty French bread. Another winner, thank you for a great recipe.
Wonderful recipe.
Followed recipe exactly and it turned out great! Served with salad and pepperoni/cheese bread.
As per usual, this was delicious. Literally everything on this site is amazing.
Another delicious recipe. Amazing flavor. My family loved it!! Thanks again for sharing!!
Absolutely delicious as written, many thanks!
So delicious and perfect on this blustery day!
Dead simple and super delicious. Will make again and again…
Greg
Denver
I made a mistake when I made this and used an entire box of ditalini instead of just 3/4 cup, so there was too much pasta and my end result was more of a pasta dish than a soup but it was delicious! Next time I will follow instructions more carefully so I get a soup but the flavors are spot on and this really did smell amazing while cooking all day! I used two cans of cannelloni beans instead of one can of kidney and one can of cannelloni, but that’s just my personal preference in beans.
This recipe is simple and foolproof. I appreciate how quickly it comes together and that everyone in my family enjoys it. One batch makes enough for two dinners for our family of four, so I often freeze half to save for a busy day.
Thanks for sharing this winner with us, Chungah! It’s on regular rotation in our home once the cold weather arrives.
We had this tonight! It was absolutely delicious!
My absolute favorite ! Have made it many times ! My go to for An Olive Garden Fix. Better than Olive Garden !
Made just as the recipe states. This is a delicious, very well balanced, hearty recipe.
I made this yesterday and it was DELICIOUS! The house smelled amazing while it was cooking. It was a perfect meal on such a bitter cold, snowy day! Thanks for sharing the recipe, it will def be a keeper in our house! YUM!
Question: is the pasta dry from the box when you add it in the last 30 minutes – OR- do you pre-cook per directions on the box before adding it in? Thank you for your reply 🙂
I made this with ground beef. I also didn’t have the diced tomatoes as I thought I did, so I used a can of Rotel instead. It was delicious. I almost don’t even think I need the pasta in it. I’ll be making this again.
The directions have no mention of the ditalini…….(on the preparation or adding to soup). Do we add it to the crock pot??????
@kathy … the directions say pasta. You could the soup 7 or 8 on low then had thecoarta in the end for 30 minutes its the last step
Made this tonight and will be making again. I used 90% ground beef and added zucchini to the recipe and cooked in a Dutch pot, I will try in the crock pot next time, loved the flavors so delicious.
This was absolutely fabulous! I made it with turkey sausage. My husband wants it again next week
Excellent! I can’t compare it to Olive Garden because I haven’t been in years, but this soup is great! The whole family loved it. I served it with garlic bread and a salad. I wouldn’t mind a copy cat of those 2 things myself!
We just got finished eating this! It was delicious, whole family enjoyed. Super easy to put together and I love that it makes enough for leftovers. Perfect for this snowy day today.
My family really enjoyed this soup! Followed recipe exactly and it turned out great! Served with salad and pepperoni/cheese bread. Made a great dinner before heading out to see Christmas lights!
Smelling delicious – silly question…should the pasta be cooked when you put it in at the end or not?
Kalsey, the pasta shouldn’t be cooked. I think you’ll find it’ll go very quickly that last half hour because the rest of it has been cooking for so long. Hope this helps.
Made on the stove. Total cook time about 1 hr, including saute veggies. Used ground turkey instead of sausage. Wow! Incredibly delicious. Thank you for another fantastic recipe!
My family really enjoyed this soup! Followed recipe exactly and it turned out great! Served with salad and pepperoni/cheese bread. Made a great dinner before heading out to see Christmas lights!
I’m making this today, but I’m perplexed by the sausage. Olive Garden describes their fagioli as having ground beef in it, not sausage. So is this really Olive Garden?
This was my first recipe after seeing a recommendation for the site on a local moms’ Facebook group. I am not disappointed. The soup turned out really delicious, and now, I’m buying three cookbooks for my family and friends for Christmas. We busy ladies need this wisdom and the really well-thought-out details/photos. I especially appreciate some of the Asian American and Chicagoan references too as I identify with both.
I do have a question for anyone who’s game to respond–I made this in my slow cooker on high (5 hrs, then added pasta, cooking another 30 mins). Of course I taste-tested it midway through because it was just too tempting. Is there really an advantage of cooking it beyond 3-4 hours? Will flavor improve? Was thinking if it doesn’t make a difference, I’d try to preserve some nutrients and take out a third of the cooking time. Thoughts?
This was FANTASTIC! I bought a pound of ground sausage (instead of removing links from the casing), otherwise I followed the recipe exactly (well, I did it on the stovetop and allowed it to simmer awhile before adding the pasta to cook for 30 minutes). This is so full of flavor and makes a huge pot! I brought some to my neighbors, and they have asked that I share the recipe with them. Yet another WINNER from Ms. Chungah – thank you! 🙂
Easy and excellent! My husband loves the Olive Garden Pasta E Fagioli – this is the only one that I have made that he really enjoyed. The only thing I did slightly differently was that I cooked the soup, let it cool, put it in the fridge over night then removed the fat from the top of the soup. Delicious!
Excellent soup recipe! I love all of your recipes! Is there any way to get the nutritional information? I’ve started a food plan where I need to count macros.
Could I use ground beef instead?
Of course you can – any ground meat would work, but you won’t get the flavor derived from the sausage
Hearty and delicious! I love pasta e Fagioli and this is a super version … easy to prepare.
Awesome, easy and damn delicious! Even my picky kiddos ate it all up with crusty bread!!! Soooo good! And, I made it all and served in under 2 hours while in slow cooker!!! Thank you for another excellent dinner
I made this last night and got rave reviews from my family. It was easy to make and delicious!
CHUNGAH.
*BE STILL, MY HEART*
I MADE THIS YESTERDAY.
THIS IS WHAT FALL IS
ALL ABOUT RIGHT HERE.
Y’ALL JUST GO AHEAD
AND FOLLOW THIS RECIPE.
AS IS.
SPLURGE ON SOME FANCY PARM.
AND ENJOY THE BEST SOUP
OF THE SEASON. PERFECTION.
Thank you, beautiful fellow foodie,
for giving us these gorgeous recipes.
Definitely a keeper recipe. I made in the crock pot and the smell was heavenly as it simmered all day. Our guests loved it. Thanks so much!
Thank you for sharing this recipe
I had some leftover cooked Italian sausage I had made from ground turkey, and subbed homemade garbanzo beans for the white beans. This was a really good and easily personalizable recipe that I will make often. My preteen ate almost two full servings and deemed it delicious. Perfect for a Fall night supper.
I followed the recipe just as you wrote it, and it was fandamntastic! Sooo good. Hubby and I kept “trying” it before it was cooked completely. Loved it! Thank you!!!!
So good! Made this on Halloween and it was fabulous.
The olive garden recipe calls for beef not sausage and also it’s only dried basil leaves not oregano and tyme but I am sure it’s delicious either way enjoy…..
I haven’t made this yet because I need something clarified first. When do we put in the beans?
Step 2.
Haven’t made it yet, but I have all the ingredients ready to go! I gave it 5 stars because I’ve loved every recipe I’ve made from you.
Do I cook the pasta first before adding it in?
No, it should be uncooked.
Oh my goodness… Yes I did make this and it was damn delicious! Iused my instant pot with sauté feature the first time I made it. Then I made it on the stove top. The next time I make it I will certainly make it in my instant pot again because it has a slow cooker feature and a sauté feature. Bam! All in one pot just like you said. It is fantastic!
Haven’t tried this, but wondering if you have advice on how to make, and then freeze? As we enter ski season, it looks like a great recipe to make in bulk, and then freeze.
Easy!
Make it.
Then freeze it.
Yes, you can freeze in plastic freezer bags (I like to lay them flat in the freezer to save on space), thaw in the fridge overnight, and reheat over low heat.
Thanks, I am just wondering if you would recommend not adding the pasta if you know you are freezing the recipe.
@Chungah I’m so curious if you prefer this slow cooker version or the quicker version you have here: https://damndelicious.net/2014/05/17/olive-garden-pasta-e-fagioli/
Thanks in advance!
I would suggest keeping the noodles separate if you plan to freeze, otherwise they will get mushy and soak up too much liquid.
Thank you for sharing this recipe, I will definitely try to make this soup as colder weather is approaching.
However, I will make this soup in my Instant Pot as I don’t have a slow cooker. Not sure how the result will be.
I was just thinking of making this in the instapot! Let me know how it works out;)
Most, if not all instant pots, have a slow cooker feature. So, you should be able to saute right in the pot, remove excess fat, and the follow recipe directions with slow cooker feature. I would, however, add a little of the chicken stock after I drained excess fat and scrape that delicious fond from the bottom of the pot to incorporate it into the soup. Then just use instant pot as a slow cooker.
If you want to do it using pressure cooker features you can search a similar instant pot recipe as a guide for steps and times but still follow this recipe for ingredients. Hope that’s helpful.
Very nice recipe. We have to try. So easy, flavorful and delicious.