Leftover Vegetable Soup Recipe

This leftover vegetable soup recipe is an excellent example of how you can use up any kind of vegetable you might have.

Food waste harms our planet

Did you know that food waste accounts for a whopping 8% of the UK’s Greenhouse Gas emissions? This shocking figure refers to both industry food waste and domestic food waste. Despite positive steps towards reducing domestic food waste, according to WRAP, total fresh fruit and veg waste tops 2.5 million tonnes per year, of which 1.7 million tonnes could have been eaten. That means over half of what UK households are throwing away is good, edible produce! 

City Harvest works with food suppliers from across the UK food supply chain – including farms, distributors, wholesalers and retailers – to prevent edible food from ending up in landfill. City Harvest then redistributes this surplus food, for free, to 350+ London community partners. As well as tackling industry food waste, it’s important to be informed on how to be resourceful at home and ensure no good food goes to waste.

Check out City Harvest’s selection of zero-waste and seasonal recipes to get inspired about how to use up what is in your fridge or pantry. These recipes are from our community, our team, food partners and guest chefs and food content creators.

Ways to use up leftover vegetables

We’ve all been there – those vegetables sitting in their baskets or at the bottom of the fridge, getting older by the day. Instead of throwing them away, make this soup recipe instead. 

Leftover vegetables are great ingredients for nutritious and delicious winter soups, and they’re a great way to reduce food waste. You’ll not only save them from the bin but also enjoy a warm, hearty winter soup in return.

One of the quickest and tastiest ways to use up your excess produce is this simple leftover vegetable winter soup recipe, and you don’t have to follow the ingredients strictly. This recipe is all about using what you have for a speedy and healthy dinner. Watch a short video of how to make this leftover vegetable soup recipe below.

Winter Vegetable Soup Recipe

Ingredients (experiment and use what you have!) 

• Yellow onion
• Red onion
• Mixed carrots
• Butternut squash
• Pumpkin
• Potatoes

Seasoning:

• Drizzle of olive oil
• Salt to taste
• Garlic granule
• Smoked paprika
• Vegetable stock cubes (x2)
• Coriander powder
• Black pepper
• Fresh herbs to garnish

Top tip: store your vegetable skins in a ziplock plastic bag and keep them fresh in the freezer. Mixed with salt, other seasonings, and water, these will make a great future zero-waste vegetable stock. 

Method

1. Firstly, roughly chop a yellow (white) onion, red onion, mixed carrots, butternut squash, and a small handful of peeled potatoes.
2. Place the chopped veg onto a baking tray.
3. Drizzle a generous amount of your oil of choice onto the vegetables.
4. Dust the vegetables with salt, pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder and coriander powder. Give them a good mix with your hands or a spoon.
5. Place the tray in a pre-heated oven at 200c for about 25 minutes or until fully cooked and slightly crisp on top. Toss the vegetables halfway through to ensure even cooking.
6. Once cooked, place the vegetables in a blender with 2 vegetable stock cubes. Add as much or as little as you like, depending on how thick you want it to be. Blend everything until smooth.
7. Once blended, add the soup to a deep pot and place it on low heat.
8. At this point, you can add any proteins, carbs or extras. Now you can taste and adjust for seasoning and water.
9. Once everything is cooked through, serve and garnish with greens, olive oil, seeds or croutons, however you prefer to serve.