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Slow Cooker Busy Day Soup is the perfect recipe to have on hand to help offset the whirlwind of a packed week. This is a dump-and-go soup recipe that will have you looking forward to coming home.
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Nice and easy soup that the family enjoyed.
– Rowland
Don’t feel like cooking or short on time? Life can be overwhelming and this busy day soup is such a help when you want a homemade meal with little effort. Besides browning the meat, there is no chopping or prep work involved. Enjoy this soup in a hurry for dinner this week.
If you need more easy dinners, try my Chicken in a Hurry or 7 Can Soup for quick crockpot meals.
Key Ingredients
- Ground Beef: Use a lean ground beef for this. If you have extra slow cooker ground beef, use that!
- Diced Tomatoes: This recipe calls for Italian seasoned diced tomatoes, which adds a nice tangy taste.
- Mixed Vegetables: Keep it simple by using a bag of frozen vegetables.
- Beef Broth: Is the base of the soup.
- Seasonings: Kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder. The main star of the dish is a packet of Lipton onion soup mix.
How to Make Busy Day Soup
This soup comes together in two easy steps!
- Add the cooked beef into the crockpot with the broth, veggies, tomatoes, and seasonings. Let it simmer until everything’s cooked through.
- Stir in the Minute rice near the end and let it cook until the rice is fluffy and ready to serve.
Helpful Hints & Variations
Change up this recipe to make it your own!
- You can use cooked rice instead of minute rice, just use one cup. Or ladle your hot soup over the rice.
- Want to use macaroni? You’ll have to cook a cup on the stovetop before adding to this recipe at the end of the cooking time.
- Add additional broth to the leftovers, as the rice soaks up the broth.
What to Serve with Busy Day Soup
Top it off: Ladle a helping of the soup into bowls and top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese. Adding a touch of sour cream adds even more flavor. For an extra kick, add a dash of hot sauce or red pepper flakes.
Add Bread: Serve alongside crusty bread, garlic breadsticks, or cornbread.
Lighten it up: Pair with a crisp green salad tossed in a zesty vinaigrette. We love this homemade Italian dressing recipe.
Can I add ground beef to the slow cooker uncooked?
No, if ground beef is added to a slow cooker before cooking, it will turn into small sandy pieces and be an odd texture in your recipe.
Can standard uncooked rice be added to this soup?
Standard rice does not cook up well in the slow cooker, instead we use Minute brand rice which works better in the slow cooker.
What if my soup gets too thick?
When you add rice or pasta to soups, after a time, they will thicken up. You can add water or more broth if this happens. You may decide to add more seasonings at this time as well.
Busy Day Soup Recipe
How to Video
Ingredients
- 1 lb. lean ground beef
- 15 oz. can Italian seasoned diced tomatoes
- 12 oz. frozen mixed vegetables
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
- 1 oz. lipton onion soup mix
- 32 oz. Beef broth (one carton)
WAIT TO ADD:
- 1 cup minute brand rice (uncooked)
Instructions
- Cook the ground beef in a skillet on the stove top, drain off any fat.
- Add the ground beef to the slow cooker along with the other ingredients (except the rice).
- Cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 4 hours.
- Add the uncooked Minute brand rice and stir. Continue cooking on HIGH For 45 minutes longer or until the rice is done.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
How to Store
This quick soup recipe stores well! Freeze in airtight containers for up to three months or refrigerate for up to 4 days.
More Slow Cooker Soup Recipes
Kielbasa Potato Soup is filled with potatoes, cheese and cream, a cozy pub style soup.If you love enchiladas, then try my Green Chicken Enchilada Soup, it’s much lighter than the original form.
A classic Slow Cooker Beef Lentil Soup, is just like grandma used to make. Slow Cooker Caldo De Pollo is a great chicken soup that fills you up.
We love this easy, Slow Cooker Ham and Potato Soup which is made from scratch, is a crowd please.
This copycat recipe for Potato Cheese Soup is a recreation from Marie Callender’s! Tangy Dill Pickle Soup is a fun recipe to try, and is great along with buttered bread.
Nice and easy soup that family enjoyed. I might make rice separately and just mix it in at the end of the original cooking time.