MARCELLA HAZAN’S MINESTRONE IN THE INSTANT POT

We cut the cooking time for Marcella Hazan’s robust Minestrone down from 3 hours to 1 by using our 6-quart Instant Pot.

Minestrone, literally translated from Italian, means “Big Soup”.  This recipe lives up to its name.  It’s hearty, flavorful, and loaded with vegetables. While many versions of minestrone use pasta and rice, Marcella Hazan added baby potatoes and cannellini beans to hers.  Even more surprising, was an almost complete lack of seasoning beyond salt and pepper.  We went straight to the pantry and added a bone broth you should know about…Dr. Kellyann’s Bone Broth in Sriracha Chicken flavor.*

The Kitchn’s Sheela Prakash pronounced Marcella Hazan’s Minestrone as ‘honestly life-changing.’.

If you’re not familiar with The Kitchn, you should be. To quote from their website www.thekitchn.com “is a food site made by a nationally distributed staff of home cooks” One of the things you’ll find on The Kitchn are “I tried…recipes, products, four green been casseroles, or in this case,” 4 Popular Minestrone Soup Recipes and the winner is…” Sheela tried Giada Di Laurentiis’, Ellie Kreiger’s, and Olive Garden’s Copy cat recipe from a place called “Dinner At The Zoo”. You can read the full report by clicking here: https://www.thekitchn.com/minestrone-soup-recipe-reviews-23269316? All I can say I went with the life-changing recipe…Marcella Hazan’s.

Who was Marcella Hazan? And why you need to know her.

It was my great privilege to have worked on (Paul) Newman’s Own…the  Academy Award-winning actor’s products from which he donated every last dime he made to Charity. To my surprise, a whole generation knew Paul Newman not for his screen triumphs but for his salad dressing.  I presume there’s a new generation of home cooks who have never heard of Marcella Hazan. When she died in 2013, the 89-year-old Marcella was regarded as one of the great authorities on Italian food. Born in a fishing town on the shores of the Adriatic, Marcella married an American, Victor Hazan, and moved to New York City. She began teaching cooking and was soon noticed by Craig Claiborne, the esteemed Food Critic of The New York Times. She started writing cookbooks for an American audience most notably “The Classic Italian Cook Book” (1973), “More Classic Italian Cooking” (1978), and “Marcella Cucina” (1997). Hazan’s recipes and culinary philosophy helped demystify Italian cooking for her American audience. She was the kindest, most generous cookbook author I have ever known. You can buy any one of her cookbooks by clicking on this link: https://amzn.to/3Sw92q1

*All About Dr. Kellyann’s Bone Broth…

Dr. Kellyann’s new Sriracha Chicken recipe has all the same nutritious qualities as their original Homestyle Broth flavor — like 15g of protein per serving + hydrolyzed collagen to support your skin, bones, and joints + all those natural bone broth benefits that support your gut, boost your metabolism, and help you keep your hunger cravings under control. It has a distinct, delicious flavor profile that is spicy and slightly tangy thanks to the sriracha flavoring. Use it to give Marcella Hazan’s Minestrone a flavor boost to this delicious and savory soup.

About that “Life Changing” business…

Sheela Prakash explains…“Is it weird to say a minestrone recipe is life-changing? Well, this wonderful recipe from Marcella Hazan is. It brought me straight back to the day I arrived in Italy for my graduate program when my father and I stopped into a tiny trattoria in the picturesque village of Pollenzo for lunch. The restaurant smelled like what you imagine the kitchen of an Italian nonna would — so aromatic and savory — and one spoonful of Marcella’s soup brought me straight back.”

Here is Marcella’s Recipe, which we altered only by adding Dr. Kellyann’s Bone Broth for flavor.  Below it, five other Marcella Hazon recipes you might enjoy.

Marcella Hazan's Minestrone

January 26, 2024

Servings: 10 cups or 6 to 8 servings.

Prep: 15 min

Cook: 50 min

Difficulty: After the chopping, this recipe is a breeze.

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Minestrone, literally translated from Italian, means “Big Soup”. And this recipe lives up to its name. It’s hearty, flavorful and loaded with vegetables. While many versions of minestrone use pasta and rice, Marcella Hazan added baby potatoes to hers.

By: Monte Mathews

Ingredients

• 16 oz. canned Great Northern or Cannellini Beans
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 oz. Pancetta (Italian cured pork belly, available at Italian markets and specialty foods shops) or sliced lean bacon, chopped
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 large carrot, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 1 rib of celery, cut into 1/2-inch dice
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped fine
• 1/4 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound boiling potatoes
• 2 Zucchinis quartered and chopped
• 4 cups shredded green cabbage (preferably Savoy)
• 1/2 pound baby spinach or kale rinsed, drained, stems discarded,(about 6 cups)
• 1- 28-ounce can tomatoes, chopped coarse in the can
• 4 1/2 cups chicken broth (preferably low-salt)
• Freshly grated Parmesan,

Directions

• Step 1 In the pot of an InstantPot, turn on the “Saute setting and cook the pancetta in the oil over moderate heat, stirring, until it is crisp and pale golden. Add the onion, and cook the mixture, stirring, until the onion is softened. Add the carrots, the celery, and the garlic and cook the mixture, stirring, for 4 minutes. Add the zucchini, the green beans, and the potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch dice, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 4 minutes. Add the cabbage and the kale and cook the mixture, stirring, until the cabbage is wilted. Add the tomatoes, the broth, and two packages of Dr. Kellyann’s Bone Broth (optional) and turn on the Pressure Cooker function on high. Set the timer for 35 minutes. Let the steam escape. Take off the top of the Instant Pot, set the pot on Soup/Broth setting, and set the Instant Pot timer for 15 minutes. Put the entire contents of the can of beans, stir, and taste for seasoning—adding salt, pepper, or another envelope of Dr. Kellyann’s Bone Broth.
• Step 2 Simmer the soup, uncovered, for 15 minutes, thin it if desired with some of the remaining reserve liquid, and, in necessary, season it further with salt and pepper. The soup may be made 3 days in advance and kept covered and chilled. Reheat the soup, thinning it with water as desired. Serve the soup with grated Parmesan, a baguette, or ciabatta loaf.

5 Best Marcella Hazan Recipes + Her 5 Top Cooking Tips