Slow Cooker Tomato, Kale and Quinoa Soup
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Comforting, nourishing and healthy made in the crockpot. Even the quinoa gets cooked right in! 214.2 cal/serving.
It’s been pouring rain all week. And when it rains in Los Angeles, three things always happens.
1. We constantly talk about how it’s actually raining.
2. We begin to drive 20 miles below the speed limit.
3. We stay home, in our sweats, and eat soup.
I skipped out on the first two but I definitely took advantage of the third, crockpot-style, with loads of white beans, quinoa and kale in a tomato broth.
I mean, this has pretty much been my dinner all week long, with no complaints of course.
It’s pure comfort food without any of the guilt.
That’s something I can get on board with anytime.
Slow Cooker Tomato, Kale and Quinoa Soup
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed thoroughly
- 2 14.5-ounce cans petite diced tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves chopped
Instructions
- Place quinoa, tomatoes, beans, onion, garlic, oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme and bay leaves into a 6-qt slow cooker. Stir in vegetable broth and 2 cups water until well combined; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or high heat for 3-4 hours. Stir in kale until wilted.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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I made this yesterday exactly per the recipe and it came out very thick and somewhat of a sticky consistency. I’m going to try and add more broth and perhaps some chicken so I can enjoy it. Wouldn’t make again, unfortunately…
The basic ingredients are good. I followed the recipe to the letter but i found the soup somewhat bland. To perk it up i added 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to brighten the flavor. And served with garlic bread and a salad. The soup balanced the strong flavor of the garlic bread.
This recipe is great and easy! Thank you!
I’ve made this soup before seeing this recipe. I did it on the stove top and also freeze the leftovers. It was perfect. Very rich and hearty. I used less kale and 1 cup quinoa with 6 cups of vegetable broth. Very delicious and fulfilling.
I just made this. Cooling off right now. I should not have read about everybody crying about needing more water. Because of this, I added 2 extra cups water and ended up with very watery soup. I threw half a box of whole wheat pasta in to get rid of all the “extra” water. I did add 8 oz. of sauted portabella mushrooms to it and 1 sliced up yellow squash. The aroma is fantastic!
Thank you for the recipe.
This came out delicious! Had to scale it a little for my 4 qt cooker and wished I had a 6 qt as soon as I tasted it. 😀
My husband is a diabetic 1, so he has to have his protein for dinner, it can be linguimes hoped i spelled in right. Or any other protein, like beef, chicken, pork, fish. even smoked sausage which he loves. any suggestion on what i can use cuz it looks yummy
You can use any of the above-mentioned ingredients.
I made this last night so I’d have lunches this week, and with the plan of saving half. I made it exactly was written. There was barely any liquid left at the end, it was a very thick “mush”. I had to add another 3 cups of broth. It was also extremely bland. For those thinking of making this, I’d recommend no more than a 1/2c of quinoa and a bunch more seasonings.
Jen, thank you for trying my recipe! But by adding 3 cups additional broth, the seasonings will have to be adjusted accordingly. Perhaps too much kale was used?
Thanks for the suggestion. I did add additional seasonings to make up for it, and then some. I’m a pretty experienced cook, recipe creator and reviewer, so I always make sure to measure exactly and make recipes as written initially so I can review fairly. And I taste throughout the process to see how flavors are developing. We can’t love them all. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your recipe!
I made this for my lunches this week to eat healthier at work! I substituted spinach and garbanzo beans and ended up having to double the veggie broth because barely any was left to call this a soup.
Can I substitute jasmine rice instead of the quinoa?
Yes, absolutely.
Great recipe! How much more water or vegetable broth should I add if I am adding dried beans? Thank you!
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment.
I read all the directions and when the soup is almost done, you add in the kale, stir, and wait for it to wilt and then serve it. If you add it in at the end, why is there a picture of the kale all prepped in the crockpot in the beginning?
Katie, that is simply a picture of the kale being added in.
Would this be good with Italian sausage? If so, when would I add it?
Cathy, you can add cooked, crumbled sausage with the rest of the ingredients in the beginning.
I made this and can’t wait to try it!
What is the serving size?
About 2 cups.
I would sub low fat chicken broth and add a smoked ham hock for flavor. Can I used dried beans instead of canned?? I love my six quart crock pot as it hold and cook a whole chicken (rubbed with paprika and other spices, stuffed with half an onion, half a lemon and garlic, over lots of chopped veggies on low for eight hours).
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment.
Not a fan of canned items with BPA and all, can I substitute with fresh tomatoes and dried beans? Add more liquid? Looks yummy, can’t wait to try!
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment.
Katherine did you try it with the fresh ingredients? If so, how did it turn out?
Katherine I’m making it with fresh tomatoes and dried beans now… I think this is a recipe you could easily make several substitutions to and it’ll turn out well
not a fan of Kale no matter how hard I try, can i substitute spinach?
Yes, absolutely.
My slow cooker is only 4 quarts. Can this recipe be halved easily, or do you think it would still fit in the smaller sized cooker?
Yes, this recipe can be halved.
Do I need to halve it for a 4 quart slow cooker or will it still fit?
You may have to adjust the recipe as needed to ensure that it fits in a smaller slow cooker.
Made this on Sunday for lunches this week and it’s DELICIOUS!!!! So hearty, warm and scrumptious! Definitely a “keeper” recipe! Thank you!
I tried this last night! Very good!!
My modifications:
I added 2 chicken breasts that I seasoned w/ salt and pepper and seared for about 2 minutes on each side (I would cut them up next time because they didn’t break up the way a chicken thigh would’ve)
Only did about a half cup of quinoa (1 cup would’ve been way too much for me)
Since I cooked it last night, I added the kale after it had cooked down and turned the crock off after it wilted some. I am currently having it for lunch and the kale is still nice and crisp
I added a little red pepper (but clearly not enough as I have very minimal spice)
No onions
This recipe is definitely on the bland side but I was afraid to add too much salt so I added a little into the pot and again in my individual bowl. The herbs give good flavor but the salt is so necessary. If you cannot/do not eat salt, I would go for a saltless seasoning.
I really wanted to add garbanzo beans as well but I didn’t have room in my crockpot.. next time!
This soup is super customizable, I will definitely make it again!!