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Hearty venison vegetable soup is the perfect dinner recipe for busy families. Full of flavor, nutritious, and simple to put together, this recipe will be on repeat. Pair it with a salad and homemade bread for an easy meal.

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Venison Dinner Ideas

Our family relies on venison for most of our meat-based dinner recipes. While I love a good cut of beef, venison is our main source of red meat.

If you aren’t familiar with venison, make sure to check out my favorite venison recipes.

I’m excited to add this venison vegetable soup to my stockpile of venison recipes!

Hearty Venison Vegetable Soup

Make sure to pin this recipe for later! I’m betting it will be on repeat in your dinner rotation.

This recipe is fantastic for a few reasons.

• It’s full of flavor, protein packed and loaded with nutritious vegetables.
• It’s quick to get on the table and can be made ahead.
• It freezes well and can be reheated in a pot in no time.
• You can customize it to your family’s liking by swapping out the protein, beans or vegetables with a variety of options. See notes for substitution suggestions.
• Make it vegetarian by omitting the meat.
• You can add pasta to make it a minestrone for an even more filling option!

Venison Vegetable Soup Ingredient List

For this recipe, you will need:

• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small shallot, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup carrots, sliced
• 16 oz. venison backstraps, cut to 1″ cubes (or venison stew meat)
• 2 tsp. dried thyme (or fresh if available)
• 1 yellow squash, sliced skin on
• 1 zucchini, sliced skin on
• 2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cans Cannellini beans
• 1/2 Tbsp. sea salt
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 – 3 tsp. garlic salt
• 3 tsp. dried basil
• 2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• Additional salt and pepper to taste at serving

See a list of optional additions or substitutions below to make this recipe even more versatile!

How to Make Venison Vegetable Soup

Using a large dutch oven or heavy bottom soup pot, heat 2 Tbsp. of olive oil over medium-high heat.

Chop the below ingredients and place in hot oil. Stir frequently and cook over medium heat, 6-8 minutes, until carrots are softened.

• 1 small shallot, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup carrots, sliced

Add 16 oz. venison backstraps, cut to 1″ cubes (or venison stew meat) and 2 tsp. dried thyme. Cook 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.

Next, add in the below ingredients and bring to a boil.

• 2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 Tbsp. sea salt
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 tsp. dried basil
• 2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
• 6 cups vegetable broth

Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer 25 minutes with lid cocked.

After 25 minutes, add in the following ingredients:

• 1 yellow squash, sliced skin on
• 1 zucchini, sliced skin on
• 2 cans Cannellini beans
• 2 – 3 tsp. garlic salt

Stir together well and cook on low for 15 more minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.

Serve hot with homemade bread and your favorite side salad for a complete meal!

Substitutions or Additions

This soup is extremely versatile.

Feel free to omit any vegetables your family doesn’t like. My kiddos aren’t a fan of the zucchini, but you know what, they eat it anyway. 😉

You can also remove the venison altogether to make it vegetarian. Or, substitute 1:1 with beef if you aren’t a venison fan.

If you want to add some sweetness, toss in some frozen sweet corn the last 15 minutes of cooking.

You can also easily make this into a minestrone by adding 8 oz. cooked Ditalini pasta and a few cups of fresh spinach at the end of the cook time. Top with fresh parmesan for even more delicious flavor.

Printable Recipe Card

I hope you enjoy this delicious venison vegetable soup! Make sure to Pin the Recipe for later and grab all my free printable recipe cards below.

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Check out more of my favorite dinner recipes in the articles below.

~Sarah