My beef shank soup with vegetables recipe is easy and delicious. This old fashioned southern-style vegetable beef soup uses frozen vegetables, canned tomatoes, and beef shank to make a hearty and healthy soup that’s perfect for the fall, winter, or even anytime of the year. If you want to learn how to make beef shank soup with vegetables, keep reading!

Is Beef Shank Good For Soup?

The short answer is: YES! Beef shank is arguable one of the best cuts of meat for soup. Before we get to the recipe, let’s first explore why this cut of meat is perfect for soups and stews.

What is Beef Shank?

Beef shank, a cross-section of a cow’s leg, is a lesser-known cut of meat that’s extremely undervalued. As part of the leg, these muscles bear the weight of the cow, the constant tension making these muscles extremely tough. However, as explained in an OurEverydayLife.com article, the constant tension also gives beef shank an intense beefy flavor that few other parts of the cow can match.

In addition to having tough yet flavorful meat, beef shank also has a lot of connective tissue. Although it looks like marbling, it’s actually tough tendons and ligaments that don’t break down unless exposed to both heat and moisture.

Why Use Beef Shank For Soup?

A tough piece of meat with a lot of connective tissue may not sound appetizing. Although it can be braised to make Italian Osso Bucco, it’s also perfect for soups and stews because:

The broth softens the meat – The moderate heat and liquid broth of a long-simmering soup are exactly what the meat and connective tissue need to get soft and break down.

Beef shank is super flavorful – As previously stated, the constant tension on beef shank makes the meat both tough and flavorful. Combined with the bone and marrow, beef shank adds a beefiness that few other cuts of beef can match.

The connective tissue thickens the broth – Although it takes time to break down, the connective tissue eventually becomes gelatin-like, adding thickness, body and richness to the broth.

As you can see, beef shank is pretty much the ideal cut of meat for soups and stews.

Vegetable Beef Soup with Beef Shank — Beef shank is arguably the best cut of meat for vegetable beef soup.

Why Beef Shanks Are Good Soup Bones

Even though adding separate bones to a soup made with ground beef or chuck roast is perfectly acceptable, beef shanks bones are arguable the best for soup. Not only is the meat flavorful, but so are the bones since they bear the weight of the cow.

Also, unlike other bones you may find at the grocery stores, beef shank bones have marrow. Marrow is a soft, spongy tissue inside of large bones. When beef shank is completely submerged in soup broth, the bone marrow eventually melts into the soup, imparting a flavor that nothing else can.

Old-Fashioned Vegetable Beef Soup With Beef Shank

Although there are many versions of beef shank soup around the world (I’ll discuss this at the end of the article), it’s the perfect cut of meat to use when making old fashioned southern-style vegetable beef soup. Most recipes call for ground beef, but using beef shanks give this a beefy richness that elevates it to another level.

As Leigh and Anne of TheSouthernLadyCooks.com describe, vegetable beef soup is sometimes called “junk” or “refrigerator” soup because it’s a good way to use up whatever you have on hand. My recipe is meant to be a guideline to follow, but once you have the basic recipe, you can adjust it to whatever you have on hand.

Beef Shank Soup Ingredients

Beef Shank – 2 to 3 pounds (I had 1 full beef shank and 1 soup bone with meat, but 2 beef shanks would be preferable)

Vegetables – I used chopped onion, celery, and carrot to help thicken the soup, then a 1-pound bag of frozen mixed vegetables, along with more celery and a small potato.

Vegetable Stock – Homemade vegetable stock is always best: if using storebought, I recommend adding 1 or 2 bay leaves to the soup.

Tomato Juice – Most southern vegetable beef soup recipes call for tomato juice. I had a 28-oz can of crushed tomatoes, so that’s what I used. Really, whatever type of canned tomatoes you have will do.

Onion Soup Mix – Onion soup mix is an incredible incredible because there’s so much flavor in such a small packet. I used it in a lot of southern recipes such as my hash brown casserole, and it makes a big difference.

Worcestershire Sauce – Although it’s difficult to pronounce, Worcestershire sauce really helps to bring out beefy flavor. While not totally necessary, I HIGHLY recommend adding some if you have it.

Spices – You can spice this up as much or as little as you want. I used Italian spices such as basil, parsley, garlic, and many others.

Vegetable Beef Soup — Vegetable beef soup is an old-fashioned southern favorite that’s perfect for fall or winter.

How to Make Beef Shank Soup with Vegetables

As I said, my southern-style old-fashioned beef shank soup with vegetable recipes is super easy to make. Once you understand the basic process, you can make it your own and use what you have on hand to make a delicious, filling, and healthy meal that’s perfect for fall and winter:

Brown the Beef Shanks

The first step in making beef shank soup with vegetables is browning the beef shanks. Although this step is technically optional, I highly recommend browning both sides of your shanks instead of just putting them into the broth. A bit of browning really adds to the flavor, so definitely give it a try.

Sauté the Onions, Carrots, and Celery

Once the beef shanks have cooked 5-7 minutes per side on medium-high heat, remove them from the pan and add chopped onions and celery, along with carrot grated on a cheese grater. Sautéing these will bring out the flavor, especially the sweetness.

Add Tomato Juice

The finely-chopped vegetables will eventually break down into the broth, so once you’re done browning them, add the tomato juice. As I previously said, I used crushed tomatoes because that’s what I had on hand, so you can use any kind of canned tomato product you want: juice, sauce, even whole tomatoes!

If you don’t have any canned tomatoes on hand, you can definitely just add water or additional vegetable stock. However, I think the tomato juice gives a tanginess that brings out the other flavors, so I recommend adding it.

Return the Beef Shanks and Add Vegetable Stock

After adding the large can of tomato juice or crushed tomatoes, return the beef shanks to the pot. Since this is a soup, we want the beef shank portions to be completely submerged in liquid, so you’ll need to add water or vegetable stock.

If using storebought vegetable stock, don’t forget the bay leaves!

Although it would make sense to add beef broth, I would advise not adding beef stock if it’s storebought since many people say that storebought beef stock tastes artificial. Your beef shank meat and bones will add plenty of beefy flavor anyway, so I wouldn’t risk ruining your pot of soup.

Add Onion Soup Mix, Worcestershire Sauce, and Other Spices

Onion Soup Mix

In regards to flavorings and spices, you can make your beef shank soup as basic or flavorful as you want. Like many of my other southern-style recipes, I added onion soup mix: its sweet onion flavor really helps take soups, stews, and casseroles to the next level.

Worcestershire Sauce

I really liked what Worcestershire sauce did in my pot roast in the oven with potatoes and carrots recipe: it brought out the beef flavor in ways that almost no other ingredient did. I’ve used it in French onion soup casserole and other recipes, and I’ve always found that it really accentuates beef flavor.

While not an absolutely necessary ingredient, I highly recommend adding some Worcestershire sauce to your beef shank soup. It’s fairly salty, so be careful not to add additional salt. If you don’t have Worcestershire sauce, I think soy sauce would be a good substitute.

Spices

While researching this recipe on the Internet, I found multiple people complaining that southern vegetable beef soup can be a bit bland. That’s why I decided to add a good amount of spices: black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, basil, parsley, and oregano.

Although I used a lot of spices, I didn’t add any salt. Worcestershire sauce is pretty salty, so since I added 1/4 cup to the soup, I didn’t want to add additional salt for fear of making it too salty. If you think you might want to add more salt, do so in small increments: you can also add more later, but you can’t take away.

When Do I Add the Seasonings to the Soup?

When I made this recipe for YouTube, I added the onion soup mix after simmering the soup for 1 hour, some of the Worcestershire sauce early and some later, and the other spices after 2 hours of cooking. If you want, you can definitely just add all the seasonings at the beginning.

Beef Shank Soup Recipe — My beef shank soup recipe is full of meat and vegetables.

Simmer the Soup

The most important part of making this soup is giving the beef shank enough time to simmer. Sometimes I simmered it with a slightly offset lid, at other times the pot was totally uncovered, so I don’t think it really matters.

In regards to temperature, the temperature on medium-high (gasmark 4 out of 6) for most of the time. I recommend simmering this soup on medium or medium-high for the majority of the cooking time.

Add Potatoes and Vegetables

The extra potatoes and vegetables are what really turn this beef shank soup into a full meal. I added my chopped potatoes, celery, and frozen mixed vegetables after the soup had been cooking for 1.5 hours. If you want your potatoes and other vegetables to stay whole and not fall apart in the soup, add them when you think you have about 30-40 minutes of cooking time left.

How Long to Cook Beef Shank Soup?

In total, this beef shank soup simmered for quite a long time: a little over 2 hours. As previously stated, beef shank needs time for the heat and moisture, along with time, to soften the meat and dissolve the connective tissue.

That’s why I recommend bringing this soup to a boil and then letting it simmer for at least 2 hours. Honestly, I think that 2.5 hours, possibly 3, would be needed to get the beef shank to fall apart on its own–so you do patience. That’s where the instant pot and crockpot come in (more on that later).

In the video I said I had to fish out some pieces of meat and cut them into smaller pieces, so like I said, you might want to cook this a bit longer than I did. It all depends on how much you want the beef shank to fall apart.

What to Serve with Vegetable Beef Soup

Although my beef shank soup with vegetables recipe could be a meal on its own, it goes great with:

Cornbread – There’s nothing like southern skillet cornbread. I ate my beef shank soup with some cornbread crumbled into the soup to soak up some of the broth–I highly recommend it.

Biscuits – A nice, thick biscuit is always a welcome addition to any meal.

Rice – I think the thick, tomatoey, vegetable-filled broth would mix into rice very well.

Can You Freeze Beef Shank Soup?

Yes! You can definitely freeze beef shank soup. After it cools off completely, pour into freezer-soup containers and store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat the soup, the microwave is the easiest and fastest option.

Can You Make Beef Shank Soup in an Instant Pot?

Yes! Making beef shank soup in an instant pot pressure cooker is definitely possible. Although I’ve never done it myself, I would recommend putting everything in the pot–except for the potatoes, celery, and mixed vegetables–and cooking for 30-40 minutes.

Then, if you are able to boil or sauté with the lid off, add your extra vegetables and bring the soup to a boil again and cook the vegetables. This will cut down on the cook time tremendously.

Can You Make Vegetable Beef Soup in a Crock Pot?

Yes! You can make vegetable beef soup in a crock pot. Once again, I’ve never done it, but I would imagine that you could follow the exact same process: it will just take longer. I’d estimate that it’d take about 8 hours total, so keep that in mind.

Old Fashioned Vegetable Beef Soup — Old fashioned vegetable beef soup is full of peas, carrots, corn, and potatoes.

Beef Shank Soup In Other Cultures

What’s amazing about beef shank soup with vegetables is that many cultures have similar recipes:

Mexico – Caldo de res has large chunks of ears of corn, potatoes, and carrots. Cabbage, zucchini or chayote square almost make an appearance, and cilantro, mint, and lime give the soup flavor.

Argentina – Puchero has white potatoes, sweet potatoes and squash (I use butternut), along with plenty of onion, red bell pepper, and swiss chard–and sometimes even garbanzo beans!

Chinese – Ginger, scallions, and soy sauce give the beef shank soup a ton of flavor, and noodles make it very filling.

Filipino – Bulalo is a beef shank soup from the Philippines with corn, green beans, and cabbage. Fish sauce and plenty of black pepper are the main flavorings.

A Chef’s Review

Honestly, this beef shank soup with vegetables recipe was amazing. It was easy, delicious, and super filling. Beef shank is definitely an underrated cut of meat: although it does take time and know-how to cook properly, it’s very delicious: in fact, it may just be my favorite cut of beef.

This soup was full of vegetable flavor, so it definitely lived up to its name. If you’re looking for a thick, hearty soup that’s perfect for fall, winter, or anytime of the year, this recipe is for you. If you make it, I know you’ll love it!

Possible Changes / Variations to the Recipe

Although this beef shank soup turned out very well, some possible changes to the recipe include:

A different cut of beef – Even though it would change the nature of the soup, I think that chuck roast would work in this soup, too.

Sweet potatoes – Sweet potatoes would add some nice sweetness to the tomato-based broth.

Pasta – Pasta can fall apart if it’s left in soup too long, so you might want to boil it off to the side and then add it to the soup when serving. Or, divide the soup and only add pasta to the amount you are planning to serve immediately. The starch from the pasta would help to thicken the broth even more, too.