Vegetable Soup in the Slow Cooker

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   First, put the diced zucchini into the slow cooker pot. Mine is frozen, but fresh young zucchini is best, of course — just wash it before adding it to the cooker.

2. Step 2:

   

   Next, add the string beans. Mine are frozen too. Honestly, fresh or frozen both work — hardly anyone will taste the difference, unless they're a real gourmet.

3. Step 3:

   

   Wash the bell pepper under running water and remove the seeds and stem. Yellow pepper looks nicest in the finished dish. Cut the pepper into cubes — and yes, frozen works here too ;)

4. Step 4:

   

   Scrub the carrot well under running water with a brush, then peel it with a vegetable peeler for minimal waste. Cut it into small cubes. To be sure the carrot cooks through in time, you can grate it on the coarse side of a box grater instead.

5. Step 5:

   

   Peel the onion (white is best). If it's hard to peel, soak it in warm water for about five minutes and the skin will come off more easily. Chop the onion finely. Peel the garlic and grate it on a fine grater or press it, then add it to the pot. You can skip the onion if you don't care for it, but I really recommend the garlic — it gives the vegetables a wonderful aroma.

6. Step 6:

   

   Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them into halves or quarters, depending on size. You can use regular tomatoes if they're in season and you have good ones on hand. Wash the herbs and shake off the excess water — they add extra aroma and flavor. Season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste. There's no need to add water, since the vegetables release their own juices. Cook on the "Stew" program for 20 minutes.