DIY Dry Soup Mixes: How to Make and Store Them

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As the holiday dishes are cleared and the cold nights settle in, there’s nothing quite like a hearty, homemade soup simmering on the stove. Dry soup mixes—simple combinations of beans, pasta, and seasonings tucked into mason jars—make it easy to have comforting meals ready at a moment’s notice.

These DIY Soup Mixes cost pennies compared to store‑bought packets, can be tailored to your family’s tastes and dietary needs. Plus, they store beautifully on the shelf. Ready to learn how to craft and stash your own mixes? Let’s build a winter pantry that can help you out all year long!

Why Dry Soup Mixes Belong in Your Winter Pantry

January is peak comfort‑food season. After the holidays, I’m always looking for nourishing meals that warm us up without straining our budget.

Dry soup mixes are perfect for this moment: they’re inexpensive to assemble, easy to store and make, and they use pantry staples. By keeping jars of bean‑and‑pasta mixes on hand, you can create homemade soups quickly and avoid high‑sodium, unhealthy commercial products. These mixes also make thoughtful gifts for friends, college students, or neighbors.

Benefits of Making Your Own Dry Soup Mixes

• Frugal and convenient: Dried beans, lentils, pasta and spices are inexpensive when purchased in bulk. Homemade mixes cost far less than store‑bought soup packets and you can control the amount of salt and additives.
• Shelf‑stable: When layered in airtight jars, dry soup mixes stay shelf‑stable for months. They are best when used within a year but that still gives you plenty of time to use them!
• Customizable: You decide which beans, grains, and spices go into your jar. If you need less salt you can do that. You can also change out ingredients if you have food allergies or intolerances.
• Great gifts: Soup mixes layered in mason jars look beautiful and are practical presents. They can be given with a wooden spoon and printed instructions for a cozy winter gift.

Watch Me Make the Mixes!

Homemade Dry Soup Mix Recipes

Pasta Fagioli Soup Mix

This Italian‑inspired dry soup mix is a crowd‑pleaser and demonstrates how easy it is to assemble your own soup jar. In my experience, this also makes a great gift!

Get the recipe here.

Chicken Barley Soup Mix

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup barley
• 1/4 cup dried celery
• 1/4 cup dried carrots
• 1/4 cup dried onion flakes
• salt and pepper

Mix together all ingredients and add to a pint-sized mason jar with a lid for storage. When you are ready to make the soup, pour the mix into 4 cups of chicken broth. Add 1 cup cooked chicken. Simmer until barley is cooked through.

Onion Soup Mix

We make this one all the time! Although it’s technically not a soup (you could make it one, but I wouldn’t recommend it!), it’s used in so many different warm and hearty recipes that you should have it on hand at all times.

Get the recipe here.

Chicken Noodle Soup Mix

Ingredients:

• 2 cups wide egg noodles
• 1 cup dried carrots
• ½ cup dried celery
• ¼ cup dried minced onion
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 bay leaf

Mix all the ingredients together and store in a quart-sized jar. When you are ready to make your soup, bring 8 cups of chicken broth to a boil. Add soup mix and 2 cups cooked chicken. Reduce the heat and simmer 12–15 minutes until the noodles are tender. Add salt to taste. Remove the bay leaf before eating.

Dried Bean Soup Mix

If you are looking for a frugal soup mix to keep in your pantry, this is it! This bean soup is very hearty and flavorful. You can use the varieties of beans that you already have on hand to put it together and change it up as needed.

Get the recipe here.

Potato Soup Mix

• 4 cups dried potato flakes
• ¼ cup dried minced onion
• 2 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp black pepper

Combine all ingredients together and store in a quart-sized mason jar. When you are ready to make your soup ddd mix to a stockpot pot with 8 cups water. Simmer 25–30 minutes until potatoes are rehydrated and warmed. Stir in: 2 cups milk and 3 tablespoons butter. Add salt to taste.

Cream of Soup Mix

This recipe is the perfect replacement for those store bought “cream of….” soup mixes. You can customize it as needed for sodium levels and other flavors based on what your needs are.

Get the recipe here.

White Bean and Herb Soup Mix

• 3 cups navy or cannellini beans
• ¼ cup dried onion
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 bay leaf

Place the beans in a quart jar. Combine all of the spices and place in a small baggie inside of the jar. When you are ready to make the soup: soak the beans overnight. Drain and add beans to pot with 8–10 cups water or broth and the spices. Simmer the soup for 90–120 minutes until beans are tender. Add salt to taste and remove bay leaves before eating. You can also add sausage or ham to give it more flavor.

Safe Storage for Dry Soup Mixes

Dry ingredients keep well, but only when they’re protected from moisture, light, heat and pests. Here’s how to keep your hard work protected:

• Use airtight containers. I store my mixes in mason jars and even mixes with dried beans keep for well over a year when kept airtight. Quart‑size jars with plastic lids are ideal for bean‑based mixes or cream‑soup bases.
• Keep them cool and dry. The North Dakota State University Extension advises storing staples and canned foods “in cool cabinets away from heat” and dating packages so you can use the oldest first.
• Limit the storage time. Homemade soup mixes should be used within 12 months for best color and flavor, but can be just fine up to 18–24 months. To extend shelf life further, omit the items from the jars that spoil the fastest. (Source)
• Protect against oxygen and pests. The jars should be stored in a dark, cool place. Light, heat, humidity and oxygen all shorten shelf life. (Source) Here’s more info on how to protect your food storage from pests.
• Rotate your stock. Label jars with the date and place them in bins arranged by “best by” dates or from what you made first to what you made last. Plan to use mixes within a year of preparation to ensure the best quality. Use up foods that aren’t getting used during a yearly Pantry Challenge to keep your foods fresh.
• Discard questionable mixes. If a mix smells off, tastes stale, or shows signs of mold or insects, discard it. Be aware that dried ingredients that contain oils can go rancid fast.

Safety Tips for Preparation of Beans in Dry Soup Mixes

• Cook kidney beans properly. Raw kidney beans contain a lectin that can cause food poisoning. You should make sure to boil kidney beans for at least 10 minutes. When preparing mixes like Pasta Fagioli or Dried Bean Soup, rinse and pre‑boil beans before simmering them with seasonings.
• Soak or rinse beans before cooking. Soaking dried beans or rinsing them before cooking removes some starches and reduces cooking time. This is easy with recipes like Dried Bean Soup Mix where you can separate out the beans from the spices before cooking.

Serving & Customizing Ideas

• Add broth or veggies. Turn your dry mix into a hearty meal by adding canned tomatoes, fresh carrots, celery or potatoes. For extra richness, cook with vegetable, chicken or beef broth instead of water.
• Boost nutrition and variety. You can always add meat, additional vegetables, pasta or grains to dry soup mixes and vary the spices to change up the mix when you are cooking it. Adding toppings like grated cheese, sour cream or croutons can make soup feel like a complete meal as well.
• Create your own flavors. Once you’re comfortable layering beans and spices, experiment with other legumes (lentils, split peas), grains (barley, rice), and herbs. I have dozens of mix recipes in my Mixes archive—everything from onion soup mix to dry taco seasoning—so feel free to mix and match flavors.
• Adjust salt and spice levels. Homemade mixes let you control salt and avoid MSG. For example, the cream‑soup mix is a lower‑sodium alternative to canned soups, and the gluten‑free onion soup mix uses maple sugar instead of cane sugar.

Homemade Soup Mixes are Helpful!

Building a pantry of homemade dry soup mixes is an easy way to prepare for busy winter days. These mixes provide comforting meals, reduce grocery costs and let you avoid processed ingredients. When stored properly—airtight, cool and dry—and used within a year, they offer your family reliable meals all season long.

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