healthy seasoning for soups: need suggestions

windycitycupcake

hey all

any suggestions for tasty spice combinations or low calorie tricks to add to mega flavor to the soup? the idea is to achieve an interesting overall flavor profile, not just throw a bunch of different things in (which i already do)


thanks in advance!!!!!!

ocliao

hot and sour: white pepper and vinegar.

IveLanded

I use a lot of cayenne and chili flakes.....I like things spicy. Also hot sauce and salsa for "south west" soups.

2hobbit1

I make freezer sofrito and add a chunk at the end along with a splash of vinegar or a squeeze of fresh citrus.

Freezer Sofrito
Onion, garlic, cilantro, culantro, red peppers, cubanella peppers, tomato
buzz/chop in food processor and put in a Ziploc bag, squeeze out all the air so it will lay flat and is less than 1/2 inch thick. Freeze it laying flat. When you want some just whack it on the counter edge to loosen up a chunk.
I make a huge batch when the produce is fresh - no salt, no oil, and all the flavor goes into you meal!

I also like the McCormick's perfect pinch line they have a lot of ethnic/regional spice blends that are salt free. I like them better than the MrsDash blends.

2hobbit1

Try making your stock from scratch -

Save your veggie odds and ends, bones and timings in the freezer. When you have a batch toss in water to cover with an onion quartered, couple of garlic cloves, stalk of celery,a chunked carrot or two, a medallion or two of fresh ginger. Add bay leaf, fresh Rosemary and thyme and fresh cracked black pepper. Simmer for 30- 60 minutes and then strain out and discard the solids. Then if you want you can simmer the stock to reduce the volume and concentrate the flavor.

Then build your soup - you can vary the flavor depending on what type of bones you have. If you want a good brown stock be sure to roast your bones before you use them in the stock - it really brings out the flavor.

windycitycupcake

freezer sofrito i love it!

miracle4me

Try making your stock from scratch -

Save your veggie odds and ends, bones and timings in the freezer. When you have a batch toss in water to cover with an onion quartered, couple of garlic cloves, stalk of celery,a chunked carrot or two, a medallion or two of fresh ginger. Add bay leaf, fresh Rosemary and thyme and fresh cracked black pepper. Simmer for 30- 60 minutes and then strain out and discard the solids. Then if you want you can simmer the stock to reduce the volume and concentrate the flavor.

Then build your soup - you can vary the flavor depending on what type of bones you have. If you want a good brown stock be sure to roast your bones before you use them in the stock - it really brings out the flavor.

This ^^^^
Thanks I need to start doing this, I love soup!

draco706

Black bean soup
2 TB. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced (or 1/2 tsp. PENZEYS MINCED GARLIC)
3 ribs celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 small green bell pepper, diced
2-4 15-oz. cans black beans (depending on how beany you like it)
5 Cups water mixed with 3 tsp. CHICKEN OR VEGETABLE SOUP BASE
2 TB. apple cider vinegar
2 tsp. CHILI POWDER
1/2 tsp. CAYENNE PEPPER
1/2 tsp. GROUND CUMIN
salt, to taste

Virtuous Vegetable Soup
2 TB. olive oil
1/4 Cup thinly sliced onion (1/2 small)
1/2 Cup thinly sliced celery (1 rib)
1/2 Cup thinly sliced carrot (1 large)
1/2 Cup thinly sliced parsnip (1 medium)
2 garlic cloves, diced (or 1/2 tsp. PENZEYS MINCED GARLIC)
1 leek, washed well and thinly sliced
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt, to taste
1 Cup kale, washed well and chopped*
1 Cup collard greens, washed well and chopped*
1 Cup shredded cabbage*
1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes with juice
1 15-oz. can great northern beans*
1 qt. vegetable broth (or 1 qt. water mixed with 2 tsp. VEGETABLE SOUP BASE)
1 tsp. THYME
1/4-1 tsp. COARSE BLACK PEPPER, to taste
1 WHOLE BAY LEAF

For more ideas check out. you can then look up whats in the spice and find a less expensive alternative or make your own version.
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/results.html

windycitycupcake

nice!

Rachelle_Ohh

Generic - Bok Choy -- Boiled, Drained, Cooked, 2 cup cooked (170 g) 40 6 0 4 2 116
Green Tea - Lipton, 5 tea bag (1.8g) 0 0 0 0 0 0
Generic - Country Style Boneless Pork Ribs, 30 oz 1,050 0 38 180 0 1,575
Celery - Raw, 2 stalk large (11"-12" long) 17 4 0 1 2 99
Trader Joe's - Wild Rice, 1 cup dry 560 120 2 24 4 0
Peas - Green, frozen, unprepared, 0.5 cup 55 10 0 4 4 81
Huy Fong - Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce, 8 tsp. 40 8 0 0 8 800
Spice Islands - Asian Ginger - Powdered, 3 tsp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Produce Oasis - Cilantro Fresh, 1 oz 6 1 0 1 0 13
Lemon juice - Raw, 1 wedge yields 1 1 0 0 0 0
Morton - Iodized Salt, 0.5 tsp (1.5g) 0 0 0 0 0 1,180
Spices - Pepper, black, 1 tsp 5 1 0 0 0 1
Spices - Paprika, 2 tsp 12 2 1 1 0 1

Add Ingredient

Total: 1786 153 41 215 20 3866
Per Serving: 149 13 3 18 2 322

This was my recipe for the Green Tea Beef Soup with Rice and Veggies today. The numbers go in order of: Cals, Carbs, Fats, Protein, Sugar, and Sodium.

My main spices/additions were Cilantro, Ginger, Garlic, Paprika, Sriracha, Basil, Parsley, Lemon Juice, and Pepper. I also cooked the meat raw in the broth for 2 hours before putting everything else in.

I've now went the route of using tea (unsweetened, just water/tea bag) in my broth instead of plain water.....gives it a little something extra.

Rachelle_Ohh

Oh, leave the salt out....I by accident added salt b/c I thought it was pepper.....added 1,080 mg of sodium to the whole pot. lmao

Oh, almost forgot, it serves 12-14.

Faith2Bfit

I make tomato soup (low sodium in a can)
I add red pepper flakes, black pepper, a dash of sea salt and dill. It is sooooo yummy!!!

I also like Italian seasoning in my chicken noodle

lyttlewon

Fresh pesto. You only need a dollop, about a teaspoon. Put it directly into each individual bowl of soup.

needamulligan

lemon grass and lime! Specifically, a Thai inspired chicken lemongrass soup.

Awkward30

I love adding cilantro and lime to everything. It makes it taste "brighter"

emstethem

Try making your stock from scratch -

Save your veggie odds and ends, bones and timings in the freezer. When you have a batch toss in water to cover with an onion quartered, couple of garlic cloves, stalk of celery,a chunked carrot or two, a medallion or two of fresh ginger. Add bay leaf, fresh Rosemary and thyme and fresh cracked black pepper. Simmer for 30- 60 minutes and then strain out and discard the solids. Then if you want you can simmer the stock to reduce the volume and concentrate the flavor.

Then build your soup - you can vary the flavor depending on what type of bones you have. If you want a good brown stock be sure to roast your bones before you use them in the stock - it really brings out the flavor.

Wow, this sounds great. Thanks for the info!

windycitycupcake

bump