We all love a nice chicken vegetable soup when it’s cold or when we’re not feeling well, but for some people who prefer a low-sodium diet, this recipe requires no salt but is still super flavourful!
Chicken noodle soup is the number one dish for comfort to North Americans. Although this recipe doesn’t require any noodles, feel free to add some in. Now, let’s get into…
Why you should make this chicken vegetable soup recipe
- it has lots of flavour
- hearty, healthy, nutritious
- Only one pot required
- easy
- perfect opportunity to use up your leftover veggies!
- low calorie
- high protein
- No salt or broth or broth cubes needed
- No need to spend hours making a flavourful broth!
- So tasty and great for gut health
Ingredients & Substitutions
Chicken breast – defrosted, of course. Chicken breast is the main ingredient AND the secret ingredient here, the one that gives the flavour. Chicken breast is high in protein, low in fat, and easy to cook. However, feel free to use other parts of the chicken, such as chicken thighs. If that’s the case, you will need to remove the bones first.
Onion and Garlic – another flavour “secret ingredient” and also a key ingredient to heal your gut, boost your immune system, and just your health in general.
Celery and Carrot – These veggies require a longer time to cook, and they are great for soups and broths like these. They are one of my favourite vegetables too!
Other leftover vegetables – ladies and gentlemen and everyone around and between, this is your chance to use those veggies stuck in your fridge wondering if you forgot about them! I used mushrooms and broccoli, but other vegetables that require a longer cooking time like cabbage are great too. Vegetables that need a shorter time to cook can be added much later during cooking.
Seasonings – I use this organic no-salt seasoning, which is of course optional. Other seasonings I also used for this chicken vegetable soup were bay leaves, cayenne pepper and black pepper.
Optional: In the video, I minced some ginger and threw it in the pan with the onions and garlic. Ginger is fantastic for your physical and mental health, so I recommend you add some too if you have it.
I also added some chopped cilantro to the chicken vegetable soup at the end before serving, it for presentation purposes and tastiness-boosting purposes 🙂 Parsley works just as great.
Tips and Variations for no salt chicken vegetable soup
Make sure your chicken isn’t overcooked. Cook the chicken until the inside is just cooked because you’ll be adding the chicken back and cooking it more.
Let it simmer – that’s how you let the flavour out into the soup. Don’t rush or turn the heat high!
If you want to add some vegan meat, no problem! Try out the easiest chicken seitan recipe, made with vital wheat gluten and 100% whole wheat flour!
Easy Flavourful Chicken Veggie Soup with No Salt Recipe
Easy Flavourful Chicken Veggie Soup with No Salt
Ingredients
- 2 large defrosted chicken breast , roughly chopped
- 1 medium onion
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1/2 cup chopped carrots
- 1 chopped bunch cilantro / parsley
- 6 cups water
- Whatever veggies you have left
- 1 tbsp ginger , sliced (optional)
- 1/2 tsp pepper and (optional but highly recommend)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
Instructions
- roughly chop all the veggies and chicken. In a large non-stick pan/pot sprayed with cooking spray, turn the heat to medium-high to high and add the chicken. sprinkle pepper and no-salt seasoning. Cook for 2 minutes until one side is golden brown then flip.
- Cook until the chicken is golden brown on the outside but just cooked on the inside. Don’t overcook them! Remove the chicken from the pan for now. DO NOT clean the pan – those are the natural flavours. Turn the heat to medium and add a dash of oil, then onions, garlic and ginger. Sautee for 2 minutes
- Throw in the carrots, celery, mushrooms, and your leftover veggies that require a longer cooking time (scroll up for examples). Add the rest of the seasoning (some more pepper, cayenne pepper, etc).
- Sautee for 2 minutes. Pour in the water, stir a little, cover it with a lid and bring it to a boil
- Let the soup boil for one minute and turn the heat to low to simmer for 5-8 minutes (with the lid still closed). Add the chicken and other leftover veggies that require less cooking time and simmer again for 3 minutes.
- add cilantro/parsley, give it a stir, taste test and adjust according. Enjoy!