Low-Calorie Soup Recipes That Actually Keep You Full

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Last winter I stood in my kitchen at 6pm, starving, staring into my fridge with nothing planned for dinner. I grabbed a bag of frozen vegetables, a carton of broth, and forty minutes later I had a pot of soup that filled me up for under 200 calories a bowl. That pot changed how I think about dinner during a cut.

Soup gets overlooked as a weight loss tool. But broth-based soups are mostly water and vegetables, so you get a huge volume of food for very few calories. Your stomach fills up, your brain gets the “I’m full” signal, and you’re not sitting there an hour later raiding the pantry.

I eat soup for lunch three or four times a week now. It’s part of my regular rotation, right alongside the recipes in my beginner’s guide to low-calorie weight loss recipes.

Why Broth-Based Soups Work So Well

Cream-based soups can pack 400+ calories a bowl before you’ve even added bread. Broth-based ones usually land between 100 and 250 calories for a full, hearty serving. The trick is using a flavorful broth as your base and loading up on vegetables, beans, or lean protein instead of cream or too much oil.

I keep a batch of soup in my freezer basically year-round. It’s the easiest lunch when I’m trying to stay on track without spending my whole afternoon meal prepping.

Classic Vegetable Soup

Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes Servings: 6 Calories: about 110 per serving

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 cups chopped cabbage
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery and cook for about 5 minutes, until they start to soften.
2. Stir in the garlic and cook for another minute.
3. Add the broth, tomatoes, cabbage, and seasoning. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

This is the soup I make when the fridge looks empty but I still have onions, carrots, and celery hanging around. It’s basically my cleanout recipe.

Chicken and Vegetable Soup

Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 35 minutes Servings: 6 Calories: about 180 per serving

Ingredients:

• 1 pound boneless chicken breast
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 cup green beans, trimmed
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Add the chicken and broth to a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
2. Remove the chicken, shred it with two forks, and set it aside.
3. Add the carrots, celery, onion, green beans, and thyme to the pot. Simmer for 15 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
4. Stir the shredded chicken back in and season with salt and pepper.

I add extra black pepper to mine. Probably too much, honestly, but that’s how I like it.

Lentil and Vegetable Soup

Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 35 minutes Servings: 6 Calories: about 190 per serving

Ingredients:

• 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon cumin

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil and cook the onion and carrots for 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the garlic and cumin and cook for one more minute.
3. Add the lentils, broth, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the lentils are soft.
4. Season to taste.

Lentils have this reputation for being boring, but they hold onto flavor really well and they’ve got enough protein and fiber to keep you full for hours. This one’s a favorite in my house, even with my kids, which almost never happens with soup.

Minestrone

Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes Servings: 6 Calories: about 160 per serving

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can kidney beans, drained
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/2 cup small whole wheat pasta
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Instructions:

1. Cook the onion, carrots, and celery in oil for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook one more minute.
2. Add the broth, tomatoes, beans, and seasoning. Bring to a boil.
3. Add the zucchini and pasta and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, until the pasta is tender.
4. Season with salt and pepper.

This one’s a bit heartier, so it’s the one I reach for on a cold night when a lighter soup won’t cut it.

A Few Notes on Making These Work For You

Skip the cream and skip the bread on the side if you’re watching calories. A soup that’s 150 calories on its own turns into 400 once you add a buttered roll.

Batch cook on a Sunday and freeze portions in individual containers. It’s basically the same move I use for the meals in my low-calorie meal prep recipes, and it means dinner is already done on the nights you don’t feel like cooking.

If you want more protein in any of these, add shredded chicken, white beans, or a scoop of unflavored protein powder stirred in at the end (sounds strange, works fine, I promise).

These soups also show up a lot in my low-calorie dinner recipes and my work lunch recipes, since they hold up well in the fridge for days. Start with whichever one sounds good tonight. You really can’t go wrong with any of them.