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Weight loss soup is the perfect recipe for a healthier you in 2024! If you are looking to drop a few pounds this low-calorie, nutrient-rich, high-fiber soup is healthy, flavorful, and fills you up!
Weight loss soup is a combination of a couple of weight loss soup recipes that have been around for years – Weight Watchers Garden Vegetable Soup and the Cabbage Soup Diet Recipe. We added kidney beans for protein to help you feel fuller for a longer period of time. Feel free to add or subtract vegetables to your taste.
We call this soup “magic” because we have all incorporated it into our diets at one point in another with terrific results! It’s so much more than a bland cabbage soup or vegetable soup. It is a low-carb, hearty soup that is full of flavor and keeps you satisfied and on track with healthy eating.
Ingredients for Weight Loss Soup
- Chicken broth – Low-sodium chicken broth gives a flavorful base for the soup. It adds liquid and moisture to the soup.
- V-8 juice – This is a flavor enhancement filled with all the nutrients from eight ingredients everyone loves.
- Diced tomatoes – Italian diced tomatoes from a can are poured into the soup. Tomatoes have a rich flavor with a great source of vitamins.
- Onion – Slice and chop the onion into small pieces.
- Garlic – Minced garlic cloves have their own health benefits.
- Mushrooms – Slice the mushrooms into thin slices.
- Vegetables – Carrots, zucchini, and squash are peeled and sliced in uniform sizes to help them cook and soften at the same time.
- Green beans – Fresh or frozen green beans work well.
- Kidney beans – Drained and rinsed thoroughly in a strainer. Add more types of lentils for more protein.
- Cabbage – Shredded cabbage softens and adds flavor to the base of the soup.
- Italian seasoning – Adds flavor and seasoning to the weight-loss soup.
How to Benefit from Weight Loss Soup
You still need to get a healthy amount of calories (about 1,200 a day) to lose weight at a healthy rate. For best results follow this diet plan we have found to work!
- Breakfast – Eat a healthy breakfast in the morning, focusing on lean proteins.
- Lunch – Eat a bowl of Weight Loss Magic Soup for lunch.
- Snack – Have another bowl of the delicious vegetable soup for an afternoon snack.
- Dinner – Then, at dinnertime, eat a bowl of the weight loss soup along with a serving of lean protein and a serving of whole grain, for example, a 4-ounce chicken breast and ½ cup of brown rice.
- Water – Drink plenty of water during the day to stay hydrated.
- Work out – Exercise at least 30 minutes 5 or more days a week for maximum results.
Will I Gain All My Weight Back Afterwards?
It’s important to note that we don’t recommend following this strict diet for more than seven days. After a week, be sure to maintain a healthy diet, having this soup intermittently until you reach your desired weight. I like to think of this as a positive kick-off to my diet, a way to shed pounds and gain some confidence as I continue with my lifestyle change.
A great way to help with portion control is to eat a bowl of soup before you eat your regular meal. The soup will fill your stomach with healthy vegetables, and you will feel less hungry during your meal.
Substitutions for Weight Loss Soup
Vegetables – You can substitute any vegetable. Just try to avoid starch ones like potatoes, peas, or corn if you can. Kale, spinach, and celery are delicious and filling substitutions.
Chicken broth – Beef broth or vegetable broth can be used instead of chicken broth. Feel free to use low-sodium broth or make your own.
Protein – We use kidney beans in our recipe to add some protein to this soup. White beans, pinto beans, black beans, or red beans can also be used and the calorie count will stay the same. You can also use lean ground beef or ground turkey, but keep in mind that the calorie count will go up.
Instant Pot Weight Loss Soup
We received a comment from Samantha, who made this soup in her Instant Pot. Thank you for sharing this, Samantha! Read her review on how she made the weight-loss soup in the instant pot!
“I did it in the instant pot! I sauteed the onions, garlic, carrots, green beans, and mushrooms in olive oil. Then, I added broth and gave it a good stir to scrape up bits. I added Kale instead of cabbage and cooked it for 5 minutes. Quick release, add zucchini and stir. Add tomatoes last and don’t stir. Cook another 5 minutes and quickly release. I didn’t add beans or tomato juice. I sprinkled it with parmesan and it was wonderful!”
Spices and Herbs to Use for Seasoning
In addition to the onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, and the seasonings in the diced tomatoes and V-8 juice, you can add any of the following additional seasonings!
- Basil
- Oregano
- Thyme
- Parsley
- Sage
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Tony Chachere’s Cajun Seasoning
“Wow!! Just made this! I’ve never made soup before and it tastes AMAZING!! Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!”
-Kristen
Frequently Asked Questions
This weight-loss soup recipe makes about 20 cups of soup, so you will have plenty to eat all week long. It stays fresh in the refrigerator for up to seven days and freezes beautifully. Make a double or triple batch and store it in the freezer for up to three months.
It is always good to have a variety of meals each day. This is a great way to start a healthy new year and diet but is also good to have variations of meals for more nutritional value.
The amount of weight loss varies for each person. There are several variables to consider when using this weight-loss soup. Some examples are exercise, hydration, and body structure or type. These can all have an effect on the amount of weight you can lose and how quickly you lose it.
More Healthy Soup Recipes
Weight Loss Soup
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 32 ounces chicken broth you may use low-sodium
- 3 cups V-8 juice *see recipe notes
- 28 ounces Italian diced tomatoes
- 1 small onion
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
- 3 carrots peeled and sliced
- 1 zucchini diced
- 1 yellow squash diced
- 2 cups green beans fresh or frozen
- 14 ounces kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 3 to 4 cups shredded cabbage
- 1 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a large frying pan sprayed with cooking spray, saute garlic, onions, carrots, and mushrooms for about 5 minutes.
- In a large crockpot, combine sauteed garlic and vegetables with the remaining ingredients.
- Cook on high for 2-3 hours, or until vegetables are fork-tender.
- FREEZING INSTRUCTIONSThis makes a large batch of soup. If you would like to freeze portions of it to use later, undercook the vegetables just a little. Pour the soup into freezer Ziplock bags and let as much air out as you can. Lay the bags flat on a cookie sheet and freeze. Once the soup is frozen flat, it is easy to layer in your freezer and won't take up much room. To thaw, place the bag in the fridge for 24 hours and then reheat.
really don’t like V8 juice & it really doesn’t like my belly either…what can I use in it’s place?
You can use tomato juice… Canned or homemade
Sounds like tomatoes may not agree with you much. You can use all chicken and/or vegetable broth or boullion.
This soup sounds just the thing I’ve been looking for. Something low in sodium, low cal. and all those wonderful vegetables. Thanks so much for all the info.
I would like to say thank you for posting this recipe and taking the time to answer all of the questions. I will definitely try this out
Thank you for coming to our site! Please come back often for more recipes!
You are so patient and informative! This soup sounds so good. I love everything you said to put in it. And my husband will agree to it also. (thank goodness) I am going to make this today. About 2 years ago I lost 100 lbs and have struggling to keep it off. This soup will definitely will help. Thank you.
“Unthaw” = freeze. “Thaw” = unfreeze. 🙂
😀 One of biggest pet peeves 😀
Oops! One of *my biggest pet peeves 😀
may I omit the mushrooms? Don’t like them.
Yes. They may be omitted
You could also puree the mushrooms (doesn’t change the flavor very much) if you want the nutritional benefit. I don’t mind the taste, but I really dislike the texture of mushrooms.
MAGIC soup? Sure, a soup loaded with healthy veggies, protein, and fiber is healthy. But eating this for lunch, a snack, AND dinner won’t make you magically lose weight. You’ll be bloated from the sodium in the chicken broth, V-8, and beans (unless you swap those out for lower sodium options). Besides: 57 calories IS NOT a meal. It’s barely a snack.
We suggest eating a good breakfast, and then soup with a light lunch and then soup for dinner and snacks throughout the day. Stay tuned. We are in the works of writing out a meal planning guide for this soup so you will know how to get maximum results while still maintaining a healthy diet. We are working with a nutritionist to see it through 🙂
Hi Erica, it’s utterly amazing to me….you post this to assist people and all they do is complain….keep up the great work! Thanks for sharing.
*****People USE your brains. Some of you sound like absolute imbeciles.****
I would love to know what you do for a living because you can’t seem to think for yourselves and adjust to your individual needs. Or be grateful that someone takes their precious time to share something that has helped them. I will definately be making this soup and will adjust to my liking. 😉
Amen!
hi i have been on it for over a week now and haven;t lost anything
What exactly have you done? We have had others comment with great success. You need to keep your calorie intake around 1200 each day along with exercise. This soup is a great supplement to help you keep your calorie count down and keep you satisfied throughout the day.
Too much sodium for my taste. I’d use all fresh instead of canned, including homemade broth. What could I use to substitute the v8? Tomato sauce? I dislike that any soup that has v8, that’s the only thing you can taste. Not to mention the sodium in v8. Sodium holds up to 3x its weight in water!
You can cut down the V8 and replace it with tomato juice, chicken or vegetable broth or you can leave it out altogether and just use chicken and/or vegetable broth/boullion.
Wow… you are much more patient than I am!!!! You wrote “Feel free to add or subtract vegetables to your taste. ” and how many times were you asked if you could swap out veggies? C’mon people… take the time to read what is written… then use some common sense!! It has too much sodium!!! WTH, SMH…. common sense to use low sodium products… Wow jut wow.
LOL I agree….WoW!!!!
What would be a good substitute for squash and zucchini?
Butternut squash would work well. You could also use a whole-grain pasta or potatoes if you’re not too worried about carbs. Soup is a blank canvas — you can use almost any broth/base, vegetables, meat, or pasta depending on your likes and dietary goals. If you like creamier soup just puree some or all of the soup in a blender before serving. I usually puree about half the veggies. Enjoy!
Too much salt. Any suggestions on how to reduce the salt?
Use fresh vegetables and make your own chicken stock. You can also get dry beans and soak/cook. To make stock, Boil a couple breasts, celery, and season to your taste. Or boil a chicken carcass after your cook up a roast chicken and have eaten all the meat.
You can reduce the salt content of the soup by using reduced sodium V-8, reduced sodium chicken broth, and reduced sodium canned tomatoes.
Yes. Use low sodium broth and v8
Could I substitute beef broth for the chicken both?
Yes, beef or vegetable broth could be used in place of the chicken broth.
I do not like squash or zucchini? What else can I use instead?
I’m wondering the same! Squash and zucchini 🙁 yuck! Lol
use broccoli or fresh spinach in it so you have the fresh veggies. Check for the lowest calorie higher fiber veggies
i use garden cocktail with tomatoes juices it’s realy good also thanks
Any vegetable you like would work, with the exception of starchy vegetables like potatoes, peas, and corn… or you could just leave the squash and zucchini out altogether and use more of the other vegetables in the soup.
Hi there, I would like to make this in a vegetarian version, what would you suggest I replace the chicken broth with? Thank you in advance :))
You can use vegetable broth
I have read all the comments that have been posted, as a result, all my questions were answered. Looking forward to trying this. Thanks very much.
love this magic soup recipe will be trying
I think it sounds awesome. I’m going to buy all the ingredients today and give it a try. Thanks and can’t wait.
I found this on Facebook and made it today. I didn’t have the kind of tomatoes that it called for so I used 1 can of diced tomatoes and 1 can of tomatoes and chilies. It added a bit of a kick to it. I have read all the comments about this, and have already thought about adding different beans in it like Black Beans. I would at least love one can of corn in this. To me it’s just calling for a little bit of corn. I am not crazy over cooked tomatoes so wondered if that would be something I could leave out and it be just as good? Thanks so much for posting this and it finding its way to Facebook!!!
Corn is starchy, might not help with the weight loss. Add tomatos last if you dont want them overcooked.
What exact kind of squash do you use? I bought a spaghetti squash to cut up to put in it. My choices at my local grocery stores were very limited.
yellow squash and zucchini is what I typically use
This sounds delicious!!!! Guess what’ll be in my crock pot this weekend? Question…I love zucchini but not a fan of yellow squash. What type of squash would you suggest I substitute?
You can just double the zucchini if you like it best!
I just made your recipe and it is delicious! Thank you for this. Hope it works for me and I can shed a few pounds. In the recipe that I found it says that it is 75 cals. per cup and in this one here it says 57 cals. Which is correct? I’m counting calories on My Fitness Pal and I’d like to add the correct amount of cals. Thank You.
You can enter the ingredients yourself exactly as you use them at my fitness pal to get that information, store it in your food diary and library for future use..
myfitnesspal can easily answer all the questions about the fiber, salt, sugar, sodium, and anything else anyone wants to tweak or swap or know about. Same with telling you how much to eat of what to get a complete diet, based on how much you want to lose, and in how much time. It’s free!!! It’s not the original poster’s job to change or justify the contents of her recipe to viewers’ requests and needs , and she has been pretty cool about it in the little bit Ive just read.. Weight Watchers, Spark People and Calorie count.com all offer it as well. The recipe is good: if you dont like red beans, stick in another color and worry it to the nth degree, if it’s too much salt swap out for low sodium or use half water, add herbs to boost the flavor that way, if you hate chunks or mushrooms, puree or take them out. Calculate it and play with it so you learn and dont have to ask someone else on a forum. These tools are the way we learn to eat better and weight loss comes naturally and doesnt have to feel so desperate and all or nothing…stays off that way too. You are worth it, make the effort. 🙂 great recipe to original poster.
Sierra– thank you for your comment. 🙂 We love this recipe.. even if you aren’t trying to lose weight, it is still a yummy soup!
I love creamier soups as opposed to broth-based so I almost always end up pureeing some of the vegetables. I usually add extra because I do like the ‘bite’ as it helps me feel I’m actually eating as opposed to having a ‘meal replacement’. This is a good base to start and the variations with changing out the veggies, beans, herbs, etc. are endless so it doesn’t become boring. Have fun and experiment!
You tell um Serria! In other words folks get over it USE YOUR OWN MINDS AND RESEARCH FOR YOUR OWN SELVES!!!!!