Soup's on – January is National Soup Month
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EmailTips to reduce sodium.
The sky is the limit for soup recipes! Soup alone can make the meal or be added to round-out a meal. Soup can be a pretty simple meal to prepare. Low sodium soup suggestions from Michigan State University Extension include:
- Freezer finds: Use up your frozen food! Frozen vegetables, chicken, beef or pork is ideal.
- Fridge finds: What’s in your refrigerator can be staple ingredients for soup recipes – celery, carrots, zucchini and broccoli to name some options. Usually, one cup to one-half a cup of diced vegetables for most soup recipes.
- Pantry finds: For broth stock, use bullion, water, herbs and spices along with other low sodium flavor enhances like vinegar and lemon juice, peppercorns, garlic or onion powder. You can also use a salt substitute such as Mrs. Dash.
- Homemade stock: Stock is the broth from meats you roast. Homemade stock enhances the flavor. After roasting chicken, beef, sausage or turkey, skim off the fat and freeze the stock for soups.
- Add to a can: Start with a low sodium canned soup and get creative; add your own flavor enhancers or vegetables like spinach or kale, which cook nicely and add a lot of flavor to bland soups.
Soup can be high in sodium!
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the recommendation of sodium intake is 1,500 milligrams per day – the (adequate Intake) level for most Americans. The CDC advises everyone to limit sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams per day (the tolerable upper limit).
- If you are in the following population groups, you should consume no more than 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day and meet the potassium recommendation (4,700 milligrams per day) with food.
- You are 51-years-old, or older
- You are African American
- You have high blood pressure
- You have diabetes
- You have chronic kidney disease
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