Sodium Soup

Greg's Chicken Taco Soup

3 large cans boned chicken
1 medium onion
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes w/green chilies
1 large can white hominy
2 cans dark kidney beans
2 cans pinto beans
1 large can tomato paste
2 packages frozen corn
1 large bottle V8
2 large cans chicken broth
1 package dry taco seasoning
1 package dry Ranch dressing mix
1 can refried beans

Combine all ingredients, simmer 1 hour. Garnish with tortilla chips, sour cream, cheddar cheese


This soup has a lot of good things going for it. Broth- or tomato-based soups are great for filling you up with few calories/fat, and there have been studies showing that diners who eat a cup of soup before a meal end up eating fewer calories at that meal than those who do not. This soup gets a huge fiber boost from the beans, plenty of lean protein from the chicken and beans, and tons of antioxidants from the tomatoes, V8 and onions. The downside is that this recipe is maybe a little too starchy (do you really need a large can of hominy AND two packages of corn??), and definitely too salty. Nearly every ingredient in this recipe has added salt, and plenty of it. Why should you care? Eating too much sodium causes your body to retain water, which first of all makes you feel bloated and icky and second of all puts stress on your heart. This stress can cause high blood pressure- some people are more prone to it than others. High blood pressure is a scary thing, because you don't feel it, but it can lead to heart attack, stroke and kidney failure. No, thank you, I'd rather not. The last reason sodium can harm you is that it makes you really thirsty. This can be a problem if you typically reach for high-calorie or sugary drinks.

So, lets trim that sodium...Buy no-salt- added canned tomatoes, and get two cans of them. Buy a separate can of green chilies to add to them. One can of green chiles has about 400mg sodium, but one can of tomatoes with chiles has about 1000! No-salt-added vegetables are getting pretty easy to find. Even Wal-Mart has a whole line of them now. The beans are harder to find without added salt, but canned beans are so convenient that I wouldn't stop using them because of it. Just make sure you dump them in a colander and rinse really well before using. Same goes for the hominy. As for the V8, buy the low-sodium version which has 140mg sodium per serving compared to 420mg in the regular V8. Use only half of the bottle, which is plenty to get the flavor into the finished product, between the V8 and the tomato paste. I also cut out the chicken broth completely and substituted plain old water. With all of the flavors going on you won't miss it, and you definitely don't the 1000mg sodium per can.

Now, how about those seasoning packets. Have you ever read the ingredients? They read like a high school chemistry experiment. Here they are:

Taco seasoning: includes hydrogenated oils (trans fat!!), salt, MSG, sugar, and preservatives
Ranch: maltodextrin, buttermilk, salt, MSG, lactic acid, dried garlic, dried onion, spices, citric acid, calcium stearate, xanthan gum, carboxymethylcellulose, guar gum, and artificial flavor.

A good rule to implement in your kitchen is to avoid eating anything that you haven't a clue what it really is. You would be surprised how easy it is to use your own spices. A taco seasoning can be made with 1 T dried onions, 2tsp chili powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp cayenne pepper. Ranch mix can be made with 2T minced onion, 1/4 tsp onion powder, 2tsp dried parsley, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, and 1/4 tsp black pepper. Yes, it takes a little more measuring but it is totally worth it to cut out all those weird preservatives and all that salt.

A couple other things I did to improve this recipe: You already know how I feel about meat, so it won't surprise you that I cut down the chicken to only two cans. It's still plenty! If you have time, get your own chicken (free range if possible :) and cook and chop it. If not, go for all-natural canned chicken with no extra preservatives, 97% fat free. Also, look for fat-free or vegetarian refried beans. Otherwise, they have LARD in them. Gross. Last, I cut out the frozen corn  and kept the hominy, which really adds character to this soup. I swapped this starchy vegetable for an extra onion and large yellow bell pepper, which are non-starchy vegetables and therefore have less calories. This soup was absolutely delicious!

2 - 12.5 oz cans boned chicken
2 medium minced onions
1 large yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes
1 can diced green chilies
1 large can hominy, rinsed
2 cans dark kidney beans, rinsed
2 cans pinto beans, rinsed
1 can tomato paste
1/2 large bottle of low-sodium V8
4 cups of water
3T dried minced onion
2tsp chili powder
1 1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cumin
1 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp black pepper

Combine all ingredients, simmer one hour. Garnish with tortilla chips, reduced-fat sour cream, and cheese (in small amounts).