Light Meals: Healthy Chili, Cultural Soups & Salad Prep

Light meals offer diverse nutritional profiles through global soup varieties, healthy dressing formulations, and creative salad meal preparation.

chicken soup

How Do I Fix My Chicken Soup If It Has No Flavor?

Bland chicken soup may be good for the body, but it’s hardly good for your taste buds. From simple to savory, there are as many methods for flavoring the soup as there are recipes for the soup. The key is to taste the soup as you go so you avoid over-seasoning the broth.

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Chicken Cream Soup

How to Thicken Chicken Soup

It's never too late to thicken chicken soup, and it usually works out better to thicken later than earlier because you can choose a thickener that fits best. For example, if you have a broth-based chicken soup with an acidic ingredient, you want arrowroot for its agreeability with food acids.

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How to Make Chicken Soup with Chicken Breast

Known as much for easing cold symptoms as for soothing nearly every type of soul, chicken soup is an easy-to-assemble meal. You can make it with a low-fat chicken breast by cooking it in the broth first, then chopping it up and adding it back in cubes.

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Pumpkin potage in a mug

How to Cook Frozen Soup

Soup is a versatile dish that can include virtually any type of ingredient in the meat, fish, vegetable or herb categories. Soup can be simple, gourmet, health-conscious, made up of leftovers or created fresh.

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Noodle soup

How to Cook a Whole Chicken for Soup

Although soup is a part of almost every culture, chicken soup has deep roots in Jewish tradition. An integral part of Passover meals and the basis for matzoh ball soup, chicken soup was often referred to as “Jewish penicillin” because it was the go-to dish for those feeling under the weather.

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Chinese dumpling

How to Bake Potstickers

Paired with a zesty dipping sauce, potstickers make an irresistible appetizer, side dish or light meal. Buy already-made dumplings in the freezer section of grocery stores or Asian food stores, and keep them on hand for a quick snack or to serve unexpected visitors.

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Homemade Fried Mozzarella Sticks

How to Cook Mozzarella Sticks in the Microwave

Few things are simpler than a snack that goes from freezer to plate in a matter of minutes. Many frozen mozzarella stick products can be microwaved, although they'll be less crispy than those that are oven-baked. While the snacks are made to be easy to prepare, it pays to read the label carefully.

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How to Make Mild Sauce for Chicken Wings

Though chicken wings are a party crowd and game-day favorite, not everyone loves the spicy-hot buffalo sauces they are often bathed in. If you, or your guests, want a wing sauce without the heat, you have plenty of choices.

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Homemade Potato Skins with Bacon

How to Make Quick Potato Skins

Crispy potato skins generally take up to two hours to prepare when baked in the oven from start to finish, but you can use the microwave to make quick potato skins.

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How to Make Homemade Chinese Vegetable Soup

Homemade Chinese vegetable soup is low-fat and is rich in nutritious, high-fiber vegetables that make it a hearty choice for a healthy lunch or dinner. Chinese vegetable soup is especially beneficial if you're watching your weight. Make plenty of Chinese vegetable soup, as the flavors become even better with time.

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Broth in a saucepan

Clear Soup Definition

Clear soup is sometimes part of a hospital diet, or it is used to help squelch your appetite when dieting. Understanding what a clear soup actually is helps you properly adhere to a clear liquid diet and avoid complications. Clear soups are often a base for more complex soups, stews and sauces.

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Broth top view

Is Soup Broth Good for You?

You can consume soup broth alone, or as a flavoring for casseroles, vegetables and meats. Eating soup regularly can help you control how many calories you consume, because many types are low in calories and satisfying, according to a study published in the November 2007 edition of the journal “Appetite.

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How to Use Bouillon Cubes to Make Chicken Broth

Canned chicken broth takes up a great deal of space on pantry shelves, while homemade broth takes a considerable amount of work. Bouillon cubes take up a fraction of the time and space, providing instant flavor for soups, stews and gravies at a moment’s notice.

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beetroot soup

Health Benefits of Borscht

Traditional borscht recipes call for beets and sour cream. This soup recipe from the Ukraine varies depending on the chef. As a result, health benefits can vary. Beets have several health-protective qualities, making for a potential nutritional powerhouse.

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French onion soup in a red bowl

How to Boil Onions for Soup

As a way of tenderizing onions before you add them to a soup, you can boil them. For a delicate onion flavor, consider using small white or yellow varieties in your soup recipes. However, avoid Vidalia or Walla Walla varieties since they may make your soup come out overly sweet.

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How to Prepare Bitter Leaf Soup

Bitter leaf soup, also called onugbu, is a Nigerian specialty. The bitter leaf, or onugbu, is commonly found around homes in southeastern Nigeria. There are many variations of bitter leaf soup. Common ingredients include fish, beef or goat meat, cocoyam, crayfish and locust beans.

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How to Microwave Soup

Nothing beats the smell of soup simmering on the stove on a cool winter evening, and even in warm weather, the comforting taste and texture of soup is just what you need at the end of a long, hard day.

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Squid skewers

How to Cook Frozen Calamari

Calamari -- or squid -- is a shellfish that can be prepared by itself or combined with side dishes such as pasta and vegetables for a complete meal. You can choose from fresh or frozen calamari without sacrificing taste and quality.

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bowl of chicken soup

How to Reheat Leftover Soup

Soup makes for an economical meal, especially if you make a large batch and store portions for future meals. Various soups will keep for two or three days in the refrigerator and for over two months in the freezer, saving you the trouble of dirtying up another set of cookware.

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