Creamy Vegetable Soup (Low-Carb Version)
Overflowing with all the vegetables your heart desires, this low-carb creamy vegetable soup recipe is a perfect comfort food main dish or appetizer to see you through those cool winter months.
My husband and I have been eating low carb for a couple of months now and collectively we’ve lost right at 70 pounds (40 for me, 30 for him). You can read more about how we eat by visiting this post – be sure you scroll through to the bottom for lots of info.
I’ve found some clever workarounds to make traditional recipes more carb-friendly and in this post, I’m going to show you a great little secret for thick and creamy soups by using a non-traditional thickener.
This low-carb creamy vegetable soup is a creamy, deliciously flavorful soup to start out your meal or be a meal all by itself! It’s a soup I’ve made for years, ever since I tasted the delicious creamy vegetable soup from the Dixie Stampede Dinner Show. Normally, I add milk and flour to it, both of which are off-limits on a low-carb diet. In their place in this recipe, I use heavy cream and a nontraditional thickener that outperforms flour and even corn starch.
Keep scrolling for more low-carb meal options. Now let’s make a comforting bowl of creamy soup!
Recipe Notes
- Salt
- Pepper
- Chicken broth
- Parsley (fresh or dried)
- Frozen mixed veggies
- Butter
- Heavy cream
- Frozen seasoning blend (or chopped onion)
How to Make Low-Carb Creamy Vegetable Soup
To begin with, melt your butter in a pot or dutch oven and place your onion-ish veggies in it. Saute these over medium heat until kindly* tender and onions are translucent.
*Kindly is a word my grandmother used in place of “kind of”. I love that word :).
Now add in the frozen veggies and broth and cook this on medium-high or medium until the mixture is tender.
Once this comes to a bit of a simmer that should take about ten minutes or so.
Add in heavy cream and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Note: a little extra salt goes a long way when it comes to flavor so don’t skimp, but do taste as you go so as to not overdo it.
Now comes the thickener
At this point, there are several things you can do.
Option 1: Stir in a handful of instant potato flakes. This is one of my favorite soup and stew thickeners but it’s definitely not low-carb friendly.
Option 2: Quickly stir a tablespoon or two of almond flour (or any flour) into about 1/2 cup of water to make a slurry and stir that in. However, this is not on the low-carb “great idea” lists, either.
Option 3: Today I am using this amazing thickener called Glucomannan. I buy this from Amazon and it is about $12 for a bottle that will pretty much last you a generation or two (I’m exaggerating but you get my point – click here to see this on Amazon and learn more). Glucomannan is the powdered form of a root that acts as an amazing thickening agent. It also makes you feel pretty full for a good length of time so whenever I use it in a recipe I find that I get that full feeling much faster and generally can’t eat nearly as much as I normally would.
To use Glucomannan as a soup thickener: Add 1 teaspoon to one cup of cold water. Stir well and then stir into the pot of soup.
So what we need to do to use this as a soup thickener is not let it get that thick. Make sure you follow the instructions and amounts in the recipe below.
Either way, stir that into your soup, let it simmer for about 10 more minutes, and then dig in!
Enjoy your low-carb creamy vegetable soup. If you use Glucomannan in it, get ready for a very filling meal!
Serve with some chopped fresh parsley on top or a sprinkling of shredded cheddar cheese, if desired.
Storage
- Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave.
- You can also freeze creamy soup leftovers for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge before reheating as instructed. You may need to add water or chicken broth to thin the soup until it reaches your desired consistency.
Recipe Notes
- I am using NoSalt because now that I am eating low carb, bananas are out of my life and I have some serious potassium needs. NoSalt is basically granulated potassium. Just 1/4 of a teaspoon of NoSalt has more potassium than a medium-sized banana and over six times the amount of potassium that the FDA allows in a potassium supplement – so I’m sticking with NoSalt.
- Yup, some of these veggies you see are higher carb than others. Corn, peas, carrot, etc. Use your own judgment based on how low you are trying to keep your carbs when choosing veggies for this soup. Lower carb options are broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, etc.
- This vegetable soup is naturally gluten-free, just double-check the chicken stock doesn’t have hidden ingredients.
- To make this a vegan vegetable soup, substitute the chicken stock for vegetable stock and use coconut milk or oat milk instead of cream.
- If you’d like to add more seasoning, opt for Italian seasoning, minced (saute with the ) or powder, chopped fresh herbs like basil and thyme, or paprika or crushed red pepper flakes for heat.
Recipe FAQs
What do you serve with creamy vegetable soup?
This vegetable soup is a great low-carb main dish by itself. However, if you’re not fussed about being low-carb, go ahead and serve it with a slice of fresh crusty bread, garlic bread, breadsticks, croutons, parmesan crisps, crackers, or homemade dinner rolls. If you’re serving it as a side or appetizer, opt for a simple main meal like butter roasted chicken or pork chops.
Check out these other lovely low-carb main dishes:
Low Carb Sheet Pan Chicken Teriyaki
Velvet Chicken – Low Carb & Keto!
Ingredients
- 40 ounces chicken broth
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 large chopped onion or frozen onion seasoning blend (10 oz)
- 1/4 cup butter
- 26 ounces frozen mixed vegetables of your choice
- 1 tablespoon parsley fresh or dried
- salt and pepper to taste
- Glucomannan to thicken or use 1/2 cup almond flour and water
Instructions
- Melt butter in a dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion blend (or just onion) and sauté until the onion is tender (about 5 minutes).1/4 cup butter, 1 large chopped onion
- Pour in the chicken broth and frozen veggies. Bring this just to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer until veggies are tender (about 10 minutes). Add in the heavy cream, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir well and continue to simmer.40 ounces chicken broth, 1 cup heavy cream, 26 ounces frozen mixed vegetables, 1 tablespoon parsley, salt and pepper to taste
- To thicken with Glucomannan: In a measuring cup, stir 1 teaspoon of Glucomannan into a cup of cold water until dissolved. Stir this into the soup and continue to simmer for about 10 minutes more, stirring from time to time.Glucomannan to thicken
- To thicken with flour: Stir one tablespoon of flour into one cup of water and then stir into the soup. Continue to simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring from time to time.
Notes
Nutrition
This recipe is featured in Meal Plan Monday.
Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.
~Og Mandino
Really great idea. Thank you.