Vegetable Soup for Weight Loss

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Gather the ingredients from the list. You can change the mix of vegetables as you like, but keep in mind that some vegetables can be high in calories — potatoes, for example — so take that into account when choosing. Instead of potatoes, you can use young zucchini: like potatoes, they give the soup body, but with far fewer calories. Wash the zucchini and cut it into cubes. Mature zucchini should be peeled first.

2. Step 2:

   

   Wash, peel, and grate the carrots on the coarse side of a grater.

3. Step 3:

   

   Peel the onion. Add celery stalks to the ingredients. Celery is the basis of many diet dishes. It's also rich in vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and essential oils; it helps regulate the digestive system and has a tonic effect on the body. Cut the onion and celery into cubes.

4. Step 4:

   

   Wash the bell pepper, cut it in half, cut out the seed core, and cut the flesh into strips or cubes. Wash the tomatoes, scald them with boiling water, peel off the skin, and finely chop the flesh with a knife.

5. Step 5:

   

   Remove the outer leaves from the cabbage and shred it into thin strips. The broth you cook the vegetable soup in also affects weight loss. For example, mushroom broth has only 5 kcal per 100 ml, while pork broth has 40 kcal.

6. Step 6:

   

   But you don't always have to limit yourself to vegetable broths — you can also make vegetable soup on a meat broth from lean chicken breast or turkey, which has only 15 kcal per 100 ml, versus 13 kcal for vegetable broth. Wash the turkey fillet and boil it in hot salted water, then remove the meat and strain the broth.

7. Step 7:

   

   Put the prepared carrots, onion, celery, and bell pepper into the pot of broth and set it over the heat.

8. Step 8:

   

   After about 10 minutes, add the tomatoes and cabbage. The cabbage goes in last — it should stay a bit crisp in the finished dish, which is also good for digestion: the body takes longer to break down the fiber in cabbage, so you stay full longer.

9. Step 9:

   

   Simmer over low heat for about another 15 minutes. Skim off the foam that forms on the surface. Add a little salt, ground black pepper, or other spices to taste. Don't add too much salt, since it can make the body retain water, which in turn hinders calorie burning and weight loss. Hot spices like red pepper and ground black pepper boost metabolism and therefore aid weight loss.

10. Step 10:

    

    The soup is ready. Serve it up. Enjoy!