Warming vegetarian soups for whatever ails you
Chicken soup has long been touted as a soothing home remedy for the annoying colds and bodycrushing flus of winter.
Filled with nutrients, a steaming bowl helps clear sinus congestion, and some research suggests it might also defend against infection. Chicken soup also makes us feel nostalgic — sipping a cup while curled up on the couch can feel like a big, embracing hug, even if the noodle-strewn broth came from a can.
But what if you’re going vegan? Or maybe you’re just resolving to eat less meat, opting instead for a diet that incorporates alternate proteins such as beans paired with a wide variety of vegetables. You’re in luck, because soups made from veggies like celery, carrots, leeks, parsnips and/or onions can also make you feel better when you’re under the weather.
“There’s this aura around chicken soup and its special powers,” notes Rachel Kurtter, a dietitian and wellness coach for Highmark Health. Yet its restorative properties are not so much about any supposed “magical” powers as simple nourishment.
People tend to lose fluids when they’re sick, and soup replenishes those losses, she says. It also does the body good by providing calories, proteins, and vitamins and minerals.
“At the end of the day, [soup] helps you hydrate and replace electrolytes,” she says, even if you’re only sipping a little at a time.
ANTIOXIDANTS
Kurtter says no one vegetable rises above all others when making soup. Vegetables in general are naturally low in calories and important sources of essential vitamins and minerals. And many of the most popular ones that go into the soup pot — leafy greens, carrots, potatoes, cabbage and garlic — are also high in antioxidants, substances that may protect your cells against unstable molecules known as free radicals.
They’re also loaded with polyphenols, plant-based compounds that help prevent disease and keep you healthy in a different way than vitamins, minerals or other nutrients. Spinach, red and yellow onions, shallots, potatoes, broccoli and carrots, which are all easy to find in winter, are especially high in them.
“You want to eat a rainbow of colors, “says Kurtter, because they all provide different benefits to the body in helping your immune system fight infection.
Carrots, for instance, not only add a touch of sweetness but are also a great source of vitamin A, an anti-inflammatory agent. Kale contains high levels of vitamin C, which is thought to reduce the symptoms of a cold (though not the chances of catching one).
Fresh ginger, meanwhile, is effective against vomiting and nausea, and garlic has antimicrobial, antiviral and antibiotic properties.
This year’s cold and flu season is expected to be more severe than the 2020-21 season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, because people are traveling again and fewer are social distancing and wearing masks. Flu activity in 2020 was the lowest since current reporting began in 1997, which is good but also bad, because it means we have less natural immunity against influenza this year.
To help whatever’s bound to ail you this winter, we dish up three nutritious and nourishing vegetarian soups that are easy to make with easy-to-find produce and pantry ingredients.
And going forward? Kurtter recommends supporting your immune system all year round — and not just when you’re sick — by eating a balanced diet, getting a good night’s sleep and managing stress by finding time in each day to unwind, “even if it’s just for 5 minutes.”
“It will help you be healthy all year,” she says.