How do canned beefy soups and stews stack up?
When the craving for a fast, hearty spoonful of beefy soup or stew hits, the temptation is to grab a can of heat-and-eat. The labels on these products are so promising, what with their visuals and descriptions of country pot roast and sirloin burger soup.
Apparently, shoppers stocking their pantries are enticed, as the selection of canned beef soups and stews at local markets is sparse, at best. Unfortunately, what’s in far too many of those cans is likely to disappoint.
The best beef soups and stews inspire memories of tender beef braised alongside vegetables, rendering rich, deliciously meaty gravy. Add more vegetables or grains, and it’s simple food at its best.
Preserving that simple goodness in a can, however, must be near impossible, as not a single can we found came close to homey deliciousness.
Most supermarket soup and stew options are far too salty. They lack beef, or they’re adulterated with so much modified food starch and textured vegetable protein that the results are gloppy and gross.
Here’s the scoop on canned soups and stews that offer a bit of beefy comfort — and those that may make you swear off meat at first whiff. Nutrition details refer to one cup.
Progresso Rich & Hearty Beef Pot Roast with Country Vegetables Soup
Big beef flavor of this soup’s broth makes for a warm bowl of comfort. But it doesn’t contain nearly enough actual beef to earn the pot roast title. 110 calories, 1.5 g fat, 680 sodium, 7 g protein. $1.69 for 18.5 ounces at Target. ★★★
Progresso Traditional Beef Barley Soup
A blast of salty beef flavor makes this an enjoyable spoonful. The meat itself is spare, but it’s one of the few soups and stews that delivers non-ground meat. 110 calories, 2 g fat, 680 mg sodium, 6 g protein. $3.29 for 18.5 ounces at Safeway. ★★★
Campbell’s Vegetable Beef Soup
Add a can of water and this iconic soup conjures childhood memories. It’s very salty, but it has bits of bona fide meat, plus plenty of barley and vegetables. 80 calories, 0.5 g fat, 890 mg sodium, 5 g protein. $1.59 for 10.5 ounces at Target. ★★
Hormel Compleats Beef Pot Roast
Kudos for capturing true pot roast texture, with tender hunks of beef that shred into chewy bites. But the salt content is searing. It’s a yumyikes situation. 200 calories, 6 g fat, 990 mg sodium, 16 g protein. $2.49 for 9 ounces at Smart & Final. ★★
Dinty Moore Beef Stew
Deep brown-colored gravy and an abundance of meat chunks near the top of this can are appealing to the eye. But the spongy, meatball-like rounds are flavorless, and the broth tastes more like potatoes than beef. 200 calories, 10 g fat, 990 mg sodium, 10 g protein. $3.19 for 15 ounces at Raley’s. ★
Progresso Traditional Beef and Vegetable Soup
Overcooked vegetables and very few bits of beef make this a massive disappointment for anyone looking for a beef fix. Even the broth is bland. 100 calories, 2 g fat, 690 mg sodium, 5 g protein. $3.29 for 18.5 ounces at Safeway. ★
Campbell’s Chunky Sirloin Burger Soup
Canned peas are the primary flavor in this appalling tin-flavored soup. There are four coins of “meat” in the can, but that may be a plus, as it’s not a bit like sirloin. 120 calories, 2 g fat, 410 mg sodium, 8 g protein. $2.29 for 18.8 ounces at Smart & Final.
Southgate Beef Stew
Is it dog food or people food? Hard to know. Either way, it melts into a glob of fatty, disgusting mush that doesn’t qualify as food. 330 calories, 22 g fat, 720 mg sodium, 10 g protein. $1.29 for 15 ounces at Smart & Final. (No stars)