Vegetable Soup Nutrition

[Shel_B]

I've been making a fair amount of vegetable soup and broth lately, and I've been wondering what happens to the vegetables and broth, nutritionally, when making soup.

I've heard that the broth ends up being rich with vitamins that leach out of the veggies. If that's true, then the vegetables probably loose vitamins and, maybe, minerals too. But then, heat is supposed to destroy vitamins, so wouldn't the heated broth contain few, if any, vitamins?

So, what happens to the nutrition in the vegetables when making vegetable soup? Thanks!

... Shel

[ChrisZ]

Sorry I'm not directly answering your question, but there have been several studies done on the health effects of chicken soup (here's a blog that Google found, and there are plenty more like it). Once the studies started showing that chicken soup might be just as effective as pharmaceuticals the next step was to figure out why, so they started examining the compounds / chemicals etc. So there have been a number of scientific papers published on the chemistry of chicken soup and there's even a recipe!

If you're really keen, you could read them and see what they have to say about the compounds in it and what's going on. Might not be much use if you're vegetarian but it's still a starting point.

[naguere]

I make fresh soup for each lunch, loads of veg and this is my way:

slice up carrots, leek broccoli onion and pretty much anything you can think of, to suite, place in salted water for later.

soup base, stock and then what ever pulse I have cooked up and kept, brought to the boil.

drain off veg and nuke for 3 minutes (no leaching there).

add soup base to the veg and there you are.

sometimes chillie flakes, maggi seasoning and so on, it is always just right.

I have a half cup of cooked whole rice hanging about which will get cast in for tomorrow, today some baked spud that added

thickness along with the red lentil puree.

A couple of little gem leaves as a dressing or a couple of scallion.

I must qualify this post to answer your question. If you nuke moist veg for a brief period (3 mins) they will retain nutrition.

Edited March 8, 2013 by naguere (log)

[Katie Meadow]

I make my own stocks and lots of various kinds of soups. When I make stock I pretty much assume that whatever nutrients from the veggies have pretty much transferred to the stock. Actually I like to eat the carrots that have been cooking for two hours with a little salt, but I toss celery, onion, whatever other stuff was used to flavor the stock. When I get to making soup, different story. Some veggies might cook for 5 min, some for closer to half an hour, depending upon what they are. I have to believe that I'm getting my vitamins and fibre somewhere in the combo of these veggies and the soup broth. Otherwise what's the alternative? A completely raw diet? Where's the fun in that? People who eat lots of veggies (mostly cooked) and modest amounts of protein along with a variety of fruits and carbs don't appear to be malnourished. No one has really answered your question, OP, but if all it took to destroy nutrients was a little heat, I would just as soon not hear about it.

[heidih]

I think some vegetable nutrients need the cooking process to release them. Also vitamins are not all that veggies provide - antioxidants and fiber come to mind. Here is an article in Scientific American that treats the subject. It sounds like a combination of cooked and raw gives you the broadest nutrient spectrum.

[naguere]

Like what I said. Thanks heidh.

I think some vegetable nutrients need the cooking process to release them. Also vitamins are not all that veggies provide - antioxidants and fiber come to mind. Here is an article in Scientific American that treats the subject. It sounds like a combination of cooked and raw gives you the broadest nutrient spectrum.

[ericparkr]

Not all the nutrients are lost while cooking. Some essential nutrients that are required by our body are still retained in the cooked soup.

[SylviaLovegren]

Vitamin C is partially destroyed by cooking but other nutrients are not -- in fact many are more available in cooked veggies. And, sure, lots of those end up in the broth, but not all.