Canned, pouched and fresh: A dietitian’s guide to the best (and worst) supermarket chicken soups

It’s a commonly held belief that a homemade broth is vastly better nutritionally than pre-made supermarket varieties. While this may have been the case as recently as a few years ago, there is a growing range of supermarket soups that are just as good nutritionally as a homemade option, and in many cases, they are a lot more cost effective.

Chicken soup is the variety we seek out when unwell or craving some comfort food. Here, we review the nutritional profiles of popular supermarket chicken and vegie soups. The good news is, there are plenty to choose from.

General supermarket soup rules

Try to find a high percentage of actual chicken

The highest we found was 15 per cent. That sounds low but when considering that the base of soup is generally stock and water, 15 per cent overall is relatively high.

Red flags

Generally speaking, all soup is a good option nutritionally. The main downside is that most packaged soups contain a decent amount of added salt. If you can find an option that contains 600mg to 800mg of sodium per serve, it is one of the lower options, although some serving sizes on canned soup in particular can be misleading.

Less is more

The less processed soups will also have a much shorter ingredient list that will consist largely of whole foods. More processed options will have a much longer ingredient list filled with extra salts, sugars and additives, including flavour enhancers such as MSG or additive 621.

Fresh v canned v pouch

Modern processing techniques have resulted in a growing range of long-life soup options that, contrary to popular opinion, do not contain extra additives. In general, most pouch and fresh options are extremely strong nutritionally. The main downside of canned soups is that they tend to contain a lot more additives overall. A general rule of thumb is, the shorter the ingredient list, the less processed the soup is likely to be.

Fresh, chilled soups

1. Dari’s Hearty Chicken Soup (550g, $6.80)

Per 275g serve: 70 calories; 7.2g protein; 2.2g sugars; 866mg sodium

With an ingredient list of 70 per cent chicken broth, 11 per cent chicken and vegetables, it is hard to fault this fresh soup from a nutritional perspective. The only downside is that the salt content is relatively high at almost 900mg per serve.

Good for: A low calorie, minimally processed soup

Watch out for: Serving size – enjoying the entire tub will give you almost your entire day’s recommended intake of sodium

2. Coles Perform Chicken Minestrone Soup (450g, $5)

Per 450g serve: 384 calories; 26.6g protein; 7.7g sugars; 13.5g fibre; 810mg sodium

A high-protein meal soup that contains minimal additives and makes a nutritious, vegetable-rich meal with almost 30g of protein and a massive 13g of dietary fibre.

Good for: A high-protein, cost-effective meal soup with more than 20g of protein per serve

Watch out for: Thinking this is a light soup when it is an entire meal

3. Woolworths Hearty Chicken Soup (300g, $4)

Per 300g serve: 126 calories; 7.2g protein; 4.8g sugars; 3.9g fibre; 660mg sodium

With 35 per cent vegetables and 15 per cent chicken, this fresh soup is strong nutritionally, but it does contain added sugar and a few additives not found in other, less processed soup options.

Good for: Lower in salt than many other fresh soups

Watch out for: The added sugars not usually found in soup

4. Coles Kitchen Chicken & Vegetable (300g, $4)

Per 300g serve: 118 calories; 11.7g protein; 2.4g sugars; 660mg sodium

With a 25 per cent vegetable base, this extremely low-calorie soup is nutrient rich, although there are some additives including colours and preservatives no longer found in other chicken and vegetable soup options.

Good for: Those watching their calorie intake

Watch out for: It does contain some additives not found in other soups

5. Woolworths Strength Co Chicken Laksa High Protein Soup (400g, $4.70)

Per 400g serve: 235 calories; 15.2g protein; 6.4g sugars; 4g fibre; 1060mg sodium

High in protein and with a healthy ingredient list, this is a nutritious option, although the sodium content is on the high side.

Good for: Those wanting a filling, protein-rich soup

Watch out for: The high salt content per serve

Canned soups

1. Campbell’s Chunky Roast Chicken and Vegetable (505g, $4.50)

Per 250g serve: 119 calories; 5.3g protein; 4.6g sugars; 2.3g fibre; 720mg sodium

With a base of stock, 36 per cent vegetables and 7 per cent chicken, the base ingredients of this canned soup are strong. The downside is that there are plenty of additives including flavour enhancers as well as added sugars and salts.

Good for: A cost-effective meal option for those on a budget

Watch out for: 250g is just half a can, which is a very small serve so take that into account when doing the nutritional numbers

2. Heinz Big’N Chunky Chicken and Corn (535g, $4.40)

Per 250g serve: 119 calories; 5.3g protein; 4.6g sugars; 2.3g fibre; 720mg sodium

With 35 per cent corn and just 4 per cent chicken, there is a lot more carbohydrate than protein in this canned soup.

Good for: Those on a budget

Watch out for: Relatively high in salt per serve

3. Campbell’s Cream of Chicken Soup (420g, $1.95)

Per 250g serve: 120 calories; 3.8g protein; 4.1g sugars; 0.3g fibre; 827mg sodium

Generally utilised as a soup base, this blend is heavily processed with a number of additives and is high in salt, and low in nutrients overall.

Good for: Cost-effective soup base

Watch out for: Plenty of extra additives

4. Heinz Classic Country Chicken Soup (535g, $4.40)

Per 265g serve: 120 calories; 6.6g protein; 3.2g sugars; 742mg sodium

With a milk base and 11 per cent chicken, nutritionally this soup does offer some protein but it also comes with added MSG and a fair whack of salt.

Good for: Offers some protein at a low price point

Watch out for: Contains added MSG

5. Coles Creamy Chicken Soup (500g, $2)

Per 250g serve: 129 calories; 4.7g protein; 1.7g sugars; 2g dietary fibre; 735mg sodium

While cost-effective, this soup contains a lot of additives and it does not offer a lot nutritionally.

Good for: Quick budget-friendly meal option

Watch out for: The long list of additives, including plenty of salt

Pouch soups

1. Australian Organic Chicken & Vegetable Soup (330g, $4.50)

Per 330g serve: 248 calories; 13.5g protein; 4g sugars; 6.3g fibre; 974mg sodium

With a hearty chicken and vegetable base, this soup is more of a meal than a light broth. The only downside is the significant load of sodium per serve.

Good for: Healthy ingredient list, one of the new organic soups, high in dietary fibre

Watch out for: Not an insignificant amount of salt per serve

2. La Zuppa Creamy Chicken and Vegetable (400g, $4.70)

Per 200g serve: 66 calories; 4.8g protein; 1.7g sugars; 450mg sodium

Not only does this variety of soup come in a long-life pouch, it has perhaps the “cleanest” ingredient lists of all chicken and vegie soups, with no added salts or sugars. The only downside is that you will get a decent dose of sodium should you eat the entire pouch.

Good for: Low in calories, good source of protein, no additives or preservatives

Watch out for: Small serving size listed

3. Hart & Soul Chicken Noodle Soup Pouch (100g, $1.60)

Per 255ml serve: 43 calories; 2.8g protein; 3.8g sugars; 643mg sodium

With a base of water, konjac noodles and a little chicken, this quick and easy soup option offers few calories and is an option for those who are looking for a soup to fill them up rather than calories or nutrients.

Good for: Individuals actively trying to restrict calories

Watch out for: Unlikely to satisfy hunger for a long period of time

4. Aldi The Soup Co Old Fashioned Chicken Soup (430g, $2.99)

Per 215ml serve: 108 calories; 5.8g protein; 3.7g sugars; 344mg sodium

While the serving size listed is small, this soup is relatively low in calories and high in protein at a very low price point and it has a relatively healthy ingredient list.

Good for: Individuals on a budget

Watch out for: Small serving size listed

5. Heinz Old Fashioned Chicken Soup (430g, $4.50)

Per 430g serve: 195 calories; 11.2g protein; 5.2g sugars; 1.3g fibre; 1190mg sodium

With just 12 per cent vegetables, and plenty of additives including thickeners, sugars and salts, there are much better long-life chicken soup options than this high-salt pouch.

Good for: Cost-effective per serve, with a relatively high amount of protein

Watch out for: Long ingredient list with processed additives