Garden Soup

This is the kind of soup you make when the fridge is full of vegetables and you want something warm and filling without any fuss. Everything goes into one pot, comes to a boil, and simmers for an hour. No sautéing, no building layers. Just dump, simmer, and eat.

Tomato juice mixed with water and chicken bouillon creates a light, tomatoey broth that’s savory without being heavy. The Worcestershire sauce is the quiet ingredient that makes this taste like it’s been simmered all day. It adds a complex, almost meaty depth that plain broth on its own doesn’t deliver.

Lima beans and potatoes give the soup its body. As they simmer, they release starch into the broth, thickening it naturally from thin and watery to something more substantial. By the 45-minute mark, the broth has real heft to it.

Cooked chicken goes in at the start since it just needs to heat through and absorb the broth flavors. This is a perfect use for leftover roasted or rotisserie chicken.

Kitchen Tips

• Cut all the vegetables to roughly the same size so they cook evenly in the same time frame
• Use low-sodium bouillon if you’re watching sodium; the Worcestershire and tomato juice add salt too
• The soup thickens as it cools; thin it with water or broth when reheating leftovers
• This freezes well for up to 3 months; portion into containers for quick lunches

Variations

• Pasta addition: Add small pasta shapes like ditalini during the last 10 minutes of simmering
• Greens boost: Stir in a handful of chopped kale or spinach in the last 5 minutes
• Spicy kick: Add a pinch of cayenne or a diced jalapeño for warmth