Slimming World Lunch Idea: Spicy Chicken and Vegetable Meal Soup

I’m always on the lookout for a new Slimming World Lunch idea, as I tend to get stuck eating the same thing over and over, so this recipe was born out of the desire to change things up. I’ve packed this meal soup with chicken and chickpeas for a protein fix, and upped the speedy veg count with chopped tomatoes, celery, onion, mushrooms, carrots and a handful of spinach wilted in at the end.

I’m a fan of the whole sweet and spicy vibe, so I also added a bunch of pickled red jalapeño slices and a bit of Stevia Sweetener – but if this isn’t your thing then it tastes lovely without it.

You can customise the recipe to include any veg you like and also you can eat it in a variety of ways. I love it for lunch either on its own or with a toasted wholemeal sandwich thin on the side to dunk. But you could serve this up as an even more substantial dinner over a baked jacket spud, steamed rice or even with some sweet potato wedges. It’s really satisfying however you eat it. Especially as it’s syn free – hurrah!

Focus focus focus!

If you make a batch of my delicious chunky meal soup in the slow cooker, it provides four tasty and filling lunches for the week ahead to save you time and keep you in the healthy eating zone. The main battle with losing weight is keeping your head in the right place.

I’m hugely proud to say that I’ve managed to lose 2 stone 2.5 lbs in the 13 weeks I’ve been doing the Slimming World plan, and now have total faith that I can reach my target weight by Christmas. I think the fact that I’ve loved the challenge of creating delicious meals within the diet plan has helped. Also, when life has been a bit out of control and challenging, it’s been quite comforting knowing that this is something I can very happily be in charge of and see results.

My Top Tips for staying in the Slimming World zone

• Write down EVERYTHING you eat and drink
• Plan your meals ahead for the week – I have a few set breakfasts and lunches that I always rely on
• Fill your cupboards and fridge with the right food
• Let loose a bit after you’ve been weighed – Saturday is my treat day but I’m always back on plan by Monday
• Walk at least 10,000 steps per day if possible
• Cook delicious meals that you want to eat
• Fill up on speed foods – I love strawberries, frozen rasps, pink grapefruit and satsumas
• Have a couple of SP days before weigh day
• Go and stand on those scales at a local group – accountability is a huge motivator!

I hope that helps if anyone’s a bit stuck with their weight loss journey. If you do make a batch of my meal soup come back and let me know how it goes!

5 from 4 votes

Print

Tasty chicken and chunky vegetable meal soup

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

3 hrs

Total Time

3 hrs 5 mins

 

A syn free Slimming World friendly lunch idea packed with protein and speedy veg - super tasty!

Course: Main Course

Servings: 4

Author: Katie Bryson

Ingredients

• a few squirts fry light
• 1 red onion chopped
• 3 celery stalks roughly chopped
• 2 carrots roughly chopped
• 1 bell pepper roughly chopped
• 150 g button mushrooms
• 2 tbsp pickled jalapeno chilli slices optional
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 chicken stock pot
• 1 tin chickpeas
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp sweetener optional
• 3 large chicken breasts chopped into chunks
• 2 handfuls fresh spinach

Instructions

1. Spray the bottom of the slow cooker with fry light, set it to the quick heat setting and fry the onion and celery off for about 10 minutes with a good pinch of sea salt.

2. Add the carrots, pepper, mushrooms, jalapeño and chopped tomatoes giving it all a good stir.

3. Boil the kettle and swill out the tomato tin and pour it into the slow cooker along with the stock pot. Drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them too.

4. Add the soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, sweetener (if using) and finally the chicken, give it all a good stir and set it to cook gently for three hours. Wilt the spinach in a few minutes before you're going to serve it up.

5. Divide the meal soup into four portions and store in sealed containers in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Recipe Notes

Go vegetarian: Swap the chicken stock for vegetable and omit the chicken and up the veg content. You could also use tofu pieces/veggie sausages and add them half an hour before the end of cooking so they don't disintegrate