Chicken Noodle Soup … With a Soda on the Side…

…Or if you’re from the Midwest like me, “with a [pop] on the side.” If you don’t know that song, click here for an entertaining 3 min. Life with an MSG allergy is, frankly, inconvenient. It hides in foods that you wouldn’t even imagine! And you have to be especially careful because MSG has aliases — glutamate, monopotassium glutamate, or sodium glutamate.

Chinese food, for me, is essentially out of the window … and other foods like soup have even been a struggle. Who would’ve thought that most canned and boxed soups have MSG? First of all, that’s just unhealthy, and second of all — why? All of the MSG-free soups that I tried have been either weirdly thick in texture (I’m very picky with food texture) or they just lacked taste in general. As a soup lover, I was unwilling to accept this so I have been on this personal journey to find an MSG-free soup that actually tastes good.

So, there I was, at Trader Joe’s, looking for a snack, and I happened upon Trader Joe’s Chicken Noodle Soup with Veggies. I checked the ingredients — no MSG. I double-checked just to make sure — great — and it only cost about $2. I might as well give it a try. Another added bonus was that this soup, unlike so many others, did not contain green peas — another one of my allergens. Winning!

Prep was easy. You open the carton and pour it into a pot to warm it up — no water to add or other necessary steps. To be fair, I did add a little seasoning, but I like a lot of flavor in my food. It was delicious! The soup tasted so fresh and brothy. This soup now has a permanent place in my pantry. Check it out! Be sure to read the label every time you buy a product, though, because manufacturers can, and oftentimes do, change the ingredients without notice.