To think soup isn’t a real meal?

[FunLimeOrca]

It’s just flavoured water. If you need bread to make it filling, then it wasn’t a meal to begin with.

What's up lately with these 1 dummy post questions (just enough to get people argue against but not too goady to be deleted) by poster with 1 post only, usually comes back once or never?
Really ramped up in last week and half

I've just eaten a huge bowl of homemade split pea and bacon soup. No bread.

I'm full.

I love a thick soup and it’ll keep me full up without bread. Especially something like a lentil soup which is full of protein - only need a small portion and it’ll keep me full for hours.
I mean, it’s not something I’d serve as a main at a dinner party, but for a general healthy meal it’s lovely!

I disagree soup is lovely especially in colder months. If I've eaten out for lunch I sometimes do homemade soup. Great way to use up all those little bits in the fridge before doing a big shop.

I agree OP ..its a small starter at best.

YABU if you mean all soups. Watery stuff made with mostly just red and green veg - yes, not very filling as a meal alone I can agree. But many soups these days are practically stews- most contain potato, beans, rice or pasta too (for a more filling carb element) and some even have dairy, meat or fish (extra protein). They are basically designed to be easy one bowl meals - with some “soups” you even have to chew 🤣

I realised years ago that the only real difference between my veggie soups and my veggie stews is that the soups are slightly wetter and don't have dumplings on top.

I love soup and a piece of bread. Unless it's thin consomme, it can be as filling as you want it to be!

No Seinfeld fans on this thread, surprisingly ("soup is not a meal" was a plot point).

But I will add my voice to PPs who would say that Scotland disagrees.

And in the name of balance, that in parts of central Europe a meal is not complete unless it starts with a soup (but soup is not the whole meal).

I make one with veg and mince ( usually chicken or turkey) ans its great, add some potatoes in or bread or a roll on the side, but if its just watery it's not good.

If forced to argue the point then I can see a liquid meal might not be psychologically satisfying even if the OP is stating nutritionally incorrect points.

That many PPs have added 'hearty', 'thick', 'chunky' and other qualifiers in their posts indicates there may be sub-conscious agreement about soup not being a meal.

I wouldn't normally have soup on its own, but bread and soup is definitely a good lunch. It's a bit like saying a sandwich isn't a real meal because it needs the bread??

And a very chunky soup can be dinner I think. Again with bread, but perhaps also a salad on the side and maybe cheese after.

I added cannellini beans , chicken mince , broccoli , stock and herbs and I leave it chunky.

Tomato soup and a cheese toastie.
Unbeatable lunch.
😉😁😁.

There is soup, and there is soup. A hearty minestrone can be a meal.

Yep, that kind of soup - of which I make several variations - is a meal.

It does raise the interesting philosophical conundrum of 'when does a soup become a stew'.

And I think the answer is, if you butter the bread you have with it, it's a soup.

The OP may say that if you have bread with it at all, it's not a meal. But that's tosh. You have bread with a stew, a casserole, garlic bread with pasta - they're all meals. Dammit, you have bread with fish'n'chips.

I get what you're saying. If I don't have bread with it then it doesn't feel "correct" to me. But I'm autistic so what do I know lol

Flavoured water woud be stock... or squash.

I worked with a guy that grated cheese onto his tom soup then popped it in the microwave.

YANBU, I have a secret hatred for soup. I never admit it in real life because I realise my strong feelings against it are irrational and over the top. But I really, really don’t understand why anyone would want to drink a liquid and call it a meal. I actually get secretly angry when someone suggests it as a meal, and I have even grown to really dislike the word. I don’t know why I feel this way, I just hate soup!!

@FunLimeOrca if you took your soup ingredients, say a basic chicken, potato and vegetable soup, cooked them and put them on a plate you'd have dinner. Adding bread might be excessive.
But put those ingredients in a pot with water and it's no longer a real meal?
Depends how much of it you're having, of course, but I, for one, never have soup as a starter because it's too filling.
Soups can be really nutritious and satiating, especially if they're blended and take a bit longer to digest.

I absolutely love soup. Some soups are main meals - I quite often make soups with lentils and/or beans and/or cereals, with a base of onion/carrot/celery/garlic/tomatoes and herbs and homemade chicken broth. They make a very substantial and nutritious meal. A lighter vegetable soup is more suitable as a single course in a meal with other courses.

Are you only considering consommé?

If you liquidised a plate of Sunday roast and added water it would have the same calorific value as before wouldn't it.

So of course it depends on the ingredients.

As someone who has been struggling will gallbladder pain pre and post surgery, soup and bread are my only meals at the moment and grateful I am too for it. Also lost a shit ton of weight by eating no processed food, snacking on fruit and avoiding high fat food. Don't knock it!