The simplest way to reduce sodium in canned soup is to dilute it with water or unsalted broth, which can cut the sodium per serving roughly in half. But dilution is just one strategy. Between choosing the right product off the shelf, rinsing certain ingredients, and boosting flavor with no-salt additions, you can bring a typical can of soup much closer to a heart-healthy range without sacrificing taste.
For context, a standard serving of canned soup often contains 700 to 900 mg of sodium, sometimes more. The American Heart Association recommends no more than 2,300 mg per day, with an ideal target of 1,500 mg for most adults. A single bowl of soup can eat up a large share of that budget.
Dilute With Water or Unsalted Broth
The fastest fix for any can of soup already in your pantry is dilution. Condensed soups are designed to be mixed with a full can of liquid, and using water or no-sodium-added broth instead of regular broth keeps you from adding even more salt. If you’re working with a ready-to-serve soup (the kind you heat and eat), you can still pour it into a pot and stir in a cup or two of water or unsalted stock. Adding one cup of liquid to a standard 15-ounce can spreads the same total sodium across roughly 50% more volume, which means each bowl you serve has noticeably less.
The tradeoff is a thinner soup. To compensate, add bulk: toss in a handful of frozen peas, chopped carrots, diced potatoes, or extra noodles. These ingredients contain almost no sodium on their own, so they increase the portion size while diluting the sodium concentration further. A cup of frozen mixed vegetables added to a diluted can of soup can turn a salty side dish into a full, lower-sodium meal.
Drain and Rinse Canned Ingredients
If you’re building soup from canned components, like canned beans, corn, or other vegetables, draining and rinsing them under running water makes a measurable difference. USDA research found that draining and rinsing canned vegetables reduces sodium by 9 to 23%, depending on the vegetable. Canned corn lost about 9% of its sodium from draining alone and another 12% after rinsing. Canned peas dropped 5% from draining and 7% more from rinsing. Green beans showed minimal loss from draining but a 7% reduction once rinsed.
These percentages sound modest, but they add up when you’re combining multiple canned ingredients. Rinse each one in a colander under cool water for about 30 seconds before adding it to the pot. You will lose small amounts of water-soluble vitamins in the process, but the sodium reduction is worth it for most people watching their intake.
Read Labels and Pick Lower-Sodium Products
Not all “reduced sodium” labels mean the same thing. The FDA sets specific thresholds for sodium claims on food packaging:
- Very low sodium: 35 mg or less per serving
- Low sodium: 140 mg or less per serving
- Reduced sodium: At least 25% less sodium than the regular version of that product
That last category is the one that trips people up. A “reduced sodium” soup might still contain 600 mg per serving if the original had 800 mg. It’s lower, but it’s not low. If you’re serious about cutting sodium, look for products labeled “low sodium” (140 mg or less) or “no salt added.” These give you the most room to season the soup yourself.
When comparing cans, check the sodium per serving and the number of servings per container. Some cans list two or 2.5 servings, which means eating the whole can doubles or triples the sodium number on the label.
Add Flavor Without Adding Salt
The main reason people reach for salt is that low-sodium soup can taste flat. The fix is acidity and aromatics, not more sodium. A squeeze of lemon juice or a splash of vinegar (balsamic, red wine, or apple cider) brightens a soup instantly because acid activates your taste buds in a way that mimics the satisfaction of salt. Even a teaspoon can transform a bland bowl.
Fresh garlic, ginger, and onion add depth that dried seasonings alone can’t match. If you’re short on time, garlic powder and onion powder work too, but check the label to make sure you’re buying the pure spice, not garlic salt or onion salt. Beyond those basics, certain dried herbs pair especially well with soup: thyme and rosemary in chicken or vegetable soups, cumin and paprika in bean or tomato-based soups, and oregano and basil in anything with an Italian flavor profile. Salt-free seasoning blends sold in the spice aisle combine several of these into one shaker.
A small amount of something savory also helps. A spoonful of tomato paste, a splash of soy sauce’s low-sodium version, or a pinch of nutritional yeast can create the umami richness that makes you forget the salt is missing.
A Note on Potassium-Based Salt Substitutes
Salt substitutes that replace sodium chloride with potassium chloride are popular for seasoning food at the table, and they can work in soup too. For most healthy people, potassium-based substitutes are a reasonable swap. But they carry real risks for anyone with kidney disease, diabetes that affects kidney function, or anyone taking certain blood pressure medications like ACE inhibitors or potassium-sparing diuretics. These conditions impair the body’s ability to clear excess potassium, and using a potassium-heavy salt substitute can push blood potassium to dangerous levels. If you have any of those conditions, talk with your doctor before using these products regularly.
Combine Strategies for the Biggest Impact
No single trick eliminates the sodium problem on its own, but stacking several approaches together gets you close. Start with a low-sodium or reduced-sodium can. Dilute it with water or unsalted broth. Add a generous portion of fresh or frozen vegetables to restore volume and texture. Finish with acid, herbs, and aromatics to rebuild flavor. A soup that started at 800 mg of sodium per serving can realistically land under 300 mg per serving with this combination, well within the range where a bowl of soup fits comfortably into a 1,500 mg daily target.
Cutting even 1,000 mg of sodium from your daily intake improves blood pressure and heart health for most people. If soup is a regular part of your diet, these adjustments add up fast over the course of a week.