Out of veggie broth? This vegetable bouillon powder is your soup mix solution! This fat free, healthy broth substitute is ready in less than 5 minutes so you never need to buy store bought broth again!
Why you’ll LOVE this vegetable bouillon powder
- It’s super flavourful, without being overly powerful in any one herb or spice.
- You only need 8 ingredients and about 5 minutes to get this done.
- There’s no fat, no oil, no sugar, no unnatural thickeners and no preservatives. (Unlike most store bought soup mix varieties.)
- This recipe is naturally vegan, naturally gluten free and naturally allergen friendly!
- PLUS, it’s budget friendly too! You can make a LOT of soup mix and just mix it up with water for a fraction of the cost of store bought vegetable broth.
- This soup mix is completely customizable and versatile. Add more or less of any spices you like and use it, not only in soups, but in casseroles, risotto, on a baked potato, in your pasta water and so much more!
- Convenience!! It’s incredibly convenient to have vegetable bouillon powder in your pantry, and just mix it up with water. No carrying heavy cartons of vegetable broth home from the store which are filled with mostly water anyhow.
- It’s environmentally friendly too! How?? You’re saving the planet from a ton of wasted packaging and cartons that you end up throwing away. You can reuse and refill the same jar, over and over!
- And of course, it’s DELICIOUS!
Growing up we always used those packaged little bouillon cubes to deliver absolute flavour bombs to our dishes.
Little did we realize that they’re filled with unhealthy ingredients, like sugar, unhealthy fats, and words you can’t even pronounce. Not a good sign!
Homemade vegetable bouillon powder to the rescue!
What’s in it?
Okay, we’ve talked about what’s not in this vegetable bouillon powder, so let’s get to what IS in it.
All you need is 8 pantry ingredients, that if you’re anything like me and LOVE flavour, you probably already have most, if not all of them, on hand.
For anyone new to nutritional yeast, you cannot sub for another yeast, or another ingredient at all, for that matter.
Nutritional yeast is a unique ingredient here, and please note that it is a deactivated yeast.
It delivers big flavour and a great deal of nutrients too!
How to make homemade vegetable bouillon powder
(This is a summary with step by step photos, full recipe measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Measure out your ingredients and mix them together in a bowl. (However, skip the bay leave you’re not blending.)
OR… (and my preferred way)
Add the ingredients to small blender, or food processor and blitz for 20 seconds or so. (photo 1)
Then transfer to a dry, clean jar or container with lid and store in a cool, dry place like a pantry. (photo 2)
I prefer blending the seasoning into a fine powder as it not only resembles the vegetable bouillon powder you may be accustomed to, but it also distributes the flavours more evenly.
Expert Tips
- For a low sodium vegetable bouillon powder, use half a tablespoon of salt (instead of 2 tbsp) to reduce the sodium by 75 percent.
- If you’re on a NO salt diet, omit the salt entirely.
- Double, triple, quadruple the recipe as desired. I like to make a big batch of soup mix at a time to always have some on hand ready to go for soups, casseroles, veggies, and more.
- Store your soup mix in a CLEAN and DRY jar or container. Store in a cool dark place, like your pantry, or if you live in a humid climate, you may store in the refrigerator to maintain freshness.
- Use your soup mix powder to replace vegetable broth in any recipe. Just combine 1 teaspoon of your blended mixture with 1 cup of hot water for every cup called for.
- If you skip blending into a powder, and mix the seasoning in a bowl, you’ll need about a tablespoon for every cup of hot water. When blended, the spices are more condensed, and 1 teaspoon to every cup of water works well. Of course, use more or less to your taste. Also make sure to omit the bay leaf if you choose to skip the blending.
If you tried this recipe, please let me know about it in the comments below. I always love hearing from you! Don’t forget to Subscribe to This Healthy Kitchen to be among the first to get my new recipes! You can also FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter to see more delicious food and get all the latest updates.
Buon appetito,
Rosa
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp sea salt or use 1 tbsp for low sodium option
- 1 tsp dried parsley flakes
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp celery seed not celery salt
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 1/4 tsp black pepper optional but recomended
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a small blender or food processor and blitz until a powder like consistency is reached, approx 20 seconds.
- Store in a clean jar or sealed container in your pantry.
- To make broth, combine 1 teaspon of soup mix with 1 cup of hot water.
Is this recipe able to be enjoyed by the cup for a hot drink? Love all the ingredients!
You will need to boil the spoon of your soup mix with the water on stove top to get it dissolved, but yes you may! Enjoy.
So glad to find this recipe! Easy, inexpensive and convenient.
Thanks for the feedback Kathy, much appreciated. 🙂
I love this idea and recipe, which is also easy to customise. No more salty powders with dodgy ingredients or oily cubes. Thanks!
You’re very welcome Georgina, enjoy the recipe! 🙂
What do you think a good substitute for the salt would be? A member of my household is on a salt free diet and I don’t want to ruin what looks like a fabulous recipe.
Hi Karen, I had another reader tell me that they made it without the salt and it was delicious. Or you can try adding some lemon powder to replace the salt, but I’d start with 1 teaspoon and then add more if you want. Enjoy! 🙂
How long can this be stored and can it be frozen?
Hi Michelle, this mix will last as long as your spices do. So go with the earliest expiration date of your mix ins, but anywhere between several months up to 2 years if stored properly (in a sealed jar or container). You may refrigerate or freeze to lock in the freshness even longer. Hope you enjoy!
I have heard that bay leaves should not be ingested. In this recipe you call for the bay leaf to be ground up in the mix. Is that the case? OK to mix or not?
Hi Kathleen, great question! Bay leaves CAN be ingested. They just shouldn’t be in their whole form since they’re very hard and scratchy. It would be unpleasant and a potential choking hazard to eat whole. When finely ground, they pose no risk. Hope you enjoy the recipe.