Lentil Vegetable Soup: Trader Joe's vs. Amy's Kitchen

February 5, 2008

You know I'm a huge fan of anything from Amy's Kitchen, but I also love products from Trader Joe's since many of them are organic and all natural.

Both companies make a Lentil Vegetable Soup. Want to see how they compare? Then read more

As you can see, these soups look very similar. Amy's had a few more green beans and the one from Trader Joe's had a few more potatoes. As for taste, Amy's was a little bit more herb-y, and Trader Joe's had a slightly sweet tomatoe-y flavor. Honestly though, they tasted so much alike that it was difficult to tell the difference.

Serving Size	Can of Trader Joe's (410g)	Can of Amy's (445g)
Calories	260	300
Total Fat	7g	8g
Saturated Fat	1g	1g
Cholesterol	0mg	0mg
Sodium	1160mg	1360mg
Carbs	38g	46g
Fiber	10g	12g
Sugar	8g	10g
Protein	12g	14g
Ingredients	Filtered water, organic onions, organic lentils, organic carrots, organic celery, organic potatoes, organic tomatoes, organic spinach, organic green beans, organic extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, organic garlic, organic balsamic vinegar, organic spices.	Filtered water, organic onions, organic lentils, organic carrots, organic celery, organic potatoes, organic tomatoes, organic spinach, organic green beans, organic extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, organic garlic, organic balsamic vinegar, spices.

Nutritionally speaking, these are both pretty much the same. I showed you the info for the entire can of soup, since most people probably won't just eat half the can. Amy's seems to have more of everything since there's a little bit more soup in one of her cans as compared to Trader Joe's. The ingredients are practically mirror images of one another (weird, huh?), except Trader Joe's is made with organic spices and Amy's isn't. They're also both a little high in sodium, as canned soups tend to be, but they're high in fiber and protein, which is a plus in my book. I go with Trader Joe's soup because it is less expensive.

If you have the time, why not make your own lentil soup. Here's a recipe for my new favorite soup: Lentil Tomato.

18 Comments

RainyDays 2 years 31 weeks

Tip: to any of these soups (low sodium, Amy's, TJ's) I always add: - a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime - a few dashes of Tabasco It enhances the flavor more and makes it super delicious. If you want to go further, you can add a bit of goat cheese or avocado, but this will increase the calories. This is my FAVORITE soup. I always doctor it with the Tabasco and lime juice, though. Yummy.

vegan musician 5 years 14 weeks

when i buy amy's soups, i try to find the "light in sodium" varieties. not awesome, but an improvement nonetheless.

dunnonuttin 5 years 14 weeks

Hey Spectra.. you know I've been reading a lot of your posts and discovered that you and I think a lot alike. If you knew me that would depress you... LOL.. I'm kidding. But honestly... I read your posts and they're pretty much what I would have said myself.

Spectra 5 years 14 weeks

I try to avoid canned soups because of the sodium. I like making my own because I can put in whatever I want, lol. I do love a good lentil soup...I may just whip up a batch tonight :)

oliveye 5 years 14 weeks

I love Amy's! In fact I just sent them an email and they sent me coupons. I also found out that they have a two week diet program available online. I haven't tried their soup yet but have a can sitting in my cubbard, waiting for the next cold front.

dunnonuttin 5 years 14 weeks

Sorry but I don't think either one look good. But the bowls are cute.

Brooke_72 5 years 14 weeks

I agree about TJ just being repackaged Amy's, especially frozen food (like the black bean and corn enchiladas)in fact the ingredient list above is exactly the same (oops, except for organic spices at the end). The nutritional differences may just be from the different serving sizes (410 vs. 445 grams)

Le Luxe 5 years 14 weeks

...what up with my comment? Anywho, I was saying that I LOVE Trader Joes. Good food for cheap!

Le Luxe 5 years 14 weeks

I <3 Trader Joes, they have so much good food for cheap!

sodria 5 years 14 weeks

Trader Joe's is awesome! I wish we had one in Dallas

mannylove 5 years 14 weeks

Too much sodium for me...I will pass on both!

raieven 5 years 14 weeks

Oh my god I am addicted to these at the moment! The only thing I don''t like is the sodium, I think I will start making my own, thanks!

sweetrae80 5 years 14 weeks

I make my own lentil-veg soup, it's so easy. It's especially flavorful if you saute the vegetables (carrots, celery, onions, green beans, cabbage, etc.) in a yummy butter/oil and spice mix. Then you simmer the veggies and lentils in veggie broth (use veg bullion) and voila. Wonderful, inexpensive, and you get about 10x the amount of soup as you do when you buy store bought soups.