Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Tasty Tuesday- The Fast Metabolism Diet: Phase 2 Chicken and Veggie Soup

If you are doing the Fast Metabolism Diet program, it is no secret that Phase 2 is KILLER.  Eating nothing but protein and veggies can leave you gagging at the words chicken and broccoli at the end of 4 weeks.  I am kind of picky about the veggies I like, and I am not a fan of sea food.  This leaves me with very little options for what I can make for my Phase 2 meals.  Luckily, the book has a recipe for a chicken and veggie soup that is really good and gives a little diversity to your meals if you're in a chicken and broccoli rut like I was.

Chicken and Veggie Soup (from The Fast Metabolism Diet book)
Phase 2
Serves 6-8 people
  • 1 whole chicken or chicken parts, skin removed (I just used 4 big boneless skinless chicken breasts)
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 6-8 garlic cloves, minced
  • 8 cups chicken broth
  • 8 cups chopped fresh or frozen veggies (Anything can go into this soup. I used kale, spinach, celery, chives, mushrooms, squash, and zucchini.  Broccoli, cabbage, leeks, and asparagus would be good too.) 
  • 1 Tbs parsley or cilantro
  • 1 tsp rosemary
  • 1/2 tsp basil
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • sea salt and pepper to taste

Put the chicken in a large soup pot with broth and 8 cups of water.  Add the vegetables and herbs.  Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour.  Let cool, then remove the chicken and debone (I skipped this step since I just cooked boneless skinless chicken breasts and cubed it up before I started making the soup).  Add your chicken meat back to the soup if you deboned the chicken, reheat, season with salt and pepper, and serve.




I ended up making half of this recipe, and it was enough for me to make 2 bags of soup to freeze for future meals.  I used a serving and a half since I have more than 20 lbs I am wanting to lose.  It was a LOT of soup.  Make sure to label your soups with what phase it is for, so you don't get confused if you have multiple soups in your freezer.


This isn't my favorite every day soup, but in the midst of Phase 2, it was amazing.  It tasted like chicken noodle soup, but instead of noodles there were a lot of veggies.  I made sure to chop my veggies very small so it all kind of blended in with the broth. 

Next week I plan to do an overall review of The Fast Metabolism Diet since I will have completed all 28 days.  I will show what worked for me, and what I am going to change for the next time around (that's right, I am going to do another 28 days). 

*If you are doing the FMD and have any tips for Phase 2, I would love to hear them.  Don't be shy and comment below.  I love hearing from my readers.

30 comments:

  1. I just ordered the book and cant wait to get started on the FMD. Any suggestions? Is it working for you?

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    1. Kelly, I lost 14lbs on the diet and have since lost another 3. I really feel a difference in energy and health when I am following it. I wrote a recent post with a review of the diet and some tips I used. That might help you and give you some more info on how it works. Good luck!

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  2. That's a good idea! Phase 2 gags me! This recipe might help get me thru!

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    1. Anonymous8/22/2016

      This phase is my least favorite... I'm so glad for this recipe.

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  3. I just started this diet. I will be on Phase 2 starting tomorrow and have been warned about my sister that is awful. Thanks for the post. I'm going to look over your blog to see your tips. I found this web page on pinterest. :)

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  4. My confusion is how much is a serving when it's a mixed food? I've been eating food I can weigh, like grilled chicken, when a weight is needed--but when it's soup, I don't want to pick out and weigh the chicken in it! How did you do it?

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    1. Chelsea1/27/2014

      I didn't stress about servings that much, but I tried to eat until I was full. I used about 2 cups of prepared soup into each bag. I think serving sizes are better explained on the FMD website.

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    2. Hello, in the FMD book, it does state how much you should eat based on your desired weight loss. Example: if you want to lost 20 pounds, eat 226g of x if you want to lose more than 20 pounds, add xg. I want to lose over 20 pounds, so I will eat larger portions for the first 28 days.

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  5. Can we use ANY spices we like? (Cumin, coriander, Cayenne, etc.)

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    1. Chelsea1/27/2014

      I think most spices are okay, just make sure it doesn't have sugar in it. I used whatever spices I had until the soup tasted how I liked.

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  6. Hi there.. I am looking forward to restarting the FMD from the beginning next weekend. I'm confident I'll push through and make it all 28 days (or more) this time. In the past, I always fell apart on Phase 2, so I found a few tricks that will hopefully make the difference this time. (1) steamed broccoli slaw (like a whole bag) drizzled with tamari or coconut aminos is MUCH easier to eat than a bunch of broccoli.. it actually has the consistency of noodles, and reminds me just a little of chow mein because of the tamari. I should mention that I HATE cooked vegetables, but this was actually good. (2) Haylie's dressings are no joke.. I was able to get through the two days with her Phase 2 Dressing paired with cucumbers or raw broccoli slaw. I am planning to try her "creamy" dressings made from hard-boiled egg whites soon. Hope that helps. Thank you for sharing your experience on the diet; reading your blog gave me the last push I needed to decide to restart it again. -Kelly

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  7. My son and I have been doing FMD for 9 weeks... it's going great... I'm down 25lbs and he's down 28lbs... we don't get a lot of exercise in, but, with a few more pounds I have faith we will have lost enough to give our bodies the push we need.... Tuna Patties have been our salvation on Phase 2... I add dill weed, garlice, dijon mustard, egg whites, lots of chopped onion and "micro" diced celery... I "fry" them in a dry skillet and love the way they char around the edges and especially when the onion chars a little... YUMMY.. I usually cut a cucumber into four "pickle" spears and add salt and pepper... this is my FAV Phase 2 meal...

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    1. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I'm going to do the same thing today. My wife and I are on week 3 day 4. She's lost at least 5 lbs, and I've lost 1 lb. I came off of an LCHF (low carb high fat) diet, and I really thought the first 28 days would show a gain. So, I'm going to give it the full 28+ and see what happens. I am in love with fresh cherries and blueberries, and to be able to have so much of them 5 days a week is heaven!

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  8. Good work…unique site and interesting too… keep it up…looking forward for more Fast dieti was really impressed by your blog please keep on sharing such blog.

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  9. I am happy to find so many useful information here in the post, thanks for sharing it here.I hope you will adding more.I know something information about Fat Loss Fact or video >>The Fastest Way To Lose Weight In 3 Weeks<<. that works properly. You may check it out. I hope that it will equally help you.

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  10. I removed chicken, blended the soup and added chicken back in and added some hot sauce and some tamari. It turned out great.

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  11. Phase 2 is the hardest! I drink a lot of herbal tea on these days! The blended soup sounds good! The garden meatballs are a lifesaver!

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  12. Phase 2 is the hardest! I drink a lot of herbal tea on these days! The blended soup sounds good! The garden meatballs are a lifesaver!

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  13. Phase 2 is the hardest! I drink a lot of herbal tea on these days! The blended soup sounds good! The garden meatballs are a lifesaver!

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  14. Anonymous1/20/2016

    This is the most complicated diet and expensive especially when 3 people in the house are doing it. I'm not sure i can last. I'm very hungry all the time. No fun.

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    1. If you have an Aldi near you, shop there. I've been able to get fresh veggies, fruit and lots of organic products for a fraction of the cost at the major brand stores. In fact I spent just under $100 and my husband and I are still stocked 2 weeks later! (No I don't work for them, just had a good experience & like to help others)

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  15. Anonymous1/30/2016

    Loving FMD so far! I have been about 90% by the book (can't give up a cup of coffee with cream every day) and was down 3.4 pounds in 4 days! I ate really plainly last week but want to make some recipes this week! I have always done well on Weight Watchers but I was only losing .1 pounds a week making me think that my metabolism is broken! Feeling really motivated to continue!

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  16. I did 28 days Oct 2015, and had lost 15 lbs, then skipped a couple of weeks and did another 28 days, In total I lost 25 pounds. I have started again Sep 12, 2016 as I gained about 15 pounds pack in the past 11 months. I did notice that I slept and felt better when I was on the FMD. No bloating, less gas. I do not like the sprouted wheat bread that I found in the stores. I did find a sprouted wheat bread that you make in a breadmaker on Pinterest. This bread is a bit dense but it tastes a lot better. I tastes like bran bread. Phase 2 is the hardest.

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    1. Could you post that breadmaker recipe, or the site it was on. I have one that uses honey and I think that isn't allowed.

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  17. try spelt bread (i only found at whole foods) very good. i even eat a plain toasted piece during has 1 for breakfast with my fruit & it's great for phase 3 with almond or cashew butter!

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    1. Anonymous2/03/2017

      Holy, what brand of sprouted bread did you find? i dont like the dry, stale texture of the one with the biblical name. the only other brand I've found has dates as a sweetener. i lost a lot of weight the first time i did the fmd,however, i seem to have hit a permanent plateau. After a rest, i'm trying it again. Thanks to everyone for their comments. Very
      helpful!

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  18. Anonymous1/11/2017

    Zucchini and squash are NOT Phase 2 appropriate.

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  19. Soup definitely helps with Phase 2 (I'm on my third FMD cycle, the benefits of the first 2 lasted my several years). I make a steak with saute'd onion, pepper, and mushroom. I cut the steak into strips, and fry them to get more fond in the pan, then cook the mushrooms, onion, and pepper in that fond. Mushrooms release liquid that release all the flavor, and then I will hit the pan with ff chicken stock (couple tablespoons at a time) as the pan will tend to dry out before the veggies are cooked. Salt, pepper, and sometimes a hit of spice (cumin, mexican, or ras el hanoun is fabulous) and I've got a giant bowl of food.

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  20. Just FYI- squash and zucchini are not phase 2 approved veggies!

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  21. Anonymous6/18/2022

    My husband and I have done FMD several times and love it. For Phase 2, our go-to is Turkey meatloaf- Turkey, celery, onion, egg white, seasonings (garlic salt, celery seed, white pepper, etc. We cover with Frank’s Red Hot (because I truly do put that $h&# on everything…). Even our kids eat this (with ketchup) and love it, which makes for an easy night. I make extra for lunch the next day. We also do a “pho” with miracle noodles, chicken breast, cilantro, onion, mushroom, sprouts and we just use regular chicken broth (homemade so no sugar like the pho broth). Soup is definitely the way to go for phase 2.

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