This Asian Zucchini Noodle Flu Buster Soup is a veggie-packed paleo soup that’s rich in anti-inflammatory properties. A warm, spicy, and soothing soup to help you thrive during cold and flu season! Vegetarian and Vegan options!
Immune Boosting Soup
This is one of those recipes I made for me. Our immune systems work over-time during the colder months, and if you’re like me, you get anxious every time you sneeze or feel a slight tickle in your throat. I start echoing in my head “I will not get sick, I am not sick, I must not get sick.”
This soup is both flavorful and comforting, and I’m a little obsessed with the crunch of the cabbage and cashews combined with the tang of lime juice and ginger. Most importantly, it’s filled with delicious ingredients like fresh Asian peppers and cilantro— foods known to boost your immune system, reduce inflammation, and keep you healthy and strong all winter long.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Inspired by traditional soups from Malaysia with heart-healthy updates like low-carb zucchini noodles, sinus-soothing peppers, and infection-fighting cabbage, this truly is the perfect flu-buster recipe.
- Healing Spices – Anise seed, cumin, and five-spice powder: If you’re unfamiliar with five-spice, it’s a spice blend common in Southeast Asian food and combines the five flavor properties: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and savory. Aside from the enormous flavor boost, five-spice is also full of antioxidants that help strengthen the immune system.
- Zucchini Squash – Contains antioxidants and healing properties that help reduce inflammation. Not just low-carb, zucchini also aids digestion and is a good source of energy-boosting B vitamins.
- Fresh Ginger – I’m in a long-term relationship with ginger, it’s easy to incorporate into almost any soup, and adds that sweet and sour tang we all love. Ginger is scientifically proven to help fight colds, reduce nausea, and reduce joint pain.
- Purple Cabbage – Protects the body from infection and acts as another flu-busting anti-inflammatory. I also love the pop of color it adds to this soup, proving once again that healthy food can taste great and look pretty.
- Thai Peppers or Jalapenos – Powerful natural antioxidant with plenty of Vitamin C to help the body absorb iron. The added spice doesn’t just taste good, peppers are also an energy-boosting source of B6!
- Cilantro – Improves digestion, and protects against heart disease. Staying healthy never tasted so good.
- Black Sesame Seeds – An excellent source of minerals, B Vitamins, and fiber.
How to Make Zoodle Flu Buster Soup
- Wash squash, spiralize or julienne cut, then press between 2 paper towels to remove excess moisture. Set aside.
- Heat the sesame oil on medium heat in a medium sauce pan. Once hot, add the shallots, ginger and garlic and stir fry until lightly browned and fragrant.
- Crush the fennel seeds with back of a knife to extract more flavor. Add in the crushed fennel seed, cumin, anise, five spice, salt, pepper, and broth to sauce pan and bring to boil, stirring occasionally.
- Mix in the fish sauce, chili sauce, and chopped cabbage. Simmer until softened.
- Add the zucchini noodles, and bring to a quick boil then reduce to low and simmer until everything is cooked though.
- Spoon soup into bowls and garnish with sliced jalapeño, chopped cilantro, diced green onion, lime wedge, sesame seeds, crushed nuts, optional fried egg, kosher salt and black pepper.
More of Our Favorite
Healthy Gluten-free Soups
Asian Inspired Zoodle Flu Buster Soup
- Total Time: 20 min
- Yield: 3 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This Asian inspired zucchini noodle soup is light yet rich in anti-inflammatory properties. A soothing delicious and nutritious soup. Gluten free and paleo, with vegetarian and vegan options!
Ingredients
- 2 zucchini (¾ to 1 pound), spiralized and pressed to remove water
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 small to medium shallot, minced
- 1 Tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon crushed fennel seed
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon anise seed
- Pinch five spice or cinnamon
- Pinch kosher salt
- Pinch black pepper
- 24 ounces vegetable or bone broth
- 1 Tablespoon fish sauce or tamari sauce (gluten free soy sauce)
- 1 Tablespoon Asian chili sauce (optional)
- 2 to 2 ½ cups shredded or chopped red or purple cabbage + extra for topping
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
Toppings and Garnishes:
- 3 to 4 fried or scrambled eggs, for plating
- Sliced jalapeño or Thai red pepper
- Handful of chopped cilantro or Thai basil, to garnish
- 1 to 2 green onions, diced (use green portion)
- 1 lime cut into wedges
- Sesame seeds
- Crushed salted nuts (cashews, almonds, or peanuts)
- Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Wash the zucchini and either spiralize or julienne cut it. Press the zucchini between 2 paper towels and remove excess water. Place in a bowl and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, heat the sesame oil over medium heat, add in the shallots, ginger and garlic. Stir fry until lightly browned or about 1 to 2 minutes.
- While sautéing, crush the fennel seeds with back of a knife to extract more flavor.
- Add in the crushed fennel seed, cumin, anise, five spice, salt, pepper, and broth. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
- Mix in the fish sauce, optional chili sauce and chopped cabbages. Simmer until softened, or about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add the zucchini noodles, and bring to a quick boil then reduce to low and simmer for another 2 minutes or until everything is cooked though.
- If adding an egg as topping, quickly scramble an egg in a small skillet or fry in 2 teaspoons oil.
- Spoon soup into bowls and top with extra crunchy raw cabbage and cooked eggs. Garnish with sliced jalapeño, chopped cilantro, diced green onion, lime wedge, sesame seeds, crushed nuts, kosher salt and black pepper.
Notes
Substitutes – Use any spiralized vegetable, check for doneness after simmering in the broth. Some vegetable take longer to cook. For a vegan option, use tamari sauce in place of fish sauce and omit the eggs or replace eggs with cooked sprouted tofu, chickpeas, or even tempeh.
Estimated Nutrition for 3 servings, with egg and sesame seeds on top. Sodium is 850mg. Reduce the sodium by using low sodium tamari and broth.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 15 min
- Category: Soup
- Method: stove
- Cuisine: asian
Nutrition
- Calories: 195
- Sugar: 3.5 g
- Sodium: 850 mg
- Fat: 11.5 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Fiber: 2.7 g
- Protein: 10.5 g
- Cholesterol: 186 mg
It’s the end of 2020 and a cold winter day in Texas. I’m not sick but I bought a Kitchen Aid spiralizer for Black Friday so searched for a dish that I could make that was warm and comforting. I always have peppers in my fridge so sliced up some Thai and jalapeño peppers and I just so happened to have every ingredient on the list too. I had never opened my anise or 5 spice that I bought a few years ago. Those seasonings tasted amazing! Next time I’m adding a small portion of chicken.
Glad you enjoyed this soup, Corina! Love your idea of adding in a small portion of chicken next time!
Freaking amazing!! Taste just like pho. I couldn’t find anise seed last minute at Walmart so I made it with out and still was top notch. My husband was sick with a cold and this stuff did wonders for helping him get some life back into him.
For toppings I only used the green onions, cilantro, lime wedge and sesame seed.
Recipe good for 3 ppl… oh and I added mushrooms towards the end
Glad it worked out! We actually made this this weekend too. My husband had the flu. Bugger!
Not only does this heal and taste good, but it is also an absolute work of art!! So stunning
Flu or not, I want a bowl of this goodness! So beautiful too!
This is so something I need right now! Looks delicious!
I need this nourishing soup and that bowl!
I’ll share with you any day!
This sounds awesome! Thanks Laura!
You’re amazing and I want a bowl of this soup in my fridge and freezer at all times, for every single throat tickle or cough for me and the wee babe. She loves hot sauce, so I’m sure she can handle the heat.
The Hubby planted a whole slew of edible flowers last week and on the seed packets, it tells you the health benefits.
OMG really? your hubby is smart. What a great styling tool. And you’re amazing! Always!
Love all the descriptions of the superfoods you provided! The colors of each ingredient are absolutely magical. I don’t have the flu, but I’d still enjoy this in a heartbeat!
so thought of you! minus the egg, this is your kind of soup!
I need this SO badly right now. Not that I’m sick, but I feel so run down from all of the moving and stress. Whew. I can’t get it together lately! Adding to my list to try whenever I have a kitchen again.
Bro! I would so deliver if I could! The move will be worth it. I know it!
My little guys love soup, and I would feel so good making this for them. Especially during flu season!
So wish I had this a couple weeks ago!
Where was this soup last week?? They look amazing and the ingredients sound delicious. That they help me stay healthy is just an added bonus!!
Prettiest flu buster soup EVER! I feel better just looking at it! 🙂