This Healthy Zucchini Potato Soup with Dill is quick and easy, using zucchini and instant mashed potatoes. It's a healthy, meatless zucchini soup that's hearty enough to eat as a main course, but can also be eaten as a side or appetizer. Perfect for a weeknight dinner or light lunch using fresh or frozen zucchini. Just swap out the chicken broth for vegetable broth to make it vegetarian.
This Zucchini Soup is popular at the end of summer and during soup season. It was inspired by my Pierogi Soup and this Shredded Zucchini recipe. It uses 2 whole medium zucchini, so it's a great way to use up zucchini. It pairs exceptionally well with these homemade Granny Buns.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Recipe
- 🥘Ingredient Notes
- 📖 Variations & Substitutions
- 🔪Step-by-Step: How to Make Healthy Zucchini Potato Soup
- Expert Recipe Tips
- 👪 Serving Size
- 🔢WW Points
- 🥗 What to eat with Zucchini and Potato soup
- 🌡️Storage
- ❔ Recipe FAQs
- More Creamy Soup Recipes
- Healthy Zucchini Potato Soup with Dill Recipe
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Hearty. Although this soup is meatless it's still hearty and filling enough for a meal!
- Healthy! This recipe is healthy but you can make it healthier by using a reduced sodium chicken broth, as the instant potato flakes already have a lot of sodium in them. You can also use leftover mashed potatoes (see variations below), but you'll likely need to add a little salt to the recipe to get the desired taste.
- Uses Zucchini in any form - you can use fresh or frozen shredded, sliced, or diced or chopped zucchini! It's going to be puréed anyway.
- Uses lots of zucchini. This recipe uses 2 medium zucchini (4 cups of shredded zucchini)!
And if you are looking for additional savory zucchini recipes, be sure to try my Zucchini Lasagna and my Potato Perogy Zucchini Boats!
🥘Ingredient Notes
You don't need heavy cream or olive oil for this Potato Zucchini recipe recipe, but you'll need the following ingredients for this Cream of Zucchini Soup:
- Zucchini. You can use fresh zucchini or an equivalent amount of frozen zucchini, but you'll need to defrost and drain excess liquid through a strainer first. You DON'T have to squeeze liquid out of it.
- Chicken broth. I use chicken broth, which provides liquid flavoring and is a nice pairing with zucchini and potato.
- Water. Thins out the soup and hydrates the potato flakes without adding extra sodium (by using broth).
- Instant Mashed Potatoes. Instant mashed potatoes (potato flakes) are a well-known thickener for soup. They make this soup creamy and thick without peeling potatoes or waiting for them to cook. * I use Honest Earth or Idahoan brand, but have used Betty Crocker as well. I prefer to use the creamy or homestyle that has a buttery flavor.
- Sour cream. Because there is no heavy cream in this soup, I use sour cream to add non-fat richness (and thickness).
- Sharp cheddar cheese. This sharp cheddar cheese adds creaminess and tang to the soup. I use low-fat.
- Parmesan cheese. Parmesan cheese heightens the cheesy flavor.
- Fresh lime juice. Citrus adds depth of flavor to soup.
See recipe card for quantities.
📖 Variations & Substitutions
- Chicken broth. You can use vegetable broth or vegetable stock instead of chicken broth. You can also use a reduced-sodium chicken broth or chicken stock.
- Dill. You can use fresh dill instead of dried, but you'll need to double the amount
- Instant Mashed Potatoes. If you have leftover fresh mashed potatoes, you can use those instead. ⅓ cup of potato flakes is equivalent to ½ cup prepared, so use that to substitute, but reduce the liquid in the recipe by ¼ cup. However, you'll need to add some butter (or you can use butter or ½ teaspoon extract/flavoring) to get the buttery taste. You will also need to purée the mashed potatoes before adding them, so there are no lumps. If you have an immersion blender, just blend them in after you blend the veggies.
- Lime Juice. If you use lime juice from concentrate, you'll only need ½ the amount (1.5 tsp). Alternatively, you could use lemon juice.
- Toppings: In addition to the garnishes mentioned, you could also top this soup with croutons, crispy fried onions, or other fresh herbs such as fresh parsley.
🔪Step-by-Step: How to Make Healthy Zucchini Potato Soup
- Step 1: Add broth, garlic, onion, dill, zucchini, and water to a large pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Step 2: Strain vegetables, while keeping the broth (set aside), OR remove vegetables with a slotted spoon
- Step 3: Puree vegetables in a food processor until smooth. Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender to blend the vegetables into the broth. Return pureed vegetable mixture into broth and whisk.
- Step 4: Add instant potatoes and whisk until dissolved. Be sure to turn down heat to low immediately, as the potatoes will quickly bubble up and splatter. You can even remove the pot from the heat to add the other ingredients. Whisk in cheddar cheese, sour cream, parmesan cheese, and lime juice. Keep whisking on low heat until everything is combined and the cheese is melted.
- Step 5: Remove from heat and serve.
- Step 6: Garnish with fresh dill, additional Parmesan cheese, and grated or sliced zucchini, if desired.
Hint: If you don't like your soup as thick as this, don't add all the instant mashed potatoes at once. Add them to your desired thickness - you can always add more at the end.
Expert Recipe Tips
- Use reduced‑sodium chicken broth. This prevents the soup from becoming too salty, especially since the instant potato flakes already add sodium.
- Defrost and drain frozen zucchini well before blending. This ensures a smoother texture and prevents a watery soup.
- Brown garlic and onions lightly to enhance sweetness and avoid bitterness. This adds depth to the flavor base.
- Add potato flakes gradually to control the thickness. You can always add more, but it's harder to fix if it gets too thick.
- Reduce the heat after adding potato flakes to avoid splattering. The flakes thicken quickly and can bubble up.
- Add lime juice at the end to brighten the flavor. If using concentrate, use only half the amount.
- Puree the zucchini mixture thoroughly for a velvety texture. Straining or blending well ensures a smooth consistency.
- Finish with garnishes like fresh dill, Parmesan, black pepper, or crispy onions. These add flavor and texture contrast.
👪 Serving Size
This Creamy Zucchini Potato Soup recipe makes 8 servings (about 1 ½ cups each). However, you can half, double, or triple the recipe by clicking on the serving number and selecting the number of servings you'd like. The ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
🔢WW Points
If you're looking for healthy zucchini recipes, for weight loss, this zucchini soup recipe is Weight Watchers friendly @ 5 WW points for 1.5 cups. You can further reduce the points in this recipe by using fat-free Parmesan and fat-free cheddar cheese.
🥗 What to eat with Zucchini and Potato soup
This Shortcut Potato Zucchini Soup pairs well with salads and sandwiches, but is also great light dinner on its own with bread or buns. I love to serve it with my Italian Bread Machine Breadsticks, but if I'm trying to keep it lighter, I pair it with my WW Cloud Bread.
If I want to make a bigger meal of it, I serve it with Strawberry Spinach Pecan Salad (shown above), or Open Face Tuna Melts (no mayo)
🌡️Storage
Store this Potato Zucchini soup in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. This soup freezes well for up to 3 months in an airtight container.
To reheat: Let it defrost in the fridge overnight and microwave for about 2 minutes. Reheating doesn't affect the creamy texture, nor does reheating make it too thick.
❔ Recipe FAQs
Yes, they are essentially the same thing. When potato flakes are hydrated with water, they become instant mashed potatoes.
If your soup is too thick, gradually add more chicken broth, whisking and adding until you achieve the desired thickness. If your soup is too thin, add more potato flakes/instant mashed potatoes. If you don't have that, make a roux (a combination of flour and oil) to thicken the soup. Alternatively, you could add cold water mixed with cornstarch to thicken it.
You can, but it adds brightness and balances the creaminess. If skipping, consider adding a splash of white wine vinegar or a squeeze of lemon instead.
Yes, but let the soup cool slightly and blend in batches to avoid steam buildup. Always leave room for expansion and keep the lid slightly ajar or use a vented lid.
You can substitute leftover mashed potatoes-use about ½ cup mashed for every ⅓ cup of flakes. Just mash them well so they blend smoothly into the soup. Alternatively, use a peeled, diced potato and simmer until soft, then blend with the zucchini.
If you are looking for a comforting and delicious soup, this Creamy Healthy Zucchini soup is the perfect solution!
More Creamy Soup Recipes
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Healthy Zucchini Potato Soup with Dill Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups shredded zucchini about 2 medium zucchini
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 4 fresh garlic cloves, minced
- 10 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- ½ tablespoon dried dill
- 180 g package of Instant Mashed Potatoes/potato flakes About 1 ⅓ cups * I use Idahoan or Honest Earth (do not add anything, as per package directions, just the dry potato flakes)
- 1 cup non-fat sour cream
- 2 cups low-fat sharp cheddar cheese
- 3 tablespoon low-fat parmesan cheese
- 3 teaspoon fresh lime juice ( about ½ a medium lime)
Garnish (optional)
- fresh dill
- parmesan cheese
- shredded or sliced zucchini
- black pepper
Instructions
- Add chicken broth, garlic, onion, dill, zucchini and water to a medium pot.Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes.4 cups shredded zucchini, 1 medium onion, chopped, 4 fresh garlic cloves, minced, 2 cups water, ½ tablespoon dried dill, 10 cups chicken broth
- Strain vegetables, while keeping the broth (set aside)Or remove vegetables with slotted spoon
- Puree vegetables in food processor until smooth.Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender to blend the vegetables into the broth.
- Return pureed vegetable mixture into broth and whisk.Add dry instant potatoes/potato flakes and whisk until dissolved.*If you don't like your soup as thick as this, don't add all the instant mashed potatoes at once. Add them to your desired thickness - you can always add more at the end. *Be sure to turn down to low heat immediately, as the potatoes will quickly bubble up and splatter. You can even remove the pot from the heat to add the next ingredients. Whisk in cheddar cheese, sour cream, parmesan cheese and lime juice. Keep whisking on low until everything is combined and cheese is melted180 g package of Instant Mashed Potatoes/potato flakes, 1 cup non-fat sour cream, 2 cups low-fat sharp cheddar cheese, 3 tablespoon low-fat parmesan cheese, 3 teaspoon fresh lime juice
- Remove from heat and serve.
Garnish
- Garnish with parmesan cheese, shredded or sliced zucchini and fresh dill.fresh dill, parmesan cheese, shredded or sliced zucchini
Notes
-
- Use reduced‑sodium chicken broth. This prevents the soup from becoming too salty, especially since the instant potato flakes already add sodium.
-
- Defrost and drain frozen zucchini well before blending. This ensures a smoother texture and prevents a watery soup.
-
- Brown garlic and onions lightly to enhance sweetness and avoid bitterness. This adds depth to the flavor base.
-
- Add potato flakes gradually to control the thickness. You can always add more, but it's harder to fix if it gets too thick.
-
- Reduce the heat after adding potato flakes to avoid splattering. The flakes thicken quickly and can bubble up.
-
- Add lime juice at the end to brighten the flavor. If using concentrate, use only half the amount.
-
- Puree the zucchini mixture thoroughly for a velvety texture. Straining or blending well ensures a smooth consistency.
-
- Finish with garnishes like fresh dill, Parmesan, black pepper, or crispy onions. These add flavor and texture contrast.
Terri Gilson
I love how quick and easy this soup is! I made it twice and used frozen shredded zucchini. It was so fast using an immersion blender and froze more individual portions. One week I ate it for dinner 4 nights and could've eaten it again the next day if I hadn't run out!