Those Germans are at it again! I’ve mentioned in another review that I’ve really started shying away from canned soups because of the ridiculously high sodium content. However, suddenly being thrust back into Poorville for a little while (don’t worry…won’t bore you with the details) my wife and I found ourselves once again pinching pennies, and buying things that we got away from, and in many cases, never really wanted to go back to.
And that’s pretty much how we ended up with a can of Deutsche Kuche’s Harvest Potato soup: It looked good, it was pretty inexpensive ($1.99 for a large can), and would be quick and easy to just heat up and serve. Sadly, this stuff doesn’t skimp on the sodium…in fact, it’s even worse than most soups, so don’t let the plain packaging make you think you’re getting something light and healthy…one serving of this contains a disgusting 42% of your recommended maximum daily sodium intake. What does that mean? Eat a whole can (which are three servings), and you’ve just absorbed 126% sodium…hope you weren’t planning on eating anything else that day!
I was a little hesitant to try this, because I have to admit I’m one of those men that like their soups chunky…I want to feel like I’m getting something of substance with my soup, whether it be large chunks of potato, or chicken. I like soup as a meal, and this clearly did not fit the bill, with barely-noticeable chunks of carrots and potato drowning in a sea of broth: It was a definite step in the opposite direction. There also wasn’t any meat in it, another thing I favor in soups; again, probably to make me feel like I’m getting something of actual substance in it. This has none at all.
Yet surprisingly, it’s a pretty flavorful soup. My wife hates canned soups of just about all kinds, but she really “warmed” up to this one (haha!); we bought two cans, and she ended up eating half of it with me for dinner one night, and then made the second can for herself a few nights later. We’ve been married for over ten years, and I can literally count all the times I’ve seen her eat canned soup on one hand, so this is a pretty big deal.
I see what she sees in it…it’s not super-flavorful, so it’s light enough to appeal to those that don’t need a kick in the taste buds, but it’s also not bland, like many canned soups tend to somehow be, despite the massive salt content. It’s got a nice potato soup base, with just the right amount of additional spices to make it a tasty little soup. It’s hard to explain, so you’ll just have to try it to see what I mean. I will say the can claims it is “thick and creamy”, but both times we made it, it’s actually very thin; other than that, it’s easily worth the $2 asking price.
Overall: 7.5/10. I don’t usually like thin soups, and I especially don’t like thin vegetable soups, but this one really hit the spot. I always worry when “potato” is the main feature on a soup product, because potatoes on their own tend to be very boring. Thankfully, they’re anything but boring here, combining with carrots and spices to make it a delicious, but still fairly light, flavor. Downside is the excessive sodium content, which is even massive compared to most other canned soups…eating one whole can (which admittedly, is quite a bit) amounts to a whopping 126% of your recommended daily maximum sodium intake. Ouch. Regardless, it’s one of the few Deutsche Kuche products that are available as part of Aldi’s permanent inventory, and there’s good reason why.
