Is egg drop soup healthy? A traditional appetizer soup in Chinese cuisine, egg drop soup is something most of us have enjoyed at a Chinese restaurant. However, it’s surprisingly easy to make egg drop soup at home, and if you’re looking for healthy soup recipes, this is one you should consider trying to make.
Is egg drop soup healthy? It absolutely is, but with one caveat. If you’re not careful about the ingredients, restaurant-style egg drop soup can be high in sodium. Let’s dive in and learn all about egg drop soup and the nutritional benefits of eating this classic Chinese soup.

What Is Egg Drop Soup?
Sometimes called egg flower soup, egg drop soup is a Chinese soup that is broth-based.
This delicious soup is made with chicken broth, eggs that are whisked into egg ribbons, green onions, ginger, and cornstarch, and egg drop soup can be an excellent soup to add to your healthy eating lifestyle.
Is Egg Drop Soup Filling?
Egg drop soup is surprisingly filling and satisfying. The egg in egg drop soup provides tons of protein, so it fills you up quickly (also, soup is just very filling on its own).
But besides being full of flavor and good protein, egg drop soup is super easy to make. Traditional egg drop soup is a great first soup for kiddos to learn to make (with the help of an adult, of course). If you have some chicken broth, a beaten egg, and 15 minutes, you can have a steaming bowl of egg drop soup in front of even the pickiest eaters.
If you’re looking for soup recipes that are easy to make and nutritious, egg drop soup is a good choice.
Is Egg Drop Soup Healthy?
Egg drop soup is a high-protein soup that is low in calories and carbohydrates. Whether you’re trying to lose weight or just practice healthy eating, an egg drop soup recipe can be an excellent addition to your weekly diet.
What Are the Health Benefits of Egg Drop Soup?
Chinese egg drop soup is low in calories and packed with wonderful protein, thanks to the chicken broth and eggs.
A bowl of our egg drop soup has 48.9Āµg of vitamin A, which is 5% of your recommended daily allowance.
The scallions (green onions) in egg drop soup bring in some vitamin C, but not a significant amount.

Calories in Egg Drop Soup
One bowl of our egg drop soup has just 27-71 calories (approximately, depending on the different ingredients you add). The best thing about egg drop soup is that one bowl has a whopping 5.1 grams of protein. Hello, eggs!
Egg Drop Soup Carbs
Our egg drop soup recipe has only 5.7 grams of carbohydrates per bowl, and only 1.5 grams of that amount is from sugars. Because of this, egg drop soup is an excellent choice for keto and low-carb diets.
Is Egg Drop Soup Keto?
Keto egg drop soup is definitely a delicious and nutritious keto soup or paleo soup. A healthy egg drop soup recipe uses low-sodium chicken broth (or chicken stock) low-sodium soy sauce, sea salt, and beaten egg. The 1/4 cup of chopped green onion add more nutrition plus exceptional flavor.

Is Egg Drop Soup Good for Weight Loss?
Egg drop soup is a healthy soup that can help promote weight loss. Egg drop soup is low in calories and carbohydrates, and like all soups, contributes to helping you feel fuller. When you feel fuller, you’re likely to eat less.
Some studies have shown that regularly eating soup is linked to having a lower body weight. Keep in mind that sodium can cause you to retain water, which gives the allusion of extra weight when you step on the scale. Keep your healthy egg drop soup recipe low in sodium for best results.
How to Make Egg Drop Soup at Home
Egg drop soup with ginger is easier to make than simple chicken noodle soup (it’s a one pot recipe), so it’s a great soup recipe to have in your recipe collection.
To keep the best egg drop soup recipe healthy, you need to be sure you’re using low-sodium chicken broth or bouillon. Also, make sure you use a low-sodium soy sauce. Since you’re using soy sauce to make egg drop soup, the extra salt is optional.

If you’re concerned about the sodium in chicken broth, you can always make your own homemade version of chicken broth without added salt.
What Kind of Broth to Use for Egg Drop Soup
For the broth in egg drop soup, you can use low-sodium chicken broth, low-sodium chicken stock, or even bouillon cubes or Knorr powdered bouillon (we like the rich flavor of Better Than Bouillon when we don’t have chicken broth in the pantry). To reap the most nutritional benefits of this delicious soup, we recommend going with chicken stock or chicken broth.

You can also use vegetable broth if you’re cooking vegetarian egg drop soup, but the flavor will definitely not be the same as if you use chicken broth.
Do you make homemade chicken broth? If you do, homemade chicken broth or chicken stock is ideal for your egg drop soup. Just make sure your homemade chicken broth is room temperature or colder before you add the cornstarch to the broth. Otherwise, the cornstarch won’t dissolve and it will be clumpy.
Ingredients and Seasoning to Use in Egg Drop Soup
A basic egg drop soup recipe has very little extra seasoning added. You can make a very simple egg drop soup using just chicken broth, soy sauce, cornstarch, and eggs. However, egg drop soup can be delicious if you add any of the following ingredients.
- Fresh ginger or dried ginger powder (just a pinch!)
- Garlic powder
- Sliced mushroom (fresh mushrooms or dried mushrooms)
- Fish sauce
- Black pepper (or white pepper)
- Sesame oil
- Sliced green onion (scallions)
- Whole kernel corn adds a nice texture and some carbs if you’re trying to add more calories (hey, some people are!)

You can use either corn starch or Xanthan gum (for keto egg drop soup) to thicken your soup.
Alternatively, if you don’t mind a thin soup, you don’t have to use any type of thickener at all. The beaten egg will also help to make your egg drop soup thick to some extent.
Should you use white pepper or black pepper? They taste the same. It’s all a matter of aesthetics and that’s entirely up to you.
What to Serve with Egg Drop Soup
Egg drop soup is a great appetizer for any Asian meal. You can serve egg drop soup with any of these dishes.
- Fried rice
- Beef and Broccoli
- Black Pepper Chicken
- Moo Shu Chicken (or Moo Shu Pork)
- Thai Basil Chicken
- Pad Thai
Can You Make Egg Drop Soup in the Instant Pot?
You can create delicious egg drop soup in your Instant Pot, but just be mindful that you don’t overcook it. Find a good Instant Pot egg drop soup recipe online and follow it precisely.
How Do You Reheat Egg Drop Soup?
To reheat egg drop soup, simmer the soup in a small saucepan on your stovetop or microwave it in one-minute increments.
Watch this video for step-by-step instructions on how to make egg drop soup, or you can follow our recipe below.
Egg Drop Soup Recipe
Yield: 4 servings
Serving Size: 1 bowl
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time to Prepare: 10 minutes
INGREDIENTS
- 4 cups chicken broth (low-sodium), chicken stock, or chicken bouillon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground ginger
- 1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Xanthum gum for Keto (or 2 Tablespoons corn starch)
- 2 large beaten eggs
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt (optional)
- 1/4 cup sliced scallions (green onions)
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil (optional, but we recommend it highly)
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
While the sesame oil is completely optional, it adds a lot of flavor to egg drop soup.
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a soup pot, bring the ground ginger, soy sauce, and chicken broth to a boil.
- Combine water and cornstarch in a small bowl.
- Stir the cornstarch mixture into the pot of boiling hot broth until thickened.
- Reduce heat until the broth is simmering.
- Slowly drizzle the beaten eggs into the pot of boiling broth. Gently stir the eggs in a circle, going in the same direction, until the whisked egg creates egg ribbons. You’re not trying to create a scrambled egg soup, so be sure to check your beaten egg gently.
- Remove immediately from heat.
- Add the sesame oil, salt, green onions, and other spices.
- You can also sprinkle some green onions on top of a bowl of soup when you serve it.
NUTRITION FACTS
Below are the nutritional facts for this egg drop soup recipe if you make it with all of the listed ingredients. Your nutritional information (sodium) will be slightly different if you use homemade salt-free chicken broth.
- Calories: 71
- Cholesterol: 98mg
- Sodium: 1214mg
- Total Carbohydrates: 5.7g
- Protein: 5.1g
- Vitamin A: 48.9Āµg
- Vitamin C: 0.6mg

Egg Drop Soup
Ingredients
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground ginger
- 1 Tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/4 cup green onions, sliced
Instructions
- In a soup pot, bring the ground ginger, soy sauce, and chicken broth to a boil.
- Combine water and cornstarch in a small bowl.
- Stir the cornstarch mixture into the pot of boiling broth until thickened.
- Reduce heat until the broth is simmering.
- Slowly drizzle the beaten eggs into the pot of boiling broth. Gently stir the eggs in a circle, going in the same direction.
- Remove immediately from heat.
- Add the sesame oil, salt, and green onions.
Video
Notes
- Calories: 71
- Cholesterol: 98mg
- Sodium: 1214mg
- Total Carbohydrates: 5.7g
- Dietary Fiber: 0.1g
- Sugars: 1.5g
- Protein: 5.1g
- Vitamin A: 48.9Āµg
- Vitamin C: 0.6mg
Image: Wikimedia Commons