sipping broth

A clear flavorful broth that you drink out of a cup. Unlike soup, which you eat with a spoon.

I wanted something different to drink in the afternoon instead of coffee, so I had a cup of sipping broth.

sipping the broth

Just scratching the surface. Not fully immersing or understanding something. A shallow person.

Metaphorically, a person who only sips the broth but does not consume the more substantial part of the soup.

"That dude doesn't get it, he's just sipping the broth."