How to make tomato soup
While we love all soups, tomato soup will always hold a special place in our hearts. Here’s our guide to making the best, simple, tomato soup.
Tomato soup is right up there with some of the most popular soups, not only for winter but all year-round. Its crowd-pleasing qualities mean that it’s a failsafe for nearly any occasion. Need something warming in the dead of winter? A creamy version with cheese toasties is the way to go. What to serve for a summer lunch? Cooling tomato gazpacho is your best bet. After a pantry-based midweek dinner? You get where we’re going with this. Whatever your requirements are, tomato soup can probably meet them.
A note about tomatoes
In an ideal world, we’d use fresh tomatoes to make our soup from scratch. These tomatoes would be perfectly ripe and full of flavour, and on top of that, we’d have the time to roast them lovingly before turning them into soup. In reality, nobody has time for that, and sometimes, tomatoes can be unpredictable and often bang average in terms of flavour and ripeness. Unless you live on a Southern Italian island with consistently plump tomatoes every day of the year, save yourself the stress of thinking you need to use fresh tomatoes to make soup. If you do happen to have ripe tomatoes and time to roast them, go for it, but there’s nothing wrong with tinned tomatoes. We’ve said it before that tinned tomatoes are not only a great substitute for fresh, in most cases, they’re even better quality than what you can pick up at your local grocer. Especially in the middle of winter, when tomatoes aren’t their best, go for whole, peeled tomatoes and move on with your life. If you really feel like you’re missing out, you can roast your tinned tomatoes in the same way you would whole.
Flavour-boosters
As we’ve established above, tomatoes aren’t always the most consistent. If you find your soup is a little bland, adding umami bombs, such as soy or Worcestershire sauce can do a lot to add depth of flavour. An old faithful Parmesan rind also won’t hurt, so you can throw one in once you’ve added your tomatoes – just remember to fish it out before blending if it hasn’t already melted.
How to make tomato soup
The real beauty of a simple tomato soup is that it’s just that – simple. Like any good soup, you need a base of onions and garlic, to which you add tomatoes, allow everything to cook and meld together before blending. However, adding peeled and diced carrots to the base can contribute a bit of sweetness that tomatoes often need, and a pinch or two of smoked paprika will help deepen the flavour overall. If you’re after something a little richer, a cream-based tomato soup is a surefire winner. The simplest way to do this is to add a generous splash of cream just before blending everything. Alternatively, once you’re finished blending, you can add a tablespoon or two of plain yoghurt, for extra richness.
Find our step-by-step for a basic tomato soup below and some of our favourite recipes here:
Get the recipe for roasted tomato soup with cheesy phyllo sandwiches here.
Get the recipe for tomato soup with potato and roasted raclette here.
Get the recipe for roast tomato soup with Caprese toast here.
Method
Pour a generous glug of olive oil into a pot and add 1 finely chopped onion, cook over a low heat until soft. Add 2 peeled and finely chopped carrots (optional) and allow to cook for a few minutes. Add 2-3 cloves of chopped garlic and season with salt and pepper. A teaspoon of smoked paprika and stir well to combine.
Add 2 tins of peeled and chopped tomatoes (or the equivalent of fresh tomatoes) and stir to ensure everything is evenly combined then leave to cook for about 10 -15 minutes. Before you do this, you can choose to roast your tomatoes for extra flavour, but this isn't necessary. If you're using fresh tomatoes, it's best to roast them, however, as it improves their flavour. Once your tomatoes are in, either add 1 tin's worth of water or light veg stock in and bring everything to a gentle boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and leave to cook for a further 10 minutes. Check the seasoning, adjusting as you need. Add 1T of soy or Worcestershire sauce. If you want a creamier soup, add 1/2 cup of cream before blending. Take off the heat and blend until smooth. Be careful not to burn yourself.
Return the smooth soup to a clean pot, check the flavour once more and adjust as needed. If you find the flavour is a little sharp, correct it with either more cream (if you're using) or stir 1 -2 T of plain yoghurt through it.
Comments