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This easy tomato soup recipe might be the best you’ll ever try! It’s ready in about half an hour and uses fire-roasted canned tomatoes, so it’s inexpensive and requires minimal effort.
Try my Tomato Tortellini Soup or Creamy Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup next.
Why you’ll love it
I always make my homemade tomato soup rather than using the condensed variety. It’s a great balance between ease and flavor. Using canned tomatoes is not only super convenient, but they taste every bit as good as fresh ones since they’re canned at the peak of ripeness.
This soup is velvety and rich without being heavy, and all you need is a few pantry staples to get that irresistible signature concentrated tomato taste with a hint of cream that you crave. Not all tomato soup recipes are created equal, so mine might just win you over!
What you’ll need
- Olive oil and butter – for sautéing
- Onion and garlic – our base aromatics. Vidalia (sweet) onions are my go-to.
- Flour – it acts as a thickener
- Chicken broth – for depth of flavor, but vegetable broth works if you need this to be vegetarian
- Tomatoes – we’re using fire-roasted canned diced tomatoes with the juices and fire-roasted canned crushed tomatoes as the base. They’re easier to work with than fresh tomatoes, perfectly ripe, and available anytime. No messing around with roasting tomatoes at home.
- Italian seasoning – it’s a versatile blend of fragrant Italian herbs that comes all in a single jar
- Sugar – it’s an old chef’s trick to balance the acidity of the tomatoes and brings out their natural sweetness. It’s why a good tomato soup tastes so good.
- Heavy cream – it gives a touch of richness and body to the soup
Pro tips
- The quality of the canned tomatoes matters here, and it can definitely vary from brand to brand. Using fire-roasted tomatoes adds so much extra flavor to the soup! I prefer Muir Glen brand.
- If you’re using regular diced and crushed tomatoes, my favorite brands include Muir Glen, DeLallo, and Mutti. I like the San Marzano variety if you can find them.
How to make tomato soup
This is an overview with step-by-step photos. Full ingredients & instructions are in the recipe card below.
In a soup pot or Dutch oven, add in the oil and butter. When it’s melted, sauté the onion until softened. Stir in the garlic and flour for a minute. Whisk in the chicken broth until the flour has dissolved.
Add in the tomatoes, Italian seasoning, sugar, and cream to the pot. Let it come to a boil, and then reduce the heat and let it simmer. Season with salt & pepper, blend with an immersion blender if desired, and top with basil and parmesan if using.
Tools for this recipe
Check out Natasha’s favorite kitchen essentials, gadgets, and cookware!
- A garlic press makes it easy to mince the garlic cloves rather than by hand.
- This Dutch oven is the one I use to make this soup and many others.
- I love to use an immersion blender to get a rustic yet smooth texture.
Substitutions and variations
- I don’t recommend subbing the cream with something lower fat because there’s a good chance it will curdle. You could try stirring in some coconut milk for a dairy-free option if you’re used to that kind of a substitution, but it will taste different, of course.
- Toss in any fresh garden herbs that you might have on hand. You could also use dried basil instead of fresh. Add a half tablespoon (or more) in at the same time as the Italian seasoning.
- You don’t have to blend the soup if you prefer a more rustic texture from the diced tomatoes, or simply just blend some of it.
What to serve with tomato soup
- Top it with freshly grated parmesan and a handful of fresh basil from the garden, pair it with a slice of focaccia or sourdough, and you’re all set.
- A grilled cheese sandwich is an obvious choice, but you can also do my Easy Homemade Croutons (Garlic & Parmesan) to change it up! There’s still bread and cheese, so it counts.
- Craving the classic soup and salad combo? Try it with my Parmesan Arugula Salad.
Leftovers and storage
- This tomato soup makes wonderful leftovers. Refrigerate it in an airtight container for 3-5 days.
- It also freezes great for up to 6 months. Try individual portions to make it easy to grab a meal anytime.
- Reheat this soup over a low heat, giving it the occasional stir, on the stovetop. You can also microwave it in short intervals until warmed through.
I think this easy tomato soup is just all-around tasty, and I hope you agree! Let me know what you think in the comments below. You can also find me on Instagram.
Easy Tomato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1-2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups chicken broth or veggie broth
- 1 (28 ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes with juices, see note
- 1 (28 ounce) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes see note
- 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning or to taste
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- Salt & pepper to taste
- For serving: fresh basil, freshly grated parmesan cheese optional, to taste
Instructions
- Add the olive oil and butter to a soup pot over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the onion and sauté it for 5-7 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic and flour, and cook it for about a minute.
- Stir (or whisk) in the chicken broth until the flour has dissolved.
- Add the canned tomatoes, Italian seasoning, sugar, and cream to the pot. Increase the heat to high and bring it to a gentle boil.
- Once the soup comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer. Let it cook, uncovered, for 8-10 minutes or so.
- If desired, blend the soup for a smoother consistency. I use an immersion blender and blend right in the pot, but you can transfer to a regular blender if desired (you may want to wait for it to cool a bit).
- Season with salt & pepper as needed (I am generous with both). If using the fresh basil, tear it into smaller pieces and stir it in prior to serving. Serve each bowl with freshly grated parmesan over top if desired.
Notes
- You could use dried basil instead of fresh – I use a few dashes and add it in at the same time as the Italian seasoning.
- I like using Muir Glen fire-roasted tomatoes (crushed and diced varieties for this recipe). You may use regular canned tomatoes, but fire-roasted are more flavorful.
- If you don’t want the cream, you can add a bit less or leave it out, but IMO the soup won’t be as tasty. I don’t recommend subbing half-and-half or something with less fat, because the acid from the tomatoes will likely curdle/separate it, and the soup will look a bit grainy.
- This recipe also appears on page 166 of the Salt & Lavender: Everyday Essentials cookbook.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
© Salt & Lavender Inc. Content and photographs are copyrighted. Sharing this blog post is much appreciated, but copying and pasting full recipes without authorization to social media is strictly prohibited.
This recipe was originally published on February 27, 2019. It’s been updated with new photos and better instructions but is the same great recipe!
Happy to have stumbled upon your recipe! I subbed shallot for onion and added some carrot and celery to sneak in extra veggies. Super easy recipe with simple pantry staples — really hard to mess up! Homemade soup also allows you to control what goes in it.
I’m thrilled you enjoyed it, Kelly!! Love those additions.
Really delicious and simple to make!!
Thank you, Trudy! 🙂
This is my absolute favorite soup of all time and the only recipe Natasha actually makes for me on the regular. It’s so good with fire-roasted tomatoes. I wish she’d make it more often for me, but she doesn’t nearly enough. Wowie.
This will now be my go-to tomato soup recipe. So easy but so delicious! For those wondering about nondairy substitutions, I used coconut milk instead of cream, and it still tasted great. Highly recommend this recipe for when winter refuses to quit and you just need a bowl of great soup!
So glad you enjoyed it, Lacy!! 🙂
This was great! I did use 2% milk instead of cream and it came out fine. I served over white rice and with a crusty bread on the side. It warmed us up on this very cold evening. Thank you for this recipe!
You’re very welcome, Patti!! 🙂
So good and easy!!! Always looking for recipes that are easy to make after working a 12 hours shift and this has been added to the list! This is one of my favorite food blogs- with good reason. <3
I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe and others, Madelyn!! I appreciate you taking the time to write me a review. 🙂
I just made this for lunch and it was delicious!!! I can’t wait to have another bowl tomorrow, when them flavour will be even better! I also made the tomato tortellini a couple of times and it was also very good. I really appreciate all of your delicious recipes that are simple and I very rarely need to buy ingredients to make them (except heavy cream ;). The Sausage Rigatoni recipe is also a favourite of mine! Thanks for sharing.
So glad to hear you enjoyed it! 🙂 Thanks for your sweet comment, Lori. I’m happy you’re following along and trying different recipes of mine.
This is waaaaay better than Campbells tomato soup. Which has always been my go to. I used regular canned diced tomatoes, and I agree with your suggestion, I will used the petite cut as I just like the smaller chunks next time I make this super simple and fast delicious soup.
Also, I always have Better Than Boullion Roasted Chicken jars on hand. But not this time, so I just shrugged and thought, ok, I’ll just use up the beef broth boullion I had. It made the color just a bit browner, and still was delicious. But I’m certain I would prefer the chicken broth.
Nothing better than homemade creamy tomato soup and toasted cheese sammys to make me happy! Thanks so much Natasha!
I’m so happy you liked it! Campbell’s is my go-to as well haha.
I think I’ll give this a try. Can you tells us what you suggest when you list “Italian spices”?
Thank you !
Hi!! Italian seasoning is simply a mix of common herbs and replaces the need to use individual herbs in many recipes. It’s sold in little jars like any other herb/spice. I use McCormick brand, but every grocery store should carry *some* brand of them. If you don’t have any/want to buy it, just use your favorite dried herbs. Let me know if you make the recipe! ♥️
Tried this recipe tonight and me and my family loved it.
Wonderful! Thanks, Jodi! 🙂