This Creamy Tomato Soup is easy, comforting, and has a rich flavor profile. Watch the easy video tutorial and you’ll be craving a bowl of tomato soup paired with a gooey Grilled Cheese Sandwich.
You can make this tomato soup creamy or chunky if you prefer, but we love creamy soup recipes from Creamy Sweet Potato Soup to our velvety Carrot Soup and definitely Creamy Potato Soup.
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My husband never loved tomato soup until he tried this Creamy Tomato Soup. The addition of parmesan and just 1/2 cup of cream makes it so satisfying. It’s also a quick and easy 30-minute soup that keeps well in the fridge. We love it all year round and whip up a batch any time we are craving Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.
Tomato Soup Video Tutorial
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Ingredients for Tomato Basil Soup
Since this is a tomato-based soup, it is important to offset the acidity with some key ingredients. We use a combination of cream, parmesan, and a little sugar to balance the soup.
- Butter – use unsalted butter to sautee onions
- Yellow onion – it seems like a ton of onion but it dissapears into the soup adding a balanced sweetness
- Garlic – you’ll need 1 Tbsp minced from about 3 cloves
- Crushed tomatoes – with their juice, preferably San Marzano tomatoes
- Chicken stock – for the best flavor use homemade chicken broth
- Basil – chop and add 1/4 cup fresh basil, plus more to serve. Basil leaves are easily bruised so chop by stacking a bunch of leaves then roll them into a log and cut into thin strips.
- Sugar – It’s just 1 Tbsp, but necessary to combat the tomato acidity.
- Black pepper – start with 1/2 tsp and add more to taste
- Whipping cream – adds a creaminess to the soup and offsets acidity.
- Parmesan cheese – adds saltiness to the soup and balances acidity. Adding parmesan adds enough salt and I usually don’t add more.
How to Make Tomato Soup
- Saute Aromatics – heat a non-reactive pot over medium heat. Melt in 4 Tbsp butter then sautee onions until softened and golden (10-12 min). Add minced garlic and saute another minute.
- Make the tomato soup base – stir in two 28 oz cans of crushed tomatoes with their juice, your chicken stock, chopped basil, sugar and black pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce heat, partially cover and simmer 10 minutes.
- Blend if desired – use an immersion blender in the pot or blend in batches using a blender (be careful not to overfill the blender with hot liquid) and return soup to the pot.
- Add cream and parmesan – stir in the heavy cream and shredded parmesan. Return to a simmer and season to taste if needed.
- Serve – ladle into warm bowls and garnish with more parmesan and basil.
Pro Tip: If you prefer a chunky soup with bits of tomato (like our Broccoli Cheese Soup), you can skip the blending step and proceed with adding cream and parmesan then season to taste.
Important: Use a Non-Reactive Pot
Since this soup is tomato-based it is important to use a non-reactive pot. Avoid aluminum, cast iron, and copper which are all made of metals that can react with tomatoes and make the soup taste metallic.
Non-reactive pots that work well include: Stainless steel, enamel-coated cast iron, ceramic, and glass. We used our 5 1/2 Qt enamel-coated dutch oven pot.
Common Questions
You can use canned whole peeled tomatoes, but crush them by pulsing in a food processor before adding to the pot. Be sure to season to taste if substituting.
You can substitute the fresh basil with about 1 Tbsp of dried basil for the soup. I suggest adding dried basil when you add the crushed tomatoes to give them a chance to soften. Dried herbs work great in soups, but should not be used for garnish.
You’ll need to make your own crushed tomatoes which can be a time-consuming process. We find it is much simpler to buy crushed tomatoes.
We love chicken bone broth because it has a great depth of flavor, but you can substitute it with vegetable broth to keep this a vegetarian soup.
Make sure you aren’t using a reactive pot (see above) and add more sugar and cream to taste to balance the acidity.
How to Serve Tomato Soup
- Grilled Cheese – tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches are the perfect match (try dipping the sandwich into the soup).
- Parmesan – add shredded parmesan while the soup is hot so it melts over the top.
- Fresh Basil – sprinkle the top with thinly sliced basil.
- Croutons – sprinkle crunchy croutons over the soup.
- Toast – simple toasted bread or crostini (like we made for Bruschetta) are great for dunking into the soup.
More Comforting Soups
If you love this Tomato Soup, then you won’t want to miss these cozy soup recipes from our easy Chicken Noodle Soup to luxurious Beef Stew. There’s something here for everyone.
Creamy Tomato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 yellow onions, (3 cups finely chopped)
- 3 garlic cloves, (1 Tbsp minced)
- 56 oz crushed tomatoes, (two, 28-oz cans) with their juice, preferably San Marzano
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, plus more to serve
- 1 Tbsp sugar, or added to taste
- 1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, or to taste to combat acidity
- 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated, plus more to serve
Instructions
- Heat a nonreactive pot or enameled dutch oven over medium heat. Add butter then add chopped onions. Sauté 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden. Add minced garlic and sauté 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add crushed tomatoes with their juice, chicken stock, chopped basil, sugar (or add sugar to taste), and black pepper. Stir together and bring to a boil then reduce heat, partially cover with lid and simmer for 10 minutes.
- You can leave your soup with a chunky consistency, but if you like a blended/creamy soup, use an immersion blender to blend the soup in the pot to desired consistency or transfer to a blender in batches and blend until smooth (being careful not to over-fill the blender with hot liquid and pulse a few times initially to get it started), then return blended soup to the pot over medium heat.
- Add 1/2 cup heavy cream, 1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese and return to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper if needed and turn off the heat.*
- Ladle into warm bowls and top with more parmesan and chopped fresh basil.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Perhaps I didn’t read through all the reviews well enough, but I had saved some onions from spoiling by finely dicing them and freezing. I doubled the recipe, and used 5 measuring cups of chopped onions. It was WAY too much. I was afraid to taste it this morning after letting the flavors meld. Perhaps I should have cooked them longer since it added water to the butter? I’ll be adding more of everything else to balance out the flavors once I can get back to the store for more tomatoes. It turned into an onion tomato basil soup with a strong onion finish.
HI Rachel, it sounds like maybe the onions needed to be cooked longer. Cooking onions until they are golden brings out their sweetness and removes the harsh onion flavor.
I’ve made this recipe so many times! I’ve used fresh tomatoes, canned peeled, crushed, diced. I’ve added sun dried tomatoes, red bell peppers, roasted red bell peppers…It’s so forgiving, and always delicious! All three bonus kids love it. And my son, who doesn’t even like tomato soup(supposedly), always has seconds.
That’s wonderful, Melissa! Thank you for sharing that with us.
Hi,
I want to make this with fresh tomatoes. How many roma tomatoes for 8 servings?
I’m not sure as I haven’t tried it.You’ll need to make your own crushed tomatoes which can be a time-consuming process. We find it is much simpler to buy crushed tomatoes.
Excellent recipe and very simple. I found my heavy cream had gone bad so I added 1/2 milk and topped the soup with sour cream. It worked just great. My husband who hasn’t felt well for a couple days absolutely loved it and I felt like he got some quality nutrition. Thank you for sharing a wonderfully easy and tasty recipe.
You’re welcome, Elizabeth. I’m glad that you were able to make it work fine. Thanks so much for the review!
I did not care for this recipe at all. It tasted too much like spaghetti sauce.
Hi Victoria, I’m sorry to hear that. I haven’t had that experience. Did you possibly use a different canned tomato product than what is called for. I would also suggest trying the Roasted Tomato Soup in my new cookbook which utilizes fresh tomatoes. I hope you love it!
OH-MY-G.O.S.H! This is the most amazing recipe. I absolutely loved it! I increased the yellow onions by one and used a sugar substitute. I never review recipes so this is a first for me. Yes, I’d agree stock is key used my own and found the tomatoes you recommend. Im not a huge fan of sweet so I added some pepper sauce to balance it out but I don’t think I’ve ever had one I liked better before now.
That’s awesome, thanks for the feedback Richard!
A little too silly for me. But the soup steps work. Thank you.
This soup is so flavorful and I wouldn’t change a thing! So easy to make and perfect for a cold winters night in just 30 minutes. My first time making this soup and it will be a keeper in my kitchen.
I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for the wonderful feedback.
I made this for my kids(6 and 8) for the first time along with grilled cheese sandwiches and they loved it. It was the 1st dinner they requested it again the next day. Then I made the mistake and gave them canned tomato soup and they didnt like it, lol. So back to this tonight.
Hi John! It’s the best feeling when the kids love what we make! I’m so glad they enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for sharing.
I make this recipe often. I do make a very small addition to the recipe. I neutralize some of the acidity with about an 1/8 of baking soda. That’s the only change . I have tried many other recipes but this one is by far the best.
Thank you for sharing, Jose!
Where are the measurements for the ingredients???? This is pathetic
Hi Ja, at the top of the post click “Jump to Recipe” to see the ingredients and list. I hope you love this soup recipe.
My daughter is allergic to onions can I substitute something else or leave them out without affecting the soup.
Hi Mary! I haven’t tested it without onions. They do add flavor but you should be able to omit and season it to taste. Let us know how it turns out for you.
They are clearly printed. Several hundred other people have found them as indicated by the reviews
I’m wanting to make this tonight. We have so many fresh tomatoes that we need to use. Can I substitute milk for heavy cream?
Hi Rosetta! I haven’t tested it myself but you won’t get quite the same flavor or consistency. The cream adds a creaminess to the soup and offsets acidity.
This recipe is the bomb! I have Covid. 😢 It makes enough so I can eat it for days! So soothing.
Yummy!!
I’m so glad you loved it! I hope you feel better soon, Rosie!
I normally avoid your recipes because of all the advertising jumping all over the screen. Very distracting.
Hi David. Thank you for sharing your concerns and feedback. The only way we can continue providing free recipes is by having ads on our site so we are not able to remove those at this time. We find that most people would rather see the ads than pay to see the recipes. I appreciate your feedback and I hope you love every recipe you try.
Hi Natasha,
Can I substitute the cream with non-dairy options? Thanks!
Hi Sabrina, I haven’t tested that but one of our readers shared this “Simple and delicious! My family asks for this recipe all the time. I make it dairy free by using olive oil to saute the onions and garlic, dairy free plant-based cream and dairy free parmesan. A little cream in a spiral, a little extra black pepper, a little truffle powder, and a basil chiffonade is all it takes to make it delicious!” Hope that helps.
Hi Natasha,
Can I substitute the cream for oat milk, or will this cause it to curdle? Thanks!
Hi Sabrina, I haven’t tested that but one of our readers shared this “This was so good! I didn’t have stock so used water, and used oat milk instead of heavy cream. It was delicious!” Hope that helps.
I love this recipe. I use chicken bone broth instead. It brings out the rich chicken flavor. I think I could make this every night.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Cindy!
how long will the soup keep refrigerated; can the soup be frozen for later use?
Hi Maria! We’ve kept this in the refrigerator for about 3 days or so. Soups with cream generally don’t freeze well. I haven’t tested freezing this myself, but one of my readers has frozen it without the cream, and then adds the cream when reheating and serving.
Hi Natasha, i am making this soup today. You mention to season to taste if using whole peeled tomatoes. What kind of seasonings do i use?
Hi Dave, season to taste usually means to add as much salt or pepper or as much of a spice or herb as one likes so something tastes good.
What brand of immersion blender do you have, Natasha?
Thanks.
It looks like yours wouldn’t scratch your pot.
Hi Angela! You can click on “immersion blender” in red font in the blog notes and it’s a link. I use the Mueller immersion blender (Amazon affiliate link).
Hello! Just curious, would the extras freeze well to be used at a later date?
Hi Maria! Generally soups with cream don’t freeze too well. Here is what one of my readers said, “We divide into serving size containers and freeze. Leave out the cream or half n half until thawed and reheated.”