Chunky tomato soup with fresh basil is a hearty and comforting soup perfect for any time of year! Pair this easy tomato soup recipe with your favorite grilled cheese sandwich!
I first shared this recipe back in 2013. I have received such rave reviews over the years that I decided to revise the post to add much more relevant information (the original text was very short), and also update the recipe just slightly.
This simple yet delicious chunky tomato basil soup recipe is one of those feel-good family favorites everyone loves to love.
If your family is all about paring grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, this is the absolute perfect addition to the tradition.
The best part about this recipe is it uses straightforward ingredients that you can find at any grocery store.
For consistent results, I use canned whole peeled tomatoes rather than fresh tomatoes, because as we all have experienced, amazing tomatoes can be difficult to come by during certain parts of the year.
Nevertheless, if you grow a garden with an abundance of tomatoes, feel free to use fresh tomatoes during tomato season rather than canned!
This simple chunky tomato soup recipe makes a HUGE batch, so feel free to scale it down if you don’t want a lot of leftovers.
Let’s dive into the details of the simple ingredients for chunky tomato soup.
Ingredients for Chunky Tomato Soup:
Olive Oil: Used to sauté the onion and garlic to soft and delicious perfection, we use extra virgin olive oil. You can also use avocado oil if it is what you typically use for cooking.
Yellow Onion and Fresh Garlic Cloves: Fresh onion and garlic bring big bold flavors to the soup to complement the sweet and tangy tomatoes. You can scale the amount you use up or down according to your personal taste.
Canned Whole Peeled Tomatoes: Pick up three large cans (28 ounces each) of quality whole tomatoes. Stick with a brand you trust and have used in the past that produces reliably awesome tomatoes.
My all time favorite brand of canned tomato products is Muir Glen.
You can use different kinds of canned tomato products or fresh tomatoes, but I don’t recommend using tomato sauce unless you are looking for a creamy consistency.
Adding tomato paste will bring richer tomato flavor and a little thickness but I don’t find this necessary. Nevertheless if you feel the soup is lacking tomato flavor, feel free to add 1 to 4 tablespoons of tomato paste.
Fresh Basil Leaves: What is tomato soup without sweet basil? Add chopped fresh basil or dried basil to the soup, bumping the amount up or down according to your liking. If you grow fresh basil in your garden, this is the perfect way to use it up!
Vegetable Broth: Pick your favorite type of broth and use it in this hearty tomato soup! I like sticking with vegetable broth or vegetable stock because it tracks with the flavor profile of tomatoes, but chicken broth, chicken stock, bone broth, and even beef broth work too.
Butter (Optional): Used to add a touch of creaminess and some fat to the otherwise lean soup, we throw in a little unsalted butter. You can omit the butter or add even more to your heart’s delight. For vegan tomato soup, skip the butter.
Baking Soda: There is no cream or milk in the soup, which makes it very acidic. In order to cut the acid, you can add sugar but as an alternative, I add baking soda. The rule of thumb is about ¼ teaspoon baking soda per 6 tomatoes to cut acid.
Grated Parmesan Cheese (for serving): Parmesan cheese and tomato soup are the oldest of friends! Be sure to grate some over your bowl of soup before serving.
Depending on the type of tomatoes you use, you may or may not wanted to add salt to the soup. I found my canned tomatoes had plenty of sodium so I didn’t find the addition of salt to be needed. Feel free to add black pepper to your personal taste.
Optional Additions:
- For a creamy tomato soup, you can add 1 to 2 cups of heavy cream or half and half to make creamy tomato basil soup. If you go this route, blending the soup is also a great option.
- For thick and creamy tomato basil soup, add a thickening agent to the soup in addition to cream, and blend the soup until it reaches a creamy consistency. To thicken, make a cornstarch slurry of 1 to 2 tablespoons of corn starch combined with 2 to 4 tablespoons of water. You can also use all-purpose flour, gluten-free all-purpose flour, or tapioca flour to thicken the soup.
- Add 1/4 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to bring a little spice to this easy recipe.
- Stir in 1 tablespoon of dried oregano or a combination of oregano and dried parsley for some additional herby flavor. If you have fresh herbs on hand, feel free to toss them in!
Now that we’ve covered the basic ingredients for this easy tomato soup recipe, let’s make it!
How to Make Chunky Tomato Soup:
Heat oil over medium heat in a large pot on the stove top. I use a Dutch oven, but any large thick-bottomed pot or large saucepan will work. Add the onion and sauté until the onion begins turning golden brown, about 10 to 12 minutes.
Stir in the garlic and sauté another 2-3 minutes, or until the garlic is very fragrant.
While onion and garlic are sautéing, open your canned tomatoes and dice the whole tomatoes. Add the diced tomatoes to the pot in addition to the juices and tomato puree that come in the cans.
Add the vegetable stock, chopped basil and butter. Stir until the butter is melted and incorporated.
Stir in the baking soda. This will cause the soup to bubble up quite a bit, so make sure your pot is big enough to hold a little momentary soup fizz. The bubbles and fizz will die down after a few seconds of stirring.
Bring the pot of soup to a full boil then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
As an optional step, you can blend part or all of this soup using an immersion blender or high powered blender for a smoother consistency. I like leaving the chunky texture.
Serve soup as a side dish alongside your main dish (such as that delightful grilled cheese sandwich), and enjoy! I love including some type of rustic crusty bread alongside to complete the meal.
Store soup in an airtight container or jars in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. If you’re familiar with canning, you can also can this soup for long-term storage. You can also store the soup in individual airtight containers and keep it as a grab and go lunch for weekday meals.
And that’s it! A chunky tomato soup recipe you’ll want to keep on constant rotation year round!
This simple recipe exudes great flavor and is the perfect side dish or even light meal for those following a low calorie diet.
For a vegan option, make my Creamy Vegan Tomato Basil Soup recipe.
If you’re looking for more healthy soup recipes, be sure to check out my Easy Vegetable Soup Recipe.
Here is more soup inspiration for all my soup lovers out there.
More Healthy Soup Recipes:
- Sweet Potato and Quinoa Stew
- Crock Pot Beef Stew
- Cabbage Roll Soup
- Immunity-Boosting Turmeric Chicken Soup
- Hearty Ground Turkey Soup with Vegetables
- Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Tomato soup on repeat!
Chunky Tomato Basil Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 medium-sized yellow onions chopped
- 8 cloves garlic minced
- 2.5 ounces fresh basil leaves chopped (or 1.5 teaspoons dried basil)
- 3 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes including juices/puree*
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- sea salt I added no salt
- Grated Parmesan cheese for serving
Instructions
- In a large pot, sauté the onion in the olive oil over medium heat until browned, about 10 to 12 minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté another 3 minutes.
- While onion and garlic are sautéing, open your canned tomatoes and dice the whole tomatoes.
- Add the diced tomatoes and juices/tomato puree to the pot with the sauteed onion and garlic.
- Add the vegetable stock, chopped basil and butter. Stir until butter is melted and incorporated.
- Add the baking soda. This will cause the soup to bubble up quite a bit, so make sure your pot is big enough to hold a little momentary soup fizz. The bubbles/fizz will die down after a few seconds of stirring.
- Bring pot to a full boil then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes.
- Optional: You can blend part or all of this soup for a smoother consistency, though I like it chunky.
- Serve with grated parmesan on top. Seriously. It’s the bomb!
Notes
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
I originally published this recipe in February of 2013. I updated the information to be more helpful as well as the photos. The recipe itself remains the same.
I love tomato soup, this look s so good!
What a great way to get some refueling time. Nothing beats down time with wonderful girlfriends. Love the soup.
Your weekend sounds AMAZING. I want to go to there.
I also want to dunk my face into this soup. Yummm!
This looks delicious! I love Lake Tahoe! It sounds like you had a fantastic time. 🙂
I love a good homemade tomato soup and this one looks great! Sounds like you had a lovely weekend.
This looks delicious, and super easy using canned tomatoes. It’d be perfect with some fun grilled cheeses, maybe with things like pesto and sundried tomatoes inside.
Great thinking! The soup would be a peeeeeeeerfect dipper for a fun and fancy grilled cheese!
I looooove me tomato soup! I try to make them all the time, but they always end up tasting like blended canned tomatoes 😀 Excited to try yours out (and definitely dip a grilled cheese in it)
I grew up in the carson valley near lake tahoe. its beautiful there 🙂 i miss it sometimes anyway… the soup sounds fantatic. i will have to try it soon 🙂
Absolutely gorgeous photos girl, I’m in love with that sun(rise/set) one. Sounds like the perfect weekend too 🙂 man now I have to work in a visit out there. We just had your pea soup (again haha) last night for dinner, we love it, I’m a tomato soup addict – can’t wait to try this one!!
YES, come visit pretty pretty pleeeease!! I want to see your bright face and go hiking with you and hubs and then go to my favorite burrito place! I’m o glad you guys like the split pea soup! Do you add ham or bacon or anything meaty to it? Thanks
Oh, this tomato soup is so appetising! Loved the colour and the recipe sounds fantastic!
Looks delicious! Nothing like a hot bowl of tomato soup to soothe the soul.
Sounds like the perfect weekend, and the soup looks delicious!
I’m obsessed with this soup already 🙂 and I love that your Dad stumbled upon my blog! Thanks to the truck full of eggplant that is!
I love tomato basil soup and this one looks great. Tahoe is such a beautiful place. I have only been up there for labor day and every where I looked it was breathtaking. I also love that you threw some Fresh Prince of Bel Air into your post. I started singing before I realized I hadn’t gotten to the best part of your post, the soup! 🙂
This soup sounds wonderful! Your entire weekend sounds lovely as well. I love lazy days and nights with family and friends, they refresh me in ways that a spa trip can’t even compare with.
I made this for lunch today and this was some of the most delicious – restaurant style tasting tomato soup that i have ever had. Thanks for the baking soda tip! Sure helped a lot 🙂 yummy
Melissa, I’m so glad you made the soup and enjoyed it! It’s definitely a belly warmer and next time I make it, I’ll be dipping all sorts of paninis and grilled cheese sandwiches in it. 🙂 Thanks for letting me know you made it!!
Was a little skeptical of the baking soda. Nice surprise, this soup was really good!!!
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I know this post is older, but I came across this recipe trying to make tomato soup. My husband loved it! I’ve made it quite a few times and it’s always wonderful. The baking soda and butter make it balanced and rich. It’s prefect with a grilled cheese. I also wanted to say that I also throw the left overs in my fridge. I threw it in with some garlic oil pasta one day and now it’s a tradition. When I make this soup, I make pasta the next day! 🙂 I just add about 1/3 cup to my garlic oil just as I put my pasta in the pan. It’s delish and suuuuper eay! 🙂 Thanks for the wonderful recipe!! 🙂
Jenna, thank you so much for sharing your feedback!! I’m so happy you and your husband like the soup! I LOVE the idea of making pasta using the soup as sauce – so brilliant! I wonder if it would work in lasagna as well – maybe if I add some flour to thicken it first? Anyway, I really appreciate the kind comment and many thanks again! 🙂 xo
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW MANY CALORIE IS IN THE SOUP AND THE AMOUNT, MUCH APPRECIATION
Guess what! I found your tomato soup recipe on the internet. It was just what I was looking for…no cream! And, it’s going to be delicious. It’s always nice to revisit old favorites! thanks for the help with dinner tonight!
Great soup. I added a little more butter and baking soda. Eating it now and enjoying it
Thank you
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This soup came out so wonderful!! I used crushed fire roasted tomatoes and left out the butter. It is so rich and flavorful! I had friends over for dinner and they loved it too. So easy to make too. Thank you for the keeper recipe
I’m so happy to hear it! Thanks for letting me know!! xo
What a tasty soup – perfect for chilly weather!
I’m so happy you think so, Tina! 😀 xo
Do you have any idea how to convert this recipe to make in an Instant Pot?
Instead of sugar to cut the acidity, try a square of baking chocolate, the bitter kind with no sugar. Use this with any tomato sauce or soup.
Oooh, I LOVE that idea! Thanks so much for the suggestion! xoxoxo
I didn’t follow the recipe completely, as I only wanted a small amount for the two of us. It was a definite hit! I’ll be making this again.
I’m so happy to hear it, Wendy! Thanks so much for the sweet note! xoxo
Can I use sugar instead of baking soda as I don’t have any baking soda? If so how much sugar?
Thanks!
Hi Lynz! You can use sugar! I would add it to your personal taste. I’d start with 1 tablespoon and adjust up from there if I felt it needed it. Hope you enjoy! xoxo
Why baking soda to your soup?
Hi Patty! It cuts some of the acidity from the tomatoes 🙂
I make this all the time. It’s the best recipe I’ve found anywhere. I have shared this with many people and they also love it. Thanks!
I love hearing that, Cynthia! Thanks so much for your sweet words and for the support! xoxo
This was one of the best soups I have ever eaten- definitely don’t want to lose this recipe. It is really fantastic. Love that it’s also simple.
I love hearing that! Thanks so much for the sweet note! xo