Tomato soup
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Tomato soup

To make the tastiest tomato soup you’ll ever experience wait until the tomatoes are at their most ripe and juicy, around September

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 4 for lunch or 6 as a starter

Preparation and cooking times

Total time

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian, Vegan, Low-fat

Method

  1. Firstly, prepare your vegetables. You need 1-1.25kg/2lb 4oz-2lb 12oz ripe tomatoes. If the tomatoes are on their vines, pull them off. The green stalky bits should come off at the same time, but if they don't, just pull or twist them off afterwards. Throw the vines and green bits away and wash the tomatoes. Now cut each tomato into quarters and slice off any hard cores (they don't soften during cooking and you'd get hard bits in the soup at the end). Peel 1 medium onion and 1 small carrot and chop them into small pieces. Chop 1 celery stick roughly the same size.
  2. Spoon 2 tbsp olive oil into a large heavy-based pan and heat it over a low heat. Hold your hand over the pan until you can feel the heat rising from the oil, then tip in the onion, carrot and celery and mix them together with a wooden spoon. Still with the heat low, cook the vegetables until they're soft and faintly coloured. This should take about 10 minutes and you should stir them two or three times so they cook evenly and don't stick to the bottom of the pan.
  3. Holding the tube over the pan, squirt in about 2 tsp of tomato purée, then stir it around so it turns the vegetables red. Shoot the tomatoes in off the chopping board, sprinkle in a good pinch of sugar and grind in a little black pepper. Tear 2 bay leaves into a few pieces and throw them into the pan. Stir to mix everything together, put the lid on the pan and let the tomatoes stew over a low heat for 10 minutes until they shrink down in the pan and their juices flow nicely. From time to time, give the pan a good shake - this will keep everything well mixed.
  4. Slowly pour in the 1.2 litres/ 2 pints of hot stock (made with boiling water and 4 rounded tsp bouillon powder or 2 stock cubes), stirring at the same time to mix it with the vegetables. Turn up the heat as high as it will go and wait until everything is bubbling, then turn the heat down to low again and put the lid back on the pan. Cook gently for 25 minutes, stirring a couple of times. At the end of cooking the tomatoes will have broken down and be very slushy looking.
  5. Remove the pan from the heat, take the lid off and stand back for a few seconds or so while the steam escapes, then fish out the pieces of bay leaf and throw them away. Ladle the soup into your blender until it's about three-quarters full, fit the lid on tightly and turn the machine on full. Blitz until the soup's smooth (stop the machine and lift the lid to check after about 30 seconds), then pour the puréed soup into a large bowl. Repeat with the soup that's left in the pan. (The soup may now be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost before reheating.)
  6. Pour the puréed soup back into the pan and reheat it over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring occasionally until you can see bubbles breaking gently on the surface. Taste a spoonful and add a pinch or two of salt if you think the soup needs it, plus more pepper and sugar if you like. If the colour's not a deep enough red for you, plop in another teaspoon of tomato purée and stir until it dissolves. Ladle into bowls and serve. Or sieve and serve chilled with some cream swirled in. For other serving suggestions, see opposite.
Try

Choosing the best tomatoes

The best British tomatoes for making soup are Elegance, a deep-red classic tomato (often sold on the vine) with a thin skin and sweet, juicy flesh. Aranca are good on-the-vine cocktail tomatoes with a superb flavour and aroma, but if you prefer the larger beefsteak variety, go for Jack Hawkins. Plum tomatoes to watch out for include Santa, Jester, Mona Lisa and Baby Sweetheart.

Nutrition per serving for four

123 kcalories, protein 4g, carbohydrate 13g, fat 7 g, saturated fat 1g, fibre 4g, sugar 1g, salt 1.08 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, September 2002.

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Latest comments and suggestions

Results 221-239

  • Binder photo Vincent

    09 November 2012

    Vincent commented on this recipe

    I modified this recipe in line with the way I make cream of chicken soup. Instead of pureeing the cooked mixture I strained it through a muslin cloth and put it to one side whilst I made a small roux. I then added the strained puree and some single cream to the roux, blending whilst it thickened.

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  • Binder photo CurlyWurly

    10 November 2012

    CurlyWurly rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    I adapted this recipe slightly by using half tomato and half red pepper, as I didn't have enough tomatoes. I also added quarter of a teaspoon of paprika and a few flaked chillis. Served with a small swirl of mascarpone through it (had some that needed using up) and made some bacon and cheese muffins to go with it. Win, win, win!!

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  • Binder photo Andy

    11 December 2012

    Andy commented on this recipe

    My family likes this soup so much I have to make it in bulk to give out to each member. Just finished a 12L batch! All set for winter! Best tomato soup on the planet!

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  • Binder photo Jade881

    16 December 2012

    Jade881 rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    This soup turned out a bit watery and tasteless so I added some Worcester sauce and a tin of tomatoes also a herb infusion then it tasted very nice with a bit if a bite I think I will add a little chilli next time

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  • Binder photo HF

    28 December 2012

    HF rated this recipe

    4 stars

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  • Binder photo Rachel A

    04 January 2013

    Rachel A rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Best tomato soup I have ever had - made this for daily lunch, perfect for freezing in individual portions.

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  • Binder photo flower

    10 January 2013

    flower rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Really lovely soup thank you for the recipe but to make it alittle bit taster I used garlic infused oil, a red roasted pepper and when served a dash of Worcester sauce. yum......

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  • Binder photo Kitten04

    19 February 2013

    Kitten04 commented on this recipe

    Lovley soup made a few times even my daughter loves it and she hates tomatoes I used cherry tomatoes use really ripe ones as better and sieve to get rid of pips and skin I add cornflour to thicken

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  • Binder photo Hazah

    21 February 2013

    Hazah rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Yum!

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  • Binder photo JennicaKu

    17 March 2013

    JennicaKu rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    I've cooked this soup, but the liquid ended up way less than it should be! Most water has evaporated, but that made the soup more tasty and rich. I love this recipe and I definitely will cook this again! Your steps are very detailed and clear. Thanks very much for sharing!

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  • Binder photo JennicaKu

    23 March 2013

    JennicaKu rated this recipe

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  • Binder photo the ferret

    24 March 2013

    the ferret rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Lovely soup, very tasty and very easy. I added a good sprinkle of cayenne pepper to give it a little kick.

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  • Binder photo Baldocci

    26 March 2013

    Baldocci rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Didn't have any celery to hand so I brought on my substituted - a small sweet potato. After reading previous comments, I too added just a litre of stock, turned out thick and creamy even without the use of a sieve. Fabulous.

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  • Binder photo toni101

    16 April 2013

    toni101 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    made this recipe yesterday< came really good. Worth trying!

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  • Binder photo Twcen

    27 April 2013

    Twcen commented on this recipe

    Thanks to everyone who left feedback.....tried this soup and it really is delicious.....goodbye can opener!!!

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  • Binder photo drydoni

    16 May 2013

    drydoni commented on this recipe

    Lovely soup super healthy a great way to use up leftover tomatoes!

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  • Binder photo JunieMoon

    18 May 2013

    JunieMoon commented on this recipe

    Really tasty soup, I added some roasted red peppers to give it a little bite - very tasty, will definitely cook again.

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  • Binder photo Eleanor

    13 June 2013

    Eleanor rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    Recipe overly complicated for how simple it really is. Need to add a few potatoes to the mix to thicken and some basil for more flavour and would be perfect. However, remove seeds and tomato skins before cooking or sieve after cooking for a really good texture. Delia's tomato soup recipe better!

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  • Binder photo wales3006

    18 June 2013

    wales3006 rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Lovely soup tried and tested by family, who really enjoyed it as well. so easy! the only thing i added to it was garlic.

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Difficulty and servings

Easy

Serves 4 for lunch or 6 as a starter

Preparation and cooking times

Total time

Vegetarian Freezable

Vegetarian, Vegan, Low-fat

Ingredients

  • 1-1.25kg/2lb 4oz-2lb 12oz ripe tomatoes
  • 1 medium onion
  • 1 small carrot
  • 1 celery stick
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 squirts of tomato purée (about 2 tsp)
  • a good pinch of sugar
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1.2 litres/ 2 pints hot vegetable stock (made with boiling water and 4 rounded tsp bouillon powder or 2 stock cubes)
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Nutrition per serving for four

123 kcalories, protein 4g, carbohydrate 13g, fat 7 g, saturated fat 1g, fibre 4g, sugar 1g, salt 1.08 g

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