Easy Tomato Soup (no cream)
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This budget-friendly and easy tomato soup uses canned tomatoes and comes together in under 20 minutes. It’s vegan, low-calorie, gluten-free, low-carb, and packed with health benefits. Winning!
Published in Sep 2021/updated in Sep 2026
How great is it to whip up homemade soup with inexpensive pantry staples rather than buying canned soup loaded with sodium and high-fructose corn syrup? It’s a no-brainer!
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And the natural flavor of good-quality canned tomatoes is delicious enough that you need very little to make a beautiful, budget-friendly, and healthy soup all year round!
Simply sauté onion and garlic in olive oil until soft and sweet. That lends a natural sweetness and makes your flavor base with only two ingredients. Add tomatoes and broth (or water!); cook for 10 minutes, season to taste, then blend until lusciously smooth. Ready.
Serve with easy panini rolls, soft olive focaccia, croutons, or some grated parmesan cheese.
This economical, healthy, and super-easy tomato soup is one of those simple recipes for when you need a light, flavorful meal, ready in no time.
List of ingredients
- Canned tomatoes
- Olive oil or extra virgin olive oil
- Onion & garlic
- Vegetable broth or water
- Fresh basil (optional)
- Salt & pepper
How to make easy tomato soup
(Note: this is a quick description; the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- Sauté onion and seasoning in olive oil until soft (5 minutes).
- Add garlic and a pinch of cayenne pepper (optional). Cook for 2 minutes.
- Stir in tomatoes, water or broth, and cook for 10 minutes.
- Adjust the seasoning, add fresh basil leaves, and blend. I used a Vitamix, but a regular blender or an immersion hand blender works just as well.
- Serve with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil, black pepper, or a touch of fresh yogurt or heavy cream, if you like. Top your bowl with crispy croutons, or serve it with crostini, Italian panini bread, or your favorite grilled cheese sandwich.
RECIPE NOTES
tomato soup recipe ingredients
Canned tomatoes: I think whole peeled tomatoes are the best. They are less watery, fleshier, and have a richer sauce than their diced counterparts. However, good-quality diced tomatoes are fine too.
Onion & garlic: You can use white, red, or yellow onion; any type is fine, and you can dice, slice, or chop it; the easier, the better. Slowly cooking the onion and garlic in a small amount of fat adds extra flavor. Make sure the onion is soft and translucent, and the garlic fragrant, not brown or burnt. You want flavor, not an unpleasant aftertaste!
Extra virgin olive oil: You need olive oil to sauté onion and garlic, or you can use the same amount of butter. But it’s also delicious if you drizzle olive oil over the soup before serving!
Broth or water: I used low-sodium vegetable broth, but you can use your favorite broth or even chicken broth if you’re not keeping it vegan. You can use simply water if you don’t have broth on hand.
Basil: Fresh basil is great, and I recommend blending a few leaves into the tomato soup to infuse it with basil flavor. You can also use 1/4 tsp of dried basil instead of fresh or skip the basil altogether.
Seasoning: Season to taste at the end, especially if you used low-sodium broth or water!
Storage tips
Yes, homemade tomato soup leftovers keep very well in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3-4 days. Also, they freeze beautifully. Make sure to cool the soup completely in the refrigerator before transferring to the freezer.
Canned tomatoes are good for you!
Fresh tomatoes from the garden are just amazing, but when summer is over, the humble canned tomatoes come to the rescue, providing flavor and impressive health benefits. They’re low-calorie and packed with nutrients like vitamins and antioxidants. On the label, you want to see the fewest ingredients possible: tomatoes, salt, and water or tomato juice. Big bonus if they’re organic too.
More favorite soup recipes
- Vegan broccoli soup
- 15 Healthy low-calorie soups
- Garlic vegan chickpea soup
- Swiss chard soup with lentils
- Green lentil soup
- Vegan black bean soup
If you make this easy tomato soup, or you have a question, let me know by leaving a comment. I would love to hear from you! x
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Easy Tomato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium-sized onion, peeled and sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
- 1 pinch salt & pepper
- 2 cans (28oz in total) canned whole or diced tomatoes
- 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable broth or water
- ¼ tsp fine salt, plus more to taste
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 1 handful basil leaves (optional)
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven, add the onion, a pinch of salt, and cracked black pepper, then sauté over medium heat until the onion is soft and sweet (translucent and not too brown). It takes 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, and cook for a further 1 or 2 minutes. I also add about 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper at this point, but it's optional.
- Add the tomatoes, broth, and salt, and bring to a boil; then reduce the heat to medium-low and bring to a simmer. Cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes.
- Turn the heat off, let it cool for a few minutes, taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking. You might want to add a pinch of sugar at this point to balance the acidity of the tomatoes, that varies from brand to brand.
- Add a handful of basil leaves and blend until smooth with an immersion blender, or, when the soup is a bit cooler, transfer it to a blender. Be careful; the steam is still hot!
- Divide the soup into bowls, add freshly cracked pepper and a drizzle of olive oil, and serve with crusty bread or croutons. Enjoy!
Quick and easy to make. I used an emersion blender to make the soup smooth. Good vegan option.
Thanks so much for sharing your feedback, Mary!
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe : )
Could use this recipe where it calls for tomato soup in a recipe.? My mom use to make Sloppy Joe’s with tomato soup but since I have low cholesterol I’m trying to stay away from processed foods. I love the recipe because it doesn’t use butter and doesn’t have alot of ingredients.
Yes Tina, you can use this simple homemade tomato soup for other recipes if you wish. x