The easiest Tomato Basil Soup EVER and it's so fresh & vibrant. Ready in just 10 minutes and made with only 4 ingredients (plus salt, pepper & optional olive oil).
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FEATURED COMMENT
"Oh my goodness, this soup is SO easy and SO delicious!! I didn't change a thing from the original recipe and it turned out absolutely perfect!"
- Susan ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
The easiest Tomato Basil Soup! The only ingredients are tomatoes, onion, garlic, and basil (plus a little seasoning and optional olive oil).
It's so simple and quick to make. In fact, from start to finish it can be ready in 10 minutes, and as it's cooked so quickly, with no stock, milk, or cream added, that the amazing fresh flavor of the tomato and basil remains fresh, vibrant, and aromatic.
This soup, my tomato fritters, and my cherry tomato sauce are my favorite recipes to make during summer when we have loads of homegrown tomatoes to use up.
Mel x
Ingredients
Here is what you need to make Tomato Basil Soup:
The ingredients list is very short. We're talking just fresh tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, onion, garlic and seasonings. You can use any variety of fresh tomatoes such as plum tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, cherry, grape, vine, beefsteak, etc, or a combination.
IMPORTANT TIP - The better the tomatoes you use, the better your soup will taste. This is a great recipe to use up lots of homegrown or local tomatoes in summer.
How To Make Tomato Basil Soup
In just 10 minutes and a few simple steps, you could be tucking into a bowl of this fresh and delicious Tomato Basil Soup. It's so quick and easy. Here's how it's done:
- Sauté the garlic and onion
- Add the tomatoes and cook for a few minutes until hot and just starting to break down.
- Add the basil and seasoning.
- Blend with an immersion blender in the pan or transfer to a blender (if doing this you might need to work in batches). Blend until smooth. There is no need to cook the soup any longer once the basil is added. Certainly don't let it boil or you will lose much of its flavor.
The only liquid you need for this soup comes from the tomatoes. There is no need to add extra. Cooking the soup this way ensures the flavor stays super fresh and undiluted.
Variations
Prefer a creamier tomato bisque-style soup? Stir through a little store-bought vegan cream, light coconut milk, homemade cashew cream, or even a little cashew milk just before serving and allow to warm through.
If you are looking for a creamy tomato soup made from canned tomatoes give my Vegan Tomato Soup or Instant Pot Tomato Soup a try.
Serving Suggestions
Wondering what goes with Tomato Basil Soup? I love to serve mine with a drizzle of vegan cream or good extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of cracked black pepper. A side of bread and butter or a grilled cheese sandwich would not go amiss. Other accompaniments that work well include:
- A scattering of vegan croutons
- Vegan ricotta or Parmesan cheese
- A swirl of kale pesto
- Thick wedges of Miracle No Knead Focaccia, Sourdough or Light Whole Wheat Bread
- No Yeast White Bread or Yeast-Free Spelt Bread
Tomato Basil Soup Recipe FAQs
No. Just chop them up and throw them in. By the time it's blended, you don't know they are there anyway!
Not for this recipe. It relies on the flavor of the fresh tomatoes too much. The recipe would need a complete overhaul to work well with canned tomatoes. I recommend you try this recipe Vegan Tomato Soup recipe.
I would add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste/puree and 2 to 3 teaspoons of white or cane sugar. Sugar enhances the flavor of food just like salt does and works especially well with tomatoes. It also helps cuts any bitterness. Tomato paste will thicken the soup so you might need to add a drop of water or vegetable broth/stock too.
There are only about 280 calories in the entire pan of this soup. It is very low in fat and calories. You can even make it completely fat-free by omitting the olive oil and sautéing the onions and garlic in a drop of water instead. I've been told it works very well for people following Slimming World and Weight Watchers.
Recipe
Easy Tomato Basil Soup
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil , (for oil-free use a little bit of water)
- 1 medium onion , diced
- 3 large cloves garlic , minced
- 7 cups (49 oz / 1.4 kg) chopped fresh tomatoes , (large, cherry, grape, or a mixture)
- 1 large handful fresh basil , roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt , or to taste
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper , or to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- Put the oil in a large pan and heat on medium.
- Once the oil is hot add the onions and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until translucent and just starting to turn golden on the edges. Then add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, stirring frequently.
- Add the chopped tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 to 6 minutes until the tomatoes are simmering and just starting to break down. The smaller the tomato pieces, the quicker this will happen. Larger chunks might take a couple minutes more.
- Remove from the heat and add the basil, salt and pepper then blend with an immersion blender in the pan, or transfer to a blender, blend then return to the pan for a minute or two to warm up again.
- Serve immediately.
NOTES
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Alan Leith says
I made this soup for my wife's christmas lunch starter and it was great! Followed the recipe / method, only change was to add a dessert spoon of sugar which took away the slight bitterness of the fresh tomatoes which were slightly under-ripe......usual supermarket standard.
Kim B. says
Can't wait to try this with my own fresh tomatoes and basil! That being said, hubby and I overbought tomatoes (not knowing each of us grabbed a mambo container from Costco) and I'm sick of salsa. I weighed tomatoes, and didn't have enough fresh basil so I resorted to the Garden Gourmet "tube" basil found by the veggies. They had no bulk fresh, and I wasn't paying $4.99 for ONE bubble pack. Internet told me one handful of basil equals about 8 tbsp chopped. So it took the whole 4oz tube. Even with all of these very sorry substitutions this soup is great and I actually printed the recipe for our keepers binder. Thanks for a great recipe!
Samantha says
I used one 28 ounce can of tomato sauce, 3 14-ounce cans of fire roasted diced tomatoes and 3 cans of garlic and celery diced tomatoes. Sautéed a tablespoon of minced garlic with two cups of frozen diced onions then added the tomatoes and simmered. Then I added two handfuls of chopped fresh basil and salt and ground pepper to taste. I didn’t even need to blend it. The consistency was perfect. Served it with harvest bread grilled cheese and my family raved about it.
Zhoonoh says
The recipe is disappointingly bland and flat. Sorry.
Pi says
I made this a few weeks ago and am in LOVE! I can't remember if I used my Blendtec or an immersion stick blender so there were pieces of skin. Trying it again with blanching the skins off first! This was so good. I did use fresh basil.
Kim B. says
You can (and should!) adjust the seasonings and basil amount based on the quality and timing of the tomatoes. Maybe you were looking more for a cream based? Reading the ingredients, this is def meant as a pure tomato/basil recipe and not the creamy kind with added cashew cream, etc.
Nicola says
Great Recipe, I added some fresh chillies as we like a little kick but with or without chilli taste great!
Lee Wright says
How much dried basil would I use instead of fresh?
Ashley says
I love this recipe and have made it countless times!
Vicki Reeve says
Fantastic. Tastes just like the tomato soup we ate in Iceland. Simply pure tomato flavor. The only thing I did differently was to add some fresh cayenne peppers, minced, along with the garlic, and a touch of Tabasco -- because we like spicy. Thanks for a great recipe. I definitely will make again, because these tomatoes just keep on coming!
A Virtual Vegan says
Glad you enjoyed it Vicki. Love the cayenne pepper addition!
Alejandra Paz says
I loved this recipe. You can be generous with the tomatoes or basil depending on taste. I highly recommend! My boyfriend was impressed since it was delicious the first time around!
Lynn Marie says
Recipe is very good.
CeeCee says
So, so good. I make a big batch of this most Sunday mornings. This makes me think of Pret tomato soup (my favourite). I’ve found the results really do depend on the quality of the tomatoes, so the times I use less-than-great ‘maters, I make a couple of tweaks - a squeeze or two of Bomba purée and a couple of fresh, uncooked tomatoes as the soup goes into the blender seems to make the soup ‘brighter’.
Either way, results are always yummy.
A Virtual Vegan says
Glad you're enjoying it!
Kristin says
Do you leave the peels on?
A Virtual Vegan says
Yes unless you want to peel them all. I think life's too short for that and by the time it's all blended up you don't know they are there anyway.
Tania says
Are the cooking times the same if I use canned tomatoes?
A Virtual Vegan says
This recipe is designed to use fresh tomatoes. It hasn't been tested with canned and it probably won't be as nice. This recipe uses canned tomatoes https://avirtualvegan.com/instant-pot-tomato-soup/ (It has stove top as well as Instant Pot instructions).
Gil says
Super easy and was a great use for extra tomatoes from a holiday party!
Natalie says
Just made this today. Super easy and delicious! I will definitely be making this again!
Carol says
Can this soup be frozen
A Virtual Vegan says
Yes it should be fine.
Shanequa says
I made this soup this evening and it came out great. I actually added cashews that I soaked in hot water to thicken the soup. I struggled a little bit trying to figure out how many tomatoes to use but it all worked out. I will definitely make this again.
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm glad you enjoyed it. Not sure why you struggled with the tomatoes because an exact weight for them is given. Maybe you missed it?
Marge says
Plant based, no oil here. Along with my daughter and 11 year old grandson. I had my grandson taste test for me. He tested till it was gone. A winner!
Melanie McDonald says
Ha ha! Always a good sign. Glad he enjoyed it!