Homemade Tomato Soup | Easy Tomato Soup Recipe | A Clean Bake (2024)

FAQs

Why do you add baking soda to homemade tomato soup? ›

The complex flavor and creamy yet very slightly grainy texture make this soup particularly enticing. And the combination of baking soda and sugar completely eliminates the tomatoes' acidity, allowing their rich flavor to shine through.

Carrot purée adds an earthy sweetness to balance the acidic tomatoes, and creates a creamy consistency without the need for much cream. A small pinch of baking soda will tame any unwanted acidity in the soup.

Add Protein. Adding cooked meat that's high in protein is an easy way to make canned tomato soup taste better and more filling. Chopped bacon pairs well with tomato soup for a BLT-esque soup, or try adding in crumbled ground meat like spicy sausage for some added flavor.

A soup made with milk is usually richer and more luxurious than one made with just water or stock. This addition helps make the soup feel more comforting. Adding milk or cream to a soup can balance contrasting tastes and help ingredients that don't typically mesh blend seamlessly.

A small amount of sugar can help round out the flavor, while too much can make it overly sweet and potentially ruin the dish. Adding sugar may also reduce the acidity in a soup, making it taste less acidic.

In this recipe I use 1/4 tsp of baking soda for 3 1/2 cups of tomatoes. In this quantity, the baking soda is totally undetectable. Don't be tempted to use more, however, or you'll be left with a soapy, odd-tasting soup. If you've accidentally added too much, you can simply add more tomatoes.

Add Some Baking Soda

If your tomato sauce is too acidic and verging on bitter, turn to baking soda, not sugar. Yes, sugar might make the sauce taste better, but good old baking soda is an alkaline that will help balance the excess acid. A little pinch should do the trick.

For the most intense tomato flavor, include a couple tablespoons of tomato paste. To get the most out of it, add it to the pan when aromatics like onion and garlic are softened, but before adding the tomatoes. Let the paste cook, stirring frequently, for a few minutes, or until it starts to darken in color.

What are good things to add to tomato soup? ›

Rosemary and thyme, chives and parsley, even a zippy cheese such as feta can level up your tomato soup. Don't forget the cream. Add in coconut milk, heavy cream, or butter to give your tomato soup a silky texture. We're talking richness that tastes decadent without being overindulgent.

If the soup tastes bland at all, a bit more salt will do the trick, that doesn't just apply to this tomato soup recipe but just about anything you'll ever find yourself cooking.

Tomato paste has a concentrated tomato flavor and earthy sweetness that other tomato products (and even fresh tomatoes) cannot beat. You'll only need a few tablespoons of the stuff to pump up the flavor of tomato soup, so dose out the rest of the can and freeze for future use.

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.

Acidic ingredients like lemon juice, vinegar, tomatoes, or even wine can cause your milk to curdle. Prevent this reaction by reducing your acids first before adding dairy. Remember this tip when making creamy adobo, tomato soup, or a citrusy cream-based pasta.

Adding baking soda to a soup raises the pH and contributes sodium ions, both of which make the pectin that holds many vegetables' cell walls together break down faster. The result? Restaurant-level creaminess.

And adding a ½ teaspoon of baking soda to simmering carrots or broccoli for pureed soups helps the vegetables break down quickly and create restaurant-level creaminess.

If your tomato sauce is too acidic and verging on bitter, turn to baking soda, not sugar. Yes, sugar might make the sauce taste better, but good old baking soda is an alkaline that will help balance the excess acid. A little pinch should do the trick.

Gardeners will want to keep a little baking soda on hand when they're putting in their tomato plants in spring because sprinkling some of this ingredient into the soil can prevent certain kinds of produce from tasting dull and gives your tomatoes a boost of sweetness come harvest time.