In summer I make this Tomato Soup recipe with fresh tomatoes almost every week, usually when there are too many ripe ones in the kitchen.
The tomatoes roast with red peppers, onion, and garlic until soft and lightly charred. After a quick blend with stock and thyme, the soup turns out silky with no cream at all. Each bowl comes to 129 calories, which keeps it naturally low carb.
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It is naturally gluten-free and vegan as well. There is nothing in the pot but vegetables, olive oil, and stock.
Out of season, you can make it with canned tomatoes and jarred roasted peppers. The method stays exactly the same.
Why This Recipe Works?
- Roasting is the only real work here. The oven handles it while you get on with something else.
- There is no flour and no thickener. The blended vegetables give the soup its body on their own.
- Red vegetables mean plenty of lycopene and other antioxidants in every bowl. Cooking actually makes the lycopene easier for the body to absorb.
- It freezes beautifully, so a summer batch can wait in the freezer for the cold months.
- One tray of vegetables makes four generous bowls for very little money.
Ingredients You'll Need
Please scroll down to the recipe card below for the full ingredients list with measurements, complete recipe method, recipe notes, and nutritional information.
- Tomatoes - Use the ripest, reddest ones you can find. Soft and bruised ones are fine too, since everything gets blended. Plum, vine, and cherry all work well. Out of season, canned tomatoes with a spoonful of tomato paste stand in fine.
- Red peppers - Romano peppers are my first choice, but red bell peppers work too. Their sweetness balances the acidity of the tomatoes.
- Garlic - You can omit garlic if you don't like it or have it. Peel and add to the roasting tray with the tomatoes and peppers.
- Onions - You can use a medium-sized brown, white, or yellow onion. Peel and cut into chunks.
- Vegetable stock - My Basic Homemade Vegetable Stock is great for this soup but you can also use water if you are short on time.
How to Make Tomato Soup with Fresh Tomatoes
Roast the Vegetables
Preheat the oven to 430° F (220° C). Place the tomatoes, red peppers, onions, garlic, and thyme on a baking tray, and drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top. Make sure all the veggies are nicely covered with olive oil.
Roast the vegetables in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the peppers have charred skin. Remove the sheet pan from the oven and set it aside for 10 minutes until the roasted vegetables have cooled enough.
Prepare the Soup
When the veggies are cooled down enough for you to handle them, peel the tomatoes and garlic, and peel and deseed the peppers. Place them in a heavy-based pan or a Dutch oven over medium-high heat along with the onions, bay leaves, salt, freshly ground black pepper, paprika, vegetable broth, or water.
Give them a good stir and gently simmer for 20 to 25 minutes on low to medium heat with a lid on.
Blitz, Garnish, and Serve
Remove the bay leaves, transfer the hot soup to a food processor, and blitz until smooth. You can also use a hand-held blender, but it wouldn't be as smooth as blitzing in a food processor.
Add extra stock if too thick or boil the soup further if too thin. Garnish with grated parmesan, homemade croutons, sour cream, or a drizzle of olive oil.
Recipe Tips From the Chef
- You can make this soup with canned tomatoes out of season. Add a pinch of sugar to balance their acidity.
- Roasting gives the soup its rich, deep taste, so don't skip it unless you must. A no-roast version still works on a rushed day. It just tastes lighter.
- Roast your vegetables in a big roasting pan or baking sheet to avoid overcrowding them. This way, you will have single-layered vegetables, so they will nicely roast.
- If the finished soup tastes sharp, a small pinch of baking soda settles the acidity without adding sugar.
- Blend the soup warm rather than boiling. Hot liquid jumps in a blender, so fill it halfway and hold the lid down with a kitchen towel.
- If the vegetables look soft but still pale after roasting, give them 2 to 3 minutes under the broiler. A little char goes a long way.
- For a restaurant-smooth finish, pass the blended soup through a fine sieve. It catches the tomato seeds the blender misses.
Serving Suggestions
The classic pairing is a grilled cheese sandwich, and it's hard to beat. These are the other favorites at our table:
- Warm, buttered Sandwich Bread or a slice of Italian Cheese and Herb Bread for dipping.
- Crispy sigara borek or Spinach Borek (Ispanakli Borek) for a Turkish-style lunch.
- A Chicken Parmesan Sandwich when the soup needs to stretch into a proper dinner.
- Lox on Bagel on the side for a weekend lunch.
- Mercimek Köftesi (Vegan Lentil Meatballs) and Gavurdagi Salatasi (Turkish Tomato Walnut Salad) to keep the whole meal vegan.
- For toppings, keep it simple: croutons, a swirl of olive oil, or a few basil leaves.
Recipe Variations
- Stir in grated Parmesan cheese for an extra layer of richness and umami flavor.
- Incorporate diced jalapeños or red pepper flakes for a fiery kick that complements the sweetness of the peppers.
- Blend fresh basil leaves into the soup for a fresh, aromatic basil version.
- Infuse the soup with coconut milk and red curry paste for a creamy and aromatic Thai-inspired variation.
Storage Instructions
Storage
This soup stays fresh for up to 5 days in the fridge or up to 5 months in the freezer. Let it cool completely, then move it to an airtight container before storing. Freeze it in single portions and lunch defrosts in minutes.
Reheating
Gently reheat the leftover soup in a pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Adding a splash of broth or water can help maintain the desired consistency.
For a quick reheating method, place the soup in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in 1-minute intervals, stirring between intervals, until heated through.
To reheat the frozen soup, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Then, use the stovetop or microwave methods mentioned above to heat it.
Make Ahead
This is a good soup to cook a day or two before you need it. The taste settles and rounds out in the fridge. For a dinner party, make it up to 2 days ahead, keep it covered, and reheat it gently on the stove just before serving. Add the garnishes fresh.
Recipe FAQs
Yes, in the everyday sense. Each bowl has about 15 grams of carbs, 3 of them fiber, and only 129 calories. It fits low carb eating comfortably, though strict keto plans may find the carbs from the vegetables too high.
Yes to both. The pot holds nothing but vegetables, olive oil, herbs, and stock, so it's naturally gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan with no substitutions needed.
Not before roasting. Once roasted, the skins slip off in seconds, and the recipe removes them along with the pepper skins for the smoothest result. With a high-power blender you can leave the tomato skins on.
Roasting drives off water and concentrates the natural sugars, which is where the depth of this soup comes from. It also makes the peppers easy to peel.
Yes, jarred or canned roasted peppers save a step. Drain and rinse them first, then add them with the rest of the roasted vegetables.
Related Recipes
For more delicious soup recipes why not try:
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out! Leave a comment below and tag @cookingorgeous on Instagram and hashtag it #cookingorgeous.
I hope you enjoy the process of making this creamy, and delicious Tomato Soup with Fresh Tomatoes as much as you enjoy eating it! 🙂
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Tomato Soup Recipe with Fresh Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 2-3 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 medium tomatoes (around 1 lbs/450 grams) (cut in halves)
- 2 red romano peppers or large capsicum
- 4 cloves garlic
- 4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 medium onion (cut in chunky dices)
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 4 cups vegetable stock or water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220° C (430° F).
- Place the tomatoes, red peppers, onion, garlic, and thyme on a baking tray, and drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top.
- Roast the vegetables in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the skin of the peppers is charred.
- Remove the tray from the oven and set it aside for 10 minutes until the vegetables have cooled enough.
- When the veggies are cooled down enough for you to handle them, peel the tomatoes and garlic, and peel and deseed the peppers.
- Place them in a heavy-based pan along with the onions, salt, freshly ground black pepper, paprika, bay leaves, and vegetable stock or water.
- Give them a good stir and gently simmer for 20 to 25 minutes on low to medium heat with a lid on.
- Remove the bay leaves, transfer the soup to a food processor or with a hand-held blender, and blitz until smooth. Add extra stock if too thick or boil the soup further if too thin.
- Garnish with grated parmesan, sour cream, or a drizzle of olive oil.
Notes
- Use the ripest red tomatoes you can find. Plum, vine, and cherry all work. Watery beefsteak types make a thinner soup. Soft and bruised tomatoes are fine, since everything gets blended.
- Spread the vegetables in a single layer on the tray so they roast instead of steaming.
- After roasting, the tomato and pepper skins slip off easily. Remove them for the smoothest soup.
- Out of season, use canned tomatoes and jarred roasted peppers. Add a pinch of sugar for the acidity, or a small pinch of baking soda if you'd rather not add sugar.
- If the vegetables look pale after roasting, finish them under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes.
- For the smoothest soup, pass it through a fine sieve after blending.
- Blend the soup warm, not boiling. Fill the blender halfway and hold the lid with a towel.
- Add extra stock if the soup is too thick, or simmer it longer if too thin.
- Each bowl is about 129 calories and 15 grams of carbs, naturally low carb, gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan.
- Variations: grated Parmesan for richness, chili flakes or jalapeño for heat, fresh basil, or coconut milk with red curry paste for a Thai-style version.
- Make ahead: the soup tastes even better after a day in the fridge. Reheat gently and add garnishes fresh.
- Store in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 5 months in an airtight container. Single portions defrost fastest.
Gemma says
Absolutely delicious, thanks for the recipe!
Walker says
This is Fantastic recipe
Walker says
This is Fantastic recipe that is easy to make.