Tomato Soup from scratch

[Tiara Murphy]

I have been trying to make some tomato soup from tomatoes and broth lately and I can't seem to get the consistency down. It's always too runny or too thick. I don't want to add flour to thicken it, as that would really take away from the taste. Has anyone successfully made a homemade batch of tomato soup that has some tips that they would like to share with me? Thanks in advance!

 

[Amelie]

Hi Tiara. I always make tomato soup at home and my family loves it. I don't add flour to the soup, instead I make a bechamel like sauce and then I add it to the soup after blending everything. It never tastes like flour that way.

 

[Ellyn]

I only vaguely remember how to make a very, very basic tomato soup. Boil a whole tomato until the skin splits, and then remove it and push it through a sieve. Salt and pepper.

Bechamel and broths sound interesting, and I might try them some day! But right now I can only suggest tomato paste to thicken the tomato soup, at which point it would no longer be technically made from scratch.

 

[Tiara Murphy]

Thank you both so much! I'm going to try the bechamel and maybe I'll make my own tomato paste and see if that will work!

 

[Burg14]

I've never heard of bechamel. Where would I find this and what exactly is it? Do you only use it in soups? I love tomato soup and I want to try to make my own too. It sounds easy enough.

 

[Ellyn]

I've never heard of bechamel. Where would I find this and what exactly is it? Do you only use it in soups? I love tomato soup and I want to try to make my own too. It sounds easy enough.

Bechamel is just a kind of roux, and roux is just another word for some kind of oil mixed with some sort of powder to serve as a thickening base for sauces, gravies, and soups.

Usually, you'd start with butter in a pan, and once it melts, add flour to the buttery pan and heat it up and stir them together until they dissolve. That's the mix that thickens things that are added to it, because flour will thicken it and the oil from the butter will emulsify thanks to the flour. Adding milk to that (or some other oil-and-thickener combination) makes bechamel, whereas adding broth makes veloute. It sounds fancy because it's French, but it's really made out of very commonplace things in the kitchen.

 

[evelynmcgregor]

I have made tomato soup from scratch in the past with a fair amount of success. I always put the tomatoes in boiling water so they can be peeled and I also seed them and take out that pulp that is around the seeds. I also use a combination of cream and either vegetable or chicken broth in it. Then I let it cook down some to thicken it up.

 

[Jessi]

If it only needs to be thickened a little bit, then maybe go with a little cornstarch instead. It'll only take a tiny bit and won't have a negative affect on the taste like adding a bunch of flour would.

Also, as mentioned above, milk on its own might be enough without even making a full bechemel. Many people add milk or cheese even to their tomato soups anyway, so this might be just enough to help your homemade version out.

 

[ohiotom76]

Are you making it from fresh tomatoes? That seems like it would be rather difficult unless you are making it when tomatoes are in peak season and are fully ripened. The typical tomatoes you see in the grocery store year round, off season, don't make a very good sauce (or soup) at all. They are too watery and bland, and you will likely wind up with a pink sludge instead of a deep rich red flavorful sauce/soup.

I would probably use some canned crushed tomatoes (San Marzano if you can) then add some broth and tomato paste. Perhaps start out by sauteing some finely chopped carrots, celery and onion until they are soft and translucent but not browned, then add in your crushed tomatoes, tomato paste and broth (chicken would be my choice, but a good vegetable broth would work too) until you get the desired consistency you want. Let it simmer for a while until it reduces a bit, then cool. Then blend it in your blender to get it really smooth. Put it back in a pot and heat it through again. If you want it creamier, add in some heavy cream. Some fresh herbs would be good too, such as basil, and finally season it to taste. You'll probably need a pinch of sugar too to cut some of the sourness from the tomatoes.