Tomato Soup With Coconut Milk
Tomato soup is arguably the most comforting and satisfying dish of all time, and it’s easier to make from scratch than you might think. This recipe for tomato soup with coconut milk uses the perfect balance of canned and fresh tomatoes with flavorful aromatics and subtly sweet coconut milk to create the perfect creamy vegetarian tomato soup.
How long does it take to make tomato soup? Tomato soup can be made rather quickly, such as this recipe for tomato soup with coconut milk that takes less than an hour to prepare. The most time-consuming part of this recipe is roasting the fresh tomatoes in the oven, which provides an irreplaceable caramelized flavor.
Can tomato soup be frozen? Yes, tomato soup freezes and reheats wonderfully. For best results, I recommend packaging up servings of tomato soup in freezer-safe zipper bags and thawing them out gently — either in the fridge overnight or in warm water if needed more immediately.
Why do you use both fresh and canned tomatoes in tomato soup (and no tomato paste)? I call for a mixture of fresh and canned tomatoes in this tomato soup with coconut milk recipe because there are pros and cons of both types of this fruit:
Canned tomatoes are perfect during every season of the year. You don’t have to rely on and account for tomatoes being in season when you utilize canned tomatoes in soup. Canned tomatoes also provide a beautiful viscosity to the soup that’s challenging to achieve if using only fresh tomatoes.
Fresh tomatoes provide a bright freshness that can’t be replicated using the canned version. On the other hand, canned crushed tomatoes are incredibly rich and acidic, making a combination of both fresh and canned the optimal flavor ratio.
Tomato paste is intentionally absent from this recipe because I prefer using real tomatoes (not a concentrate) and cooking them down to highlight both their flavor and textures in the soup. Utilizing tomato paste in an already rich tomato soup weighs down the balance of flavor and can make the soup taste almost artificially tomato.
Which broth is best for tomato soup? You can use any type of broth to make tomato soup with coconut milk! I love utilizing vegetable broth (as this recipe calls for), but chicken and beef broth also work beautifully in this recipe.
Why coconut milk in tomato soup? There are so many benefits to using coconut milk instead of dairy in tomato soup!
The soup doesn’t break as easily. Often, when you read recipes (especially older, classic recipes) for a creamy tomato soup, you hear of the dangers of the soup separating when milk or cream is added. This is because the acidity of the tomatoes combined with the dairy can cause the fat in the milk to separate out and “break”, or curdle, the soup. This leaves you with an unpleasant, sometimes chunky final product. I find that coconut milk is more stable than dairy in this regard, so you don’t have to worry about the fat breaking apart in the soup. Other tips for success to avoid this happening is to add the milk (regular or coconut) towards the end of the cooking process and do so over low heat.
The sweetness of the coconut milk perfectly complements the tomatoes. In doing my research for this recipe, I found that many traditional tomato soup recipes include a pinch of sugar. By using coconut milk, which has a beautiful inherent sweetness, you don’t have to add any sugar or honey to the soup to achieve a perfect balance of flavor.
Coconut milk is very healthy for you. Coconut milk is full of antioxidants, healthy fats, and calcium, making it a perfect substitution for milk in tomato soup to boost the health benefits of this recipe. Substituting the milk and broth to fruit and veggie sources also makes this recipe vegetarian — a win-win for anyone looking for a recipe of this kind.
What are the benefits of using an immersion blender to make soup? Immersion blenders are fantastic kitchen tools to have on hand to achieve smooth, velvety soups and sauces directly in the bowls or pots you’re making them in. If you were to make a smooth soup such as this tomato soup with coconut milk without an immersion blender, you’d have to let the soup cool drastically and use the blender to puree the soup in batches. I highly recommend adding an immersion blender to your kitchen!
Which type of tomatoes are best for tomato soup? Almost any type of tomato will work well when creating this tomato soup with coconut milk recipe. I typically opt for a vine-ripened tomato or a Roma tomato, as they’re delicate and have great flavor. The only kinds of tomatoes I wouldn’t recommend for this recipe are smaller tomatoes such as grape or cherry tomatoes, as they have a strong inherent sweetness that can be too much with the coconut milk.
What to serve with tomato soup? Tomato soup is classically (and rightfully so) served with fresh toasted bread or grilled cheese. I highly recommend choosing a side item like this that is able to be dipped into the soup and complement its sweet and savory flavors.
How to make tomato soup with coconut milk:
Tomato Soup With Coconut Milk
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 lbs of fresh tomatoes
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 cups of veggie broth
- 13.5 oz can of coconut milk
- Fresh basil (about 7 leaves)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut all of the fresh tomatoes in half, place them on a rimmed baking sheet, and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast them for about 30-35 minutes, until the tomatoes look jammy and caramelized. For extra roasted tomato flavor, you can broil the tomatoes for about 3-5 minutes before removing them from the oven. If you do this, be sure to watch them very carefully.
- Meanwhile, put a large dutch oven over medium heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Dice the yellow onion and add it to the pot. Season the onions with salt and pepper.
- Cook the onion for about 10 minutes, until it is translucent and soft. Finely chop the garlic cloves and add them to the pot to cook briefly once the onions are finished sautéing.
- Add the canned tomatoes and veggie broth to the dutch oven. Stir the ingredients together, season them with salt and pepper, and cook them over low heat until the roasted tomatoes are ready to come out of the oven.
- Add the roasted tomatoes to the pot, being sure to add all of the juices from the sheet pan as well.
- Add the fresh basil to the pot along with the coconut milk and cook over low heat for about 15 minutes, until the soup is thick and reduced slightly. During this time, you can use the back of a wooden spoon to mash the tomatoes and incorporate them into the soup.
- Blend the soup together off the heat. You can either use an immersion blender and blend the soup directly in the pot, or cool the soup and blend it in batches in a traditional blender.
Notes
Don’t be afraid of salt in this recipe. The coconut milk is beautifully sweet, but if the soup is under-seasoned it will appear to be overly sweet.
