Homemade vegan Tomato Basil Soup is made with fresh tomatoes simmered with onion, garlic, and sweet basil for a deliciously creamy tomato soup that’s ready in 30 minutes!
Soup is on with this quick and easy vegan tomato basil soup bursting with tomato flavor and made with just a handful of ingredients.
It’s a new favorite around our home, and I know you’re going to love it too!
Why We Love This Recipe!
- Made from scratch, it calls for using fresh whole food plant-based ingredients and is 100% dairy-free!
- If you don’t have all the fresh ingredients, the recipe is easily customizable using canned or dried ingredients.
- It’s great alone but can be made into a hearty meal with a sandwich, salad, or pasta on the side.
- Leftovers taste even better, making this soup great for to-go lunches or to freeze for later!
If you’re a soup lover like myself, a few other delicious and vegan soup recipes worth checking out are this Vegan Minestrone Soup, Creamy Broccoli + Red Lentil Soup, simple Roasted Butternut Squash Soup or Very Good Split Pea Soup.
Ingredient Notes
Here is everything you will need:
- Tomatoes – use roma, plum or tomatoes on the vine (can sub with canned as noted in the recipe).
- Onion – I used white, but red, yellow or brown is ok too.
- Basil – fresh is best, but can sub with dried basil if needed.
- Oregano – dried or fresh
- Garlic – fresh is best, can sub with garlic powder as well.
- Vegetable Broth – low-sodium preferred.
- Vegan cream – use store bought or make your own vegan cream (can also sub with plant milk)
- Salt + pepper – to taste.
How To Make Tomato Basil Soup
- Prep: Start by prepping the onion and garlic. Cut the quarter the tomatoes or cut into 1 inch pieces if using larger tomatoes.
- Saute: In a heavy bottom pan, saute the onion with oil or water for 7 minutes, add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Add remaining ingredients: Add the tomatoes, basil, oregano, and liquids.
- Simmer: Bring the chunky soup to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Puree: Once soup is done, let rest for 10 minutes to cool. Using an immersion blender or cup blender, puree the soup until desired consistency. Taste for flavor, adding more salt as needed.
Top Tips
- Tasting for flavor. If the finished soup seems at all bland, season with more salt.
- Recommended equipment. I love using my immersion blender (affiliate link) for pureeing soups. A standing blender works as well, but it may take two batches to puree.
How To Store + Reheat
- Refrigerator: Leftovers will keep for 5 – 6 days in the refrigerator, stored in a covered container.
- Freezer: Tomato basil soup is freezer friendly and freezes well for up to 2 – 3 months. To freeze, let cool completely and store in multi-use, freezer safe containers (affiliate link), leaving ½ inch head space for expansion. You can also freeze larger portions in large freezer ziplock bags. Let thaw before reheating.
- Reheat: Simply re-warm on the stovetop over low heat until warmed through. Alternatively, reheat in the microwave using 30 – 60 second intervals, stirring after each, until warm.
- Meal Prep: It makes a great meal prep for the week with homemade Artisan Bread or Vegan Naan on the side for soaking up the juices.
How To Thicken Vegan Tomato Basil Soup
These are my favorite dairy-free ways to thicken this soup:
- Add 1 – 2 tablespoons vegan cream or Vegan Sour Cream.
- Add 1 – 2 tablespoons tahini or cashew butter.
- Use more pureed tomatoes.
Serving Suggestions
This tomato basil soup is great alone for a light meal but can be made even heartier with a little something extra on the side. Here are a few of my favorite pairings:
- Topping: Top with crumbled Coconut Bacon, croutons, or Crispy Roasted Chickpeas for crunchy texture.
- Sandwich: It doesn’t get more classic than pairing a vegan grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup (I used Dave’s Killer Bread + Field Roast Chao vegan cheese). Another great option is this Grilled Hummus Sandwich + Sauteed Onions, Tomato & Arugula or Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich!
- Salad: Serve with Classic House Salad or simple leafy green salad with Vegan Ranch or Healthy Flax & Evo Balsamic Vinaigrette.
- Grain: Add up to ½ cup of Farro, Quinoa, brown rice, white rice, or even this Cilantro Lime Rice to the soup for texture and healthy carbs.
- Bread: Serve with homemade Artisan Bread, soft and chewy Vegan Naan, or gluten-free Socca flatbread to soak up the juices.
- Pizza: Serve with this easy and delicious Zucchini Flatbread-White Pizza.
- Veggies: Serve with Savory Sauteed Kale, Skillet Asparagus + Tomato Medley.
If you try this tomato basil soup recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment and rate it below. I love to hear what you think, or any changes you make.
PrintTomato Basil Soup (Vegan)
Tomato Basil Soup is made with fresh tomatoes simmered with onion, garlic and sweet basil for a deliciously creamy tomato soup that’s ready in about 30 minutes!
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 25 min
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4 – 6 1x
- Category: Entree, Soup
- Method: stovetop, simmer
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil or ¼ cup water
- 1 large white onion, sliced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 ½ lbs. tomatoes (roma, plum or tomatoes on the vine)
- ½ cup basil leaves (about 10 –12 large leaves) or 2 teaspoons dried
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- salt + pepper, to taste
- vegan cream, to serve
Instructions
Prep: Start by prepping the onion and garlic. Cut the quarter the tomatoes or cut into 1 inch pieces if using larger tomatoes.
Saute: In a heavy bottom pan, heat oil or water over medium heat, saute the onion for 7 minutes, add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
Add remaining ingredients: Add the tomatoes, basil, oregano, pinch of salt and pepper, and broth.
Simmer: Bring the chunky soup to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Puree: Once soup is done, let rest for 10 minutes to cool. Using an immersion blender or cup blender, puree the soup until desired consistency. Season with more salt & pepper as needed. If soup seems bland, it needs more salt. Stir in a couple tablespoons of vegan cream if you like.
Serve: Serve with a drizzle of vegan cream, basil and fresh cracked pepper. For a little heat, add a pinch of red pepper flakes. Pair with homemade Artisan Bread or soft and chewy Vegan Naan for soaking up the juices.
Store: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 days in a covered container. To store longer, freeze for up to 2 – 3 months.
Notes
If you don’t have good fresh tomatoes, sub with 2 – 28oz. cans whole peeled tomatoes, juices and all.
Other thickening ideas: Add 1 – 2 tablespoons tahini or cashew butter to the pot. Add more pureed tomatoes.
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT: I love using my immersion blender (affiliate link) for pureeing soups. It’s easy to clean, small and fits well in a utensil drawer. For more of my favorite cooking tools, shop my kitchen essentials.
Keywords: vegan tomato basil soup, healthy tomato soup
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Deb Charette says
I tried this recipe today with half real tomatoes from the vine and large whole tomatoes. I was excited to use my fresh basil. Substituted beef bouillon as no liquid beef . Added about one fourth cup almond milk and a bit of Parmesan cheese. It was yummy and filling. Thanks for sharing.
Amelia says
Thank you for the recipe! To sub with canned tomatoes, is it 2 cans of whole tomatoes, 28 ounces each for a total of 56 ounces, or is it 2 smaller cans for a total of 28 ounces?
Julie | The Simple Veganista says
Great question, Amelia! I can see how that is a bit confusing. It’s two – 28-ounce cans, totaling 56 ounces. I’ve updated the notes, so it reads better. Thanks for pointing it out, and enjoy the soup!
Penny says
Very good recipe. Thank you for sharing! I allowed mine to cook slowly for several hours and I added a can of cherry tomatoes along with the roma tomatoes. I also used red pepper flakes because I like it a little spicy. The fresh basil leaves made a difference in the flavor… very good!
★★★★★
mary replogle says
This was delicious and sooooo easy. I didn’t add the cream although I thought about adding some tahini……I was afraid I’d ruin the all too perfect flavor and texture. I will definitely be making this again soon.
★★★★★
Margaret Sullivan says
This is by far the easiest, and most flavorful tomato soup I’ve made – totally simple and tasty. It pairs well with the vegan naan recipe, or a vegan grilled cheese.
★★★★★
Christine Gilpatrick says
I made it with coconut yogurt instead of vegan cream and it was good!
★★★★★
ERivera says
Better than I thought
★★★★★