Zucchini Tomato Soup
Why Is My Zucchini Tomato Soup So Good!
- It’s an easy way to sneak more veggies into the meal, something my classic tomato soup and tomato bisque recipe don’t quite offer, since the zucchini blends right in without changing the flavor you love.
- Sautéing the onion and zucchini first builds a more flavorful base instead of just simmering everything together from the start.
- Canned tomatoes and tomato paste give this soup deep, concentrated tomato flavor any time of year, so you don’t have to wait on peak-season tomatoes
- It’s creamy and thick enough to be comforting and filling, and it’s amazing served with a grilled cheese on the side.
- Despite being homemade, it’s not a hassle at all: simmer everything until softened, then blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Flavorful, filling, and genuinely easy.
- It’s a great recipe for the end of summer, going to fall, with all the fresh, summery flavor you love in a warm, cozy bowl. Perfect way to use up all the zucchini too!
- If you live somewhere warm year-round, like I do here in Florida, you’ll still love it as a vegetable soup any time of year.
Table of Contents
Key Ingredients and Notes
- Zucchini – dice it small so it cooks through quickly and blends completely smooth. Smaller zucchini (6-8 inches) also tend to taste sweeter and less bitter than oversized ones. If you have extra on hand, my zucchini fritters are a great way to use it up.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes – canned tomatoes are what give this soup its bright, concentrated flavor no matter the season. Look for a can that’s just tomatoes, without added herbs or seasoning blends, so you’re in control of the flavor. I personally like fire roasted tomatoes for additional flavor depth.
- Chicken Stock – homemade chicken stock gives the soup a richer, more savory base, but a good low-sodium (or no salt added) store-bought stock works well too.
- Red Pepper Flakes – add more or less to adjust the heat, or leave them out completely for a milder, kid-friendly bowl.
- Heavy Whipping Cream – this is what gives the soup its rich, creamy finish. Half and half works too, for a slightly lighter texture.
- Parmesan Cheese – use freshly grated Parmesan here instead of the pre-shredded, bagged kind. Fresh Parmesan melts smoothly into the soup, while bagged Parmesan tends to turn grainy.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and instructions.
How to Make Zucchini Tomato Soup: Step by Step and Tips
- Dice the vegetables. Cut the onion and zucchini into small, even cubes so everything cooks at the same rate and blends better later.
- Build the flavor base. Sauté the onion in oil until transparent, then add the zucchini and cook for a couple more minutes. I like to let them sear some too because that browning will add more flavor to the soup too.
- Add the tomatoes and paste. Stir in the canned tomatoes (whole can) and tomato paste, then season with sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes. This is a good time to taste and adjust if needed. The tomato paste deepens the tomato flavor beyond what the canned tomatoes give on their own.
- Simmer low and slow. Add the warmed chicken stock, lower the heat, cover, and simmer for about 30-40 minutes. This slow simmer is what breaks the zucchini down completely and lets the tomato flavor concentrate, so don’t rush it. Stir in the fresh basil for the last couple of minutes of cooking.
- Blend to your texture preference. Take the pot off the heat and use an immersion blender to purée the soup. (You can also use a standing hot/cold blender that has a way to release the steam thole blending.) Blend it completely smooth.
- Finish it creamy and cheesy. Return the pot to the stove over medium-low heat and stir in the heavy cream and Parmesan. Taste and add more salt if needed, then cook for just another minute or two before serving.
PRO TIP: You can leave a few little chunks when blending if that’s your preference or blend it completely smooth. All depends on your textural preference.
Ways to Serve Zucchini Tomato Soup
- Classic tomato soup and grilled cheese is a lunch pairing that never gets old, and this zucchini version is no exception. Dress it up with an Italian grilled cheese, an apple bacon Gouda grilled cheese, or a jalapeno popper grilled cheese if you want a little kick.
- For something lighter, pair a bowl with a green salad tossed in green goddess dressing or homemade Italian dressing.
- This soup also makes a lovely starter before a pasta dinner. Serve a small bowl ahead of homemade gnocchi, Instant Pot spaghetti, or pasta primavera.
Storing, Reheating, and Freezing Instructions
- Storage – Transfer leftover soup to a jar or another airtight container and refrigerate for 3 to 4 days.
- Reheating – Reheat on the stove in a pot over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t scorch on the bottom. You can also microwave it in 45-second increments, stirring in between, until warmed through.
- Freezing – I recommend freezing without cream and parmesan cheese. Cool the soup quickly in an ice bath, or let it cool at room temperature for no more than two hours. Transfer to an airtight, freezer-safe container, leaving room for the soup to expand, and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Thaw slowly in the refrigerator overnight before reheating. Add the cream and cheese when reheating on stovetop.
Tomato Zucchini Soup Recipe FAQs
Yes! All of the ingredients in this soup recipe are naturally gluten-free.
Double check the labels on store-bought ingredients as always, just in case.
Hiding vegetables in soup is a great way to get your family to eat more veggies – I do it all the time! These are some easy-to-hide vegetables that you can add: carrots, peas, summer squash, and even a few broccoli or cauliflower.
Since it’s a blended soup, adding a few of these veggies would actually be easy. Don’t add too much broccoli or cauliflower though because they have a stronger flavor and are easier to detect.
Yes, though canned tomatoes are what give this soup its rich and deep flavor and consistent texture. If you’d rather use fresh, plan on about 2 pounds of ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped, simmered a longer (I’d give the soup an hour to an hour and a half to simmer or low) so they break down and concentrate before you stir in the tomato paste.
Zucchini can hold a lot of water, so it’s possible it added too much liquid to the soup. If your soup still feels thin after blending, let it simmer uncovered for a 15-20 more minutes to cook out some liquid, before stirring in the cream to cook off the extra liquid.
This recipe isn’t a good candidate for home canning because it contains heavy cream and Parmesan. Dairy changes the density and heat penetration of a recipe in ways that haven’t been tested for safe home canning, so USDA guidelines don’t cover cream-based soups. Freezing is the safe way to store this one long term.
A little bitterness is usually just environmental stress on the plant (heat, drought, or an overgrown zucchini) and it’s harmless, just less pleasant. To help that, you can peel the zucchini and take out the seeds. Chop it and salt it and leave it in a colander for about 30 minutes.
But if a raw bite tastes intensely, unmistakably bitter, that’s a sign of a natural compound called cucurbitacin building up, and it’s not safe to cook around. Taste a small raw piece before adding zucchini to the pot, and if it’s sharply bitter, throw that one out.
More Tasty Zucchini Recipes To Try
- Sweet Zucchini Bread
- Dark Chocolate Zucchini Muffins
- Parmesan Roasted Zucchini
- Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- Zucchini Stir Fry
- Cheesy Zucchini Pasta
- Zucchini Cake with Frosting
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Tomato Zucchini Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 1 yellow onion
- .75 lb zucchini
- 28 oz can tomatoes diced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup low sodium chicken stock warmed
- salt
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes more or less if you like it spicier or not
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh basil minced
- 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- some more Parmesan cheese for topping each plate
Instructions
- Dice onion and zucchini into small cubes and set aside.
- Preheat a pot over medium heat. Add canola oil to the pot.
- Add diced onions to the pot and saute until transparent.
- Add diced zucchini, mix and saute for a couple of minutes.
- Add the entire content of the canned diced tomatoes.
- Stir in tomato paste.
- Add sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes and stir well.
- Simmer for a few minutes and then add warmed chicken stock.
- Lower heat to medium-low. Stir, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes. Stir once in a while.
- Add fresh basil and cook for a couple more minutes.
- Take soup off heat and use an immersion blender to blend it until there is no more chunks. (Or you can leave a few little chunks if that’s your preference.)
- Place the pot back on the stove, still on medium-low, and stir in heavy cream and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Taste to see if you need to add more salt.
- Cook for just a couple more minutes. Take off heat and serve.
Video
Notes
- Need to add move vegetables? Hiding vegetables in soup is a great way to get your family to eat more veggies – I do it all the time! These are some easy-to-hide vegetables that you can add: carrots, peas, summer squash, and even a few broccoli or cauliflower. Don’t add too much broccoli or cauliflower because they have a stronger flavor and are easier to detect.
- Storage – Transfer leftover soup into a jar or other airtight food storage container. Store it in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.
- Reheating – For the best consistency, reheat this tomato soup in a sauce pot, on the stove, over medium-low heat. Make sure to stir occasionally. You can also microwave it in increments of about 45 seconds and stirring in between until warmed through.
- Freezing – check the post for freezing instructions.
Nutrition
Originally published on Will Cook For Smiles in September 2018.
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Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Just wondering if I could add ground sausage to this soup??? Would the consistency hold up?
Yes, absolutely! I would cook the ground sausage first, then remove it from the pan. If you’d like, you can sauté the onions in the sausage drippings for some extra flavor. Once the soup is finished and blended, stir the cooked sausage back in. I wouldn’t blend the sausage with the soup, though, you’ll get a much better texture by adding it at the end. I hope you enjoy it!
Looks delicious 😋 any recommendations on pressure canning this?
Thank you! 😊 I’m so glad you think it looks delicious! I’m sorry, but I don’t have any experience with pressure canning, so I can’t confidently recommend a safe method.
How would I substitute the canned tomatoes and the tomato paste for garden tomatoes?
Fresh garden tomatoes will work, but the soup won’t have quite the same rich, deep tomato flavor that canned tomatoes provide. For a good substitute, use about 28 ounces of chopped fresh tomatoes in place of the canned tomatoes. I would still keep the same amount of tomato paste, since it adds a concentrated tomato flavor and richness that fresh tomatoes alone don’t have. I hope you enjoy the recipe! 🙂
The zucchini tomato soup is delicious! Before I served it, I let it sit/marinade in the refrigerator for 2 days to enhance the flavors. Since I have my own basil plant that is producing well this summer, I loaded the soup with fresh basil. I had a huge zucchini from my garden and used a little more than a pound of zucchini. This was served with leftover roast beef, shredded and served in a sandwich bun. Tomato paste freezes well so there is enough in the freezer for another batch of soup. My husband loved it, too. I will definitely make this again. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Wow, that sounds amazing! I love how you made it your own with extra zucchini and fresh basil from your garden. The roast beef sandwich pairing is such a yummy idea too! Thanks for stopping by to tell me abou it, I am so glad you like the recipe!
This is my families favorite tomato soup recipe! We eat it at least twice a month as long as it is cool enough for soup. So incredibly delicious. And so easy. My older kids actually ask for this for breakfast…which we do love healthy food and this is both healthy and delish!
Thank you so much for sharing this! I’m so happy to hear it’s a family favorite – and even for breakfast! Knowing that your kids enjoy it that much is the best compliment. I love that it’s a go-to meal in cooler weather and that it checks the boxes for both health and taste. Thank you for making it a part of your family’s table! 😊
This was great!! I was able to use onions , garlic, tomatoes and zucchini from my garden… I added a dollap of homemade pesto because i had already used up my basil. thanks!! It was just rigth!
I am so glad you liked it, Melissa!
I made this soup today, it has so much flavor, we really enjoyed it.
Thank you for your feedback! I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed the soup and found it flavorful. It always makes me happy to know my recipes are being enjoyed. 😀
Delicious!!! I make and share and hook others on the yumminess!!!
Thank you so much! That makes me so happy to hear! 😊 I’m thrilled you loved it, and I really appreciate you sharing it with others Thank you for your support!
This is really good. Shared recipe and every other person agrees! A definite keeper!
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you enjoyed it, and I really appreciate you sharing the recipe with others. It means a lot to hear that everyone loved it. 😊