Good food doesn’t always need to be made from scratch. Life is busy and cooking should be fun, not another chore to make time for. The problem is that for many of us, when we’re hungry and low on time we often resort to those options available that are quick and simple but not very nutritious (cue the boxed mac n’ cheese). I do that too from time to time, but I know personally if that happens often enough I don’t feel so good in my gut. This Hearty Tomato Soup is just as fast and convenient as other boxed products and is flavorful and healthy for you! With just a bit of planning ahead you can whip up this soup in about 20 minutes and have enough for leftovers!
Ingredients
- Boxed or canned tomato soup
- Shredded chicken
- Bell pepper
- Tomato
- Kale
. For the tomato soup, choose whichever brand and type you prefer. I recommend Pacific Tomato Soup because it’s my absolute favorite. Pacific makes all kinds of soups that are healthy and delicious, so if this brand is in stores in your area, give it a try!
. For this recipe I use a can of cooked chicken breast, usually from Costco. I think canned is the most convenient, but you can use whatever pre-cooked shredded chicken you want.
. Green pepper adds a little bitterness to the salt in the soup. If you’re low on time during the day, chop up your pepper ahead of time. This veggie stays very well in and out of the soup.
. Roma is typically the least expensive tomato variety in stores and usually available year round, but you can substitute it with your favorite kind.
. I like to add a sturdy, dark leafy green to this soup, but it doesn’t have to be kale if that’s not easily accessible to you.
How to Make This Soup
First, prep your veggies. Wash and chop the bell pepper and the leafy green. If you’re using kale, make sure to de-stem it by grasping the base of the stem with one hand and gently pull upwards with the other hand, tearing the leaves off. Both vegetables need a little time to soften, so I recommend putting them in the pot first with a splash of soup and heating on medium high, covered, for a few minutes. That will give those tougher more fibrous ingredients a head start over the other ingredients that don’t need as much cook time.
After a few minutes, add the rest of the soup, the chicken, beans, and tomato. Level up by adding a small handful of crumbled bacon to this soup! Stir it every minute or so until it’s hot and ready to eat. Make suer to taste it along the way so you can season it how you like. Top the steaming bowl of soup with sour cream, shredded cheese, black olives, or some avocado and voila! Quick, easy, and jam packed with good cheap ingredients.
This soup works well for meal prepping, so feel free to double the recipe for the week. Just keep the toppings separate until you’re ready too eat.
What Makes it Southwestern?
Firstly, it’s important to note that this soup is a fairly lazy ode to the food of the Southwest. Here in the Pacific Northwest, true authentic ingredients are harder to come by for a dish like this. Southwestern food comes from the Southwestern United States: New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada. Corn, beans, and squash are the three foundational pillars of this cuisine. To make the soup work for me, I adapted these pillars by using black instead of pinto beans and yellow instead of blue corn. Likewise, I left squash out because it wouldn’t hold up well in this soup. Closely following the three foundational pillars come the New Mexico chile, otherwise known as the Hatch chile. Fresh hatch chiles are not very commonly found where I live, but they can be bought canned and stirred into the soup.
Southwestern Hearty Tomato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 box Pacific Tomato Soup, roughly 4 cups
- 7 oz can shredded chicken
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 1 15 oz can black beans, drained
- 1 roma tomato, chopped
- 2 cups kale, de-stemmed & chopped
- 1 15 oz can whole kernel golden corn, drained
Optional:
- Salt, pepper, cayenne, red pepper flakes, onion powder for seasoning
- Dollop sour cream to top
- Olives to top
- Shredded cheese to top
Instructions
- Prepare your ingredients by washing and chopping all the produce.
- Throw it all in a medium pot and heat through for at least 10 minutes to let kale soften, stirring occasionally.
- Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, black olives, or avocado.
Notes
- An additional seasoning I recommend is TJs Chili Lime! It adds a bright, fresh feeling.
- This soup is very basic, so feel free to add your favorite savory seasonings.