Homemade Tomato Bisque (easy & authentic!)

Authentic French inspired recipe for tomato bisque that is easily made at home with a few whole ingredients and about 15 minutes cooking time.

Nothing says “fancy” quite as much as a gourmet-quality tomato bisque. When I enjoy a bowl, though, I prefer to make it myself for two reasons.

First, it’s surprisingly easy to make homemade bisque! You can whip up a large pan in about 15 minutes! In fact, I would suggest that making tomato bisque is one of the easiest soups for beginners to try.

Secondly, restaurant versions are typically made with cheap vegetable oils and thickened with GMO corn starch. It may taste delicious, but your digestion won’t be too happy about it.

Commercial Tomato Bisque vs Homemade

Check out the ingredients in the tomato bisque soup at Panera Bread listed below. I’ve highlighted the problematic ones. The list even includes MSG (aka “spices”), and synthetic vitamins. The citric acid, sugar, and nasty canola oil are almost certainly of GMO origin. Can you believe it’s upwards of $6 a bowl for this stuff that is a stomach ache waiting to happen?

Vegetarian Creamy Tomato Soup (Tomatoes [Tomatoes, Tomato Puree, Salt, Citric Acid], Water, Whipping Cream [Cream, Milk], Onions, Salted Butter [Pasteurized Cream, Salt], Seasoning [Sugar, Salt, Spices {Black Pepper, Celery Seed, Oregano, White Pepper, Red Pepper}, Canola Oil], Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Corn Starch, Garlic Puree [Garlic, Water]), Black Pepper Focaccia Croutons (Black Pepper Focaccia (Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Olive Oil Blend (Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Canola Oil).  (1)

Even if you order tomato bisque at a fancy restaurant made from scratch by a trained chef (as opposed to heated up in the microwave or dunked in boiling hot water in a plastic bag at Panera), it’s probably still thickened with synthetically fortified white flour. This is only a small step up from the cheap cornstarch!

This recipe for tomato bisque below to make at home yourself is of far better quality. It’s easy on the budget too at a cost of only about $1.50 per bowl! Your stomach will actually feel good after eating it (unlike the Panera version which makes me feel heavy and sometimes even unwell).

I like to make a big pan of this soup for lunch to go with grass-fed grilled cheese sandwiches using authentic sourdough bread from a family bakery.  And, yes of course…don’t hold back. Be sure to cut that sandwich in half and dip it right into the bowl of bisque with each and every bite ?

Our family loves to enjoy this soup on cold, drizzly days.

4 from 2 votes

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Homemade Tomato Bisque

Authentic French inspired recipe for tomato bisque that is easily made at home with a few whole ingredients and about 15 minutes cooking time.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine French

Keyword authentic, creamy, easy, real food

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 8

Calories 213 kcal

Author Sarah Pope

Ingredients

• 8 Tbl butter or one stick
• 8 Tbl sprouted flour
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 cups crushed tomatoes
• 1 cup tomato paste
• 1 Tbl dill
• sea salt to taste
• pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan on low-medium heat. See the picture above for the ideal size. It is better for the pan to be wide and not that deep to facilitate the constant stirring required to make smooth bisque.

2. Once the butter is melted, begin to sprinkle a bit of the sprouted flour into the butter, stirring constantly with a whisk as it continues to cook. Continue this process until all of the flour is absorbed and stirred into the butter. Continue simmering the butter/flour mixture on low-medium heat for one more minute until bubbly.

3. Slowly begin adding the milk into the pan with the butter/flour mixture. Continue stirring and adding until all of the milk is blended into the pan.

4. Slowly add the chicken broth to the pan in the same manner as the milk.

5. Cook the butter/flour/milk/broth mixture in the pan until it begins to bubble again. Once this happens, cook for another 2 minutes and no longer. The bisque base will be nice and thick at this point.

6. Stir in the tomato paste and the crushed tomatoes. Continue stirring until thoroughly blended and hot.

7. Sprinkle in the dried dill and a teaspoon or two of mineral-rich sea salt and a bit of pepper to really zing the flavor. Add enough to suit your taste buds.

8. Enjoy immediately with your choice of sandwich. Once cool, refrigerate the bisque in a sealed container. Soup will be good to reheat for leftovers for 4 days.

Recipe Notes

If you wish the bisque to be extra creamy, substitute the 3 cups of milk with 1.5 cups whole milk and 1.5 cups cream.

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Tomato Bisque

Amount Per Serving (1 cup)

Calories 213 Calories from Fat 126

% Daily Value*

Fat 14g22%

Saturated Fat 9g45%

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 4g

Cholesterol 39mg13%

Sodium 50mg2%

Carbohydrates 13.5g5%

Fiber 2g8%

Protein 7.5g15%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.