Indian Tomato Soup (No Heavy Cream)

This vibrant indian tomato soup recipe truly celerates the sweetness & acidity of fresh tomatoes. It's pleasantly tangy, not too heavy on spices; instead, they provide a subtle warmth and aromatic depth to its taste. Plus, it includes a secret ingredient that you'll discover below!

Tomato soup is one of the most popular vegetarian soup in India. You will find it on wedding menus, in restaurants, in pre packaged soup packets and on the street sides. It is poured in small glasses and served on railway journeys as a comforting treat.

I grew up on different kinds of indian soup that mom made at home. With tomatoes, she cooked tomato shorba, a very thin, strained tomato soup with prominent taste of black pepper.

My indian tomato soup recipe is based on hers, except I don't strain it, rather blend it to make it velvety consistency. She didn't add sugar to hers, but I like to make mine sour, spicy & slight sweet. It is gluten free, cornstarch free and can be made in an instant pot or pressure cooker if you desire(instructions included).

It is the perfect soup to make during September when summer tomatoes are still available at the markets(hence you get great tomato flavor). However evenings are cool enough to curl up and get cozy with a bowl of soup.

In India, breadsticks or golden croutons are quite popular as a garnish or on the side. But, these mini cheese crackers that you see in the images work great- try it!

Choosing Tomatoes

1. You need firm, ripe tomatoes that aren't too sour. They should be flavorful, sweet and quite simply - taste good! Use any variety of juicy tomatoes you like. I like using ripe roma tomatoes.
2. Sometimes, even though the tomatoes are meaty & reddest looking, but their seeds could be bitter. I suggest doing a taste test before using them.
3. It is uncommon to make soup with canned tomatoes in india. I haven't used canned tomatoes for making soup ever or tested the recipe with it.
4. You don't have to worry about tomato skins in this recipe because we are going to blend them to smooth.

The Secret Ingredient

My recipe has a (slightly) unexpected ingredient that adds contributes to its consistency and texture. This wonderful secret ingredient is yellow mung lentils. We are just going to 2 tablespoons of lentils and they boost the creaminess and body (thickness) of the soup without having to use heavy cream, potatoes or starches.

The lentils add depth to the flavor of soup with a subtle, earthy note that blends right in. You won't notice them. In a pinch, you could use red lentils instead of yellow mung lentils.

Other Ingredients

• Oil - Is for sauteeing the onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic.
• Beetroot - We need only a few pieces and they contribute to the bright color of the soup.
• Ginger, Garlic & Cilantro Stems - For warmth, aroma and flavor. Cilantro stems are full of flavor and they lend a citrusy grassy notes to the soup. However, don't go overboard else the soup gets bitter.
• Indian Spices - Bay leaf, green cardamom, kashmiri red chili powder (for color) and black pepper powder (I use freshly ground). You could also add little bit of cumin seeds if you wish. 
• Green Chilies - The only heat in the recipe comes from these small indian green chilies. You could use thai bird chilies instead, reduce the quantity or completely leave them out.
• Sugar - to balance out the acidity of tomatoes. Vary the quantity depending on your taste preferance.
• Salted Butter - For finishing the soup as well as for adding while serving.
• Lemon Juice - Is optional, I add a few drops at the very end but can be skipped.
• Hot Water - To be used for cooking and for adjusting the consistency of soup. Broth are not that common in indian soups. However, you could use vegetable stock or (my favorite, when using) is the better than bouillon vegetarian base. Be careful if you use the boullion, since it is highly salty.

How To Make Indian Tomato Soup

1. Start by washing and soaking the yellow mung lentils in excess water. While the lentils soak, you can prepare the ingredients- chop the different vegetables, measure the spices etc.
2. In a cooking pot (3 qt), heat up oil on medium heat. Add the bayleaf and green cardamom to the hot oil.
3. Next, add the chopped ginger, garlic, cilantro stems and green chilies to the oil. Fry for a minute or so untill you smell a nice aroma.
4. Next, add the onions into the pot. Lightly brown for 3-4 minutes until they appear soft and translucent.

5. Add the chopped tomatoes, beetroot pieces and soaked & drained lentils next to the pot. Sprinkle red chili powder and salt.
6. Saute the tomatoes for good 3-4 minutes on low medium heat with the aromatics till they begin to soften.

7. Pour hot water over the tomatoes and on low medium flame, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and let cook for 18-22 minutes or until the tomatoes, vegetables and lentils are soft.
8. Open the lid, pick and discard the bay leaf and green cardamom. Let the tomato mixture cool slightly.

9. Add the tomato mixture to a blender jar and blend to smooth puree. You could also puree it with immersion blender.
10. Pour the blended tomato soup back to the cooking pot placed on low medium flame. At this point, add more water if you wish to thin out the soup further.
11. Mix in the butter, black pepper powder, sugar and lemon juice(if using).
12. Bring the soup to a slow boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes.

13. Ladle into serving bowls and garnish with more black pepper and butter if desired. You can also add some chaat masala for a salty kick. Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves and serve warm.

Using Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker

• Set your instant pot to "SAUTE" and do all the steps of sauteeing the aromatics, onion and tomatoes as written above. Stick the timings I mentioned.
• Cancel the saute function and add the hot water or broth.
• Set the instant pot to "PRESSURE COOK" for 8-10 minutes with vent is seal position. For pressure cooker, cook on medium heat for 3-4 whistles.
• Once the cooking time is up, allow natural pressure release for 10 minutes and then lift off the instant pot vent manually to release all the steam.
• Blend and simmer the soup for 3-5 minutes on "SAUTE" mode to warm up.

Recipe Tips

• Make sure that the tomatoes you are using arent too sour.
• You can mix in ⅓ cup heavy cream at the very end and hold off on the butter if you want to make creamy tomato soup.