This is a no-judgment zone, right? Good, because I’ve had soup for dinner every night this week. From Pho to chicken tortilla to Italian Wedding Soup, I just can’t get enough—and I’m totally okay with it. While I admittedly crave soup all throughout the year, even in the heat of summer, my cravings reach their peak during winter. Comfort soup recipes are like a warm hug in a bowl, especially with the cooler temps outside.
One of the most valuable cooking lessons I’ve learned in 2021 is that soup is actually pretty easy to make. Homemade soup has always intimidated me, but I finally conquered my fear and I’m never going back. I still stan my favorite soup spots in Austin—Soup Peddler, Sip Pho, and Central Market—but cooking my own soup at home has become my favorite winter evening activity. Arguably the best outcome of my soup addiction is this list of tried-and-true comfort soup recipes. Whether you’re sick, cold, or just have a soup-scratch to itch, these 14 recipes are guaranteed to bring you some cozy comfort.
14 Comfort Soup Recipes to Try This Week
Vegan Butternut Squash Soup
Why We Love It: This comforting vegan soup is made creamy with coconut milk. It’s healthy, delicious, and so satisfying. Plus, it utilizes one of my favorite winter veggies, butternut squash. Camille makes this soup whenever her body needs a reset, and you’ll want to, too.
Hero Ingredient: Butternut squash is the ultimate soup base.
Easy 1-Pot Tomato Soup (Vegan) from Minimalist Baker
Why We Love It: Tomato Soup and a grilled cheese sandwich might be my ultimate comfort meal. I’ve always loved the tomato soup from La Madeleine, but this easy and healthy recipe gives it a run for its money. It keeps the ingredients to just the necessities, the time to a minimum, and the dishes down to one pot.
Hero Ingredient: I guess it would be weird if I didn’t say tomatoes.
One-Pot Spicy Vegan Corn Soup
Why We Love It: This 30-minute, one-pot corn soup is perfect for a cozy night in. A lot of people complain that corn soups can be too sweet, so Suruchi smartly balanced the corn flavor with spice from jalapeños, poblanos, and sriracha. It’s a quick and flavorful soup that is sure to become part of your weeknight rotation.
Hero Ingredient: The jalepeños are the ultimate spicy secret.
5-Ingredient Green Chile Stew from The Defined Dish
Why We Love It: This Green Chile Stew is Whole-30 compliant, yet still ultra comforting. A lot of times, stews and soups make clean eating so easy because they are packed with protein and vegetables. This recipe has pork, onions, potatoes, green chiles, and all the best soup garnishes. Because of its simplicity, you’ll definitely be making this more than once this winter.
Hero Ingredient: Extra green chiles, please.
Easy Mexican Chicken & Rice Soup
Why We Love It: This chicken and rice soup should be prescribed for every illness. Whenever I have a cold, the only thing that sounds remotely appetizing is a simple soup that’s packed with healing nutrients, and this one is perfect. All you have to do is throw everything on the pot and wait for the magic to happen.
Hero Ingredient: The broth that this soup creates should be sold by the jar.
Green Curry Chicken Noodle Soup from The Defined Dish
Why We Love It: Not that traditional chicken noodle soup really needs an upgrade, but this recipe takes the flavors to the next level. It uses green curry paste coconut milk to give it an Indian-cuisine flare, and the lime, cilantro, and Thai basil garnishes add a beautiful pop of color. This recipe might seem complicated at first glance, but it actually comes together in 30 minutes.
Hero Ingredient: The green curry paste really makes this soup.
25-Minute Wonton Soup with Sesame Chili Oil from Half Baked Harvest
Why We Love It: Craving Chinese takeout but too cold to leave your house? Enter: faster, healthier, easier, homemade Wonton Soup. This recipe uses store-bought wontons, which totally simplifies the cooking process, and chars the vegetables before hand, which is a delicious detail you can’t skip. All in all, this soup is nothing short of comforting.
Hero Ingredient: I want to put the homemade sesame chili oil on top of everything.
Easy Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup
Why We Love It: This easy Mexican chicken tortilla soup recipe is a family classic at Camille’s house. To this day, it’s one of her most popular Instagram recipes, so if you haven’t made it yet, this is your sign. It’s the perfect serve-yourself recipe for family gatherings, as well.
Hero Ingredient: Obviously I’m going to choose the homemade tortilla strips.
Easy Vegetarian Pho from Love & Lemons
Why We Love It: As I mentioned earlier, I love pho. It’s an off-week when I don’t pick up from Sip Pho at least once. However, the takeout window is going to start to miss me now that I’ve discovered this easy recipe. While this is not an entirely authentic recipe, as it gets the flavor from mushrooms instead of meat, it’s still super comforting and extra light.
Hero Ingredient: The mushrooms work magic.
Creamy French Onion and Mushroom Soup from Half Baked Harvest
Why We Love It: There could never be a list of comfort soup recipes that didn’t include some sort of French onion soup. This recipe, however, goes above and beyond with its caramelized onions, a touch of cream, and double the amount of herbs. While this isn’t the healthiest soup, thanks to the delicious cheesy bread topping, it’s definitely one of the most comforting.
Hero Ingredient: The wild mushrooms have a wild effect.
Potato Leek Soup from What’s Gaby Cooking
Why We Love It: This herby potato leek soup is a potato lover’s dream. Warm, hearty, and delicious. It also freezes super well, so it’s perfect for meal planning, meal deliveries, leftovers etc.
Hero Ingredient: Hot potato.
Creamy Dairy Free Chicken and Vegetable Soup from Nyssa’s Kitchen
Why We Love It: This soup is the definition of healthy comfort food. Afterall, sometimes the most comforting thing is giving your body exactly what it needs. It has all the flavors of a classic chicken soup, but with the addition of a creamy tomato base and spinach. Plus, it’s gluten-free, dairy-free, and paleo, so even your pickiest family members will enjoy this soup.
Hero Ingredient: Cashews make a delicious cashew cream that really levels up the comfort factor.
Black Bean Soup from The Defined Dish
Why We Love It: Believe it or not, this was the recipe that taught me to love making soups. I had a can of black beans sitting in my pantry and this was the perfect use. It’s super easy to make but does not skimp on flavor—it’s got spice, tang, and heartiness. Serve this with fritos for the ultimate winter football night-in.
Hero Ingredient: Put that can of black beans to work.
Italian Wedding Soup from Cooking Classy
Why We Love It: Italian wedding soup is my roommate’s soup of choice, so of course we had to attempt to make it ourselves. We made it with plain beef meatballs and couscous for the pasta, and thought it was amazing. This recipe calls for a combo of beef and pork meatballs, but I think you could use any meat you wanted for an equally yummy soup. The spinach, celery, onions, and carrots also add lots of nutrients, but feel free to play around with veggie combinations.
Hero Ingredient: The mini pasta makes this soup all the more hearty and comforting.
What’s your go-to comfort soup? Drop the recipe in the comments below.
