The Tomato-Beef Soup You’ll Crave All Winter
This week’s standout: fragrant tomatoes meet melt-in-your-mouth meat in a must-try dish set to take over your dinner lineup.
Cold evening, busy day, or you just want something that hugs you back? This tomato and beef soup is that bowl. It has deep, meaty comfort with a bright tomato edge, smells fantastic, and actually keeps you full. Beef brings the staying power, tomatoes bring lycopene and vitamins, and the whole thing asks for very little effort. Crowd-pleaser energy.
What you need
- Beef shoulder or brisket — 400 g
- Fresh tomatoes — 500 g
- Yellow onion — 1 small (about 80 g)
- Carrot — 1 medium (about 100 g)
- Celery stalk — 1
- Garlic — 2 cloves
- Tomato paste — 2 tbsp
- Olive oil — 2 tbsp
- Water or beef stock — 1.5 liters
- Bay leaf — 1
- Salt — to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper — a pinch
- Fresh parsley — a few sprigs for serving
How to make it
Start with the beef. Rinse it, pat it dry, and cut it into small cubes. Get a deep pot hot, add the olive oil, and sear the beef over high heat until it picks up a solid brown crust. That browning pays you back later with richer flavor and juicy meat.
While the beef is working, prep the vegetables. Finely chop the onion, grate the carrot on the large holes, and slice the celery into small pieces. Stir the vegetables into the pot with the beef and cook for 3–4 minutes, until the onion turns translucent and the carrot softens.
Tomato time. Score and blanch the tomatoes, peel off the skins, and dice them. Add the tomatoes to the pot along with the tomato paste. Stir and let everything simmer over medium heat for about 5 minutes so the tomato flavor opens up and the base turns nicely robust.
Pour in the hot water or beef stock. Add the bay leaf, a measured pinch of black pepper, and salt to taste. Bring it to a boil, then drop the heat to low. Cover and let it quietly simmer for 1 to 1.5 hours, until the beef turns tender and mellow. Five minutes before you call it done, finely chop the garlic and stir it in.
Take the pot off the heat and give the soup 10–15 minutes to settle. Ladle it hot, scatter with chopped fresh parsley, and enjoy. It loves company from crunchy croutons, a warm slice of bread, or a piece of cheese on the side.