Vodka Sauce Tomato Soup

#12 2026-08-22 serves 4 100 minutes source

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¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided	heat oil, melt butter, then sauté onion and garlic for 20 minutes until softened and caramelized	cook tomato paste 4 minutes until darkened, add chiles and deglaze with vodka	add roasted tomatoes, cream and water; simmer 25–30 minutes until thick and deeply flavored, then blend smooth and season	serve with fresh basil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, roughly smashed and peeled
½ cup double-concentrated tomato paste, about 1 (4 ½-ounce) tube
3 jarred Calabrian chiles, minced
½ cup vodka
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes and their juices		roast with ¼ cup oil, salt and pepper at 375°C for 1 hour until jammy and dark
2 pints cherry tomatoes
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons kosher salt, such as Diamond Crystal, plus more as needed
½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, plus more as needed
1 cup heavy cream
Fresh basil leaves, for serving

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ingredients

method

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spread the canned crushed tomatoes and the cherry tomatoes in a small roasting pan (like an 8-by-8-inch baking pan or a quarter sheet pan) with ¼ cup oil, the salt and pepper. Roast for about 1 hour, until the cherry tomatoes are tender and sweet and the canned crushed tomatoes have gone jammy and dark red, with the oil floating at the top.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Melt the butter in the oil, then add the onion and garlic and sauté for about 20 minutes, until softened and beginning to caramelize around the edges.
Make a well in the center of the onion mixture and add the tomato paste. Cook for about 4 minutes, stirring frequently, until darkened and fragrant and sticking to the bottom and sides of the pan. Add the Calabrian chiles and deglaze the pan with the vodka, stirring to combine and release any browned bits.
Add the oven-roasted tomatoes and all their juices from the baking pan, scraping in any sticky bits. Stir in the cream and 3 cups of water. Cook at a low but sprightly simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, until the soup is thick and deeply flavored. (You can cook it for longer if you like an extra-thick soup.)
Use an immersion blender to make it as smooth as you like, and season with more salt and pepper to taste.
When ready to serve, thinly slice a few basil leaves to sprinkle over the top of each bowl of soup.