Upgrade Canned Potato Soup With One Simple Crunchy Topping

When it's cold outside, nothing beats nestling down under blankets with a mug or bowl of steaming hot soup. Hearty, nourishing soups such as a potato one can be extra comforting. The soft and chunky potatoes are filling while the creamy base feels luxurious. However, canned potato soups sometimes leave a lot to be desired, even if they are easier than making a batch from scratch. Luckily, there's a simple addition which can upgrade canned potato soup to the next level — croutons.

You may think of croutons as instantly elevating any salad, but that doesn't mean they don't work amazingly well with soup. All you need to do is pop open a bag and sprinkle them on top of a bowl of soup after you're done heating it. While oyster crackers may be a customary topping, this simple crouton change can make a canned bowl of potato soup look and taste better.

Let's say you don't have any croutons on hand, though. That isn't a problem because you can easily make them yourself with only a slice or two of bread. You don't always need stale bread to make croutons, but it does work well if you happen to find your loaf is dry. Cut the bread into cubes, season it with olive oil and any other flavorings you think will go with creamy potato soup, and put it into the oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about ten minutes. You can do this while your soup is heating up on the stovetop in order to save time. Once you're done, you'll have fresh and crunchy croutons that will give your canned soup a seriously homemade vibe.

It may seem strange that such a simple topping is the ingredient your soup has been missing all along, but there's a reason it works so well. Potato soup is generally a very smooth and soft dish, making it somewhat one-note. Croutons have a sharp and satisfying crunch to them that creates a texture contrast that many find pleasing. Ensuring a dish has a variety of textures is something restaurants do in order to make their food enjoyable. So when you do it with your soup, it provides a restaurant-like aesthetic, even in the comfort of your own home.

To upgrade your croutons to an even more professional plane, you can fry them in bacon fat rather than baking them. You can also dust them with ranch mix powder for a strong flavor pop in your soup. For ultimate luxury, cube up a grilled cheese sandwich and turn those into cheesy, sumptuous croutons. It's okay to get creative with flavors because potatoes are a versatile staple that go with pretty much anything.

If you don't have bread and still want that textural contrast, there are a few other ways you can achieve it. If you added extra potatoes to your canned soup, don't throw out the potato skins. You can bake or fry them into something similar to croutons and put those on top instead. Broken up pretzels, popcorn, or crispy bacon bits can also change up the texture with a little crunch. These may be fun ways to dress up your canned potato soup, but homemade croutons are still one of the best.