Chop Up Some Pepperoni To Make This Classic Canned Soup 10X More Exciting

Canned tomato soup is quintessential convenient comfort food, but let's be real — it tends to be pretty one-note in terms of flavor and texture. That's not to say there's anything wrong with heating up a quality store-bought tomato soup brand and eating it as is, but folks rarely complain when it's jazzed up a bit. 

There are plenty of ways to upgrade your canned soup game, like adding in flavorful pepperoni bits to give tomato soup a pizza-like quality. Pepperoni adds a depth of flavor that few other ingredients can match. The garlic and fat in the cured meat lend rich, savory notes to the dish, along with a slight infusion of heat from various spices and a hint of smokiness that makes pepperoni so alluring. Those flavors blend into the creamy tomato so that you're essentially getting some of the best elements of pizza with every slurp.

Sauteing the pepperoni before tossing it in the soup allows the fat to render and the meat to crisp up, giving you a crunch in every spoonful that many folks achieve by topping their bowl with crushed crackers. That doesn't mean you have to give up your go-to saltines — they still serve as a great way to introduce contrast to the dish. However, there may be even better additions if you take inspiration from your favorite pizza.

Pepperoni alone serves as a major upgrade to plain canned tomato soup, but it only takes a few more ingredients to fully transform the dish into a pizza-esque comfort food. One ingredient that's just as welcome on a pizza as it is in tomato soup is fresh basil. It complements the savory pepperoni with herbaceous brightness and adds mild peppery notes that temper the tangy tomato flavor.

You can't discuss pizza without mentioning mozzarella cheese, and it's another terrific addition that can take tomato soup to new heights. When simply tossed into the hot liquid, it quickly becomes delightfully gooey. But even the mozzarella can be upgraded by topping the soup and sticking the whole bowl under a broiler for a few minutes, adding another textural element as it develops those crusty little brown spots on top.

Enrich tomato soup with more savory notes by adding sauteed garlic and onions (what don't those culinary staples improve?). Or, if you're someone who loves mushrooms on pizza, including them in tomato soup is a no-brainer. Your taste buds will appreciate the beefed-up umami flavor, and they create satisfying textural contrast. 

Serve pizza tomato soup with a slice of toasted bread to nibble on the side. Even better, make it garlic bread, or mimic the iconic paring of grilled cheese and tomato soup by melting cheese onto the bread for another pizza-inspired element you'll enjoy.