Despite its “swampy” appearance, this soup is simply one of the best things I’ve eaten. If you like tomato soup, you’ll adore Swamp Soup. It’s like tomato soup on steroids and with a grilled cheese built right in. The broth is incredibly thick and hearty, it’s full of tons of vegetables that add texture and flavor, and let’s not forget those creamy, gooey bits of Swiss cheese in every other bite. It’s TO DIE FOR.
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What Is Swamp Soup?
Swamp soup is a hearty soup chockful of veggies and other delicious ingredients, giving it a swampy appearance. I’ve seen a few variations of this soup, the most well-known being made with turnip greens, canned beans, and smoked sausage (aka turnip green soup).
My swamp soup recipe is quite different from that, but it still fits the bill of being a hearty, delicious, swampy-looking soup! This recipe is more of an ultra-indulgent tomato soup. Carrots, celery, onions, and spinach are cooked in a rich tomatoey broth, with chunks of Swiss cheese added for some extra cheesy goodness. It’s PACKED with flavor and is incredibly fast and easy to make!
“Love this one!! SO quick to put together, cheap, and the way the cheese melts in the soup is to die for!”
Lucy Anderson
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy swamp soup recipe:
- Tomato Sauce & Canned Diced Tomatoes: I add a double dose of tomato by using tomato sauce and diced canned tomatoes. This gives the soup a rich, thick texture that I just love.
- Vegetable Broth: I keep this recipe vegetarian by using vegetable broth to thin out the soup. You can use any vegetable broth you like, but I use Better Than Bouillon to make mine. Be sure to season to taste, as some broths can be quite salty.
- Carrots, Celery, and Yellow Onion: This classic combination of veggies forms the base of many soups and stews. I like to prepare diced carrots and celery and freeze them ahead of time to make soups (see my step-by-step photos below to see how I do it).
- Garlic: Adds a savory depth of flavor to the broth. I think roasted garlic would also be delicious!
- Olive Oil: For sautéing the veggies and garlic until soft.
- Frozen Chopped Spinach: I use frozen spinach to add a green, ‘swampy’ color and an extra dose of nutrients to this soup. Just add it straight to the pot as-is; no need to thaw it.
- Swiss Cheese: Add some cubed Swiss cheese to the soup once it’s ready, and get ready to taste the magic. The cheese melts and creates little pockets of creaminess throughout the soup. My mind was BLOWN when I first tried this!
- Dried Basil & Dried Oregano: These seasonings are always delicious in any tomato-based recipe!
Substitutes for Swiss Cheese
I love the subtle flavor of Swiss with this soup, but you can use mozzarella instead. Mozzarella melts in a similar way to Swiss, so you’ll get the same effect in the soup. Plus, mozzarella also goes great with tomato. If you don’t care about the melty aspect, a little crumbled feta would also be amazing sprinkled onto every bowl.
How to Serve Swamp Soup
As mentioned above, this soup has melty chunks of Swiss cheese floating around in every bowl. While you can add the Swiss cheese to the whole pot, if you don’t plan to serve it all in one sitting, I suggest adding the cheese to each bowl just before serving (after reheating).
You’ll probably also want some sort of crusty bread for dipping! I like sprinkling mine with ranch oyster crackers or crumbled saltines. But if I’m in the mood for even more cheese, an air fryer grilled cheese sandwich is the only way to go!
Can I freeze it?
Yes indeed! This soup is great for stocking your freezer. After cooking, divide your soup into single servings and cool it completely in the refrigerator overnight. Then, them transfer to the freezer the next day. You can freeze in quart-sized freezer bags or any freezer-safe meal prep container.
Swamp Soup Recipe
Servings 8 about 1.25 cups eachIngredients
- 3 cloves garlic ($0.12)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.70)
- 1/2 lb. carrots (about 4 medium) ($0.49)
- 3 ribs celery ($0.63)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.44)
- 1 Tbsp dried basil ($0.30)
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano ($0.30)
- 3 8oz. cans tomato sauce ($1.59)
- 3 15oz. cans diced tomatoes ($3.18)
- 1.5 cups vegetable broth ($0.14)
- 1 10oz. pkg frozen chopped spinach ($1.34)
- 8 oz. Swiss cheese ($2.21)
Instructions
- Mince the garlic, dice the onion, peel and slice the carrots, and slice the celery. Add the onion, garlic, carrots, and celery to a large soup pot with the olive oil and sauté over medium heat for about five minutes, or until the onions are soft.
- Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes (with juices), vegetable broth, basil, and oregano to the pot. Stir to combine, then allow the soup to come to a simmer.
- Once the soup is simmering, add the frozen spinach (no need to thaw). Stir the spinach into the hot soup until it has melted and heated through.
- Once the spinach is thoroughly mixed into the soup, give the soup a taste and add salt if needed. I did not add any, but this will ultimately depend on the sodium content of your canned goods and vegetable broth.
- Dice the swiss cheese into small cubes. Add a small handful of cubes to each bowl, then ladle the hot soup over top. Serve and enjoy!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Dutch Oven
- Liquid Measuring Cup
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Swamp Soup – Step By Step Photos
Dice one yellow onion, peel and slice 1/2 lb. carrots (about four carrots), slice three ribs celery, and mince 3 cloves of garlic. Add the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic to a large soup pot with 2 Tbsp olive oil.
Since most of my soups begin with 1/2 lb. chopped carrot and 3-4 ribs of celery, I just go ahead and chop up the rest of my carrots and the bunch of celery, and freeze it for the next time I make a soup. That way I don’t have to do as much chopping later. I just dump the bag of frozen veggies into my soup pot and go!
Sauté the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic over medium for about five minutes, or until the onions are soft.
Next, add three 8 oz. cans of tomato sauce, three 15 oz. cans of diced tomatoes (with juices), 1 Tbsp dried basil, 1 Tbsp dried oregano, and 1.5 cups vegetable broth to the pot. Stir to combine, then allow the soup to come up to a simmer.
Once the soup comes up to a simmer, add a 10 oz. block of frozen chopped spinach (no need to thaw). You can use frozen bagged spinach, too, just estimate about 10 oz. Stir the spinach into the soup until it thaws and heats through.
Once the soup is heated through, give it a taste and add salt if needed. Mine did not need any additional salt, but that will depend on your taste buds and the salt content of your canned goods and vegetable broth. It’s ready to eat as soon as it’s heated, although you can always let it simmer a bit longer, if you want.
Chop an 8 oz. block of Swiss cheese into small cubes. If you’re going to serve the entire pot of soup at one sitting, go ahead and stir the cubes of cheese into the soup pot (with the heat turned off). The residual heat will melt the cubes. If you’re going to be eating one or two bowls at a time, add the cheese cubes to each bowl, then ladle the hot soup over top.
Sooooo gooey and good!
Love this one!! SO quick to put together, cheap, and the way the cheese melts in the soup is to die for!
I add 1/2 cup extra of veggie broth (2 cups total) and after the final step, let the soup simmer on low with a lid on for 30 minutes. Really allows the flavors to develop and incorporate more. I use mozzarella pearls instead of Swiss. Divine!
This isn’t swamp soup! Swamp soup, aka turnip green soup, uses leafy turnip greens, a variety of canned beans, and other items like smoked sausage, onions, tomatoes, to create a swamp looking soup. This is more like a decadent tomato soup.
This recipe is like a hug in tomato-stew form. I’ve made this repeatedly and start craving it when the fall weather begins!
I love this soup! I live alone so I make it and freeze it in silicone cupcake liners and transfer it into a gallon size ziplock bag so I have individual servings ready to go. I’ve been craving it so I just made a fresh batch.
From Louisiana here. This is not swamp soup. No tomatoes. And turnip greens are used. Where are the beans and sausage? This soup should be green not red. This recipe looks good but it’s definitely not swamp soup. Just saying.
Agreed. I’m from Louisiana. Swamp soup is green. It’s divine. One of my favorites. On the other hand this soup looks so so delicious. Gonna try it soon.
Listing the cost of each ingredient is totally useless, irrelevant, and meaningless! Serves no purpose whatsoever. You’re just trying to validate what you feel is the basis of your blog.
I’m not sure why you are choosing to be hostile. This recipe was published back in 2010 & updated in 2020. Of course, the cost was much different then. If you wanted to post constructive criticism, there’s no harm in it – but there is a huge difference between being constructive and being hateful.
Wow! You must the in the US. Here in Canada those prices are double and triple. Some even more. I will still give it a try. Looks good!
Easy and tasty!!!
I know they’re not the budget-friendliest item, but my family and I love those little mini balls of mozzarella in this soup. :)
I don’t understand how everyone is getting their carrots cooked by the end of this recipe — I’m chopping mine to the same thickness as indicated in the picture, and my carrots are still very hard and raw if I follow these instructions to the letter. I always simmer for awhile before adding the spinach just to make it more palatable. Am I missing a step? Lol
Sounds great but I may leave the spinach out. It’s not my favorite. But then again it may get lost in such a lot of tomato!
This is not my favorite recipe from budget bytes but I’ve made it a handful of times so that tells you it’s not bad. I use 2 cans of fire roasted diced, and 1 can of plain diced. I’ve done 3 cans of plain diced and it’s too bland. It’s super easy and fast to make so a good weeknight meal when you want something comforting with a good amount of veggies.
For the swamp soup, can I use a different cheese? Thanks
Yes. There are a few listed where it says “SUBSTITUTES FOR SWISS CHEESE”. XOXO -Monti
The prices for the ingredients are not for 2022.
Did you look at the date it was posted?