Name: Smoked Tomato & Pepper Bisque
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 150 min
Total time: 180 min
Ingredients: 12 Roma tomatoes ((or 6 large tomatoes, such as beefsteak or heirloom)); 12-16 oz Roasted bell peppers, jarred ((340 – 454g jar)); 2 bulbs Garlic; Oil, salt, pepper ((for roasting/smoking)); 1 medium Onion, chopped; 1 Carrot, chopped; 1 stalk Celery, chopped; 2 Tbsp Tomato paste ((15mL)); 3 cups Vegetable stock ((710mL)); Basil; 3 sprigs Thyme, chopped; 1 Bay leaf; 3/4 - 1 cup Heavy cream ((177 – 237mL)); Salt & pepper, to taste

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A classic comfort food with a smoky twist, you’ll want to make this Smoked Tomato Bisque over and over.

Originally Posted: Aug. 30, 2022

Smoked tomato bisque with basil garnish — A bowl of finished Smoked Tomato Bisque, garnished with basil chiffonade.

Total Time: 3 hours, including prep

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Table of Contents

Intro

Tomato soup is a classic comfort food and a heavy hitter in the canned soup industry. However, fresh-made tomato soup beats the canned stuff any day. And tomato bisque is just a way to enrich the basic soup by adding cream, making it an even tastier option.

Tomato bisque is simple and elegant and one of my all-time favorites, especially served with a grilled cheese sandwich (preferably with sharp cheddar or some gouda). Making this a Smoked Tomato Bisque adds yet another one of my favorite flavors (which my growing “Smoking” section of this blog should make obvious).

I’ve added this to my general Autumn lineup of favorite soups along with Pumpkin Sausage Soup, and the Pumpkin and Goat Cheese Soup from the Geeky Chef.

Ingredients

Twelve Roma tomatoes — You can use 12 Roma tomatoes or 6 larger (beefsteak or heirloom) tomatoes. I really wish I could get my hands on fresh San Marzano tomatoes though.

12 Roma tomatoes
- You can also use 6 large tomatoes such as beefsteak or (even better) heirloom tomatoes. I wish I could find fresh San Marzano tomatoes near me, but that ain’t happening.
One 12-16oz jar of Roasted Bell Pepper (let’s call it 340 – 454g)
- I tried smoking two fresh bell peppers along with the tomatoes, but they were difficult to peel. I think the low temperature of the smoker compared to an oven or fire made it more difficult to use the plastic bag sauna method. They’re just there for flavor anyway, so canned is fine.
2 bulbs Garlic
Oil, salt, pepper (I don’t measure this, I just drizzle/sprinkle)
1 medium Onion, chopped
1 Carrot, peeled and chopped
1 stalk Celery, chopped
- An alternative to chopping the onion, carrot, and celery is to use 2 or 3 bags of frozen mirepoix mix.
2 Tbsp. Tomato Paste (15mL)
3 cups Vegetable stock (710mL)
3ish sprigs Thyme, chopped
1 Bay leaf
A bundle of Basil, plus more leaves for garnish
¾ – 1 cup Heavy cream (177 – 237mL)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Equipment

Stock pot or Dutch oven
- A Dutch oven such as a Le Creuset retains heat better than other types of stock pot, making them ideal for melding flavors. That’s more important with slow-cooked recipes though, so for our purposes any stock pot is fine. I’ll still use any excuse to use my Le Creuset though, it’s just so damn fancy.
Smoker
- I use a Recteq-700 pellet grill, but any smoker will work.
Immersion blender or regular blender
- I like to use an immersion blender first and then my Ninja blender next to get a really smooth consistency.
A ladle

Getting smoker ready for cookies — A Recteq-700 pellet smoker with optional smokebox, one of my favorite pieces of cooking equipment.

Written Instructions

Total Time: 3 hours

Roma tomatoes tossed in oil — Quarter your tomatoes and toss them in oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Preheat smoker to 250°F (121°C). Quarter the tomatoes, then toss in a baking dish with oil, salt, and pepper. Slice garlic in half along its equator, place it all in two foil boats, and coat with oil, salt, and pepper. We’re going to smoke the garlic uncovered for the first 15 – 20 minutes to pick up that smoky flavor, then add more oil and wrap tightly to braise it. Smoke tomatoes and garlic for 2 hours total.

Tomatoes and garlic in smoker — Place tomatoes and garlic in smoker for a total of 2 hours. However, we’re only going to smoke the garlic uncovered for about 15 to 20 minutes to allow it to pick up that smoky flavor.

Garlic going into smoker — After about 15 to 20 minutes, the garlic begins to brown from the smoke, but it also begins to dry out. This would be a great way to make homemade smoked garlic powder, but that’s not what we’re after today, so we’re going to take the garlic out and wrap it up.

Garlic, smoked and dried before braising — After about 15 to 20 minutes, the garlic begins to brown from the smoke, but it also begins to dry out. This would be a great way to make homemade smoked garlic powder, but that’s not what we’re after today, so we’re going to take the garlic out and wrap it up.

Garlic in foil wrap — Remove garlic from smoker and wrap tightly in foil, with some more oil added to “rehydrate” it. Place back in smoker with tomatoes for the remaining time.

At the end of 2 hours, take tomatoes and garlic out of smoker and allow to cool before taking the peels off the tomatoes and squeezing the garlic out into a small bowl. Some tips I found online said that peeling the skin off the tomatoes is easier when they’re still hot/warm, but I found that it got easier as the tomatoes cooled. It was also easier on my hands as the tomatoes cooled. This is a good time to remove seeds from the tomatoes.

Fully smoked/roasted garlic — At the end of 2 hours, the garlic will look and feel more like traditional roasted garlic.

Peeled tomatoes — Allow the tomatoes to cool slightly so they’re comfortable to hold, then peel the skins off. This is also a good time to remove any seeds.

Peeling tomatoes — Allow the tomatoes to cool slightly so they’re comfortable to hold, then peel the skins off. This is also a good time to remove any seeds.

Chop onion, carrot, and celery and cook in 2 Tbsp butter or oil (I even added some of the garlicky oil that came from the smoked garlic). Add garlic and 2 Tbsp tomato paste and stir everything together. Add the smoked and peeled tomatoes, the canned bell pepper, vegetable stock, and herbs. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 20 – 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld and the tomatoes to break down. Remove the basil and bay leaf before the next step.

Butter in Dutch oven — Add butter or oil, then cook the onion, carrot, and celery. I added a little of the garlicky oil from the foil packets as well.

Mirepoix added to Dutch oven — Add butter or oil, then cook the onion, carrot, and celery. I added a little of the garlicky oil from the foil packets as well.

Adding tomato paste to mirepoix — Add tomato paste and smoked garlic, and stir it all together.

Adding smoked garlic to mirepoix — Add tomato paste and smoked garlic, and stir it all together.

Adding tomatoes to veggies — Add peeled smoked tomatoes and vegetable broth.

Add broth to tomato soup — Add peeled smoked tomatoes and vegetable broth.

Tomato soup with basil and bay leaf added — Throw in the chopped thyme, a bundle of basil, and a bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover for 20 to 30 minutes.

Now it’s time to blend our soup. I’ve found that for smooth soups, I like to blend with an immersion blender at first and then transfer in batches to a traditional blender to get the soup even smoother. Using the immersion blender alone takes too long, but using it first makes the soup a little easier to transfer to the standing blender.

Immersion blender in tomato soup — For soups like this, I’ve found that using an immersion blender at first makes it easier to transfer the soup into a more heavy-duty standing blender like a Ninja. Be sure to work in batches, and don’t overfill a standing blender with hot liquid.

Immersion blending tomato soup — For soups like this, I’ve found that using an immersion blender at first makes it easier to transfer the soup into a more heavy-duty standing blender like a Ninja. Be sure to work in batches, and don’t overfill a standing blender with hot liquid.

Return the blended soup to the pot and stir in ¾ – 1 cup of heavy cream to make the soup a bisque. Serve garnished with more basil, and with some crusty bread or a grilled cheese sandwich for dipping.

Adding heavy cream to smoked tomato bisque — Stir in some heavy cream to turn your soup into a bisque.

Note: I learned the chiffonade (ribbon) technique for the basil garnish; it’s surprisingly easy and great for presentation. I found a tutorial for it here.

Stacked basil for chiffonade — My first attempt at chiffonade.

Rolled basil for chiffonade — My first attempt at chiffonade.

Smoked Tomato & Pepper Bisque

A smoky and creamy bisque made from tomatoes, bell peppers, and garlic.

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Prep Time 30

Cook Time 2 30

Total Time 3

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Servings 6

Equipment

1 Stock Pot or Dutch Oven
1 Smoker
1 Immersion Blender or Standing Blender
1 Ladle

Ingredients

12 Roma tomatoes (or 6 large tomatoes, such as beefsteak or heirloom)
12-16 oz Roasted bell peppers, jarred (340 – 454g jar)
2 bulbs Garlic
Oil, salt, pepper (for roasting/smoking)
1 medium Onion, chopped
1 Carrot, chopped
1 stalk Celery, chopped
2 Tbsp Tomato paste (15mL)
3 cups Vegetable stock (710mL)
Basil
3 sprigs Thyme, chopped
1 Bay leaf
3/4 – 1 cup Heavy cream (177 – 237mL)
Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

Preheat smoker to 250°F (121°C).
Quarter the tomatoes, then toss in baking dish with oil, salt, and pepper.
Slice both garlic bulbs along their equator, place all parts in two foil boats. Drizzle oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on both.
Place tomatoes and garlic in smoker for 2 hours total. Smoke the garlic uncovered for the first 15 – 20 minutes, then drizzle more oil on top and cover tightly with foil.
After 2 hours have passed, take tomatoes and garlic out of smoker and allow to cool. Peel skins from tomatoes, remove seeds, and squeeze garlic into a small bowl.
Chop onion, carrot, and celery (or use 2 to 3 bags of frozen mirepoix).
Cook onion, carrot, and celery in butter or oil until the vegetables sweat.
Add garlic and tomato paste and stir together.
Add peeled tomatoes, canned bell pepper, vegetable stock, and herbs. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 20 – 30 minutes. Remove basil and bay leaves at the end of this.
Use an immersion blender and/or standing blender and blend soup until completely smooth.
Return blended soup to pot and stir in heavy cream.
Serve with a basil garnish and with a side of crusty bread or a grilled cheese sandwich.

Keyword bisque, soup, tomato

Intro

Ingredients

Equipment

Written Instructions

Smoked Tomato & Pepper Bisque

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

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