The Spicy Protein That Will Seriously Upgrade Canned Tomato Soup

Busy foodies know the scene well: It's a weeknight after work, and you glance at the clock only to balk "dinnertime already?" When moments like these strike, there isn't always enough time to make it to the grocery store, or enough room in the budget to order in. In times like these, the modern foodie is left with no other choice but to raid their own kitchen — and with this canned tomato soup hack, that doesn't have to be a bad thing.

In this warming upgrade, pantry staple meets freezer staple for a weeknight meal that's as nourishing as it is quick. Just add spicy Italian sausage to your canned tomato soup for dimensional flavor and protein-forward heartiness. Bold, hot Italian sausage is high-fat ground pork packed with fennel and crushed red pepper flakes. When all that rich complexity meets your comforting, acidic tomato soup, the result is cohesive savory flavor and slight spicy heat. (Imagine Organic Is our favorite brand of store-bought tomato soup, for the record.)

For this tip, ground sausage or sausage links sliced into coins will work. Whatever mouthfeel you prefer. At a Target in New York, the hot Italian pork sausage links by Premio Foods run for $5.19 per pound, while the hot ground Italian sausage by store brand Good & Gather costs $4.49 per pound. So, whichever form you choose, it'll be roughly the same price (hooray for options!).

To do it, lightly saute the ground or sliced sausage in the bottom of the saucepan before adding the canned tomato soup directly on top. As it cooks, that spicy sausage will seep flavorful drippings into the warming soup. Plus, as Hunter Shoults, the plant manager at Bear Creek Smokehouse, shared in an exclusive interview with Tasting Table, this cooking method is actually how the meat performs best. "A hot [or] spicy Italian sausage would most likely be used as an additive to a main course, such as a soup," explains Shoults. "So, slice into bite-size rounds and either cook in the soup (boil) or pan-sear first, then utilize the same pan with rendered fat to begin [the] soup."

To serve, garnish each bowl with fresh basil leaves, cracked white pepper, and wide slices of shaved parmesan. For more bulk, you could add garlic bread croutons, a can of rinsed cannellini beans, ditalini pasta, or a pop of bitter green escarole. Or, for an ultra-quick, filling meal, simply add a splash of half-and-half and add a bag of tortellini to your sausage-tomato soup.

You could even take a cue from shakshuka, which already uses a base of spicy tomatoes, and load your sausage-stuffed soup with sliced bell peppers, a few shakes of dried cinnamon, cumin, and coriander, plus a poached egg, some fresh parsley, and a drizzle of high-quality olive oil to garnish. (Brightland Alive is our favorite finishing olive oil.)