You generally think of using canned soup for one thing and one thing only — soup. Pour it into a bowl, heat it up, grab a spoon, and you are done, right? Not so fast. While those cans are ideal for a quick-and-easy meal (especially when you dress them up), soup is actually great for adding flavor and keeping proteins from drying out.
Read on for five of your favorite dishes that benefit from a can of soup.
Meatloaf: Add Vegetable Soup
Condensed vegetable soup is a great way to add flavor (and extra veggies) to meatloaf. Use it instead of milk to soak the breadcrumbs, then mix with your usual meatloaf ingredients, like diced onion, lean ground beef, egg, and seasonings. Bonus: It is dairy-free.
Sloppy Joes: Add Tomato Soup
Instead of ketchup or a combo of tomato sauce and paste, use that can of condensed tomato soup. Just add to a skillet of cooked ground beef, onion, celery, and your favorite sloppy Joe spices, and let simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes. You can serve it as-is, on buns, on nachos, or stuffed in bell peppers and topped with cheese.
Dip: Add Chicken Tortilla Soup
A can of thick chicken tortilla soup can easily be transformed into a delicious, crowd-pleasing dip. Just add it to your slow cooker with some cream cheese and shredded cheese, and let it cook until thickened and bubbly.
Taco Skillet: Add Tomato Soup
If your taco night is feeling a little less-than-flavorful, add a can of condensed tomato soup along with a half cup salsa and some taco seasoning to cooked ground beef or turkey and sliced bell peppers. Let cook until bubbly, top with cheese, and you’ve got yourself a 15-minute skillet dinner that packs a punch.
Burritos or Tacos: Add Black Bean Soup
If you’ve got a can of black bean soup you are not sure what to do with, use it inside your burritos and tacos. The black bean soup is already seasoned, so you won’t have to add much to it, unlike with a regular can of black beans. Simply put it in a skillet with a can of spicy chopped chipotle peppers in adobo and let simmer until thickened.