Here's everything worth knowing about soup, cream of cheddar and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 49 recipes to cook tonight.

What is soup, cream of cheddar?

Cream of cheddar soup is the cheesy outlier in the condensed-soup lineup. Instead of leaning on flour alone, it is thickened with processed cheddar, so it pours out of the can as a thick orange paste that smells like a cheese sauce before you even heat it.

It is not really meant to be a bowl of soup. Cooks use it as instant cheese sauce: a can of seasoned, salted cheddar roux that melts into a dish and gives you the flavor of a scratch mornay without making one.

That cheese-forward flavor separates it from the milder mushroom and celery cans.

Cooking With Cheddar Soup

It is condensed, so the label wants a canful of milk stirred in. For a baked dish you often add only a splash, then let the soup melt down into the other ingredients as it bakes.

Its natural home is anything that wants to taste like cheese. It is the orange glue in Chedder Scalloped Potatoes, the sauce that coats the noodles in a quick baked mac, and the cheesy layer in Reames Cheesy Broccoli Tuna Bake.

It also makes a fast cheese-broccoli or loaded-potato soup. Thin one can with milk, warm it, and stir in cooked broccoli or diced potato for a five-minute bowl.

Watch the heat. Cheese sauces break and turn grainy when they boil, so warm it gently over medium-low and pull it off the burner once it is hot and smooth.

Pairing and Pitfalls

It belongs with the foods cheese sauce belongs with: broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, pasta, ham, and tortilla chips. A spoonful also enriches a pot of chili or a bean dip.

The first pitfall is boiling it, which curdles the cheese. The second is doubling down on salt and cheese. The can is already salty and already cheesy, so taste before you add either, or the dish turns one-note and harsh.

If it looks too thick or starts to separate, whisk in a little warm milk off the heat. That loosens it and pulls a broken sauce back together.

Substitutes

Cream of mushroom or cream of celery will bind a casserole just as well, but you lose the cheese flavor, so toss in a handful of shredded cheddar to make up for it.

To build your own cheese sauce, melt 2 tablespoons butter, whisk in 2 tablespoons flour, add 1 cup milk and cook until thick, then kill the heat and stir in 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar until smooth. Season with a pinch of mustard powder and pepper.

Adding the cheese off the heat is the trick. It melts creamy instead of grainy.

Buying and Storing

Cans run about 10.5 to 11 ounces (roughly 298 to 312 grams), the "one can" most recipes expect. The cheese makes this one thicker than the other condensed soups, so it scrapes out slowly; that is normal. Reject any can that is swollen or rusted.

Unopened, it keeps in the pantry a year or more, usually past the printed date. Once opened, refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container and use within three to four days, since the dairy makes it spoil a bit faster than a plain stock-based soup.

Quick facts

Where to find soup, cream of cheddar: Soup, cream of cheddar is usually found in the canned goods section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

In Chinese

汤，奶油切达乳酪

British (UK) term

Soup, cream of cheddar

en français

soupe, crème de cheddar

en español

sopa, crema de queso cheddar

Recipes using soup, cream of cheddar

There are 49 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 49 recipes