The History Behind Why We Eat Grilled Cheese With Tomato Soup

Certain food pairings mesh so perfectly that it's impossible to imagine a time when the components were served apart. Yet every popular combo was first devised at some point, and for many American classics, the invention is surprisingly recent. The humble history and evolution of the peanut butter and jelly sandwich took hold during the early 20th century, while mixing spaghetti and meatballs didn't come about much earlier, either — likely sometime after the 1880s.

The comforting flavor of grilled cheese with tomato soup is another unexpectedly modern creation. The nostalgic dish only first emerged in the early 20th century, with the period between the Great Depression and post-World War II giving rise to the dish.

It's a pairing that was created by way of its pragmatic nature. Toasted cheese sandwiches were popular in the early 20th century, both as an economical recession meal and popular military ration. Tomato soup followed, and the convenient and affordable combo caught on with bureaucratic institutions, cafeterias in schools, and governmental organizations. In addition to delectably complementing the taste and texture of the sandwich, the tomato soup also became valued for its vitamin C content. And so, the popular combination integrated into American cuisine, and has remained prominent ever since.

The components that go into grilled cheese with tomato soup represent a new era in American dining. All three of the required elements are produced on a large scale, reflecting a rapidly industrializing industry. First, there was the invention of processed cheese by the Kraft company (known as J.L. Kraft Bros. & Company at the time), which still makes new cheese flavors today. Following distribution to troops during World War I, this long-lasting product hit shelves in 1916.

Just over a decade later in 1928, sliced bread appeared and it didn't take long for it to become the go-to vessel for the sandwich. Still the best bread for a delicious no-frills grilled cheese, it made the two-ingredient dish easy to whip up at a moment's notice. Meanwhile, canned tomato soup had already been around since 1897, but it took some time for it to join the sandwich, sometimes as a tomato sauce as well as in a bowl.

Such a convergence of manufactured foods represents a rapidly changing American diet. A country that was predominantly rural at the onset of the century started to urbanize, and agricultural production specialized, focusing on larger outputs of specific foodstuffs. Many processed foods that were developed for U.S. troops expanded to the public after both the World Wars. So, during such rapidly changing periods, the pairing of grilled cheese and tomato soup emerged, evolving American cuisine in a new direction.