Soup Batch Calculator: how much soup for a crowd, pot size and ingredients
Scale a pot of soup for a crowd: total volume in cups, quarts, gallons or liters, servings per gallon, broth to start with after evaporation, vegetables, protein and cream by soup type, cartons of broth, pot size and slow cookers.
How it works
servings = (people − ½ × children) × (1 + extra %) · volume = servings × cups per serving (1 gal = 16 cups = 10⅔ main bowls) · liquid to start = volume × liquid share ÷ (1 − simmer loss) · vegetables, protein, cream = volume × their shares · pot = starting volume ÷ 0.75, rounded up to a standard size
The amount of soup is set by head count times bowl size: about ¾ cup alongside a sandwich, 1 cup as a starter, 1½ cups as a main bowl and 2 cups for a hearty main. Young children count as half a serving, and you can add a margin for seconds or leftovers. The finished volume is then split by soup type: a brothy soup is roughly 70% liquid, 20% vegetables and 10% protein; a chunky soup or stew about 50/30/20; a cream soup or chowder about 45% broth, 30% vegetables, 10% protein and 15% cream; a bean or lentil soup about 55/20/25. Because some liquid evaporates while the soup simmers, the broth to start with is the finished liquid divided by (1 − loss), 10% by default. The pot is sized so the starting volume fills no more than three quarters of it, which leaves room to stir and keeps a rolling simmer from spilling over. Broth is also counted in 32-oz (or 1 L) cartons, and a 6-quart slow cooker holds about 4.5 quarts of soup.
Worked example
12 people at a 1½-cup main serving is 18 cups: 4.5 quarts or 1.13 gallons. For a brothy soup, 70% is liquid: 12.6 cups in the finished pot, so start with 12.6 ÷ 0.9 = 14 cups (3.5 quarts, 4 cartons of 32 oz) of broth. Add 3.6 cups of chopped vegetables and 1.8 cups of protein. The pot starts at 18 + 1.4 = 19.4 cups (4.85 qt), and 4.85 ÷ 0.75 = 6.5 qt, so use an 8-quart pot or larger, or 1 six-quart slow cooker.
Sources: USDA FSIS: leftovers and food safety (cooling and reheating soup) · Dummies: how much to cook for a crowd (soup per person, 25 and 50 guests) · Miss Vickie: soup per person portion calculator
Frequently asked questions
How much soup per person?
About 1 cup (8 fl oz) as a starter, 1½ cups (12 fl oz) as a main-course bowl and 2 cups for a hearty main. Serve ¾ cup when there is a sandwich or salad too.
How many servings are in a gallon of soup?
A gallon is 16 cups, so it gives 16 starter cups, about 10 main-course bowls of 1½ cups, or 8 hearty 2-cup bowls.
How much soup do I need for 50 people?
As a main course at 1½ cups each, 75 cups or about 4.7 gallons; as a starter at 1 cup each, about 3.1 gallons. Add 10–20% if people serve themselves.
Why start with more broth than the recipe volume?
Some liquid evaporates as the soup simmers: roughly 5–10% with the lid on and 15–25% uncovered over a long cook. Starting with a little extra keeps the finished volume on target; you can always simmer longer to thicken.
What size pot do I need?
Keep the pot no more than about three quarters full at the start. 4.5 quarts of finished soup with its extra broth needs an 8-quart pot; for 50 main-course servings use a 32-quart stockpot or split the batch.
Does soup freeze well for big batches?
Broth-based soups freeze well for 3 to 4 months. Soups with cream, potato or pasta can separate or go mushy, so freeze the base and add dairy or pasta when you reheat to a rolling boil.
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