Because I haven’t found one yet. They’re all sweet, or salty, or starchy and just bleah… and yet they’re a national brand. How can they be so successful with such a mediocre product?
I had some tomato soup for dinner alongside a ham and swiss sandwich with horseradish sauce and thought both were quite tasty.
Because most people cook with them rather than serve them up as soup? (Major exception: Tomato soup)
Anyway, their beef consomme isn’t bad.
I’m fond of mixing a can of cream of mushroom with one of cream of chicken. I find the requirement is long slow heat.
I like some of the ready-to-serve ones. I like the Healthy Request Clam Chowder, the Herbed Chicken Noodle and the Tomato Noodle Vegetable one (not sure what it’s called.) There’s also a hearty bean one (not sure of exact name) that I used to love but it causes farting so I stopped eating it.
The chunky soups are quite good, as are Special Recipe. They are both uncondensed, which helps. (Healthy Request Clam Chowder is an abomination – no milk!).
The standard condensed are a different matter. Their insipidness was part of their popularity – when Campbell’s got started, people didn’t like spices in their food. It also a quality that children like; I suspect they are the major customer (along with adults who developed a taste for it as kids). However, their tomato is fine (especially if you make it with milk).
The tomato soup is wonderful, but it has to be made on the stovetop, not in the microwave. And you need use milk, not water, that’s just nasty. Use a whisk to mix it up all nice and smooth, and keep stirring while it heats up. For an extra treat, toss in some rice (already cooked, maybe yesterday’s leftovers). Mmm mmm good.
And the vegetable soup isn’t bad in a pinch, either.
Kids like them. And adults who had them as kids like them. And so they give them to their kids. And so on forever.
I’ve always liked the chicken noodle, beef, and vegetable.
Screw you, Progresso!
Slate had an interesting article on why canned soups suck so much. Basically, they have to be able to wthstand very high temperatures while being agitated. So you lose a lot of subtle flavors. I used to think I disliked soup until I finally got a chance to have some homemade soup…
I think you answered your own question:
That’s quintessential all-American food.
I like the cream of mushroom, but it has to be made with whole milk, with lots of black pepper, and use a hand egg mixer (the crank kind) to mix it, rather than stirring. Mmmm. Very good with Town House crackers.
Their vegetable is good (although it does need a good shaking of pepper)
The clam chowder is good
I don’t buy Progresso because I’m just too cheap 
Heck, without Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom, how would we have pot lucks?
I grew up on the chicken noodle soup, and will always love it. I also like vegetable, and the chunky clam chowder (the regular clam chowder is just nasty.)
Tomato- half water & half milf- or all low fat milk. LOTS of plain soda crackers. Real comfort food, Proustian even,
I like Campbell’s Chunky Chicken Corn Chowder. I don’t add water, and simmer it slowly, stirring constantly… mmmm.
I miss Pepper Pot. 
A little MILF makes ***everything ***better.
Agreed. Can I get a MILF with a side of Pepper Pot? 