What makes this Mushroom Soup different from all the others? Every bite will taste like mushrooms. It may sound strange and obvious, but most mushroom soups are just pieces of mushrooms floating in a creamy soup broth that doesn’t taste like anything in particular. But this one tastes like mushrooms all the way to the final mouthful!
Mushroom Soup
Just sauté some mushrooms in butter, add flour and stock, then finish it off with a generous splash of cream. It’s that simple. It will taste OK, but it won’t taste much like mushrooms, save for the bites that have mushroom particles in them.
I wanted to make sure that this mushroom soup recipe really tasted like mushrooms before I gave it to you.
How do we do that? Easy: Blitz the soup! This is the only way to get all the wonderful, sweet, and earthy flavors out of the mushrooms and into every creamy, delicious bite!
What goes in Mushroom Soup
1. Mushrooms!
Swiss Brown and cremini mushrooms taste more like mushrooms than typical white or button mushrooms, but they make the soup darker. I like to use both Swiss Brown and regular white mushrooms together. You get the best of both worlds: a strong mushroom taste and a light cream color instead of a (very) brown one!
Did you know that white/button, Swiss brown/cremini, and portobello mushrooms are all the same mushroom? They are only at different points in their life cycle. This is a true story!
2.Soup – other ingredients
The best part about this Mushroom Soup recipe is that it doesn’t need many ingredients. Why add other flavors that aren’t needed when we already have a soup that tastes great because of the mushrooms?
Vegetable stock: Store-bought stock works OK, but I truly think you should try this with homemade vegetable stock sometime! Making vegetable stock is easier and less messy than making stocks from meat, including beef stock and chicken stock.
All you need are some basic vegetables and flavorings (carrot, celery, onion, garlic, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns and coriander seeds).
Cream or creme fraiche adds a rich, velvety mouthfeel to the soup, so I really recommend not skipping it. If you don’t have either, add a knob of butter at the end.
Do you want cream or crème fraiche? The obvious choice is cream, but I’ve also offered crème fraiche for a change.
What is crème fraiche, anyway?
Creme fraiche is a cream that has been somewhat soured, so it tastes like a mix of sour cream and heavy/thickened cream. It has the same smooth richness as cream, but with a little bit of a tangy taste (not as acidic as sour cream). It is also thicker than sour cream and can be spooned out instead of poured. It adds a nice, somewhat crisp note to the soup.
- Which one is better? I’d use cream every day and save creme fraiche for when you have guests over (yes, it’s more expensive and not all grocery stores have it). But I promise you, it’s still a good soup with “just” simple cream.
- Onion and garlic are the most important flavors; and
- Butter—For frying.
- Over medium heat, cook the onion and garlic in butter for 5 minutes, or until they are soft but not golden.
- Cook the mushrooms for 10 minutes, or until they are soft. At this point, they will let out a lot of water, but it will all evaporate. They won’t cook till they’re golden since the pot is too full, and we’re fine with that;
- Add vegetable stock, salt, and pepper and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
- Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to medium and let it simmer for 15 minutes without a lid.
- Add cream or creme fraiche and let it simmer for another 5 minutes.
Put the soup in a blender and puree until smooth.
WARNING! Before you mix, be careful to take off the lid of the feeder (the hole in the lid of the blender) and cover it with a folded tea towel. Soup explosion! Hot soup in a tightly sealed blender on maximum speed. The lid will blow off, and you’ll end up with hot soup all over the ceiling – and all over yourself. Been there, done that!
- Stick blender option: You could also use a stick blender, but I think it doesn’t make the soup as smooth as shown. It works, but a blender is superior
- Put the pot back on the stove and let it simmer on low heat for a few more minutes, or until the bubbles from blending go down. Then serve! Pour into bowls and top with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil or cream, croutons and parsley, or chervil if you want to be fancy and French.
I put some golden sautéed mushroom slices on top of the bowl of brown liquid so you could see what it really is. I have to admit that I’ve never done that in real life before!
Other Related Soups –
Healthy Vegetable Soups
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