Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup Recipe

CREAM OF MUSHROOM SOUP

This Cream of Mushroom Soup is so easy and flavorful, I doubt you will ever turn to that red and white can again. Actually, this recipe can be adapted to ANY canned, condensed vegetable-based soup – you just might want to vary the spices.

How to Cook Mushrooms

As our preeminent cooking Goddess (Julia!) said, when cooking mushrooms, you don’t crowd the pan, because the mushrooms won’t brown. 

When you cook the mushrooms and leave some space, the mushrooms release their liquids and then start to brown, leaving the wonderful, flavorful fond (aka those little brown bits) in the pan.

If they are too close, they release their liquid and as it evaporates, that liquid steams the rest of the mushrooms.

In this recipe, if that happened, it’s a soup, so it wouldn’t be an “uh-oh, trash bin, start again” issue. You would just lose that fond that develops and creates deeper flavor.

Can I Substitute for the Heavy Cream?

You can substitute half-and-half, milk, whipping cream, or evaporated milk (NOT CONDENSED MILK.)

If you substitute, you will lose a little thickness and a little richness, but don’t worry, the soup will still be delicious.

How Do I Thicken Cream of Mushroom Soup?

One easy way to thicken almost ANYTHING is a cornstarch slurry.  A slurry is a couple of Tablespoons of cornstarch diluted with an equal amount of cold liquid, usually water. In this soup, you could use a little more cold cream, milk or water. Stir together until smooth, then add by the spoonful to hot, simmering liquid. Stir or whisk in well. The soup should start thickening immediately. 

Start slow and only a Tablespoon at the time. If you get TOO MUCH thickening, you can thin again with liquid. When you learn to use this handy kitchen trick, you will get better and better deciding how much to use.

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

This rich, decadent soup is absolutely delicious on its own, or you can use it to add incredible flavor to your favorite casseroles. One taste and you’ll never go back to the canned variety. Note: You can use either fresh or dried herbs for this recipe, depending on what you have on hand. Fresh rosemary and thyme are both tough enough to stand up to the cooking process, unlike many fresh herbs that are best stirred in once the cook time is complete. If using fresh thyme, be sure to remove any woody stems before serving.

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Ingredients

  

• 2 T. unsalted butter
• 2 small yellow onions finely chopped
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste
• 1-2 cloves garlic minced
• 16 oz. Portobello mushrooms sliced
• 2 t. dried rosemary or 2 T. fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped
• 2 T. fresh thyme or 1½ t. dried
• ½ c. Marsala wine you can substitute any cooking wine or stock, as desired
• 2 c. chicken or vegetable broth preferably organic
• 1 c. heavy cream room temperature
• 3 T. all-purpose flour

Instructions

 

• Melt butter in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Once hot, add chopped onions and season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft and translucent, approximately 4-5 minutes.
• Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for another 1-2 minutes.
• Add mushrooms, rosemary, and thyme. Season with additional salt and black pepper, as desired, and stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are nicely browned and start to release their liquids, approximately 5 minutes.
• Add the Marsala wine and gently scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven with a spatula. Cook 1-2 minutes or until the wine is reduced by one half and the strong aroma dissipates.
• Add the chicken or vegetable broth and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat and temper the heavy cream by adding a couple tablespoons of the hot soup to it before stirring it into the soup.
• Create a slurry by adding 3 tablespoons of the hot liquid from soup to the flour in a medium bowl. Stir until thoroughly combined and no lumps remain. Stir the slurry into the soup to thicken. Taste and adjust seasonings, as desired, before serving. Enjoy!

How to Make Mushroom Soup Gluten-Free

If you need to make this dish gluten-free, you can use gluten-free flour for your roux, you can use the cornstarch slurry described above, or you can add a couple of Tablespoons of arrowroot.

Can I Substitute this for Canned Cream of Mushroom Soup?

(Can I Use it in my Green Bean Casserole?)

Yes! (with a couple of adjustments) and it will be so much better!

Basically, you just have to get it to the thickness you need.

Let’s say you are going to use it in a casserole

• you can thicken it with the methods above
• if the recipe calls for liquid (beyond the canned soup,) you could reduce the amount and just USE THE SOUP AS THE LIQUID

See this and TONS of other great recipes weekly at Meal Plan Monday #233