Creamy Mushroom Soup
Wine adds rich flavor, and a dash of soy sauce amps the mushroom umami.
Servings: 6 3/4-cup servings
Ingredients
- 1 lb. cremini or baby bella mushrooms, or combination of a variety of mushrooms
- 2 Tbsp. butter
- 3/4 cup sliced leek or chopped onion
- 1 cup thinly sliced celery
- 2/3 cup dry vermouth or sherry, or cooking sherry cooking wine has salt, so adjust salt or soy sauce accordingly if using
- 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk or 2% milk
- 1 14.5oz. can reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth (1-3/4 cups)
- 2-3 tsp. soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp. dried thyme or sage
- ground white or black pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley, dill, carrot tops or fennel fronds, optional
Instructions
- Wipe mushroom caps with a damp cloth. Trim stem ends and discard; roughly chop the caps.
- In a 6-quart pot, melt butter. Add mushrooms, onion, celery, and choice of wine. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, 5-10 minutes or until most, but not all, of the sherry is absorbed.
- Sprinkle flour over mushrooms; stir in milk, broth, soy sauce and thyme or sage. Bring to a low boil, then immediately reduce heat. Simmer gently 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove soup from heat. Leave the soup chunky or use an immersion blender to puree. Alternatively, pour into a blender in small batches, blending very slowly if mixture is hot; blend until smooth and return to pot to keep warm. Season with salt and pepper to taste. If desired, stir in about half the chopped herb and garnish servings with remaining.
Notes
From the Mushroom Council, San Francisco Bay Area
Crimini Mushrooms are grown and harvested in the same manner as the white mushroom. The reason they have a darker color and slightly denser texture is that they come from a different strain of spores. Portabella Mushrooms are also grown like white mushrooms. Actually, the Portabella is a mature Crimini. It’s usually three to seven days older than the Crimini when harvested. As a result, Portabellas develop much larger caps-ranging up to six inches in diameter.
Crimini Mushrooms are grown and harvested in the same manner as the white mushroom. The reason they have a darker color and slightly denser texture is that they come from a different strain of spores. Portabella Mushrooms are also grown like white mushrooms. Actually, the Portabella is a mature Crimini. It’s usually three to seven days older than the Crimini when harvested. As a result, Portabellas develop much larger caps-ranging up to six inches in diameter.