Cream of Mushroom Soup with Fresh and Dehydrated Mushrooms

Slofoodgroup Team February 12, 2022

Creamy Wild Mushroom Soup with Porcinis, Black Trumpet, and Morels

For many folks, cream of mushroom soup brings up visions of plopping an oversalted, gelatinous glob of condensed soup into a casserole dish or crock pot for an easy meal or holiday side dish. Not all cream of mushroom soup has to be that way, though. When made fresh, using quality ingredients, cream of mushroom soup is actually quite divine—creamy and satisfying with an that earthy umami flavor infused into each spoonful.

Of course, as already mentioned, ingredients are key to making a good cream of mushroom soup. For ours, we included a mix of both dried and fresh mushrooms. We absolutely love woodsy morels in this soup but they just aren’t available fresh year-round, so we reconstituted some dehydrated morels, which hold up phenomenally throughout the rehydration process. We also used dried porcini mushrooms, which deepen those layers of umami, bringing in nutty undertones. The creminis are mild and meaty and really help to balance the flavor and texture of this dish.  

So what if you want to make a cream of mushroom soup but don’t have any dehydrate morels or porcinis on hand? No problem, of course you can always order them through our online mushroom and truffle shop, but you can also feel free to utilize other types of mushrooms—lobster, lions mane, oyster, portobello, maitake, beech, or any other texturally sound mushroom variety. 

Gluten Free Cream of Mushroom Soup

Ingredients

• 1 ounce dehydrated morel mushrooms
• 1 ounce dehydrated porcini mushrooms
• 3/4 ounce dehydrated black trumpet mushrooms
• 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms
• 1 shallot, roughly chopped
• ½ cup butter
• 1 tablespoon fresh minced thyme
• 1 tablespoon fresh minced  sage
• 1 tablespoon fresh, minced garlic
• ½ cup white wine
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped 
• Sea salt and fresh ground white pepper

Procedure

1. Place your dried mushrooms in a bowl and cover with water. Soak for about 20-30 minutes or until fully rehydrated. Reserve the liquid.
2. Slice the porcinis, morels, black trumpets and three quarters of the baby bella mushrooms.
3. Roughly chop the remaining baby bella mushrooms. 
4. Melt your butter in a soup pot over medium heat and add in the mushrooms and shallot. 
5. Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground white pepper. Sauté for approximately 6-7minutes, stirring often until onions are tender and mushrooms are lightly browned. 
6. Add thyme, sage, and minced garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes. 
7. Whisk in 3 tablespoons corn starch until all oil is absorbed and starch is evenly distributed in pan. 
8. Slowly whisk in the white wine and 2 cups mushroom rehydration liquid. 
9. Stir in your cream and parsley and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
10. Finish with salt and pepper to taste.

Serving Suggestions

Cream of mushroom soup has so many uses and this porcini and morel mushroom version is no exception. Indulge in it as-is or toss in blanched asparagus and wild rice for a more substantial soup. Mix it into your favorite casseroles; throw it in a crock pot and slow-cook chicken or pork to serve over potatoes or rice; mix in bite-sized pieces of steak, sour cream, and fresh grated nutmeg for an easy version of stroganoff to serve over egg noodles or rice. The options are endless with this one, so let your culinary imagination take flight.