For Thanksgiving this year, my brother asked if I would make mushroom soup. He knows that I’m always up for making something outside of our traditional Thanksgiving dishes.
While I had a good recipe for Mushroom Soup (one with very little dairy) on Riegl Palate, I thought I’d use this as an opportunity to try a new recipe.
As I began my search, I was reminded that our chef at Radnor Hunt, Charles Nichols, makes the best mushroom soup. When it’s on the menu, we often ask for some to take home – it’s that good. I reached out to Charles and asked if he would share his recipe with me and he graciously did.
I adapted this recipe for a home kitchen and improvised a bit given that the recipe wasn’t as detailed as what I provided below. I’ve found that when you’re a professional chef (the same applies to some home cooks, too), you don’t include a lot of details in your recipes.
I made the full quantity in the recipe Charles provided – about 9 quarts – but cut it in half for this recipe as I realize most people do not make that much soup at once. It provided an opportunity for me to bring my blue Le Creuset 13-1/4 quart Dutch oven up from the unfinished basement where it lives. It weighs almost 20 pounds so it doesn’t travel much.
The key to getting the mushroom flavor is starting with dried porcini mushrooms which you rehydrate. You then use the rehydrated porcini mushrooms and the stock that results from rehydrating them in your soup. While you could substitute other fresh mushrooms for the shiitake or oyster, you can’t substitute anything for the dried porcini mushrooms. Charles emphasized this to me.
Charles’ recipe called for “a case of shiitake and a case of oyster mushrooms.” I did clarify with him just how much a case is as I can’t go to my local grocery store and buy mushrooms by the case (perhaps you can?).
I recommend an immersion blender or blender to purée or blend the soup to make it as smooth as possible – the smoother, the better. I used a Vitamix immersion blender which does a good job but a Vitamix blender works even better (but takes more effort).
Ideally you also want to taste a hint of sherry in addition to the earthiness of the mushrooms, so you may need to add a bit more when it’s heating up. It’s not like a Philadelphia favorite, Snapper Soup (or Turtle Soup), where sherry is served on the side.
We served this soup for a casual lunch around the kitchen on Thanksgiving day. It was very well received and a perfect addition to our holiday dining.
While this soup takes some time, it’s not a difficult recipe. The good news is that you can prepare it a few days in advance (and refrigerate it) or freeze it for a few months. If you’re looking to prepare food ahead of time for the holidays, this is a great option.
Thank you, Chef Charles, for entrusting me with your recipe.
| Creamy Mushroom Soup | Print |
- 2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms
- ½ gallon (8 cups) water
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (divided)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- ½ red onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 pounds fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced (see Notes)
- 2 pounds fresh oyster mushrooms, sliced (see Notes)
- 1 quart (4 cups) whole milk
- 1 cup dry sherry
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
- Kosher salt
- Place porcini mushrooms and water in a 4-quart pot. Bring to a boil over high heat and continue to boil until the liquid is dark, about 4 minutes. Remove from the stove and let steep for 30 minutes. Line a strainer with cheesecloth and pour mushroom stock into a new clean container (you’re going to use it later). Reserve the porcini mushrooms. If there’s too much sediment, you may need to do this twice. You can rehydrate the mushrooms and make the stock a day in advance.
- In a 7-quart (or larger) pot, heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add yellow and red onions to the pot. Cook until soft and beginning to carmelize, stirring occasionally, about 12 to 15 minutes. If they are sticking to the bottom of the pot, add some water.
- When onions are done, stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute. Season with Kosher salt.
- Remove onion and garlic mixture to a plate.
- To the same 7-quart pot, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add reserved porcini mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms and oyster mushrooms and stir so that they don’t stick to the pan. After a few minutes, the mushrooms will begin to release some moisture. Cook the mushrooms until most of the moisture is gone, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the oregano, rosemary and thyme. Cook for 1 minute.
- Remove half the mushroom mixture to a cutting board. Roughly chop the mushrooms and reserve them.
- Add onions back into the pot that contains the remaining half of the mushrooms and stir.
- Add the milk and half of the mushroom stock to the pot and bring to a boil.
- Add the sherry. Cook for 10 minutes on low heat. Season with Kosher salt.
- Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until it’s smooth (the smoother, the better). Alternatively, you can transfer (in batches) the soup to a blender or Vitamix to blend it. Then transfer it back to the pot.
- Add the reserved chopped mushrooms and stir. Add additional mushroom stock to thin, if needed. Add additional Kosher salt, if needed.
- You can serve it immediately, refrigerate it for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.
* The soup will thicken as it cools (particularly in the refrigerator). Heat it up first before adding additional mushroom stock to ensure you don’t thin it out too much.
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