Wonderfully silky and incredibly flavorful, this cream of mushroom soup is flavored with butter, garlic, and thyme. You can serve a cup of it as an appetizer or a bowl as a filling and flavorful main course.
Soup is the perfect wintertime appetizer, but I often serve a bowl of it as a main course. If you like mushrooms, you are going to love this delicious soup. It's silky, creamy, and flavorful. One of us dislikes mushrooms (even these wonderful sauteed mushrooms), but she loves this soup and regularly asks for seconds when I make it.
Ingredients
The full list of ingredients and exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below. Here are my comments on some of the ingredients.
- Unsalted butter: For cooking the mushrooms and garlic. I love Banner butter!
- Fresh mushrooms: I usually use cremini mushrooms. White mushrooms are fine, too.
- Chicken broth: Store-bought is fine. But when I have homemade chicken broth, I use that instead.
- Heavy cream: I tried once to use half-and-half instead and decided that heavy cream is much better.
- Cornstarch: I sometimes use it to thicken the soup. It's an optional ingredient.
Variations
- Add a handful of wild mushrooms to the soup. One of the reasons I like to use frozen mushrooms is that they contain wild mushrooms, which are very flavorful.
- Sage is very good in this soup, in addition to or instead of thyme.
- You can cook the mushrooms in olive oil instead of butter. I do think that butter is best, but olive oil is very good, too.
- When adding heavy cream to the soup, you can also add ¼ cup of grated (not shredded) parmesan.
- You can turn this soup into a complete meal by adding cooked, shredded chicken breast. Add it at the very last stage of cooking, after you've added the cream and cornstarch, to ensure it doesn't dry out during prolonged cooking.
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this soup:
You start by cooking the mushrooms and garlic in butter with some salt. Add the remaining ingredients except for the cream and cornstarch. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.
Puree the soup using an immersion blender.
Stir in the cream (and cornstarch slurry if using), heat, and serve.
Expert Tip
There are two ways to puree a soup. Which of these methods you choose is up to you. Both work and both yield great results, just different textures.
Stand Blender
For a very creamy texture, working in at least two batches, carefully transfer the hot soup to your stand blender. Blend each batch until completely smooth and transfer it to a bowl.
When all batches are done, return the pureed soup to the pot and proceed with the recipe. You can see the results of this method in the photos on this page - very smooth and creamy.
When using a stand blender, never fill your blender past the maximum fill line. It's best to fill it no more than half full. If the lid of your blender wasn't designed to allow steam to escape, you’ll need to remove the centerpiece and drape a clean towel on top of the lid.
You can hold down the lid when blending to prevent it from being pushed off, but do so without actually placing your hand - or your face - over the hot steam.
Immersion Blender
The second method is to use an immersion blender and blend the soup right inside the pot. I used this method when filming the video, and as you can see in the photo below, the soup is not as smooth. However, it's just as tasty, and using an immersion blender is easier.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! Sometimes, when I'm out of fresh mushrooms but still crave this soup, I use a package of frozen mushrooms, as shown in the video.
You can add them frozen to the pot. They'll release more liquid than fresh mushrooms, but I haven't found that to be a problem.
If you'd rather not use cornstarch for thickening the soup, another option is to puree the soup in batches (and carefully!) in a stand blender instead of using an immersion blender which isn't as powerful.
The mushrooms will be better pureed, and this will considerably thicken the soup without any added thickeners.
I don't recommend that. For the best, creamiest, and most flavorful results, I highly recommend using heavy cream.
Serving Suggestions
I usually serve this soup as a first course at dinner, a cup per person. But a bowl of it is also wonderful for lunch. Add a couple of cheese muffins or cheese biscuits to make a delicious and filling lunch.
Storing Leftovers
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Gently reheat them, covered, in the microwave at 50% power or on the stovetop over medium heat, taking care not to bring the soup to a boil. You might need to thin the soup out slightly first by adding a tablespoon or two of water. I don't recommend freezing the leftovers.
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Recipe Card
Easy Cream of Mushroom Soup
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pound cremini mushrooms - wiped clean, quartered
- 1 tablespoon fresh garlic - minced
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 cups chicken broth
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper - or white pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup heavy cream - remove it from the fridge when you start cooking
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch - optional, helps to thicken the soup
Instructions
- Heat the butter in a large, heavy stockpot over medium-high heat. When the butter starts to foam, add the mushrooms, garlic, and salt. Cook, stirring often, for 5-7 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender.
- Add the chicken broth, black pepper, and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer the soup, partially covered, for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
- Turn the heat off. Puree the soup using an immersion blender. Prior to blending the soup, you can reserve a few mushrooms to use for decoration.
- Stir the heavy cream into the pureed soup. Taste and decide if you'd like to add more salt - this would depend on how salty your chicken broth is.
- Turn the heat back to medium and bring the soup to a low simmer. If you'd like to further thicken the soup, mix the cornstarch with two tablespoons of cold water until smooth and stir the slurry into the soup.
- Continue heating the soup (but don't bring it to a boil - lower the heat if needed), stirring, until heated through and thickened, 1-2 minutes. Serve immediately.
Notes
- You can use 1 pound of frozen mushrooms. I like these mixed mushrooms from Whole Foods Market. They will release quite a bit of liquid, more so than fresh mushrooms. But they are very flavorful, and you can use them frozen.
- If you prefer not to use cornstarch, you can make a thicker and creamier soup by pureeing it completely in a stand blender instead of using an immersion blender, which isn't as efficient. Working in at least two batches, carefully transfer the hot soup to your stand blender. Blend each batch until completely smooth and transfer it to a bowl. When all batches are done, return the pureed soup to the stockpot and proceed with the recipe.
- When using a stand blender, never fill your blender past the maximum fill line. It's best to fill it no more than half full. If the lid of your blender wasn't designed to allow steam to escape, you’ll need to remove the centerpiece and drape a clean towel on top of the lid. You can hold down the lid when blending to prevent it from being pushed off, but do so without actually placing your hand - or your face - over the hot steam.
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Gently reheat them, covered, in the microwave at 50% power or on the stovetop over medium heat, taking care not to bring the soup to a boil. You might need to thin the soup out slightly first by adding a tablespoon or two of water. I don't recommend freezing the leftovers.
Nutrition per Serving
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B R says
Great recipe I’ll give it a five star
Kristin says
This will be a soup I will make again and again. So flavorful, with the perfect blend of ingredients. I liked the taste a lot, so I didn't feel the need to thicken it with cornstarch, even though I had it on hand.
Vered DeLeeuw says
Wonderful, Kristin! I'm so glad you enjoyed this recipe. I love this soup, too.
Ginny says
My family enjoys this soup often! It is easy to make and tastes delicious. We just got back from the mushroom farm near us. The different mushrooms offer texture and great taste.
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm so glad you and your family enjoy this recipe, Ginny! Thank you for the review.
I love the idea of using different mushrooms. Yum!
Jeannette Shields says
This is delicious! So much better than the stuff in the can!!!
Thank you!
Vered DeLeeuw says
You're very welcome, Jeannette! Glad you liked it. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Charlie says
I was looking at your mushroom soup recipe. It looks delicious, but can you freeze the leftovers? I try to make a bunch of soup for winter , and I would love to make this to be able to have it later so please let me know if you’re able to freeze.
Vered DeLeeuw says
Hi Charlie,
Unfortunately, cream of mushroom soup doesn't thaw well after being frozen. I don't recommend freezing it.