Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

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This recipe for Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup takes less than half an hour to make and has many different uses. Learn how to make your own version of this delightful soup from scratch and avoid the storebought cans below.

How to make homemade cream of mushroom soup from scratch. Learn how to make your own version of this delightful soup and avoid the storebought cans! #makeyourown #scratchrecipe #frugalrecipe #creamofmushroomsoup

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

Canned ‘cream of’ soups are wonderfully convenient, bursting with flavor, and chock full of chemicals. Those little cans may seem wholesome, but a quick glance at the ingredients list of a major brand tells us otherwise:

WATER, MUSHROOMS, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, WHEAT FLOUR, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF: VEGETABLE OIL (CORN, COTTONSEED, CANOLA, AND/OR SOYBEAN), SUGAR, SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, CREAM (MILK), SALT, POTASSIUM CHLORIDE, FLAVORING, LOWER SODIUM NATURAL SEA SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, DISODIUM GUANYLATE, DISODIUM INOSINATE, DEHYDRATED MUSHROOMS.

There is so much wrong here. The first ingredient is water? I thought this was a cream soup! And a condensed one at that! But cream is actually eighth on the list, behind sugar. Also, there are three different types of salt here. One of them is potassium chloride, which is primarily used in fertilizers. Disodium guanylate is a flavor enhancer in the same family as MSG (monosodium glutamate), and the oils and soy protein are almost certainly from genetically modified crops.

There are three truths about homemade food: it is healthier, tastier, and takes longer to make. Yes, making your own cream soup does require more time and effort than simply opening up a can of the store-bought stuff. But think of that as an investment, both in your health and in the happiness of your taste buds. The time you spend in the kitchen making real food from whole ingredients can be relaxing, satisfying, and educational. It involves all your senses- the weight of the knife in your hand as you slice up the mushrooms, the smell of butter as it melts in the pan, the sound of the onions sauteing as they soften and begin to brown, the soothing taste of chicken stock as you check its seasoning, and lastly, the sight of an appropriately messy kitchen, full of the warmth and dirty dishes that say “I am functional and fully appreciated.” Okay sure, that last bit seems a bit hokey. But once you begin to take the time to understand your food and to find pleasure in cooking it, the kitchen can become an oasis instead of a black hole.

This recipe for homemade cream of mushroom soup takes less than half an hour to make and has many different uses. My favorite one is to add it to beef stew. The mushroom flavor pairs really well with beef, and the creaminess it adds transforms the dish from homey to sophisticated. It is also really good poured over seasoned chicken breast then baked in the oven, or just eaten on its own. However it’s enjoyed, you will have the comfort of knowing exactly what’s in it and the satisfaction of having made it yourself.

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

Serves 2 as main dish, 4 as a side
What You Need for Homemade Mushroom Soup:

    • 16 ounces fresh mushrooms, thinly sliced (slice in half first if more than 1-2″ wide)
    • 1 shallot, minced
    • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
    • 3 tbl unsalted butter
    • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    • 2 cups chicken stock
    • 1 cup cream or half and half
    • ½ tsp kosher salt
    • ¼ tsp pepper
    • ¼ tsp nutmeg
    • 1/4 tsp dried thyme

How to make Mushroom Soup:

Heat the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onions, stirring well to coat with the butter. Cook until the mushrooms have wilted and most of the liquid evaporates. Add the garlic and cook two minutes more.

Blend in the flour, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Cook for about one minute.

Whisk in the chicken stock. Simmer until slightly thickened, stirring frequently. If your stock is unsalted, you may have to add a bit more salt at the end. Let your taste buds decide!

Add the cream and bring just to a simmer. Remove 1 1/2 cups of the soup and puree it. Pour back into the pan, stir to incorporate.

Turn off heat, adjust seasonings if necessary, and enjoy your homemade mushroom soup!

Want to print this recipe for Cream of Mushroom Soup? Grab it below:

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

Course Soup
Cuisine American
Keyword creamofmushroomsoup, scratchrecipes

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces fresh mushrooms thinly sliced (slice in half first if more than 1-2" wide)
  • 1 shallot minced
  • 2 cloves of garlic minced
  • 3 tbl unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 cup cream or half and half
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp dried thyme

Instructions

  1. Heat the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and onions, stirring well to coat with the butter. Cook until the mushrooms have wilted and most of the liquid evaporates. Add the garlic and cook two minutes more.
  2. Blend in the flour, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Cook for about one minute.
  3. Whisk in the chicken stock. Simmer until slightly thickened, stirring frequently. If your stock is unsalted, you may have to add a bit more salt at the end. Let your taste buds decide!
  4. Add the cream and bring just to a simmer. Remove 1 1/2 cups of the soup and puree it. Pour back into the pan, stir to incorporate.
  5. Turn off heat, adjust seasonings if necessary, and enjoy your homemade mushroom soup!

One question I often get is “Can you freeze mushroom soup?” This Cream of Mushroom soup should be fine to freeze but as with any cream/milk based product, it’s going to come out of the freezer a little differently than when it went in. I’m not sure I would recommend it to eat as a side or main dish, but it still should work find in a recipe that calls for the soup.

If you make a lot of recipes that have a “cream of” soup in them, you will definitely need to click over to this Cream Of Soup Mix recipe. It’s a wonderful mix that you need to have in your pantry. You should also take a peek at this Cream of Potato Soup, so good.

Trying to plan better, more frugal meals for your family so that you always have a warm meal on the table and aren’t wasting money at the grocery store? You’ve got to check out my ebook Meal Planning Made Simple. Even if you thought meal planning didn’t work for your family, this ebook will help you find the perfect fit for your family’s style.

Do you use “cream of” soups? Have you ever made homemade cream of mushroom soup?

amanbio

This Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup recipe was originally posted on Little House Living in January 2013. It has been updated as of September 2019.

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49 Comments

  1. This is all kinds of yum! 🙂 I make mushroom soup sometimes, though I’ll admit I fall back on cans for a lot of stuff like casseroles. Which leads me to the question: could this be canned? If it can be canned, then it would solve a lot of my problems! Little pint jars of mushy soup would be perfect for doing green bean cassarole and for pouring into other soups and such!

    1. I am not an expert on canning, but from what I understand, the current guidelines state that there is no safe method for canning foods with dairy products. It has something to do with the fat/protein in dairy insulating bacteria so that the canning process cannot kill them. If anyone else reading these comments has any information regarding this, please chime in!

        1. I may be a bit late for that, but I would suggest simply omitting the cream to can it. You can always add cream when you open the can. The safest option would be to find a similar recipe on a canning site.

      1. If you are talking about home canning, you are correct, there is no accepted safe method to can something with dairy in it. However, commercial “cream of” soups are canned quite differently than home canning methods and “cream of” items CAN be commercially canned safely.

    1. Definitely! I always make a big batch and freeze some for later. When thawing, it might separate and look lumpy, but it will fix itself when reheated.

  2. Wow, can’t believe it. I made this soup tonight! Logged on to the computer and bam, there was your email! lol. Yum yum!

  3. This sounds really good! I am working on removing all processed foods from our diet. Tonight I made Hamburger Helper without a boxed mix and it was amazing! I think I might make this and leave out the mushrooms, it could be a cream soup base for anything!

  4. This sounds yummy, and so simple! Love mushrooms, so will definitely start there, but it seems quite adaptable to other veggies – I’m thinking asparagus, using the tough ends as part of a vegetarian base for stock. Thanks for a great article!

  5. There is a convenient alternative but it can be expensive. Pacific brand and some other organic brands make cream soups. My Harris Teeter store used to carry them and when they discontinued them, I had coupons that doubled to make them free or almost free. I stocked up and it has lasted me more than a year and still have some. I hate to see them go, as I’m not sure where to get them next without paying a lot more at a health food store. Pacific has great flavors and are gluten free to fit our recent wheat free diet.. I am still going to try this recipe. Thank you!

  6. How long do you think I can store this soup the freezer? What type of containers do you freeze you items in? thanks

    1. I freeze them in small Rubbermaid storage containers. I’m not sure how long it will technically last in the freezer, but mine usually hang out in there for a 1-2 months and are fine.

    1. I haven’t tried it, but since the flour only serves to thicken the soup, I think cornstarch, arrowroot powder, or even maybe rice flour would be fine!

    2. Yes it is easy to make this soup gluten-free. Just use cornflour. I use cornflour for all thickening – and it is fine. Of course you need to be careful of chicken stock as well. So many pre-prepared stocks are thickened with wheat flour. Why??? Make your own if you can, otherwise read the labels carefully.

  7. I am definitely going to try this and if we love it, I am sticking to it. I know the canned kind has got to be bad for a person so I need to use up what I have and change to this!! Thanks!

    1. I’m not sure, but you could certainly try! Almond milk has a unique flavor and a much thinner consistency than cream, so it would significantly alter the final product.

  8. Made it for my crockpot recipe. Fast, easy and no salt. Nice. And I will be freezing it for all “cream of” recipes.

  9. This site is Awsome!!……………….Going to try everything. Tried of being poisoned by store canned items. Would greatly apprecaite the cock-pot recipe for creamed soup. Thank you and God Bless.!

    1. I use the square cottage cheese containers (half to 1/3 full) and after they are froze . Pop out, wrap in shrink wrap and freeze in freezer bags. Packs up nice and tight.

  10. You should be able to can this too if you skip adding the milk until you go to use it. I would just write on a piece of masking tape how much you need to add and how long to cook it afterwards.

  11. I am making a noodle dish with pork chops, going to make a mushroom gravy, modifying the soup into a sauce. Thank you!! And yum!

    XoXo

  12. Just made this! Using it in a Curry dish I’m making tonight, but sampled it and it was DELICIOUS! I’ll have to make it to eat by itself sometime soon! Thank you!

  13. I am so glad to found your recipe. I agree food should only a few ingredient and I should know where they come from.

    Question: If I leave out flour (for gluten free family) the soup flavor will still be cream and yummy, it just won’t be as thick, correct?

    Clarification: Potassium Chloride is a salt that is good for you. (Just like sodium chloride is table salt.) KCl is found in sea salt and if you have a problem with sodium it is the salt alternative for you. Just because it is used in fertilizer doesn’t mean its bad. In fertilizer it is the source for potassium which plants need)

    Thanks again for this recipe.
    K

    1. Bob’s Red Mill makes an all-purpose GF flour that works well for this recipe. Also, be sure to check your chicken stock (if you are not making it homemade). Most stock you find on the market are not gluten free.

  14. You can can the soup if you stop before the last step, don’t add the cream. The soup will be just like what you buy in the store. When you go to use it, add the cream.

  15. I just made this soup today and it was wonderful. I also used dehydrated mushrooms which I dried myself. Such a quick and easy recipe. Thank you for sharing it.

  16. Could you add artichokes to this for mushroom artichoke soup? I cant find a recipe I like or have all the ingredients for it.

  17. Have you tried making a dried version of the cream of mushroom soup? I was wondering how it would be if you added dried mushrooms to the cream of soup mixture. Love your page BTW!

  18. This took more work than opening a can of soup but it was worth it! I used 1 can of coconut milk in place of the milk or half and half and it was great! Thank you for sharing 🙂