Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

This wild rice and mushroom soup is super flavorful and filling thanks to a quick homemade mushroom stock and hearty wild rice.

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How to add more flavor to mushroom soup

A question that comes up often is why is my mushroom soup tasteless?

If you’re a mushroom lover, something that seems as simple as a mushroom soup recipe can sometimes have lackluster results.

One thing is that white button mushrooms are pretty flavorless on their own. Another thing is is that you can overcook the flavor right out of the mushrooms.

If you really want to intensify mushroom flavor and make a spectacular mushroom soup then I have a simple trick for you: dried porcini mushrooms.

Dried porcini mushrooms are the secret ingredient in my vegan cream of mushroom soup and they take any mundane mushroom soup from boring to spectacular.

Dried mushrooms need to be rehydrated in water for only about 30 minutes.

The secret ingredient is not the mushrooms themselves but rather the mushroom soaking liquid that becomes an umami-packed mushroom stock that adds intense mushroom flavor to the whole soup.

Dried porcini mushrooms can be a bit expensive, but you only need a little and you can make your soup with cheap white mushrooms and still achieve an intense mushroom flavor.

Now, I haven’t tried it, but you could probably substitute the porcini mushrooms for dried shiitake mushrooms. Your soup may take on more of an Asian flavor profile, but shiitake are quite a bit cheaper than porcini.

What kind of rice holds up best in soup?

Any type of rice can be used in soup but short grain white rice tends to become mushy if it gets overcooked. 

Long grain rice like basmati and jasmine rice tend to hold up better and the grains remain separate when cooked in soup.

Brown rice and wild rice can be used in soup and the grains are firmer but the cooking time is substantially longer so you’ll need to be sure that there is enough broth in your recipe to account for the longer cooking time.

However, it’s not just the cooking time that’s a consideration when making rice soup.

If you’ve ever stored leftover soup with rice in it you might find that you’ve got more of a mushy rice porridge the next day instead of a soup.

To avoid the rice in your soup from turning to mush, keep in mind these three points:

1. Make sure there is enough broth or stock in the pot to cook the rice without it all getting absorbed or making the soup base starchy.

2. Check on the soup regularly as it cooks and take it off the heat as soon as the rice is done.

3. If you anticipate having any leftovers, cook the rice in a separate pot and store it separately from the soup base. Then just spoon the rice into each bowl and pour over the soup. 

Ingredients

The ingredients for this wild rice and mushroom soup are simple and delicious. Some substitutions can be made if necessary.

Rice: The closest thing to wild rice that I have available to me is a wild rice blend. Wild rice blends are common because wild rice is expensive and mixing it with red rice, brown rice, and black rice is more economical and can provide a wider nutritional profile.

Fresh Mushrooms: I’ve used a combination of white button mushrooms and brown cremini (baby bella) mushrooms. You can use all button or all cremini if you want. You can also add/substitute other types of mushrooms including wild mushrooms, shiitake, portobello, oyster mushrooms, etc.

Dried Mushrooms: Dried porcini mushrooms need to be rehydrated in water (room temperature water best preserves the flavor) and that water becomes a super umami mushroom stock. Then the porcini mushrooms are chopped up and added to the soup too. 

Veggies: Onion and garlic make the flavor base of this, and every, soup. I added carrots for a bit of sweetness (and color). You can also add some diced celery if you like.

Stock: A good quality vegetable broth to make the soup base.

Herbs: Herbs that go well in mushroom soup are thyme and sage. Choose your favorite. A couple of bay leaves are also good in just about any soup.

Cashew butter: This ingredient is optional if you want to make a creamy wild rice and mushroom soup. The soup is already very good without it but cashew butter is an easy way to add body to dairy-free cream soups.

Oil and salt: A couple tablespoons of olive oil are needed to fry the onion as well as to brown the mushrooms. This soup is seasoned with a pinch of salt. 

How to make wild rice and mushroom soup

This easy one-pot wild rice and mushroom soup is cozy and hearty. Perfect for a dreary day!

Prep: The first step is to rehydrate the dried mushrooms and make the mushroom stock.

Put the dried porcini mushrooms in a bowl and pour over a cup of room temperature water. Room temperature water best preserves the flavor of the mushrooms.

For best results, leave them to soak for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, dice one onion, two cloves of garlic, one large carrot and chop the mushrooms into bite-sized pieces.

You can also slice the mushrooms if you prefer.

Fry: In a large pot or Dutch oven, add the olive oil and heat it over medium heat.

Sauté the onion until soft and tender. Now add the fresh mushrooms.

Stir to coat the mushrooms in oil then leave them alone for a couple of minutes to brown on the first side before giving them another stir.

Once the mushrooms are browned and soft, add the garlic and give it another minute to cook.

Remove the porcini mushrooms from the soaking water and squeeze them well between your hands to get out as much water as possible. 

Set the porcini mushrooms aside for the moment.

To the pot add the carrots, thyme, bay, rice, vegetable stock, salt and mushroom soaking liquid. 

Be careful while pouring in the mushroom soaking liquid because there is usually a bit of dirt and grit at the bottom of the bowl. Don’t add that.

Simmer: Cover the pot with its lid and bring it to a boil. Then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook until the wild rice is tender.

The package directions will tell you how long, usually about 40 minutes.

Serve: Chop up the rehydrated porcini mushrooms. When the rice is cooked through, remove the pot from the heat and add in the porcini mushrooms.

If making a creamy soup, put the cashew butter in a bowl and add a couple ladles of the hot soup stock. Stir well to dissolve the cashew butter before adding it to the pot.

Taste to adjust the seasoning if necessary and serve!

Substitutions and variations

Rice: I use a wild rice blend because that’s the only thing I can buy here. You can substitute all wild rice if you have it. You can also substitute other types of rice but obviously white rice cooks much faster than wild rice.

Mushrooms: You can use all white mushrooms, all cremini mushrooms or mix/substitute pretty much any type of mushroom that you like.

Vegetables: You can add in other vegetables like celery, spinach, corn, sweet potato, etc.

Seasonings: Mushrooms go well with thyme and sage but you can use an Italian herb blend or rosemary. Garnish with some fresh chopped parsley. 

FAQs

Make ahead and storage tips

Because this soup has rice in it, it will continue to absorb the stock as it sits.

To make this soup ahead, consider cooking the rice in a separate pot and storing the rice and soup in separate containers.

I also recommend this if freezing the soup.

Leftover wild rice and mushroom soup can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Wild rice and mushroom soup can be reheated in the microwave or in a pot on the stovetop over medium heat.

How to serve wild rice and mushroom soup

This hearty soup makes a good main dish on its own. 

You can serve it with some crusty bread or a vegan grilled cheese sandwich (or your favorite sandwich).

A fresh green salad, some steamed or roasted vegetables are all simple yet satisfying side dishes to this wild rice and mushroom soup.