I made this richly flavored, creamy soup with my dear friend Josh Turner on my cooking show. The whole show was about mushrooms: where they grow, how they grow, how to cook them. Josh has a deep, resonating voice. After we’d spent the entire day cooking and talking about mushrooms, he leaned in and said, “You know, I never really liked mushrooms, but that soup was good!” What a sweet guy! He didn’t want to hurt my feelings. A true Southern gentleman. It does go to show, though—this bisque is quite good!
Makes 4 servings
2 TABLESPOONS BUTTER
2 TABLESPOONS OLIVE OIL
½ CUP FINELY CHOPPED ONION
2 TABLESPOONS MINCED GARLIC
1½ POUNDS SHIITAKE AND CREMINI (BABY BELLA) MUSHROOMS, STEMMED AND THINLY SLICED
SALT AND FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER
4 CUPS CHICKEN BROTH
½ CUP HEAVY (WHIPPING) CREAM
3 TABLESPOONS SHERRY OR APPLE CIDER
1. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large pot over medium heat until the butter is melted. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
2. Add all the mushrooms and cook until soft, 10 to 12 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside some of the sautéed mushrooms to use as a garnish.
3. Add the stock, cream, and sherry, bring to a simmer, and cook for 5 minutes. Puree the soup in a blender until smooth.
4. Pour the soup into bowls and top each with a garnish of sautéed mushrooms.
SOUTHERN SIMPLE: Use whatever combination of mushrooms you like or that look particularly nice at the market.
Portobello mushrooms are simply mature cremini mushrooms. When a mushroom has exposed gills beneath the cap, it will have a deeper, more earthy flavor. Shiitakes have very woody stems and parasol-shaped caps that range from khaki to dark brown. They’re the mushrooms that look like the dancing mushrooms in the musical animated classic Fantasia.