The (sort of) veggie of the month: Mushrooms

Mushrooms have been a part of the human diet for thousands of years. It’s a great addition to many dishes and has some solid nutritional value. But is the mushroom a vegetable? Fungi? Or something else?

The answer is both.  Scientifically, mushrooms are fungi, as they have no leaves, roots, or seeds. But according to the US Department of Agriculture, they are classified as a vegetable, because they have many of the same nutrients veggies do.

Confused? It’s okay. I’m am not going to get into the science vs. government debate today. (We’re all kind of sick of that one anyway, right?)

What you should know is there are hundreds of different kinds of mushrooms we can eat and even more ways to cook them.

And one of my favorites is Cream of Mushroom Soup. Forget that stuff in the can, which is full of salt and even less flavor. This soup is ‘professional-quality’ stuff, meaning people will swear you got it at a restaurant. But the problem with a good, flavorful soup is that it takes so much time.

But not with the Instant Pot. Yes, I have waxed poetic about mine. (I have two, actually.) But seriously, this soup takes only about 25 minutes from scratch.

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Instant Pot Cream of Mushroom Soup

the most amazing soup for every day and special occassions

Course: Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: instant pot, mushrooms, soup

Equipment

• Electric pressure cooker

Ingredients

• 1 lb baby bella or white mushrooms, sliced
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup cooking sherry or dry white wine
• 1/4 cup flour
• 5 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 cup dried mushrooms I use a mixture.
• 2 Tbs dried thyme
• 1 Tbs seasoned salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• truffle oil optional

Instructions

• Place the butter in the Instant Pot and hit “Sauté” and Adjust so it’s on the “More” or “High” setting. (Alternatively you can also do this on the stovetop in a large fry pan.)
• Once the butter’s melted, add in all the mushrooms, coat well with the butter and let cook (while stirring occasionally) for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes of cooking, add in the half the sherry and continue to cook the mushrooms for another 5 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, take out about 1/2 cup of the mushrooms and put aside.
• Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally for 3 minutes.
• Add the rest of the sherry and cook 1 minute.
• Add the flour and stir constantly, cooking for 3 minutes.
• Add the thyme, salt, dried mushrooms, and broth. Stir well.
• Secure the lid and hit “Keep Warm/Cancel” and then hit “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” High Pressure for 7 minutes. Quick release when done.
• Once the lid comes off, take an immersion blender (or use a regular blender), blend everything in the pot together for about a minute until it’s pureéd. The soup will thicken.
• Add the cream and reserved mushrooms, stirring well.
• Ladle into bowls and add a drop or two of truffle oil if desired.