Of Donkeys & Dhoklas

What’s your take on making soups from scratch? Love the process or is it something you haven’t given a try as yet? If you love making your own soups, I hear you—same here! And if you’re yet to try, then do it! It’s really satisfying to make soups from scratch: you have the full control over the ingredients that go in and you get to enjoy the process as well!

Even though I’m not that much into healthy eating, I prefer making my own soups rather than use those processed, preservative-filled soup mixes. And since we’re talking about Vegan Cream of Mushroom Soup, I wonder if we even get vegan mushroom soup mixes in the Indian markets? I don’t know as it’s been ages since I bought a ready-to-use soup mix. Anyway, it doesn’t matter as making your own soups is so easy—and fun too!

This cream of mushroom soup is everything a warm, comforting bowl of soup should be—it’s rich, creamy, hearty, and chock-full of the earthy tones of mushroom, with a slight hint of garlic. I personally find it very fulfilling to whip up a batch of this soup in my kitchen and hope you feel the same 🙂

Vegan Cream of Mushroom Soup

Preparation time: 45 minutes (approx.)

Yields: 3 hearty servings or 4 small servings

Ingredients

• 200 gm button mushrooms
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 small green chilli, chopped
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 4 cups water (600 ml)
• 2 cups non-dairy milk (300 ml)
• ½ cup broken cashews
• 1 tablespoon cornflour
• 1 bay leaf
• A small piece of cinnamon
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper powder, to taste
• Spice mix of your choice (optional)

Method:

1. Slice 8-10 mushrooms and keep aside. Coarsely chop the rest. Heat ½ tablespoon oil in a kadhai/saucepan and sauté the sliced mushrooms over medium-high heat until golden brown (about 7-8 minutes). Keep aside.
2. In a pressure cooker, heat the remaining ½ tablespoon oil. Add the bay leaf and cinnamon. Add the chopped garlic, chilli, and onion. Cook till the onion turns translucent.
3. Add the coarsely chopped mushrooms and broken cashews. Cook on high-medium heat for about 10-12 minutes until most of the water evaporates. Pour 4 cups of water and close the pressure cooker. Cook on high heat for 4 whistles.
4. Remove the bay leaf and cinnamon. Blend the contents of the cooker with 2 cups non-dairy milk and cornflour until smooth and creamy. Do this in batches, as per the capacity of your blender.
5. Return the soup to the stove and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt, pepper powder, and any spice mix of your choice (I used Italian seasoning).

Serve hot with toasts or a light sandwich to make a filling dinner!