Creamy Tarragon Mushroom Soup Recipe
A creamy mushroom soup recipe that leans on tarragon to balance the earthiness of the mushrooms - a comforting starter or light meal.
Mushrooms and tarragon are a natural pair - the earthiness of the mushrooms grounds tarragon's anise brightness, and the two together in a cream base make a soup that tastes more complex than the short ingredient list suggests.
Creamy Tarragon Mushroom Soup
Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 35 minutes | Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb mixed mushrooms (cremini, button, or a mix with shiitake), sliced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)
- 3 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 tbsp fresh tarragon, finely chopped, divided
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- Fresh tarragon leaves, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter with the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms in a single layer (working in batches if needed to avoid crowding) and cook without stirring for 3 to 4 minutes to let them brown before stirring.
- Once the mushrooms are golden, add the onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- If using wine, pour it in now and let it simmer for 1 to 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
- Sprinkle the flour over the mushroom mixture and stir to coat everything evenly. Cook for 1 minute to remove the raw flour taste.
- Slowly pour in the broth, whisking or stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened.
- For a smoother soup, blend half the soup with an immersion blender or in a countertop blender, then return it to the pot - this gives a body to the soup while keeping some mushroom pieces intact. Skip this step entirely if you prefer a chunkier, rustic texture.
- Stir in the heavy cream and half the tarragon. Simmer for another 5 minutes, then season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir in the remaining fresh tarragon just before serving to keep its flavor bright, and garnish with a few whole tarragon leaves.
Notes
This soup freezes reasonably well, though cream-based soups can separate slightly on reheating - whisk it back together over low heat and it should recombine.
What to Serve With It
Crusty bread is the obvious pairing for mopping up the last of the soup. It also works well as a starter before a tarragon roast chicken main course, since the flavors echo each other without repeating a dish.
Variations
- Vegetarian: Use vegetable broth in place of chicken broth - the mushrooms provide plenty of savory depth on their own.
- Lighter version: Substitute half-and-half or whole milk for the heavy cream, added at the end off the heat to avoid curdling.
- Wild mushroom version: Use a mix of dried and fresh wild mushrooms (rehydrate dried ones in warm water first, and use the soaking liquid as part of the broth) for a deeper, more complex flavor.
- No blending at all: Skip the partial blending step for a fully chunky, brothy soup instead of a creamy one.
Why Tarragon Works With Mushrooms
Mushrooms are almost entirely savory and earthy with little inherent brightness, which is exactly the gap tarragon fills. The same principle is at work in a lot of French mushroom cookery, and it's worth remembering as a general pairing rule the next time you're cooking mushrooms in any context - a small amount of tarragon at the end of cooking tends to lift the whole dish. See our pairing guide for more combinations like this one.
For everything else you can do with tarragon, head back to the complete tarragon guide.
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