An incredibly rich and satisfying soup with a depth of flavor that will make your taste buds sing! Serve this Hungarian Mushroom Soup with some crusty bread and a leafy green salad for a complete, meatless meal that even the most determined carnivores will love!
Whether you’re fan of Hungarian food, mushrooms, or simply love good soups, this Hungarian-influenced mushroom soup is for you!
This was one of the very first recipes I published on my blog back in January 2013. I remember the first time I made it. We had my family over for dinner and I was eager to see what they thought. The expressions on their faces and the praise that followed was enough to convince me that this Hungarian Mushroom Soup was a slam-dunk winner. And it’s been winning praise ever since.
First we take onions and cremini mushrooms and caramelize them in butter. Then a separate rich roux is prepared with butter and flour which adds a world of depth and flavor to the soup. A generous amount of paprika is added along with the delicate flavor of dill and a “surprise” dose of umami in the form of tamari. The end result is a velvety-smooth, luxuriously flavorful, show-stopping soup that will make you and your dinner guests swoon with delight!
Very important to this dish is the quality of the paprika. Use real Hungarian paprika – paprika that’s actually imported from Hungary. There’s no comparison in flavor.
We recommend this genuine Hungarian paprika from the Kalocsa region of Hungary (I’ve never found it in any local speciality stores but you can find it online). It has an extraordinarily rich flavor and an exceptionally vibrant red color. Many of our readers have tried it, written back and agree that quality Hungarian-imported paprika makes all the difference.
This recipe calls for either cremini or white button mushrooms but feel free to use any other mushrooms you have on hand, including a medley of your favorites.
Soup or Sauce?
As delicious as this is as a soup, it’s equally delicious as a sauce! Simply add an additional tablespoon of flour when you make the roux and serve this Hungarian mushroom sauce over egg noodles. It’s incredible! Either way you serve it, it’s a winner.
Hungarian Mushroom Soup Recipe
Let’s get started!
In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the onions and cook until translucent and just barely beginning to brown. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5-7 minutes until the mushrooms release their juices. Transfer the mushroom mixture to a bowl and set aside.
Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in the same pan and stir in the flour, constantly whisking for 6-7 minutes or until the mixture is a rich, caramelized brown.
Add the milk, broth, and soy sauce, still whisking continually until the mixture is smooth.
Add the paprika, dill, salt and pepper.
Stir in the mushroom mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the sour cream and heat through.
Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped dill. Served with crusty bread.
Enjoy!
For more delicious Hungarian recipes try our:
And be sure to also try our classic Cream of Mushroom Soup!
Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (vegans: use a vegetable spread like Earth Balance)
- 1 large yellow onion , finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic , minced
- 12 ounces cremini or white button mushrooms , sliced or diced according to preference
- 2 tablespoons genuine imported Hungarian paprika
- 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill (fresh is highly recommended; or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter (vegan: use a vegetable spread like Earth Balance)
- 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk (vegan: use soy or hemp milk)
- 2 cups quality beef broth (vegan: use vegetable broth)
- 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce (note: You cannot taste the tamari/soy sauce in this but it's just enough to contribute a wonderful "umami effect" that you'll love!)
- 1/2 cup sour cream (vegan: use vegan sour cream)
- chopped dill or parsley , for garnish
- extra sour cream , for serving
Instructions
- In a heavy pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the onions and cook until translucent and just barely beginning to brown. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5-7 minutes until the mushrooms release their juices. Transfer the mushroom mixture to a bowl and set aside.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in the same pan and stir in the flour, constantly whisking for 6-7 minutes or until the mixture is a rich, caramelized brown. Add the milk, broth, and soy sauce, still whisking continually until the mixture is smooth. Add the paprika, dill, salt and pepper. Stir in the mushroom mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.Stir in the sour cream and heat through. Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of chopped dill. Served with crusty bread.
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet January 8, 2013
Kelly says
What a lovely base soup! It had all of the flavors that I was looking for! I’ve been on a soup kick…all of the cold weather!! I used the lovely leftover stock and onions from last night’s French onion. Truthfully, I used my favorite fish sauce in place of soy. I use that in place of salt in almost every soup or stew…no, it does not taste like fish if you add during the cooking process. Half of my family is German. I will never meet another person who makes their rouladen the same (outside of my family), the same can be said of every Italian family’s sauce. If it doesn’t sound like the recipe you are looking for, just move on to the next one. Life is too short!!! Thank you for the lovely recipe! Cheers-Kelly
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, Kelly, I’m so glad you liked this soup, thank you! And I agree with your other comments!
Chavva Hofstad says
My favorite dish!! It is delicious and easy to follow the recipe. My family and I are vegan and we invite friends over and everyone wanted the recipe because it was just so darn good;)
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Wonderful, Chavva! Thank you so much for the feedback and I’m happy to hear that you and your loved ones enjoy this as much as we do!
Jonathan Kandell says
Your recipe made some subtle but nice changes with the original in Moosewood Cookbook: You sauté the mushrooms, too, before adding stock, you double the spices and add garlic. And, you make a darker Cajun-style roux (rather than a blond roux). I LOLd thinking “this blogger muse from the south and just couldn’t help herself.” :) Joking aside, it makes sense since the spices are sort of vaguely gumbo-ish… . You also leave out the lemon, which, again, makes sense since the sour cream already adds sour. These are both very good recipes!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks, Jonathan! I’ve never seen the Moosewood version but I’m happy to hear you approve of mine :) Ha, I’m not from the South but love the region and the food. Thanks again for the compliment, I appreciate it!
Sarah says
Was looking for a nice soup recipe to go with my dill and onion bread I have rising and I think I’ve found it! Looks delicious x
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Ooh, Sarah, that sounds perfect! Wish I were dining with you today! :)
Molly says
Made this today and it was a treat! Used soy and almond milk instead of dairy and oregano instead of dill since it was all I had to hand, and cut the soy sauce, but it came out really great. Have been wanted to try something like this since I visited Budapest, the food I had there was so, so, good.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Awesome, Molly! I know, Hungarian food is so good. If you click on the recipes tab on my menu bar you can search by country – I have a few Hungarian recipes you may be interested in.
Attila says
What kind of ass adds soy sauce to anything Hungarian…call it anything but Hungarian
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
The same kind that evidently has more class and a better grip on vocabulary than have to resort to juvenile language. Cheers.
ladynyo says
I’m half Hungarian, and I have made this soup for years, but no soya sauce!~ I also use chicken broths and a roux of butter and flour. Don’t use garlic because I think it might overwhelm the delicate soup.
Jane-Elizabeth
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Jane-Elizabeth! Contrary to what a lot of people may think, the soy sauce doesn’t add an “Asian” flavor. It’s simply a source of salt that adds some additional depth. This soup is made with a butter and flour roux as well and it’s whisked to a nice caramelized brown and then beef broth is added, so this version isn’t a delicate soup per say – it’s a very rich soup with a lot of depth of flavor and the garlic further enhances it. But absolutely, it you prefer to leave it out it will still taste fabulous.
Global7 says
I made this for Thanksgiving! It was such a hit I am glad I saved some for myself. The flavor, the texture, everything about this soup is sublime. A keeper? Oh yes, that’s a no brainer! Thank you so much.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
So thrilled you made and enjoyed this, Global7! It’s one of our favorites. Thanks so much for your feedback!
Boletus says
Yes, I read that you’ve been visiting Hungary. The country info with the account of your personal impressions given in the introduction to your goulash soup recipe is quite touching and surely much appreciated by any Hungarian reading it. I see that you perhaps tend to adapt the recipes of ethnic foods a bit to suit the American taste (eg. butter instead of lard) and there is nothing wrong with that,it happens to recipes all the time, as they travel around the globe, it’s basically logical. While I might shudder at the thought of adding soya sauce to any Hungarian dish, it is true that one of the biggest joys of cooking is to experiment with different ingredients and new flavour combinations.I did note that the intro to the mushroom soup recipe said that the soup is Hungarian INFLUENCED (ie.not authentic Hungarian), so nothing misleading there either.
Best wishes from Budapest: Imre (aka Boletus, at least on the Daring Gourmet website :)
Valtrya says
Being vegan, I think it would be very hard to make this the “authentic” way. I’m making it right now and have high hopes.
Boletus says
Hi Kimberley,
I am aware of globalization affecting the way people cook and the ingredients they use and while “fusion cooking” is trendy and intreresting, I feel it is all the more important to really know the roots and to bring out the best from the authentic recipes with the use of limited “indigenous” ingredients. Yeah, I know, Hungarians would never have created their emblematic stews without the famous paprika, which was introduced to Europe from the Americas, but in our times it’s really worthwhile to try to taste and learn to appreciate more simple and well defined dishes connected to different regions of the world.
Broth: yes, I know about this practice, sometimes use it myself ( though no cubes) but a really good mushroom soup will not really need this additive, Maybe I’m a purist but it is especially the trends brought about by fusion cooking that makes me one.
Footnote: On the other hand I do put mushrooms esp. porcini in the beef soup I make :)
BTW I am Hungarian, live in Budapest and think that your website hosts a wonderful range of recipes.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
We think alike in many ways, Boletus. My biggest passion is ethnic cuisine and while I develop many recipes that have world influences, I also develop ones that are strictly authentic (in those case, and in only those cases, will I make the claim of authenticity). I couldn’t agree more with you that sometimes it’s the simplest recipes that taste best, preparing the ingredients thoughtfully in such a way to bring out their full, pure flavors. By the way, I’ve visited Hungary several times, love the country and its people (Budapest is one of my most favorite cities) and Hungarian cuisine ranks among my favorites. I appreciate your thoughts and hope you’ll visit again. Kind regards, Kimberly
Boletus says
Why on earth would you put soya suce in a Hungarian influenced mushroom soup?
Neither soya sauce, nor butter have much to do with traditional Hungarian cooking, This is the second Hungarian mushroom soup recipe I find in which soya sauce is given as an ingredient. Skip the soya sauce, but use more galrlic, add savory and thyme.
Broth is also totally unnecessary…again, most recipes seem to add some sort of broth to mushroom soups. Use porcini and other forest mushrooms to enhance the flavour, not broth cubes and the like…
Otherwise it sounds and looks okay :)
To make it a real winter treat: include some smoked bacon or ham. Hungarians love to put stuff like that into their rustic foods.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Boletus, there’s a simple explanation: Because it tastes great that way! Make it as written and you’ll agree. It’s been a common movement in the world of cooking for years to blend culinary influences to achieve wonderful results. And using broth has been an even longer practice, especially when the soup is vegetarian and doesn’t have the flavor that would otherwise come from browning meat or frying bacon. On the point about bacon I agree with you whole-heartedly, there are few dishes that wouldn’t benefit from the inclusion of bacon – it’s a simply marvelous creation! The same is true of butter. And porcini mushrooms…yes! I’m a huge fan of adding some ground porcini to mushroom soups and sauces for flavor and several of my recipes do just that. They add such a fabulous flavor!
Mushrooms Canada says
In this cold, winter weather this soup hits the spot! Thanks for sharing such a tasty recipe!
-Shannon
The Daring Gourmet says
You are most welcome and thanks for giving it a try!
pam defeis says
Made it last night and it was wonderful….Happy group! Next time Ill try it over egg noodles…but as a soup…I loved it (oh…used the vegi broth instead of Beef broth and it was still great!
The Daring Gourmet says
Thank you, Pam, so glad you liked it!
Lindsay @ VeganYumminess says
This looks delicious! I would love to try to veganize this recipe.
The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks, Lindsay. Veganizing would be a breeze. I would substitute organic canola oil for the butter (I love cooking with extra virgin olive oil, but the taste may end up dominating this particular soup), vegetable broth for the beef broth, non-dairy sour cream, and either hemp or rice milk (rice milk is very thin – if using that I would recommend increasing the amount of non-dairy sour cream to make for a more creamy consistency. This soup lends easily lends itself to a vegan version and will still taste perfectly yummy!
The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks, Lindsay! Veganizing this recipe would be a breeze! I would substitute organic canola oil for the butter (I love cooking with olive and coconut oils, but those flavors would most likely dominate this particular soup too much), vegetable broth for the beef broth, non-dairy sour cream, and hemp milk. Other milk substitutes, like rice milk, are much thinner in consistency. If using rice milk I would increase the amount of non-dairy sour cream to make for a creamier consistency. In any case, this soup lends itself easily to a vegan version and will still taste absolutely yummy! Thanks for stopping by!
Jeanie says
Looks really yummy, and I LOVE mushrooms so, I will definitely try this one.
Kimberly says
Thanks, Jeanie! Hope you enjoy it! Let me know how it turns out for you.
Jeanie Owens says
I made it tonight. We loved it! So good, buttery and warming on a cold winters night.
The Daring Gourmet says
I’m so glad you all liked it! As noted in my post, it’s really good made a little thicker and used as a sauce over egg noodles as well. In any case, I’m happy to have been able to add a little warmth to your cold winter’s night :)