Creamy Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup has wild rice, plenty of vegetables and a secret ingredient for a lighter take on a creamy soup.
If the world ate soup all year long it would be fine with me.
Soup season is EVERY SEASON!
You guys, I love this wild rice soup! It's warm and comforting and even though it's rich and decadent tasting, it's loaded full of good for you ingredients.
Mushroom and Rice Soup
There are approximately 2,164 rice blends on the market.
Okay, well, don't quote me on that. I did no fact research whatsoever, but just stroll the aisles at your local grocery store and you'll agree - there are a lot.
What you'll want to use in this soup recipe is a multi-color wild rice blend. It will hold up as it cooks without turning to mush and it gives this soup a hearty, nutty flavor.
Oh, and here's an interesting fact....if you use black rice, it'll turn purple when the cream is added.
While that may sound like a fun science experiment, I think you'll agree that purple mushroom soup just isn't a good idea.
So say it with me - multi-color wild rice blend.
Ingredients in our Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup
We've got the standard cast of soup ingredients here with:
wild rice blend, uncooked*
vegetables: white onion celery, carrots, mushrooms
minced garlic
cannellini beans, undrained**
spices: bay leaf, garlic, garlic powder, salt and pepper
vegetable stock, divided - you can substitute chicken broth if you'd like
half and half - you can use heavy cream or coconut milk if you prefer
fresh parsley - for garnish
How to make Creamy Wild Rice Soup
You're gonna hear me say something I don't say often and that is this: Get out your food chopper or food processor.
Unless you have mad knife skills it's going to keep things moving with this recipe.
And although the recipe looks long, it's really pretty easy to make this soup in the slow cooker. It looks longer because I've also included directions to make this as a freezer meal.
Let me break it down for you in four easy steps.
Step 1: Rinse the rice under cold water.
Why do I ask you to do this? Well the short answer is that rinsing rice before cooking removes debris and extra starch from the surface.
If you've ever had gummy rice, you know what I'm talking about. It's also going to give the rice a more evenly cooked texture in ever little grain.
That's the short answer, but if you want the long answer, you can read more here.
Step 2: Chop the ingredients
Here's where the food processor comes into play. You're gonna use it for the onion, celery, carrots and half the mushrooms.
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Why half the mushrooms? Texture, baby!
Then, puree the beans, which is going to give us the creamy texture without a whole lot of calories.
We're almost done!
Step 3: Add the remaining ingredients
Add the bay leaf, garlic powder and vegetable stock and cook!
Step 4: Add the half and half
When your soup is ready, the rice should be tender but not mushy. Cooked wild rice also has a little more "bite" to it so it may remind you of al dente pasta.
Instead of just dumping in the half and half, we're going to temper it. All this means is we're going to bring it up to a warmer temperature so it doesn't curdle when we add it to the hot liquid.
That wouldn't be good.
So all you have to do is add a few spoonfuls of the hot soup into your half and half. Stir it around and then add the whole mixture to the soup.
Yaaaaaaay! You just tempered. See? Not so bad!
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Variations
Use heavy cream instead of half and half.
Now, I know there are some of us in the room with picky eaters.
If you want to up your wild rice soup game, you can add cooked chicken to this Creamy Wild Rice Soup. It's a great way to use up leftover cooked chicken from things like Instant Pot Whole Chicken.
Looking for more soup recipes?
I've got you covered. Here are some other slow cooker soup recipes I know you'll love...
- Crockpot Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
- Creamy Potato Soup
- Chicken Fajita Soup
- Hearty Beef & Vegetable Soup
- Healthy Chicken Tortilla Soup (Slow Cooker Recipe)
For more meatless recipes, check out my Lenten Dinner Recipes!
Did you make this wild rice soup recipe? Please leave me a comment or review on the blog. It helps me and it helps others!
Recipe
Creamy Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup
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Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice blend
- 1 small white onion roughly chopped
- 3 stalks celery roughly chopped
- 2 large carrots peeled and chopped
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 12 oz. fresh mushrooms washed, divided
- 1 15- oz. can cannellini beans undrained**
- 1 whole bay leaf
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6-8 cups vegetable broth or vegetable stock divided
- Salt and black pepper to taste
- ½ cup half and half tempered
- ¼ cup fresh parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Rinse the wild rice under cold running water until water runs clear. Let drain and transfer to a 5 or 6-quart slow cooker crock.
- Add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to a food processor and pulse until very finely minced and transfer to slow cooker crock.
- Add 8 oz. mushrooms to food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Thinly slice remaining mushrooms and add to slow cooker pot, along with the finely chopped mushrooms.
- Puree cannellini beans until smooth and pour into slow cooker crock with other ingredients. Add bay leaf, garlic powder, and 6 cups of vegetable stock. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and stir to thoroughly combine all ingredients.
- Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8. Actual cooking time will varying by individual slow cooker, so check for doneness after 2½ hours (or 5½ hours for low) and adjust cooking time accordingly. (The rice should be tender, but not mushy, when finished).
- When cooking time is complete, remove bay leaf and discard. Add tempered half and half, chopped parsley, and additional vegetable stock, if necessary, to achieve the desired consistency. Stir to combine thoroughly.
- Season with additional salt and black pepper, to taste, and serve immediately.
TO MAKE AS A FREEZER MEAL
- Place dry rice in a quart sized freezer bag. Set aside. Label a gallon sized freezer bag.
- Add onion, celery, carrots, and garlic to a food processor and pulse until very finely minced and transfer to gallon sized freezer bag. Add 8 oz. mushrooms to food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Thinly slice remaining mushrooms and add to freezer bag.
- Puree cannellini beans until smooth and pour into freezer bag. Add bay leaf, garlic powder, and 6 cups of vegetable stock. Remove excess air and flat to freeze.
TO COOK FROM A FREEZER MEAL
- Rinse the wild rice under cold running water until water runs clear. Let drain and transfer to a 5 or 6-quart slow cooker crock.
- Add contents of gallon sized freezer bag. Stir to combine and add salt and pepper to taste.
- Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8. Actual cooking time will varying by individual slow cooker, so check for doneness after 2½ hours (or 5½ hours for low) and adjust cooking time accordingly. (The rice should be tender, but not mushy, when finished).
- When cooking time is complete, remove bay leaf and discard. Add tempered half and half, chopped parsley, and additional vegetable stock, if necessary, to achieve the desired consistency. Stir to combine thoroughly.
- Season with additional salt and black pepper, to taste, and serve immediately.
Notes
- For best results, use a multi-color wild rice blend.
- Black rice will turn purple when the cream is added.
- For less salt, rinse and drain the beans before pureeing them with a little water.
- To prevent curdling, avoid stirring cold dairy products directly into the hot soup. To temper the half and half, add a couple spoonfuls of the hot soup to it before stirring into the slow cooker crock.
Nutrition
This Farm Girl Cooks is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. Calories and other nutritional values vary depending on which brands were used.
Amy Pitts says
I am really excited about this one. I am going to give it a try in the near future. Thanks!