Polish Mushroom Soup Christmas Eve Recipes

POLISH MUSHROOM SOUP FROM DRIED MUSHROOMS (VEGAN, FOR CHRISTMAS EVE)

Steps:

• [The night before] To get rid of dirt and impurities, rinse dried mushrooms briefly in cold water. Then, place them in a bowl and cover with fresh water - just enough so they float freely. Set aside overnight. If you're worried that a bowl might attract some unwanted attention (from bugs, cats etc.), cover the bowl with cloth or a plate.
• Once you're ready to cook, prepare a cooking pot (ideally sized at 2.5 quarts or more).
• Move soaked mushrooms to the pot, keep the soaking water.
• Grab the bowl with remaining soaking water. Try separating the water from the sediment formed at the bottom. Move the water to the pot and get rid of the residue.
• Top the pot up to 2 liquid quarts (1.9 - 2 litres) of water. Cover with a lid and cook on the lowest heat for 25 minutes, until the mushrooms start to turn soft.
• As the mushrooms cook, peel all the vegetables and chop them roughly.
• Once the time is up on the mushrooms, add in all the vegetable chunks and peppercorns. Continue cooking for another 30 minutes, but follow the next step 15 minutes in.
• With 15 minutes left till the end of cooking - let's cook 'łazanki' noodles. Grab another cooking pot, fill it with water and bring to boil. Drop the pasta in, and just follow the directions on the pack - in my case that's 10 minutes of cooking time.
• Using a slotted spoon, carefully remove the mushrooms and veggies from the stock and set them aside.
• Using an extra fine sieve, strain the stock multiple times, until it's clear and not foggy. If you don't have a fine sieve, line a regular sieve lined with a cloth instead (cheesecloth, a piece of muslin square or similar).
• Let's balance the flavours now - add 2 generous pinches of salt and a solid pinch of ground black pepper.
• Add a tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice and blend everything together with a spoon. Have a taste - does the soup need more kick? I usually add one more tablespoon of lemon juice (so two in total).
• Slice the mushrooms into stripes, small ones can be kept whole.
• The vegetables gave their all, there isn't much flavour left. But if you wish, you can reuse them to bulk up pâtés, pierogi fillings etc. I usually reuse some carrots, cubed, for serving.
• Arrange the mushroom slices in the individual soup plates. Add 'łazanki' pasta and pour the soup over it. Garnish each plate with chopped parsley (optional)

POLISH MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Rinse dried mushrooms. Place mushrooms in 2 cups of cold water, and soak for at least 4 hours or overnight.
• In a large pot, bring stock to a simmer. Add celery, onions, and carrots. Strain dried mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Add strained soaking liquid to soup. Chop hydrated mushrooms into 1/4-inch pieces slightly larger than diced vegetables, and add to soup. Add sliced white button mushrooms.
• Cover, and cook soup until vegetables are tender, about an hour. Bring soup to a boil. Stirring constantly, add orzo. Reduce the heat to a gentle boil, and, stirring occasionally to prevent pasta from sticking, cook until orzo is cooked through, another 6 to 8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make a roux: Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add flour, and cook, stirring constantly until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove 1 cup broth from soup,and add roux, whisking constantly until slightly thickened and free of lumps. Stir thickened liquid into soup. Add chopped parsley and dill.
• Finish soup with sour cream: Add 1/4 cup thickened soup to sour cream. Whisk until smooth. Add sour cream to soup, whisking constantly until it is well incorporated, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.