Instant Pot Mushroom Soup for cold winter evenings. Comfortingly thick and tasty with an Indian twist!

Yesterday morning, I woke up to a scene right out of Frozen. Blinding white snow everywhere and snowflakes, big as frisbees, flying merrily in the slight wind. Hello, Canadian winter. You're officially here and I'm super glad because now I can do my favorite thing: make soup!
So cream of mushroom soup it was. Thick and delicious, it sat waiting in my trusty instant pot until mid-morning when the boys finally got up and we made short work of it.
And speaking of soup, here's another winter-friendly soup recipe if you are looking to add to your repertoire. Mulligatawny soup is a chunky curry soup that's made for these cold days. Another soup that I really love is this cauliflower soup. It is thick and creamy, without any cream. Do take a look ... I can bet you won't be disappointed.
How is this instant pot mushroom soup recipe different?
Back to my mushroom soup. This is an easy cream of mushroom soup and it is made with some pretty basic ingredients like onions, garlic, coarse black pepper, butter, broth, bouillon, flour (affiliate links), and half and half cream. However, what's the point of posting another mushroom soup recipe, similar to a thousand others floating around the web, you might ask. So, in a bid to jazz up an ordinary recipe and to keep true to the theme of my blog (Indian food), I added one extra ingredient: curry powder! (affiliate link)
Yes, curry powder makes this soup quite special, believe it or not. It gives it lots of extra flavor and a pleasing golden color.
How to make vegan cream of mushroom soup
This is a vegetarian mushroom soup recipe, but if you are on a vegan diet, you can make this soup vegan very easily by swapping out just two ingredients. Omit the butter and use vegan butter (affiliate link), or just plain cooking oil, and switch the half and half cream with coconut cream (affiliate link). The latter will only enhance the taste of the soup and give it a mild coconut taste and flavor. Not a bad deal at all.
How to make instant pot mushroom soup
Note: Exact quantities of these ingredients are given in the recipe card below.
Preparation
1. Dice the onion.
2. Mince the garlic.
3. Slice mushrooms.
Cooking
1. Switch on the instant pot to saute (normal) and melt butter + cooking oil (vegan butter if you're following a vegan diet). Add the onions and garlic. Saute until soft and fragrant (3-4 mins, picture 1).
2. Add mushrooms, one vegetable bouillon cube, curry powder and black pepper. Cook until the mushrooms release water and become soft (5 mins, picture 2).
3. Add all-purpose flour and vegetable broth. Mix everything well and cancel saute. Secure the lid and make sure the steam release handle is sealed. Hit the pressure cooking button (high) and set the timer to 4 minutes. When the pot beeps, wait for 10 minutes before releasing pressure (picture 3).
4. Open the pot (picture 4) and stir through the half and half cream. Substitute the half and half with 1 cup coconut milk or ½ cup coconut cream if making vegan soup. Add chopped parsley and serve hot (picture 5).
Why this cream of mushroom soup works
1. It is really delicious. Yes, it's the combination of ingredients in the right proportions that works the magic every time.
2. It is homemade and you know exactly what's gone into it. The same can't be said for readymade soups that come in a tetra pack, obviously.
3. It's a quick and easy recipe. Takes all of 35 minutes from pot to bowl.
4. It's customizable. You can easily make it vegan by swapping out two ingredients only.
A few useful tips
1. Instead of half and half cream, you can also use heavy cream. This will make the soup richer and heavier.
2. Use salt with caution as the broth and bouillon both have salt. The best advice here is to taste and go!
3. If you are not vegetarian, you can use chicken broth in place of vegetable broth.
4. I used white button mushrooms but you can use cremini or portobello too. These varieties will, however, give the soup a darker brown color.
5. If you want a smoother soup, you can blend it in the pot using an immersion blender (affiliate link). Blend to the desired consistency. I usually don't do this since everyone in my home likes the taste of whole mushrooms in their mouths, but it's a personal preference.
Other vegan instant pot mushroom recipes you might like
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Mushroom Soup
Ingredients
- 1.1 lb 500 g white button mushrooms, sliced
- 1 medium yellow onion diced
- 5 cloves garlic chopped finely or minced
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 vegetable bouillon cube
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- ½ cup half and half cream
- 2 sprigs parsley
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Switch on the instant pot to saute (normal) and melt butter + cooking oil. Add the onions and garlic. Saute until soft and fragrant (3-4 mins).
- Add mushrooms, bouillon cube, curry powder, black pepper and salt. Cook until the mushrooms release water and become soft (4-5 mins).
- Add all-purpose flour and vegetable broth. Mix everything well and cancel saute. Secure the lid and make sure the steam release handle is sealed. Hit the pressure cooking button (high) and set the timer to 4 minutes. When the pot beeps, wait for 10 minutes before releasing pressure.
- Open the pot and stir through the half and half cream. Add chopped parsley and serve hot.
Notes
- If you are vegan, swap the half and half cream with 1 cup coconut milk or ½ cup coconut cream, and the butter for vegan butter or oil.
- Instead of half and half cream, you can also use heavy cream. This will make the soup richer and heavier.
- Use salt with caution as the broth and bouillon both have salt. The best advice here is to taste and go!
- Use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth if vegetarian soup is not your thing.
Nutrition
Did you make this instant pot cream of mushroom soup? Don't forget to leave a star rating below!
Sandra says
I made this, this morning, and it's quite possible one of the best soups I've ever had!! Thank you so much for this recipe!!
Saima says
Thanks, Sandra! I'm so glad you liked it!
Melissa says
I made the soup as directed and added spinach because I had it and did not want to waste it. The soup is DELICIOUS! Thank you for sharing your recipe <3 I will make this again!
Saima says
Thank you Melissa! Glad you enjoyed the soup!
Jay says
Made this for a gathering of friends and it was a hit. I used a dutch oven, since I don't have an instant pot. I also added fresh ginger more curry spice, tumeric, and a bit of garam masala. I also used cremini mushrooms. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Saima says
Lovely! Glad your friends liked it:)
Noela says
The soup was super yummy, definitely a repeater! Thanks for sharing!
Saima says
You're welcome, Noela!
Alex says
Hello, Can I do it with beef broth?
Saima says
Hello, Alex. Yes, if beef broth is what you like, you can most certainly use it.
Martie says
This looks delicious! CanIn make this in a crockpot? If so, how long should I cook it? Thanks.
Saima says
Thanks Martie! You can absolutely make it in a crockpot, say 4-5 hours?
Julia A Govan says
This recipie was easy and delicious. I have many food allergies and fortunately I could substitute them without altering the desired outcome. I used leeks in place of onions, coconut cream, tapioca flour in place of flour, and white chanterelle mushrooms that I foraged.
Saima says
Thank you for taking the time to leave such a helpful comment, Julia! Who knows, other readers may also benefit from this info:) I'm glad you could do the substitutions so successfully. And it's fascinating to know that you foraged for your own mushrooms!
Lori says
Very easy to make and was delicious! Only thing I did different was I used baby Bella mushrooms. Next time, I will double recipe for extra!
Saima says
Great! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Lori!