Cozy, a little bit creamy, and absolutely packed with mushroom flavor, my version of Hungarian Mushroom Soup is for all of you real-deal mushroom lovers. Thanks to a concentrated paste built from dried porcini mushrooms, this soup is absolutely brimming with deep flavor – perfect for a chilly winter evening. Read on for a little more about this Hungarian Mushroom Soup Recipe, or just jump ahead to the recipe itself.

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What is Hungarian Mushroom Soup?

Hungarian Mushroom Soup is a classic Hungarian preparation of soup (hello, paprika!) that features plenty of fresh mushrooms, dried dill, sour cream, and of course – paprika.

What ingredients are used in Hungarian cooking?

Paprika. This ubiquitous spice is considered the national spice of Hungary, and it appears in many Hungarian dishes, from paprikash and goulash to yes, Hungarian Mushroom Soup.

I have a Hungarian friend, Marty, who explained to me the importance of onions in Hungarian cooking. She said many of their classic dishes feature plenty of onions, cooked in butter, as the flavor base for the whole thing. Such is the case with our soup recipe today. In fact, we’re going to use two cups of chopped onions right out of the gate, and cook them up with loads of fresh mushrooms.

What is paprika?

Paprika is just dried red peppers, ground into a fine powder. It’s purported to have originated in Hungary as early as the 15th century and is absolutely a hallmark of Hungarian cuisine today, appearing in many of the country’s iconic and most beloved dishes.

If you’re working with a recipe that calls for paprika but fails to specify which kind, you can almost always get away with Hungarian sweet paprika. But if you’re open to experimenting, go ahead and play around, consider the color, sweetness, pungency, or heat you’d like to add.

Different types of paprika

Hungarian Sweet paprika – Carrying almost no heat and in inherent, earthy sweetness, this is the kind to reach for in most cases.
Smoked Paprika – My personal favorite variety of paprika, If you have a recipe that calls for paprika without specifying which kind, you can usually get by with using Hungarian sweet paprika. But also consider what type of color, sweetness, pungency, or heat you’d like to add and experiment with the wide world of paprika varieties!
Pimenton or Spanish Paprika – Less intense than Hungarian paprika, Spanish paprika can range from sweet and mild (dulce) to bittersweet and medium hot (agridulce). It can also be found quite hot (picante) – it all depends on the types of peppers used in creating the blend (round or long), and whether or not the seeds are removed. This is true when working with all spicy peppers (jalapeños, poblanos, etc.)

The eight grades of Hungarian paprika are különleges (“special quality”, which is mild and the most vibrant red), csípősmentes csemege (delicate and mild), csemege paprika (similar to csípősmentes csemege but more pungent), csípős csemege (which is even more pungent), édesnemes (“noble sweet”; which is slightly pungent and bright red), félédes (semi-sweet with medium pungency), rózsa (mildly pungent and pale red), and erős (hottest and light brown to orange). In the US, what is marketed as Hungarian sweet paprika is usually the édesnemes variety.
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What you’ll need to make my favorite recipe for Hungarian Mushroom Soup

This recipe is mostly classic, thanks to the ample amount of sweet paprika, sour cream, dried dill weed, and LOTS of onion and butter. I do level things up a bit by adding some dried porcini mushrooms to the mix, because what they do to the overall flavor of the soup broth is nothing short of incredible. It’s the mushroom-iest mushroom soup there ever was.

INGREDIENTS

4 tablespoons butter

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 pound sliced mushrooms (button or cremini)

2 cups diced yellow onion

Salt and freshly cracked black pepper, as needed

2 teaspoons dried dill

2 tablespoons paprika

⅔ cup dry white wine

2 cups stock – either vegetable or chicken

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1-ounce package dried porcini mushrooms

2 tablespoons flour

⅓ cup sour cream plus more for serving

1 cup half and half

1 lemon

Fresh parsley and/or extra dill, for serving (a couple of tablespoons)

Thick slices of fresh baguette

1 garlic clove

How to make this recipe for Hungarian Mushroom Soup

DIRECTIONS

Add the butter and oil to a large, deep pot set over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 to 15 minutes, until tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add the dill, paprika and cook for another minute. Add the wine and cook for a couple of minutes to reduce and to cook off the alcohol. Add the stock and soy sauce.

Put the porcini mushrooms into a food processor and process with ⅓ to ½ cup of the soup liquid, until a paste forms. Add this mixture to the soup, stirring to blend it in.

In a small bowl, combine the flour and ¼ cup of the soup and stir until it’s smooth and combined. Pour this into the soup pot, whisking as you do. Bring to a gentle boil, and then reduce to a simmer.

Add the sour cream, half and half, and the zest of the lemon and juice of about ½ of it (or to taste).

Serve the soup in bowls, topped with more sour cream, fresh dill and/or parsley and pieces of garlic toast. Enjoy!

For the garlic toasts: Drizzle the baguette slices with a little olive oil and toast them as you like. Rub one side of each piece of toast with the raw garlic clove while they’re still hot, covering their surfaces with garlicky goodness. Sprinkle with a little salt, if you like.

What to serve with Hungarian Mushroom Soup

This is a vegetarian soup that still manages to be very hearty because, well, MUSHROOMS. There is sour cream, half and half, lots of onions, and in my case here – garlicky toast, as well. So, when it comes to what to serve with Hungarian Mushroom Soup, I like to balance things out by reaching for something fresh and green.