When I was a little girl, my aunt’s family lived with us for a year. My mom and Aunt Ellie took turns making dinner. At the end of the month, money was always tight. If it was Aunt Ellie’s turn to cook, we ate Macaroni and Cheese. If it was Mom’s turn to cook, it was Tuna Fish Casserole. I remember her recipe:
2 cans Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup,
1 can of tuna fish,
1 bag of egg noodles,
sprinkles of Real Lemon (you know, the plastic bottle shaped like a lemon with fake real lemon juice inside.)
What can I say?
We’ve come a long way, baby.
This week Making Groceries is tackling that ubiquitous condensed can of cream of mushroom soup. It’s the base of so many home-processed meals, most famously Tuna Fish Casserole and Thanksgiving’s Green Bean Casserole. A creamy mushroom base is a lovely and easy way to anchor a dish, but it can and should be made fresh. I remember eating Tuna Fish Casserole for years and wondering what those little brown nubs were, before finally learning they were mushrooms. Mysteries are wonderful in books, films and sometimes romances, but they are never a good idea in food.
Although I refer to this as a soup, I have never eaten it that way. I like a much more robust mushroom flavor for a soup. This soupy base is the fresh equivalent of the condensed soup casserole base.
- 2 big cloves of garlic
- 1½ c sliced crimini mushrooms
- 3 T flour
- 1½ c vegetable stock
- 1 c milk
- 1 bay leaf
- ¼ t white pepper
- 3 T freshly chopped parsley
- juice of ½ lemon
- Smash one clove of garlic with the flat edge of your knife. Mince the other clove and set aside.
- In a large skillet place about 3 T of olive oil and the smashed garlic clove. Heat over a medium high flame. Once oil is hot and fragrant, add the mushrooms. Stir to coat in the oil, then leave then alone. Mushrooms will appear to soak up all the oil, but if you are patient, they will soon release their juices. In about a minute, they will brown. Turn them. Remove the smashed garlic clove and add the minced one. (That is my technique for imparting lots of garlic flavor without chancing burnt garlic.)
- Once mushrooms have browned, season with sea salt and white pepper. Add about 1 T olive oil. Sprinkle with flour and stir. This will look messy. Stir the mushrooms and cook for about 1 minute.
- Add the vegetable stock and stir like crazy. You may want to use a whisk to get the flour incorporated in the liquid. Add the milk and bay leaf. Cook over a medium flame, stirring frequently. Within 5-10 minutes, sauce will have thickened. Taste and adjust seasoning. Remove bay leaf and add parsley and lemon juice before serving.
Updated Tuna Fish Casserole
1 recipe Cream of Mushroom Soup Base
1 lb pasta of your choice
3 T caper berries
2 fresh tuna fillets
juice of 1/2 lemon
1. Cook pasta in very salty water to al dente while preparing your mushroom sauce. Reserve a cup of the pasta water before draining it. Add cooked pasta to the mushroom sauce while still hot. Add capers and stir. Set aside.
2. With a generous hand season both side of tuna with sea salt and black pepper. Heat a skillet over a medium high flame. Pour about 1-2 T grape seed oil or olive oil in the pan. Once oil shimmers, place tuna in pan. Don’t touch it while it is searing. Once tuna has browned (about 1 1/2 minutes), flip it. If tuna is still stuck to pan let it cook a bit longer. It will naturally release when it is ready. Sear tuna on the second side. Squeeze lemon juice over it and remove from the pan.
3. Cut tuna into slices against the grain. I prefer a rare tuna, but you can absolutely increase your cooking time.
4. Stir pasta and add a bit of pasta water if it needs to loosen up. Fan the tuna on top of the pasta to serve.
The Bottom Line
The little red can of soup was always a budget stretcher. I can’t beat it price-wise. It costs me $2.15 to make my soup base, compared with the canned price at $1.69. Of course, adding fresh tuna to the casserole inflates the price to something that is not end-of-the-month affordable. You can add canned tuna to the home-made soup base for a more affordable meal which still retains its freshness.
But compare the two recipes on any other level and homemade wins. My version has real, identifiable mushrooms in it, providing a brain-boosting vegetable serving. It has been years, since I bought a can of mushroom soup, but I still shudder as I remember its wobbly gray appearance and how I had to smash it down with a spoon to rid it of the can’s line impressions. That is just something we shouldn’t be eating. The sodium and fat levels are through the roof in the processed version.
This product was created to help women not have to cook for their families, so they could work longer hours at the office. The problem is that out-sourcing our food preparations to corporations means sacrificing both flavor and nutrition. The homemade version is so delicious. It’s rich and creamy, bursting with mushroom flavor. It took only 15 minutes to make the soup base, which is less time than it takes to boil water and cook the pasta.
15 min. and 46¢ more.
I can give that to my family. In fact, they might just give it to me.
mmm…mmm…good.
Hi Christina. I will put you on the newsletter list. The flour serves as a thickener. I have had great success using chickpea flour in this recipe. You could also dissolve some cornstarch in a bit of stock and add it to thicken. Good luck.
Hi! I just found this recipe. If you’re still sending out a newsletter, I’d love to receive it. Could I substitute another flour other than wheat in this recipe? I’m so glad I found this…thank you!
Thank you, Sherry. I’ve added you.
Love your philosophy! Could you add me to your mailing list? Thanks for your efforts!
You’re on the list, Fern. Expect a newsletter in January.
Laura, I will add you to the list. Expect a newsletter in January. Eating healthfully can and should be a delicious experience. I hope you enjoy many of our recipes. Take care.
I have been making celery soup and cream of chicken soup but haven’t ventured into mushrooms and this sounds good. I will try it. I do freeze my celery soup without the milk and love the many ways I can use it. I make a big batch to save time.
I would love to be added to your list.
Please add me to list. I just found out I have extremely high cholesterol and the doctor told me to go on a low-cholesterol, low-fat diet. Until now bacon was my best friend. I have to learn to cook healthy and making homemade instead of store bought seems to be the best way to do that.
I’ve added you to the list. The newsletter will begin in January.
I love the idea of creating these canned staples. I woulod love to be added to your mailing list! Can’t wait to try this recipe.
Thanks, I will!
Love your recipes!!! Please add me to your mailing list.
Hi Cali,
I will add you to the list. We are in the midst of a redesign and will have the newsletter up by the beginning of the new year. Thanks for your support. I invite you to like us on facebook and tell your friends.
Take care,
Rebecca
Will try this for sure.
Please add me to your newsletter email. Thanks so much.
Darryl,
You can use whichever oil you prefer. Coconut oil has a low smoke point, so you should keep the heat on medium with a watchful eye. Other possibilities are grape seed oil or avocado oil, both of which have high smoke points are lovely for sautés. Choose your own adventure! Enjoy.
I don’t use olive oil anymore… Would Coconut oil b a problem… if so I use Grape Seed oil for salads>>>
By powdered “milk” I meant powdered Soy milk, powdered Almond milk, powdered Rice milk, powdered Oat milk, etc. The powered versions aren’t on every grocer’s shelves like certain national brands of liquid vegan “milk”.
I’ve been using Soy milk powder for over 13 years. (Liquid vegan milk wasn’t available locally until recently.)
Cashew “cream” is a favorite, thanks.
Lorrita,
Thank you for your comment. If you need to avoid dairy, powdered milk is also a dairy product. Soy or plain almond milk are OK alternatives, but I don’t think coconut is a good flavor for this recipe.
My best recommendation for a non-dairy alternative would be to substitute stock for milk in the recipe, deducting about 1/2 a cup. Then make 1/2 c of cashew cream by mixing raw cashews and stock in a blender until smooth and creamy. Add the cashew cream at the end of cooking. You will have a rich, creamy, flavorful, and dairy-free dish.
Your tip about the celery seeds is excellent.
Thanks,
Rebecca
Have you experimented with Almond, Soy, Coconut, or other non-dairy “milks” in this recipe? I/we have dairy intolerances and allergies.
Liquid “milk” isn’t always a good choice when a rich flavor is desired. I either use powdered “milk’ (2 servings powder to 1 serving water/stock) or liquid “cream” when making something that calls for whole dairy milk.
A note on Cream of Celery soup: add celery seed with the second garlic to punch up the celery flavor. Toasting the seed a bit will soften it and get it to “pop.”
Charlette, I’m glad you found us. Please tell your friends. Your husband’s condition is obviously very serious, but the truth is canned food isn’t good for any of us. The bonus of making your own is that it tastes much better anyway. I wish your husband improved health.
I want to thank you. My husband can’t eat anything from a can. There is something about can foods that the doctors told him years ago, could kill him. He was told after his second time being rushed to the ER after eating food that came from a can, that if he does it again, it would probably kill him. I have been looking for a homemade recipe for many years.
My pleasure. Enjoy!
I have been waiting so long for a healthy recipe for creamed soups! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Great. You’re on the list.
I would like to subscribe to newsletter
Thank you
Francine Schissell
Great! Let us know how it works for you!
So excited to try this recipe today! I think I will use it in chicken pot pie
You can. For the best results, I recommend using diced celery root. That can be a bit pricey or hard to find, so regular celery can also work, just use the inner pieces and include the leaves too, as they are very flavorful.
Can you use this same basic stock but use celery instead of mushrooms? I use cream of celery soup for a lot of things. I am Celiac and the GF soups are very costly! I have been looking for cream soups I can make.
Dee,
I’m so happy to hear this. We will have more Making Groceries recipes this year, so keep an eye out! Best to you and your husband in this new year.
Love, Rebecca
This was great! I made it and then used it to cook some browned pork chops to cook in the oven. Towards the end of cooking time, I added some brown Minute Rice. My husband was skeptical at first, but gave it the thumbs up and said DEFINITELY make this again. (I will!)
Thanks for the wonderful feedback, Kimela. I think you’ll find that this recipe is not only healthier, but also more delicious. Take care, Rebecca
My husband is on a salt restricted diet as well so this recipe is going to be used as is and will be tweaked for cream of chicken and cream of celery soup, too! Thanks for freely sharing it with everyone. God bless!
Yes, Katie. You can swap out the mushrooms for minced celery. It would be even better with celery root, although sometimes that’s hard to find. You might want to add a dash of celery salt to the recipe as well. God luck!
I have recipes that use Cream of Celery soup. Since I now have Celiac disease I can’t make some of my favorite recipes. Could this be adapted to make the celery soup?
Hi Penny. Crimini mushrooms are also called Baby Bellas. Perhaps that’s what your grocery store calls them. They are really just a baby portobello mushroom, so you could use those as well. If you can’t find them, just use white buttons. They will be fine in the recipe. Please don’t use canned. It’s the freshness of ingredients that makes this recipe so special. Enjoy!
Where do I find ‘crimini mushrooms’? Are they the same as the ones you buy in a jar or are they found in the produce isle? Can regular mushrooms be used? Thank You
Next….does anyone have a home made recipe similar to Lipton onion soup mix…..it has msg in it and I am looking for something similar to make Salisbury steak with.
Finally a homemade recipe for Cr. of Mushroom soup. I really don’t like using the canned because of all the junk listed….especially msg. Thank you for this recipe.
Hi Kim,
You could freeze this easily if you needed to. The canning is a bit more of a challenge because of the dairy, so you need to make sure you are following proper saftey guidelines. For me, remembering to thaw something out properly takes more effort than the recipe itself. Once you practice making it a few times, it’s pretty easy and quick. Whatever works for you!
Rebecca
Button mushrooms will be fine. I prefer the taste of the cremini, but they work just the same.
Have you tried this w/ other mushrooms. I live in a rural area where button mushrooms is it.
Can this recipe be canned? Or frozen?
Thank you for mushroom receipe. My husband is diebete with kidney problems problems . He is on low salt diet ,that means no canned soups,but mushroom soup was a staple ,used it for gravey over chicken and so many other dishes. I will be making it very soon Thanks again
My pleasure!
This was a great “better than copycat” recipe! I, too, am trying to remove as much pre-made food as possible from our diet (Now to try and avoid hidden GMO ingredients). This was really nice and will allow me to keep making those family favorite recipes. Thanks again!
You’re welcome, Lisa. It sounds like you’re going through the same process I did a few years ago with my diet. The great thing about cooking more for yourself is it tastes better, saves money, and after a little practice, it’s really easy. Good luck!
Thanks for the soup post! I love creamy, comfort food but have been working to removed as much ‘pre-made’ food from my family’s diet as possible. A good, homemade version, of this cream soup will be a valuable addition to my menus. Can’t wait to give it a try! 🙂
This is awesome, my family cannot have gluten and some are vegetarians. We cannot use any of the cream soups and most of the gluten free ones are not good substitutes. This will certainly help the old tried and loved recipes that contain cream soups.
I make this recipe and I love it. It’s also good with the addition of broccoli, or cauliflower.
I love the flavor of bay, but if you don’t like it, of course you should omit it. One of the things I most love about cooking is customizing recipes to my own pallet. Every person is a chef in his or own kitchen. Make it your own!
I don’t think the bay leaf adds a thing. If anything, it takes away from the mushroom flavor. I prefer to leave it out. Otherwise this is a smashing recipe.