Instant Pot Wild Rice Soup from Pinch of Yum

My sister had given me wild rice from Saskatchewan, and when I came across this recipe, I finally had a reason to use it.

I enjoyed it, to me it tasted like cream of mushroom with added wild rice. My sister said she would prefer it as a sauce as opposed to a soup. I had never had wild rice before, but the way I prepared it I give it a solid neutral score. It neither added nor took away from the soup. 

I cooked it on the stovetop, and I started by browning my mushrooms really well in my soup pot to really enhance their flavour and develop a fond at the bottom of the pot. Actually, I ended up using triple the amount of mushrooms the recipe calls for because that was what we had and I made up for it by doubling the rest of the ingredients. For that, I just followed the recipe instructions. However, I kind of winged the cream sauce. I've made roux-based sauces before and this was just the same. Mine came out very thick though, so when I added it to the soup I just thinned it out to my liking with chicken broth.

I would make this again because it was really good, with or without the wild rice.

Recipe from: https://pinchofyum.com/instant-pot-wild-rice-soup 

INGREDIENTS:

For the Instant Pot:

5 medium carrots, chopped

5 stalks celery, chopped

half of an onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup uncooked wild rice (see notes)

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning (see notes)

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

For the Stovetop:

6 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Instant Pot: Put all the ingredients in the first list into the Instant Pot (affiliate link). Cook for 45 minutes (manual, high pressure). Release steam using the valve on top.
2. Stovetop: When the soup is done, melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour. Let the mixture cook for a minute or two to remove the floury taste. Whisk the milk, a little bit at a time, until you have a smooth, thickened sauce. Throw a little salt in there for good measure.
3. Together: Mix the creamy sauce with the soup in the instant pot. Voila! Mushroom Wild Rice Soup.

Notes:

1. Please use actual wild rice! (affiliate link) I know it’s on the expensive side, and hard to find, and I’m normally all about the substitutions, but in this case, it is not the same. Don’t use brown rice, don’t use white rice, and don’t use a “wild rice blend” which is just white or brown rice with a few flecks of wild rice. Use straight WILD RICE.
2. Chicken can be added – just pop it in the instant pot with everything else and shred it when it’s done.
3. Poultry seasoning is usually a mix of thyme, sage, garlic, onion, etc. I used a “chicken grilling spice” in one of my test batches and it tasted great. Anything with those earthy spices – thyme, sage, maybe even rosemary – will work nicely.
4. Stovetop version: Saute carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and mushrooms with oil. Add wild rice, broth, and salt. Simmer until wild rice is cooked (1-2 hours). Make the roux and mix it in.