Are you looking for an easy, satisfying meal that ticks all the boxes a busy home cook needs? Things like: one dish, make ahead, and big flavour? Then this hearty Portobello Mushroom & Sausage Soup is just what you’re looking for!
When Recipes Spring from Cravings
I had a craving one day for a hearty, meaty soup that would make a satisfying entrée. One that was based first on robust portobello mushrooms for their rich flavour and substantial texture, and then on Italian sausage for more meaty and spicy goodness. Going with the Italian theme dictated a tomato base and the use of herbs like sage and thyme that only increase my longing to visit Italy.
Portobello Mushroom & Sausage Soup in Profile
Chopped fennel adds a liquorice sweetness that was a subtle counterpoint to the spiciness of the sausage, and chopped kale (but not too much) gives an extra-healthy touch. As a finishing touch, white wine brightened and brought together all the flavours.
To my mind, the meaty portobello mushrooms are the real star of this soup, and the other ingredients all serve to highlight them.
This is the kind of soup that’s satisfying to create, inspires cravings and doesn’t last long when you make it.
Let’s Get out the Soup Pot for this Mushroom & Sausage Soup!
- 1 lb hot and/or mild Italian sausage
- 1-1/2 lbs portobello mushrooms (about 6 large), cleaned, with stems and gills removed, then cut in half and sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 796 ml can whole Roma or San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 litre vegetable or chicken broth
- 1/2 large fennel bulb, finely chopped
- 8 leaves sage, chiffonaded (thinly sliced), or 1 tsp dried sage
- leaves of 10 sprigs of thyme, or 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
- leaves of 1/2 pound kale, finely chopped (4 cups dry)
- 1/2 cup white wine
-
Squeeze the sausage meat out of the casings into a Dutch oven and sauté over medium-high heat, stirring and breaking up the meat as much as possible. Once the sausage is fully browned, add the portobello mushrooms and onions, stirring occasionally over medium heat until the onions are translucent and the mushrooms have released their juices.
-
Break up the tomatoes and add them, along with their juice, to the soup pot. Stir in the fennel, sage, thyme, pepper, salt and the broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn to a simmer and leave the soup to cook about 30 minutes, covered.
-
Mix in the kale and white wine and cook for another 15 minutes or so before serving.
-
Refrigerate any leftovers and enjoy them for lunch or dinner within a couple of days.
Looking for More Hearty Soups?
With over 40 soups on the blog and more being added, there’s a lot to choose from. For today’s suggestions, I decided to include two soups with meat or poultry, and one hearty vegan offering: Turkey, Cabbage and Squash Soup with Fennel Seeds, Brussels Sprouts and Pancetta Soup, and Curried Pumpkin Coconut Chickpea Soup. If you can’t decide, why not try them all?
First Published 2014 04 14
Updated 2018 10 16
Republished 2021 02 11
OK, you got my attention with the leeks and kale!!! Farm work is about to start. I will be bringing home plenty of that. Now I have a new thing to do with it.
It’s always good to find new things to do with favourite ingredients. I hope you enjoy the soup!
Marlene, does this ever look good! I make my mother in laws sausage soup which this reminds me of but yours got so much more. Fennel and Kale! Guess who’s making this next?
Thanks so much, Deb. I’ve made a sausage-based soup before, but feel like I hit upon the *right* combination with this one — the mushrooms make such a difference! That said, these recipes are infinitely variable, wouldn’t you agree?
Definitely! I find most comfort foods can be changed up a bit here and there and it still feels like home. How is your weather there Marlene? We are miserable here! 🙁
It’s grey and raining here, so the 6 degrees temperature that I would be celebrating on a sunny day feels pretty cold. But thank goodness, we didn’t get the snowstorm that hit Atlantic Canada last week. Did it affect you in Newfoundland? I just would like for it to be consistently warm for a while, but it looks like a fairly cool April is in store. I’ll settle for lots of sunshine!
We did! Not as bad as NS, but still bad! There’s about 10ft of snow in front of my house. By the time it melts there will be more snow. I wish I had a sun room!
It seems endless this year! But when your garden comes up, winter will be a dim memory.
That’s it….the garden – keeps my hopes up. Pinterest Gardening meanwhile. Do you garden much?
I used to garden extensively, but now I have a very small and very shady yard, so it’s quite limited. I still like looking through those seed catalogues, though!
Gardening is so therapeutic you must get back to it. Lots can grow in shady parts. I also was wondering if you had seen the Canadian Lentil Challenge. You can submit something. It’s a bit of fun.
Oh, boy! Fennel and sausage are one of my most favourite pairings! This sounds bone warming and perfect for the spring thaw!
You’ll need a lot of this out East. Are you still facing snow mountains every time you venture out the door? Surely, surely spring should arrive soon. Surely?
Gosh, Mar. All I had to do was look at the photos and I’m in. This is seriously good, with so many great favors in one bowl. Ah! Who am I kidding? It would be 2 bowls with a big chunk of bread. Maybe 3. 🙂
Don’t hold back, John, just go for the whole pot! I made it twice in quick succession and it disappeared fast each time.
Hi Marlene. I agree you have to watch those hot Italians
Steve
LOL, the sausages at least!
This was the best.
[…] ingredient, which is usually a vegetable for me, but sometimes there’s meat too, like in my portobello mushroom and sausage soup or my Brussels sprouts and pancetta […]
[…] Portobello Mushroom & Sausage Soup […]
love the vegie and colors and the yummy soup…on this cooler day…
Thanks, me too! 🙂
[…] weather, though I wouldn’t hesitate to make them in the summer either: Yellow Split Pea Soup; Portobello Mushroom and Sausage Soup; and, Turkey, Cabbage and Squash Soup with Fennel […]
[…] are a few more recipes that feature the goodness of mushrooms: Portobello Mushrooms & Sausage Soup, Beef & Mushroom Shepherd’s Pie (wow, that needs new photos, wouldn’t you say?), […]