Hungarian Mushroom Soup

Step 1

Prepare your ingredients. Chop 4 medium yellow or white onions (about 1½ lb.) into ¼" pieces. (You should have about 4 cups.) Gently clean 2 lb. mushrooms (crimini and/or shiitake) with a kitchen towel or paper towels. Remove and discard stems; slice caps ¼" thick. Peel 2 medium carrots (about 12 oz.). Cut in half lengthwise, then cut those halves in half lengthwise (you’ll have 4 long spears per carrot). Cut crosswise into ¼"-thick pieces.

Step 2

Smash, peel, and finely chop 6 garlic cloves. Finely chop 2 handfuls of parsley leaves with tender stems until you have ¼ cup; set parsley aside.

Step 3

Melt ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter in a medium Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion and a pinch of kosher salt (this will help the onion release water and cook more quickly) and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until onion is softened and browned, about 10 minutes. Add mushrooms and carrots to pot and cook, stirring often, until mushrooms start to brown, 12–16 minutes. Add garlic, 4 tsp. Hungarian sweet paprika, 4 tsp. dried dill or ¼ cup fresh dill, and 2 tsp. dried thyme or 2 Tbsp. fresh thyme and cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 2 minutes.

Step 4

Add 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes.

Step 5

Whisk 2 cups whole milk and ¼ cup all-purpose flour in a small bowl or measuring glass to combine. Pour into soup and stir well. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until soup is thick enough to thinly coat spoon, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

Step 6

Mix ¾ cup sour cream and 2–3 Tbsp. broth from soup until loose, then add to soup and stir well to incorporate. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Step 7

Ladle soup into bowls and top each with a dollop of sour cream, some reserved parsley, and a pinch of paprika.Do ahead: Soup (without sour cream and toppings) can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool; cover and chill. Reheat before adding sour cream as directed.