Do you ever cook with cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, or cream of celery soup?
We do! The only problem is I don’t love the ingredients in it. About 2 years ago, I discovered this “Master Mix” powder that serves as a base for all of those “cream of” soups, and I’ve used it ever since!
It saves space (goodbye cans), money, AND you can control exactly what goes in it.
Tips for Making a Cream Soup Master Mix Powder
Even though you can use this base powder for much more than cream of chicken soup, I highly recommend adding the chicken broth powder (or bouillon) into your base mix.
It adds a wonderful flavor that still blends well with other soup add-ins like mushroom and celery. For healthier ingredients, this is the powder we use:
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If you need to go gluten-free, swap the flour for arrowroot powder. I do this often, but just know that it won’t be quite as thick as the canned stuff from the store. Cornstarch is another option.
You can alter the seasonings as you please. For a nice, generic base, we use garlic powder, onion powder, and parsley.
When you’re ready to make a “can” of cream of soup, all you need is butter and water!
Here’s what it looks like cooked up:
If you prefer video, there is a video tutorial at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!
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Homemade “Cream of” Soup Base Powder
Make up a quart jar of this cream of soup powder, and replace all those canned, creamed soups! Use it for cream of chicken, mushroom, celery, and more.
- Total Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole milk powder
- 3/4 cup flour (or arrowroot powder)
- 1/4 cup chicken broth powder (or bouillon)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Mix all dry ingredients together, and store in a quart jar until ready to use.
- To make a “can” of cream of chicken soup, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pot.
- Add 1/3 cup of your master mix and heat for 1 minute.
- Mix in 1 1/4 cup of cold water. Whisk well, and bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat a little, and cook until it thickens—about 5-7 minutes. Stir frequently.
- Remove from heat, and allow to cool for 3-5 minutes.
- Use in your recipe as you would a can of cream of chicken soup.
Notes
For Cream of Mushroom
Once the base mix comes to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of dehydrated, chopped mushrooms.
For Cream of Celery
Once the base mix comes to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of dehydrated, chopped or shredded celery.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Additional Time: 0 hours
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
Looking for a dairy free option. What could I switch the milk powder out for to make this possible?
My first thought was coconut cream, but I don’t know how well that dehydrates.
I know that there is oat milk powder & coconut milk powder available, so maybe one of those?
Can you recommend a whole milk powder that doesn’t have a bunch of yucky ingredients (like NIDO does) Is there a reason why you shouldn’t use non fat dry milk?
Yes, these are the two brands we recommend:
✅ Hoosier Hill Powdered Whole Milk: https://amzn.to/3tN5DJD
✅ Judee’s Whole Milk Powder: https://amzn.to/3S8TGYR
Along with Azure Standard’s brand.
I don’t use the non-fat dry milk because it doesn’t provide as creamy a texture as desired for “cream of soup.” 🙂
Jordan is there any way to add something DRY to make this creamier? I only have nonfat dry milk & not really the money to buy more??? Whole milk powder!!
Yes, try arrowroot powder – about a tablespoon. 🙂
Sorry if I missed it…how long does this base powder keep in the pantry?
We cycle through our mixes within 6 months, so I can personally vouch for 6 months. 🙂
In a video where you are making multiple mixes you said corn starch in place of arrowroot powder but the recipe here says flour – which is correct? Thx!
All of the above are suitable. We most often use flour. If we’re making a gluten-free recipe, we use arrowroot powder. 🙂
Can you use INSTANT dry whole milk powder in your base?
Yes, you can. 🙂
Thanks.
Ever tried using poultry seasoning instead of bouillon powder?
No, I haven’t. It’s worth a try. 🙂
I often need a can of Golden mushroom soup and the other canned cream soup I use if Cream of Onion. Do you have any thoughts on how I would make these?
I use dehydrated or freeze-dried add-ins to match whatever is in the store-bought can, and I use approx. 1 heaping Tablespoon for the vegetable part.
So for the golden mushroom, I would add a heaping Tbs of dried mushrooms and a heaping Tbs of onions or green onions for the cream of onion.
Hope that helps!