Dutch Oven and Slow Cooker Food

I was hoping for a soup thread, but this seems a good way to start a common topic. I looked this up for a way to used a rotisserie chicken.

Here's a soup to try. It calls for ground meat, turkey being a good option, but you can use the cooked meat and add it later in the cook.


With a rotisserie chicken, start water heating while you strip the chicken. Put the skin and bones in the water and set the meat aside while you start the base. Add it with the seasonings and skip the eight minutes, so not heating and cooking the raw meats saves a lot of time. Use as the broth, of course.

This recipe is suitable for serious pepperheads. You need a cup to a cup and a half of chopped peppers, but they can be any mix, including habanero or ghost. I would use pasilla or pablano if available and a mix gives more flavor.

This is versatile. It can easily be made in a slow cooker. Use veggy broth and eggplant and/or cooked beans to make a vegan version. Add more rice to make rice dish. It's ideal if you want to experiment with other grains.

My wife really likes this recipe.

instant pot creamy mushroom 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
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.
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.
Together: Mix the creamy sauce with the soup in the instant pot. Voila! Mushroom Wild Rice Soup.
NOTES
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Cook Time: If you’re short on time, 30 minutes should do the trick as well!

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. Chicken can be added – just pop it in the instant pot with everything else and shred it when it’s done. 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. Crockpot version: Check out this recipe. 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.

This is neither Cajun nor French, but a mash of both with some Mexican influence.


Serve with gravy poured over rice or pasta.

Without the chili piquin, this is almost dead mild. I like the flavor of chili pequin, but you can pump the heat up with any pepper you wish--cayenne, habanero, scotch bonnet, Thai, you get the idea. This is a traditional French dish. The Cajun version substitutes bell pepper for carrot. I like the carrot plus use a meaty stuffing pepper instead of bell pepper.

This recipe is really flexible. You can use turkey cutlets, pork, or game. It can be bone in, skin on, both or neither. Use a curry blend instead of Cajun blend and it makes a recognizable curry. Two things to remember is to use a high smoke point oil (peanut, corn, safflower, etc.) and not to let the roux stick to the pan. With those two in mind, a child can do it.