Smart Home Chef Mixes Pantry Staples To Make Go-To 'Cream Of Anything' Powder

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Most home chefs have been there at some point — rifling through the pantry, checking every back corner, looking for the cream-of-something soup that's needed right that minute to complete a recipe. It's always a good idea to keep cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, and other cream-of soups on hand since they're so frequently needed for recipes, but there's an easier way than constantly ensuring that the cans are stocked in your kitchen. It's surprisingly easy to make a "cream of anything" powder that will work as a simple substitute. A smart home chef, @aireca_smith, on TikTok shared how she mixed up a magical blend of dried milk powder (which totally deserves a spot in your pantry, by the way), cornstarch, bouillon, and seasonings to create a stand-in for creamy condensed soups.

@aireca_smith

Cream Of Anything Soup Mix!! You don't have to run to the store for a last minute cream of whatever soup! Recipe is from "Living The Nourished Life" blog. 4 cups dried milk powder (i used the non-fat kind), 1 1/2 cups cornstarch, 1/2 cup bouillon powder, 4 tsp dried minced onion (or about 1 tbls onion powder), 2 tsp dried parsley, 2 tsp dried basil, 1 tsp pepper. Put an airtight lid on and give a good shake! To reconstitute add 1 cup of water (or broth), 1/3 cup soup mix and if you need a specific soup type add 1/2 cup of mushroom, broccoli, celery, or whatever! Turn heat on medium low, mix and within minutes it should be nice and thick! That equals 1 can of cream of anything! #creamofanythingsoupmix #creamofanything #soupmix #creamofmushroom #drymix #makeyourowndrymix #diydrymix #homemadesoupmix #homemadedrymix #homemadehome #homemadekitchen #homemade #pantrystaple #fillyourpantry #homemadepantry #fromscratch #fromscratchcooking #fromscratchkitchen #mom #sahm #homemaker

♬ original sound – Aireca

The concept is pretty simple: you'll combine the all-dry ingredients and store them in your pantry until you're ready to use your cream of anything soup. To use a can's worth of soup, just reconstitute a one-third cup of the powder with a cup of water and a half a cup of whatever flavor you want to recreate (for example, if you're making cream of celery soup, add half a cup of celery to the mix when you're heating it up). Whether you're whipping up cream of chicken soup to add to use in your buffalo chicken dip or you're making a super-rich bowl of ramen by adding cream of mushroom soup, it makes sense to keep cream of anything powder on hand in your pantry. Adding flavor at the end isn't the only way you can jazz up the mix — let's take a look at some ways you can customize the flavor of your cream of anything powder itself.

Cream of anything soup mix certainly can go a long way when you don't have the can that you need on hand, but you'll want to add to it a bit if you're in need of a specific flavor. Thankfully, you can make this happen pretty simply. The recipe includes bouillon powder, but doesn't specify what type, so this is one place you can make a call depending on what type of flavor you're looking for. Chicken bouillon, beef bouillon, and vegetable bouillon cubes (and other flavor bases, like Better Than Bouillon) all give soups a richness and depth of flavor, while lending themselves specifically to the cream-of taste you're trying to create.

While you certainly can add fresh ingredients to your cream of anything soup as the home chef recommends in the video, it's not your only option. You can also add freeze dried broccoli (like this one by Thousand Lakes Store on Amazon) or mushrooms right into the mix, which can mean it's totally ready to reconstitute, fresh ingredients optional. No matter how you decide to customize your cream of anything soup mix, be sure to keep it stocked in your pantry so you always have the perfect flavor-loaded recipe-enhancer at the ready.