Water simmered or steeped with fresh or dried mushrooms until it takes on their colour and savour. Dried porcini or shiitake give a far stronger result than fresh mushrooms do.
What it does in a recipe: Deep plant-based savour, the closest a vegetable stock gets to meat stock's weight. Pick the swap that covers that job — the ratios below are written so you can act on them without doing any arithmetic.
Also called: Mushroom stock, Dried mushroom soaking liquid
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Broths & stockscategory
Quick answer
Water steeped with dried mushrooms
1 cup mushroom broth = 1 cup just-boiled water steeped 20 minutes with 1/2 oz dried porcini or shiitake
All substitutes, best first
4 ways to replace mushroom broth
Water steeped with dried mushrooms
Closest match
1 cup mushroom broth = 1 cup just-boiled water steeped 20 minutes with 1/2 oz dried porcini or shiitake
This is essentially how mushroom broth is made in the first place; drying concentrates the guanylate that gives mushrooms their savour, so a small quantity flavours a lot of water.
MethodStrain through a coffee filter or a cloth — dried mushrooms carry grit that will otherwise end up in the dish.
Trade-offEffectively identical, and often better than a commercial carton. Do not throw away the rehydrated mushrooms.
1 cup mushroom broth = 1 cup vegetable broth + 1 tsp soy sauce
Soy sauce is dense in glutamates and supplies both the savoury depth and the darker colour that distinguish mushroom broth from an ordinary vegetable one.
Trade-offSaltier and fermented in character rather than earthy. It reads as Asian seasoning rather than as mushroom.
Allergen checkSoy sauce contains soy and, in most styles, wheat. Use tamari for gluten-free or coconut aminos to avoid soy, and check the specific bottle — brewing methods differ and so do the labels.
Beef or chicken broth
Reliable
1 cup mushroom broth = 1 cup beef or chicken broth
Both bring comparable savoury depth and more body than mushroom broth has, since they carry gelatin, which suits a gravy or a braise.
Trade-offMeaty rather than earthy, and neither is vegetarian, which defeats the point if that was the reason for choosing mushroom broth.
CookingSaucesDairy-freeEgg-freeNut-free
Allergen checkCartoned meat stocks frequently contain wheat, celery or milk solids. If the mushroom broth was chosen for a dietary restriction, read the label before assuming this swap is neutral.
Vegetable broth + nutritional yeast
In a pinch
1 cup mushroom broth = 1 cup vegetable broth + 2 tsp nutritional yeast
Nutritional yeast supplies glutamates and nucleotides that lift a plain vegetable stock toward the savoury weight that mushrooms give.
Trade-offSlightly cheesy and a little cloudy, without any of the earthy, forest-floor quality of real mushroom stock.
The soaking liquid from any dried mushrooms is worth keeping in the fridge for a few days or freezing in ice-cube trays. It is more useful than most cartons of stock and costs nothing.
Cooking around an allergy? Diet tags here describe the ingredient itself, not any particular brand. Processed products change formulation without notice and shared production lines are common, so read the label on everything you use. A severe allergy is a medical matter — confirm with the manufacturer or your clinician rather than relying on a substitution chart.