Cut dried shiitake mushrooms into halves and soak in water to rehydrate.

Cut fresh shiitake mushrooms into halves or smaller.

Slice shallots and garlic.

Melt butter in a saucepan and saute the shallots & garlic.

Add both mushrooms, bay leaves and some of the water that used to rehydrate the dried mushrooms.

Pour in the chicken stock and simmer until the mushrooms have absorbed most of the liquid.

Remove the bay leaves and transfer into a pot to cool down.

Add the mushrooms into a blender in batches and blend into a fine puree.

At this stage, you can add more chicken stock if the puree is too thick until your desired consistency.

Reheat only the amount you need and the rest can be kept in the freezer.

Store in serving size containers for ease of reheating when needed.