An easy and delicious creamy potato soup recipe that can be made in just one pot! Loaded with bacon and creamy potato goodness, this is a favorite comfort food in my household.
Something savory today!
Savory, creamy, and loaded with bacon, sour cream, and cheese. You guys already know that we don’t exactly do health food around here, right? 😉
Even when I’m not sharing desserts, the food is always comfort food, and that’s usually best served with extra cheese (have you tried my baked mac and cheese yet!?) and usually comes with a few calories. Let’s not think about that too much, alright?
I know I mentioned to you guys that I had this potato soup recipe for you back when I posted my Oreo Balls; I made it when Zach had a bad cold and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since (you might think that’s an exaggeration, but I can assure you that my food obsessions run deep… Please see photo below to understand why).
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Zach prefers to eat healthy most of the time (I pretend that I do, too, but really if I lived alone I’m pretty sure I’d eat creamy cheesy foods every night and never fit through any doors ever again), so the soup was a good break from baked chicken breast, but this definitely isn’t an every night kind of meal in our house.
Potato soup is definitely on the menu for this weekend, though… it’s so frigid outside I’ve convinced myself that I need soup, specifically creamy potato soup, to survive. Potato soup makes me dramatic, evidently.
If you’re in the midst of a cold spell yourself (or even if you’re not) I think you’re going to enjoy this creamy potato soup as much as we do. Read on for some tips on how to make it!
Tips for Perfect Creamy Potato Soup
- Cut your potatoes into pieces no larger than ¾″ and try to keep them around the same size so that they cook at the same time. Nothing worse than biting into a crisp, raw-inside chunk of potato!
- To make this soup nice and creamy, I recommend pureeing about half of it either by using an immersion blender or by transferring a portion of the soup to a blender, pureeing, and then stirring the pureed soup back into the pot (maybe you recognize this technique from my corn chowder). If you want a completely smooth soup you can puree all of it, but I prefer to have a few actual pieces of potato, so I think pureeing half gives it the best taste and texture.
- Don’t return the bacon to the pot until after you have pureed some of the soup. It’s best not to blend the bacon 😉.
- The ancho chili powder is, in my humble opinion, a must and gives this soup the most perfect depth of flavor. I blend it into the potato soup and also sprinkle it on top before serving. I recommend adding just a ¼ teaspoon and then taste testing before adding more.
This would make a great comfort food for this cold and windy weekend (is there anything more cozy than a pot of soup simmering on the stove while the wind is howling at your window? Anything!?), and while I don’t follow football at all I do know that this would be great to make ahead and enjoy during the big game this weekend.
Who really cares about football when you can make yourself a Super Bowl of soup! 🤣😂 OK OK I’m sorry, enough of that!
Enjoy!
How to Make Potato Soup
The Ultimate Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 strips (uncooked) bacon cut into small pieces
- 3 Tablespoons butter unsalted or salted will work
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped (about 1.5 cup/200g)
- 3 large garlic cloves minced
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour (42g)
- 2 ½ lbs gold potatoes peeled and diced into pieces no larger than 1” (this was about 6 Large potatoes for me/1.15kg)
- 4 cups chicken broth (945ml)
- 2 cups milk (475ml)
- ⅔ cup heavy cream (155ml)
- 1 ½ teaspoon* salt
- 1 teaspoon ground pepper
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon ancho chili powder**
- ⅔ cup sour cream (160g)
- Shredded cheddar cheese, chives, and additional sour cream and bacon for topping optional
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Place bacon pieces in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp and browned.
- Remove bacon pieces and set aside, leaving the fat in the pot.
- Add butter and chopped onion and cook over medium heat until onions are tender (3-5 minutes).
- Add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds).
- Sprinkle the flour over the ingredients in the pot and stir until smooth (use whisk if needed).
- Add diced potatoes to the pot along with chicken broth, milk, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and ancho chili powder. Stir well.
- Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork (about 10 minutes).
- Reduce heat to simmer and remove approximately half*** of the soup to a blender (be careful, it will be hot!) and puree until smooth (half is about 5 cups of soup, but just eyeballing the amount will be fine. Alternatively you can use an immersion blender.).
- Return the pureed soup to the pot and add sour cream and reserved bacon pieces, stir well.
- Allow soup to simmer for 15 minutes before serving.
- Top with additional sour cream, bacon, cheddar cheese, or chives. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Evelyn
I am making this today for the third time. It is an incredible recipe, rich and delicious, easy to make. My family loves this soup. We just serve with a green salad for a full meal. I am wondering if you can freeze leftovers.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Evelyn! The soup tends to separate as it thaws, so we don’t typically recommend freezing. If that doesn’t bother you, feel free!
Wade
I tend to overdo things so I made a double batch last night before bed. Can I freeze some of the soup or should I put the rest in containers and share it with some nearby friends and family ?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Wade! We find that the soup doesn’t freeze well; it separates as it thaws. 🙁
Amy
I am a soup lover and this potato soup did not disappoint! It was thick and creamy and had great flavor. It was easy to make, I had everything on hand and it was quick. It was a family hit with some fresh bread for dunking!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad you enjoyed, Amy! Thanks for trying our recipe and coming back to leave a review ❤️
Susie
I am using Yukon Gold Potatoes- Do you really have to peel them? Hopefully not as I did not see the “peeled”‘potatoes until it was too late. Yukon Gold have a smooth texture anyway so I am praying hat it all works out as it is what’s for supper tonight
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Susie! They have a pretty soft skin, so it will probably be just fine. Enjoy!
Brittany Meyers
Would this work as well in a crock pot?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Brittany! We have not made it in a crock pot, but if you search the comments, you can see how others have made it in a crock pot. 🙂
DJ
I used this recipe the first time I made cream of potato soup, and have never felt the need to look for any other recipe.
I usually improvise with recipes a bit, but I make this one exactly as is. Never felt the need to change anything, it’s pretty much perfect as is
The only things I’ve “changed” out of neccesity was using regular chili powder instead of ancho chili powder (because I didn’t have ancho). I also made this when I didn’t have any type of blender on hand, so I scooped out a good portion of the potatoes, mashed them up, and put them back in the soup. Now I use an immersion blender, and it does lend a certain creaminess you can’t get by mashing.
At any rate, this is definitely a great recipe to have in your arsenal.
Rachael
I have an old family recipe I usually use, one time I decided I wanted something with more cheese (which this one has), anytime I have potato soup, this is the recipe I use. It’s my favorite, I brag about it all the time. I have it saved in 100 different places so I never lose it. It’s really the best and I’m so glad I came across this so many years ago. (2019)
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy you found our recipe and love it so much, Rachael! Thanks for the sweet review ❤️
Abby
AMAZING. I halved the recipe and used chipotle chili powder and it was just fantastic. Thank you.
Baileigh
Like a warm hug from the inside out ❤️❤️🥹
Kate
Hi Sam,
Can I make this the day before serving? How do you recommend reheating?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yes! Reheating on the stove should work just fine 😊
Potato Girl
F***** delicious 😋 🫶🏽 Gotta make a double batch everytime I make it!
Sherrie
I cut the recipe in half because it’s just me , it was delicious.. I filled it to the tee except added a little smoked paprika !! The best I’d ever tasted
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed, Sherrie! 🥰
Tim
We really enjoy this recipe. I do use double the amount of bacon. After making many times I now use a hand mixer. Makes it alot easier.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We like your thinking, Tim! Enjoy 😋
Lauren
OMG I just got finished making this and I couldn’t stop “tasting” it. I wanted to put my toddler to bed before I ate a whole bowl because I really want to savor it uninterrupted. I cannot wait to go eat a full bowl (or two). I stuck to the recipe almost exactly, just added a little more potato and chicken stock. It’s heaven!! Can’t wait to try it with all the fixins!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed it so much, Lauren! 😄
Lorne
An excellent soup! Straight forward instructions and a great ‘Back Home’ result.
I add chopped carrots, leeks and mini peppers, along with a bit of extra cream … just because! A touch of Cayenne and some Thyme to personalize.
This is in my regular soup rotation, and one more reason friends will drop by unexpectantly for lunch!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad you enjoyed, Lorne! 😊
zbf
Worked well with gluten free flour, as well. Just needed additional chicken stock.
Anne
I made this fantastic soup tonight. Thank you for such a delicious recipe! One suggestion I would make is to sprinkle a slight amount of cayenne pepper over the top of the bowl of soup. It really rounds it out nicely!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy you enjoyed the soup, Anne! 😋
Rebecca
Can someone help me with serving size and nutritional information? How much is one serving size? One cup of soup? Half a cup? Also I says one serving is 521kcal? Is this accurate? HELP!
Thank you!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Rebecca! A serving is about 1.5 cups. Enjoy!
Carol
This was delicious! I added 1 cup shredded cheddar when it was finished cooking, just to give it an added dimension! First time ever making potato soup.it was a big hit!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad it was a hit, Carol! Thanks for the review 😊
Melinda
This is the third time I made this soup. I recommend it any time of the year. It is restaurant quality.
Best ever!!!