4.98 from 5018 votes

The Ultimate Creamy Potato Soup

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7,415 Comments

Servings: 8 servings (recipe makes 3.5 qts of soup)

30 mins

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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.

A close up view of creamy potato soup, topped with bacon, sour cream, chives, and cheddar cheese

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).

An overhead view of a bowl of potato soup]

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!

Two bowls of potato soup

Tips for Perfect Creamy Potato Soup

  • Cut your potatoes into pieces no larger than 3/4″ 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 1/4 teaspoon and then taste testing before adding more.

Creamy Potato Soup, loaded with bacon and cheese

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

Potato soup in bowl, with toppings
4.98 from 5018 votes

The Ultimate Potato Soup Recipe

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.
Prep: 30 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
Servings: 8 servings (recipe makes 3.5 qts of soup)
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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
  • 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)
  • cup heavy cream, (155ml)
  • 1 ½ teaspoon* salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground pepper
  • ¼ - ½ teaspoon ancho chili powder**
  • cup sour cream, (160g)
  • Shredded cheddar cheese, chives, and additional sour cream and bacon for topping, optional

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

*I recommend starting with a more reserved amount of salt and then adding more as needed, the amount of salt needed will vary depending on the type/brand of broth you use
**If you haven't used ancho chili powder before, I recommend starting with 1/4 teaspoon and then taste-testing before increasing to 1/2 teaspoon if you like the taste.  
***If you want a completely creamy soup you can puree all of it, just puree in batches, about half of the soup at a time.  I prefer my potato soup with actual chunks of potatoes and prefer to puree just half of it.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 521kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 87mg | Sodium: 1326mg | Potassium: 1176mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 897IU | Vitamin C: 50mg | Calcium: 182mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Recipe Rating




7,415 Comments

  1. Carolyn says:

    5 stars
    Delicious and easy! Thanks!

  2. Conrad says:

    We didn’t like it at all- we LOVED LOVED this recipe of patato soup!!!

  3. Bobbie says:

    This is an amazing potato soup on repeat at my house. I made it on this snowy night with homemade bread bowls – absolutely delicious combination!

  4. Sue says:

    This soup is wonderfully delicious and we make it repeatedly!

    1. Melissa Yrigoyen says:

      5 stars
      I ‘m in Atlanta and it is about 20 degrees outside but we are warm and full of soup inside!

  5. Nonnio says:

    5 stars
    I have tried many potato soup recipes that were just so so… but this recipe is a definite keeper!! Many thanks!!
    My husband doesn’t even care for potato soup at all. He usually eats something different all together. He tried this one & is now complaining of eating too much while saying repeatedly how delicious it was.
    Amazing!!!

  6. Deb says:

    Made this for the first time and it was AMAZING! It didn’t take long to make either.

  7. Amber says:

    5 stars
    Am a ovo-lacto vegetarian. I modify slightly based on what is on hand. Obviously no bacon used, and normally use some cayenne pepper powder vs. chili to bring just that little bit of heat. Very tasty and quick to assemble. Have enjoyed it several times, always comes out tasty and warming

  8. JOANNA says:

    5 stars
    WOW. This was pretty easy! It isn’t quite done yet but…wow. I am on the final step and I just know when it is tipped with cheese and bacon it will be amazing 😍

  9. Taylor Meadows says:

    5 stars
    Cold in Florida today so naturally we take advantage for soup days! Super easy to follow. Very excited to taste!

  10. debs says:

    5 stars
    Made this yesterday & had leftovers today! It wassoooo good! Will be making this again!

  11. Wendy says:

    5 stars
    Fantastic. Have made this many times now and will continue to make it.

  12. Debb says:

    5 stars
    First time trying this and it was great!

    1. Monica says:

      5 stars
      Absolutely delicious! I used half and half because that’s what I had on hand. Also left out the ancho chili and used thyme instead. This is a recipe that the entire family loved. My 14 year old picky eater now wants this on the weekly rotation.

      1. Emily @ Sugar Spun Run says:

        Thanks for the review, Monica! We’re so glad it was a hit 🙂

  13. Kimberly says:

    5 stars
    Omg I’m 64 yrs old and have never made a potato soup like this recipe so easy to follow and absolutely taste delicious ty 4 sharing

    1. Ames Amer says:

      5 stars
      This is a family favorite!! Taste like my mom’s growing up! So yummy!!

  14. Julie says:

    5 stars
    Best potato soup ever! Doubled the recipe and it was a huge hit with my family of 5. My oldest came back for refills several times throughout this subzero snowy day, I dare say this soup was perfect!

  15. S.G. says:

    5 stars
    This is by far the best potato soup I have ever made. I came across it while looking for soup recipes due to some dental problems. it is so, so good!

    1. Kathleen says:

      5 stars
      My whole family of picky eaters loved it and went back for seconds!

    2. Katie says:

      5 stars
      I made this soup and my whole family agreed it was the best potato soup they’ve ever had. The instructions were so easy to follow and it fed my family of 6 with plenty of leftovers!

      1. Alice Knox says:

        Has anybody ever put kale in the soup?