The Ultimate Creamy Potato Soup
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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.
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 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.
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
Equipment
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
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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
My 4th time to make this wonderful soup. I didn’t have ancho chili powder, but I used a little paprika.
My 4 daughters have the recipe now. It’s a hit in their families as well.
Just made this for dinner. Absolutely the best potato soup I’ve eaten. The ancho chili power is a must giving the soup a depth of smokiness flavor. Out of curiosity, can you freeze any leftovers?
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Jefferie! I don’t recommend freezing it as it can separate when frozen. 🙁
Nice soup flavor. I needed to use more salt but it was tasty. A lot of prep but worth it . I a single so I have a lot left over.
This is the potato soup recipe I come back to again and again 😊
This soup is a family favorite!! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!😋
I have used your recipe several times and I have to say it is the absolute best
potato soup recipe! The ancho chili powder is perfect in this recipe. Thanks for
the share!
Best potato soup I have ever made! Thanks for a great recipe.
I want to make this for my co-workers, so I will have to make it at home the night before and then reheat at work. What would work best – microwave or crock pot?
Hi Marianne! Personally, if I had the ability to use a crock pot that is what I would do. 🙂
is there any reason why I couldn’t use russets for this recipe? I have a ton to use up and this looks amazing!!!
While not my preference here, they will work just fine. Enjoy! 🙂
Can this soup be frozen?
Hi Jan! I don’t recommend freezing it as it could separate when frozen. 🙁
Can this soup be frozen with good results?
Hi Jay! While others have done it with success I recommend against it as it could potentially separate.
Dang! Already frozen. We’ll see…..
Is it okay to leave out the ancho chili powder? Or do you have another suggestion as a substitution? I have a medical condition that doesn’t allow me to have any kind of spicy food (even mild with no heat). I hate it because I LOVE spicy food & haven’t been able to have it since being diagnosed. Not unless I want to end up at the ER or in the hospital.
Hi Jane! You can certainly leave out the ancho chili powder. It will just change the flavor a little bit. 🙂
This is my daughter’s favorite soup. Hearty with great flavor. Thank you so much for sharing!
Sam: I add celery & carrots as someone suggestd above, but I use 2-3 bay leaves and sprinkle Tarragon in at the end, adjusting to taste as I, too have a wee problem with spicy food. Instead of cream/milk, I use cream of chicken soup & it freezes very well.
Thank you so much for the feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
My family ask for this all the time. I’m making it right now!!!
This was my first time making this kind of soup and I’m so glad I used your recipe. It is so good 🤤
This bar none is the best of the best! I have made this several times and my 95 year old Mom requests it all the time. Super easy and as I mentioned is the best I have ever had, even in restaurants.
the best I’ve ever had!!!!!!!!
Hi do you have to blend the ingredients?
Hi Hannah! You don’t have to blend the ingredients. You will just have a chunkier/thinner soup. 🙂
Yes ! Blend all of the ingredients together after the soup has been made and the potatoes are soft.
I’m making it for the 2nd time and I didn’t puree either time. Still amazing.
Best potatoes soup ever!! 😋