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.
Paula
Best flavorful soup I have ever made. Family loves it. Actually they are requesting it now.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy it’s a hit for your family, Paula! 🩷
Anna
Is there a way to make in an insta pot?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Anna! We haven’t tried it in an instant pot so we’re not sure exactly how it would be done.
Karon
Family loved this recipe and it was my first time making soup. Everyone’s wanted seconds!
Bonnie
Okay to freeze?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Bonnie! We have had others tell us they freeze it with success, but we don’t recommend it as it could separate when thawing.
Kalie M
I don’t think I’ve ever left a comment on a recipe before, but had to leave one here. My family has always had potato soup and a snack board (evolved to charcuterie over time lol) on Christmas Eve and this last year was my first time hosting as an adult. So the potato soup was on me & I’d never made it before.
It was a hit and they asked me to make it again for my cousin’s birthday party (she’s a big potato soup lover.) Thank goodness I saved this recipe in my notes app! 😂
One note I’ll make is that when I’m cooking a dish/recipe with very few ingredients I always lean into ensuring they’re high quality. I made this recipe using heavy cream and milk from a local dairy farm, thick cut high quality bacon, and kerrygold butter (the best!) and I think it made memorable. However I’m sure this recipe hits just as hard with any ingredients available to you! Also extra bacon always, for me at least!
Thank you for this great recipe! ❤️
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We appreciate the sweet review, Kalie! So glad this one was such a hit for you and your family 🙂
Sara Carlson
Our entire family LOVED it! My kids are already asking me to make it again!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy to hear that, Sara! Thanks for the review 🩷
Paul
Not hard to make and so delicious
Susan
This soup is loved by my son! He asked for it again to I’m
Making it today. Thank
You for the wonderful recipe!
Q: what is the measurement of a serving? A cup? I ask because of being diabetic and journal my food.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Susan! A serving is roughly 1.75 cups 😊
Kelley Moore
I make this soup at least every other week. I make enough to last for a few days. Great tasting recipe!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad it’s a hit for you, Kelley! 🙂
Stacy
I loved this soup! I followed directions exactly but added more bacon as a few have suggested. Next time I think I’ll shred a carrot toward the end. Also, I used immersion blender on the whole pot but I’ll be sure to take out some potato chunks next time for a chunky soup. I used a mandolin to slice the potatoes bc I was too lazy to chop. I will definitely be making this often. Wish it could be frozen though. Thanks for the recipe!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy you enjoyed the soup so much, Stacy!
Carole
The soup was easy and delicious ❤️
April
I have been making this recipe for a few years now. It is one of my favorites and I am so happy. The weather is getting a little chilly, so I’m going to make it today. It is so delicious. We put extra toppings, lots of bacon, and lots of cheese. It’s so good; it’s a must.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We love hearing that, April! Enjoy your dinner 🩷
Lynn
Can I use half and half instead of heavy cream?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Lynn! Yes you can, but the soup will be thinner.
Charlene
I was skeptical about deviating from my normal soup recipe but I am 1000% using this recipe from now on! I tweaked the seasonings a tad but essentially followed the recipe and was very pleased with how it turned out! Cooking the potatoes in the milk/broth/cream made all the difference!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yay! We are so happy you enjoyed it, Charlene 🙂
Roseann Zimmer
Great and easy recipe! The best comfort food bursting with flavor.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy it was a hit for you, Roseann! 🥰
Emily
This soup was delicious! I didn’t have heavy cream so I just omitted it. I don’t feel like I missed it at all. I also added some Flavor God Garlic Lover’s seasoning because I put that stuff on everything. It could use more bacon, but I just like mine extra loaded.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed, Emily!