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.
Kimberly Slack
Made this today, it was quick and easy, and my family absolutely loved it! It’s a winner and a keeper.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that everyone enjoyed the potato soup, Kimberly! Thanks for trying my recipe and for commenting.
Clayton
How long does the keep in the fridge???
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Clayton! You can store the cooked soup for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Enjoy! 🙂
Elizabeth
This recipe is pretty simple to make and it is soooooooo YUMMY!!! I substituted the ancho chili powder for cayenne pepper and it still tasted great!!!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the potato soup, Elizabeth! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Staci Williams
This is my favorite recipe of potato soup I have ever made! Made it for the first time last night an I had to add Celery an carrots. To me potato soup isn’t the same without it 💕 I did everything the same otherwise an added the full amount of seasoning suggested. When I cooked the onions in the bacon grease an butter is when I added the celery an carrot to soften them up an add bacon flavoring to them as well. I also did not puree any of the soup. I feel if I didn’t add the extra 2 ingredients i probably would have had to cause of all the juice. But it was so thick an creamy an the taste was to die for! I never heard of Ancho chili seasoning before this recipe so I was nervous thinking it would throw the soup off an make it taste like chili lol. But the seasoning made it that much better! Thanks for the recipe this is my family’s new fav meal. I was looking for new recipes for potato soup all the time, an luckily I wont have to ever again!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have finally the perfect potato soup recipe that your family loved, Staci! I appreciate you trying my recipe and for the feedback. I hope that you enjoy it for years to come. 🙂
Annie
I used red potatoes that I had on hand & 2 sweet potatoes that needed to go. Subbed half n’ half because I didn’t have cream. Regular chili powder because no ancho. Also didn’t have sour cream, so left that out… And…it was still a delight! Love a recipe you can modify with what you have on hand &still turns out delicious. Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much for your feedback, Annie! I am so happy that you enjoyed the potato soup and that the substitutions worked well for you. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
JULIA LOCKLEAR no
Love this recipe I love potato soup thanks
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it, Julia! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Carrie Bradley
I have never left a comment on any recipe before, but seriously the best potato soup I’ve ever eaten! And I”m an awful cook but this one was delicious.
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much for commenting, Carrie! I am so glad that you enjoyed the soup. 🙂
Rose
Made this soup yesterday and it was a “Pinterest Success”! Will definately make this agan.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the potato soup, Rose! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Jodie
Does this soup freeze well?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Jodie! I don’t usually recommend it, as it will be mushy when reheated. 🙁
Karen Mitchell
Question: do you add the cream & boil with the potatoes? Or do you add the cream after the potatoes have cooked….concerned the milk will curdle. THANK YOU.
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Karen! You want to add the cream in step 6 of the directions. Blended with the other ingredients you will bring everything to a boil. You should not have any issues with curdling. To walk you through the process I have created a video that can be found in the post as well. I hope that helps! Enjoy! 🙂
Rissa
I just finished macking my first ever pot of potatoe soup. Substituted vegetable broth for the chicken broth. Also read a previous comment about when to add chesse and I did exactly as you suggested. Saved calories by using veggie bacon.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the soup, Rissa! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Michelle Teare
Excellent soup!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Michelle! I am so glad that you enjoyed the potato soup. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Linda Hood
I made this tonight for my sister and her husband. I forgot to puree any of the potatoes and it was delicious. We agreed it was the best potato soup ever. My bother-in-law suggested adding muscles, clams or shrimp and making it the base for a seafood chowder. I think I will try that next time, but it sure was yummy the way it was!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that everyone enjoyed the potato soup and happy to hear that it was the best you have ever had. Thank you so much, Linda! I appreciate the feedback. If you try using this as a base for seafood chowder, I’d love to know how it turns out. 🙂
Alicia
First time making Potato Soup but this hit it out of the park! It’s delicious as is!! Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Congrats on making your first ever potato soup, Alicia! I am so glad that you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Katt
Making it for the second time, was a Big Hit the first time! I only changed veggies. No onions. Instead did carrots and celery. Added cheese to pot and on top! Served with cornbread! Was awesome!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed the soup so much, Katt! You can never have enough cheese if you ask me. 🙂
Diana
This recipe looks really good. Can I add the cheese to the soup instead of putting it on top? If so, how much cheese should I add, and when?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Diana! When in the cheesy mood, I will add the cheese towards the end. How much really depends on how cheesy and thick you’d like your soup. I would start with 1/2 cup and add more until you get the desired consistency and flavor. I hope that you enjoy the potato soup. Let me know how it turns out. 🙂
Mary
We’re having a soup ‘potluck’ at work and I’m making this recipe. It’ll be a hit, based on the comments! Wondering, though, if I make it the day before and heat it in a crockpot at work, should I mix the sour cream and bacon in the night before too? I’m thinking I should add it as it heats up in the crockpot the day it’ll be eaten. Thoughts?
Sam
Hi Mary! Either will be fine. I often reheat this soup the next day (after the sour cream and bacon have been added) and it’s always a hit. I hope that helps!