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.
Rebecca Morrow
I don’t usually like potato soup but it was a family request. This was THE BEST potato soup I have ever had! So yummy! My husband said it was better than what his mom used to make (Ha! The ultimate compliment!) Thanks for sharing.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Rebecca! 🙂
Angela
So delicious!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Angela! 🙂
Hayley
About how much is one serving? A bowl worth? So about 2 cups?
Sam
Hi Hayley! The soup makes 6 servings but I haven’t measured it in terms of cups. I’ll have to do that next time I make it.
Pamela Sweeney
Truly the ultimate potato soup. Thank you for this awesome recipe! I so wish it could be frozen!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Pamela! 🙂
Threnody
I just moved and cannot find my regular or immersion blenders. Would an electric hand mixer be sufficient for getting half of the soup pureéd? If not, should I leave it all chunky – or wait until I find and unpack my blenders to make this delicious sounding soup? Thanks for your advice!
Sam
If you have a potato masher available that would probably do well, or even a really big spoon. The potatoes should be pretty tender so it won’t take much. You could alternatively leave them whole. 🙂
Megan
do you have to peel the potatoes?
Sam
That’s a personal preference. I always do just so I don’t end up with skins floating around in the soup. 🙂
Darlene Hamilton
Can I add broccoli?
Sam
Hi Darlene! That should be fine. 🙂
Brian
I just made this soup tonight. Only change I made was to add more bacon. It was the best potato soup recipe I’ve used. Thank you
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Brian! 🙂
Leanne
How much does serve? Enough for six adults or should I double? Thanks!!
Sam
Hi Leanne! This should make about 6 servings, but you won’t have enough when everyone wants seconds. 😉 I hope you love it! 🙂
Courtney
Can you make extra and freeze?
Sam
Hi Courtney! I don’t recommend freezing it because the heavy cream has a tendency to separate out. 🙁
Chris
Can this be made
Two days in advance
Sam
Yes that is fine 🙂
Sam
Hi Chris! That should be fine. Just keep it refrigerated until you need it. 🙂
Emily
Can I make this a day ahead of when I need it
Sam
Yup! Enjoy 🙂
Sam
Hi Emily! That should be fine. Just keep it refrigerated until you need it. 🙂
Ashley
Can you use regular chili powder?
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
BLeahD
My mom could believe i actually made it. Said it was the best ever. My picky kids ate it up. Neighbors loved it too. Thank you
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Katelyn Richie
Delicious! Best potato soup I have ever had! Better than most restaurants!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Katelyn! 🙂