The BEST Potato Soup Recipe
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 620kcal
When it comes to pure comfort food, nothing beats a potato! Make this amazing Potato Soup recipe easily and then dig in!
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Ingredients
- 10 slices bacon, chopped
- 4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into small 1-inch or so pieces 5-6 cups when cubed
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion I like Vidalia
- 1 bay leaf
- Pinch black pepper and salt Salt lightly since the addition of cheese will add salt as well. Feel free to season again after soup is finished.
- 4 TBS butter
- ⅓ cup flour
- 4 cups milk
- 1 ½ cups vegetable or chicken stock I prefer vegetable for this
- 4 scallions, snipped
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded I like 1 cup shar cheddar and 1 cup Monterrey jack (4 oz of each)
- Optional: red pepper flakes and smoked paprika
Instructions
- Snip or chop bacon into small pieces and sauté in a soup pot until crispy. Once crisp, remove, blot dry and allow it to cool. Once cool, transfer to a small ramekin or bowl until ready to serve the soup.
- Place potatoes, onions and a bay leaf into the soup pot with the bacon drippings and sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring often. Season with black pepper and a pinch or two of salt.
- Remove pot from heat. Scrape the potatoes and onions into a bowl and set aside.
- Place butter into the pot, return to heat. Once butter melts, add in flour and whisk together allowing it to cook enough to remove the raw flour taste, about a minute. Be sure you whisk the mixture the whole time.
- Slowly add in your milk, whisking vigorously as you do. Allow it to just begin to bubble and thicken then, add in 1 ½ cups of the broth/stock, whisking vigorously as you do.
- Carefully add the potato mixture back into the pot, cover and simmer on low for 15-20 minutes with lid on, stirring often. Remove from heat, leaving the lid on, and allow the soup to sit for a bit (which ensures potatoes are fully cooked and flavors mingle).
- Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth. If you enjoy chunks of potato in the soup, blend less. You can also puree the soup in batches in your blender. Just remember that heat has energy, so place a dish towel on top of the blender lid and press down firmly ensuring no soup spurts out.
- Return soup to your pot, stir in the cheese until melted. Taste and adjust seasoning. This is also where you can choose to add additional broth/stock to thin the soup a little if necessary or according to your preference. I also add in red pepper flakes here as well as about 1 teaspoon smoked paprika.
- Ladle into serving bowls, top with snipped scallions, bacon & more cheese if you like. Enjoy!
Notes
I usually use regular russet baking potatoes for this. You can also use Yukon or red potatoes. They will all work, each lends a variant of taste and texture.
They type of cheese you use for this soup will influence the taste. For example, if you grate a nice aged cheddar vs pre-shredded bagged cheese. I like using ½ Monterrey Jack cheese and half Cheddar cheese for this soup. Experiment and find your favorite.
Sometimes I add in a couple of pinches of smoky paprika as I did in this photo, it changes the color of the soup slightly. You can also choose to add it to the garnish.
For garnish, add as much or as little crumbles bacon and scallions as you wish. Same goes for additional cheese, black pepper, chopped parsley etc.
I am not a fan of adding sour cream to potato soup. I just don't like the taste it adds. (I do love sour cream just not in this soup).
This soup thickens to almost a mashed potato consistency in the fridge. When you reheat it do so with care, remember you added cheese to it at the end, so boiling it will "break" the cheese. Not the best eating experience. Feel free to add additional milk or stock when reheating.
Nutrition
Serving: 6servings | Calories: 620kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 40g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Cholesterol: 100mg | Sodium: 859mg | Potassium: 968mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 1016IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 483mg | Iron: 2mg