In the past we've looked at a few more refined versions of potato soup. There has been a creamy curried potato soup, a sweet potato soup with miso and ginger, and a roasted garlic and potato soup. But I'm not as polished as the rest of our Kitchn writers. See, this Midwestern girl wants her meat and potatoes and she doesn't always want them to be fancied up — well, unless you consider bacon fancy.
There are so many different ways to make potato soup — it's rather ridiculous. A quick Google search will show you many of the infinite variations. But when it comes to a traditional dish that makes your stomach growl from the other room just thinking about it, accept no substitute for this thick, creamy, and extra-comforting dish.
Now before we start, there are a few disclaimers. This dish isn't low-fat, and it isn't light in calories. Under no circumstances does it even pretend to be the healthiest soup on the block. This dish is a stick-to-your-ribs type meal that can be served at the end of a long day. It falls into the comfort food category and is best eaten in fuzzy slippers and pajamas. Not because that's the attire the meal requires, but because the only thing more comforting than this meal is fuzzy slippers. If you're going to go all out, that's how to do it!
If you already have a few baked potatoes and some cooked bacon in the fridge, this dish comes together in less than five minutes. Make these things ahead so this soup is ready to be thrown together at a moment's notice. There's no long drawn out cooking time for broth; you can literally come home from work and have this meal on the table before your children get a chance to tear the house apart! Fabulous!
Tester's Notes:
As Sarah Rae says, this is exactly the kind of rich and hearty meal you crave at the end of a long day. I tend to see a recipe like this and automatically start thinking about subbing in a lower-fat milk, using yogurt instead of sour cream, and other calorie-cutting techniques. If you have similar instincts, I urge you to curb them for this recipe. It's worth it to go all in and just enjoy the ride. This ridiculously good soup is the very definition of comfort food, and we all need that every now and then.
The only change I actually make is to cut the recipe in half, or even in quarters. As it is, the recipe will feed a whole crowd of very hungry people, which is good for a Super Bowl party or potluck dinner. When it's just my small family, a smaller batch is just the thing for a cozy night in. -Emma
Baked Potato Soup With Bacon, Green Onion & Cheddar
Makes 10-12 servings (depending on how hungry you are!)If you don't have them already prepared, bake the potatoes and fry the bacon before starting this recipe.
2 sticks (1 cup/16 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
8 cups whole milk
5 large potatoes, baked and cubed (peeled, if desired)
2 pounds bacon, cooked and crumbled (about 2 cups)
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 cups sour cream
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced (optional)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Melt the butter in the bottom of a large pot over medium-high heat. Add flour and whisk to combine until thickened. Whisking continuously, slowly pour in the milk and whisk until mixture is smooth. Be sure to get the corners of the pan.
Add all of the remaining ingredients and lower the heat to medium. Stir occasionally until the cheese is melted and the soup is warmed through. Be sure to scrape bottom of the pot as you stir so the soup doesn't burn.
Serve when warm and enjoy!
Additional notes:
• On using sliced bacon: You can of course start by using sliced bacon and can even hold onto the rendered fat, substituting it for part of the butter called for in the soup recipe. Just reduce your butter accordingly and add it right in.
• On pre-baking your potatoes: Since this recipe uses potatoes that are already baked, you might want to toss a few in the oven the night before to bake them off ahead of time. Baked, they'll keep in the fridge for a week (easily), so dinner can be ready to go any night of the week!
Related: Recipe: Ajiaco (Chicken and Potato) Soup
(Image: Emma Christensen)
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Comments (24)
Yum, that looks amazing! I'm not big on soup, but baked potato soups, corn chowders, and anything thick and creamy like that always catch my fancy. Definitely will be making this, and SOON!
any ideas on using potato starch as a gluten free alternative?
Yes! So glad you guys made a potato-cheddar-sour cream soup! My 3 fave ingredients! Making this tonight.
Oh man, the last time I needed chopped up bacon, it ended up being 1 pound = 1 cup chopped. Two pounds here? And the fat? Why yes I will be making a bathtub full of this very soon.
dan.in.raleigh - Potato starch would work out great, I suggest mixing a few tablespoons in with the cold milk before it comes to temperature and then thickening as needed once the mixture is heated through. A little before to give it body and a little after to finish it off!
Made this for dinner tonight. It was FANTASTIC! I did cut the recipe in half (there's only two of us). Used 3 potatoes and would probably cut it down to 2 next time. Otherwise, it's a great, thick, stick-to-your-ribs soup.
OMG!!!! Thank you for sharing. That was the best (and easiest) soup I've ever made!
I love this soup! My version uses some chicken broth, diced ham, diced onions, corn, celery, chives etc veggies. I will often thicken it with a submersion blender (but don't over blend- the thick chunky is the glory of this 'choup') instead of adding cream and milk. You can add instant potatoes too as a thickener. A great time saver tip is to just nuke your potatoes whole and dice them up right out of the skin!
I just printed 3 of your soup recipes, the potato soup, Italian wedding soup, and cream of tomato soup, I am not a big soup eater but they look so good and my husband loves soup can't wait to make them. thank you so much for your recipes.
I grew up on one soup: potato. It's all my mother knew how to make. I can make other kinds, but potato is still my favorite. BAKED potato soup is the ultimate in comfort food, and when I bake potatoes, I always bake extra for soup. And I "rice" the potatoes so the soup has this wonderful texture.
This soup is absolutely delicious! Reminds me of the potato soup served at Chili's Restaurant, but even better. Total comfort food for the chilly days ahead. Everybody loved it and had seconds.
I've never made a potato soup before but just whipped this up for dinner tonight and when I took a taste test I couldn't believe how yummy it was. Tastes exactly like a baked potato! I cut the recipe in half (didn't have enough of everything) and it was quick and very easy. :)
There are NO words to describe how excited I am to make this! This weekend, it's ON!
Not sure I'd ever make this, but for the sake of asking... is that supposed to be 8 TB (1/2 cup) butter or 1 cup (16 TB) butter?
@Alicelost - Good catch! That's a typo from my half-recipe. For the full recipe above, it's 2 sticks/1 cup/16 tablespoons of butter.
Aw, it's like the Outback potato soup that I have been missing so much since they closed in Canada... that's what I am making this week-end!
This sounds amazing, but after calculating the Weight Watchers points in a serving, I think I'll be avoiding it for a long time. No, it is certainly not low-fat, or light in calories. It contains more WW points in on serving (assuming you divide it into 12) than most dieters would get in a day, or if you count calories, over 900 per serving. Yum, but yikes! I'll save it for a not-counting day =)
I just made this for dinner later tonight and it's delicious. I couldn't help, but tweak though! I'd rather save splurging for when I go out to eat. I used half skim milk and half chicken stock instead of all whole milk. I also used light sour cream and an immersion blender to blend some of the potatoes into the soup before adding the green onions, bacon, and the rest of the cubed potatoes. Adding in small handfuls of cheese a little at a time to taste also kept me from using all of the cheese called for. It ended up being so thick and creamy that I added a little bit more stock to loosen it back up. I threw in some hot smoked paprika to get a slightly smoky taste and some onion powder to amp up the onion flavor at the end as well. I definitely can't tell I used some lower fat substitutes.
I made this last night for my husband and he absolutely loved it! This will be my Super Bowl dish. No need to add extra garlic or salt, but I did add a little cayenne. Thanks Joanna for the calorie cutting tips....
Great sub ideas!
Made this over the weekend...my family and I thought we'd died and gone to heaven. Thank you!
This is the perfect recipe! Easy ingredients that I already have. I can't wait to try this around Christmas time, especially with the rave reviews!
I just finished making this soup. It was very easy to throw together once I bought all of the ingredients. I ended up adding extra black pepper and paprika to the baked potatoes pieces in the oven just to dial up the flavor. It sits very heavy in my stomach and overall it's very satisfying. The treadmill is now calling my name but it was worth it.
Second day soup leftover update: It congealed overnight in the fridge. It loosened up a bit when I hit it with some heat on the stovetop but it was still rather thick and not to my liking. I added about 1.5 cups of water, more black pepper and paprika. I also threw in some seasoned field peas to give it some more texture and flavor. I'm wishing that I added the peas on the first day. Delicious.
Ok I'm getting on the treadmill right away! ...Tomorrow!