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The family will love this Loaded Cheesy Potato Soup. It’s like a creamy baked potato in soup form! Cozy, hearty and so good. Everything is made in one pot, it’s full flavor and the toppings are my favorite.
Why Make Loaded Potato Soup
Loaded potato soup is similar to a loaded baked potato! Only more cozy and a bit more decadent and filling.
- One Pot Dish.
- Customize it to your liking.
- Meal Prep Friendly.
- Crowd Pleasure!
Ingredient Notes
All other ingredients and measurements can be found in the recipe card towards the bottom of this post.
- Potatoes. The main ingredient to loaded cheesy potato soup! Use russets or large Yukon gold potatoes.
- Bacon. This is a must! It adds so much savory salty goodness to the soup. Use Turkey bacon to make it healthier. You can also top it with my Turkey Sausage.
- Butter. This is to make the roux.
- All Purpose Flour. This thickens the soup and makes the roux. Use all purpose gluten free if needed.
- Onions and Garlic. For aromatics.
- Chicken Broth. Use low sodium if needed.
- Heavy Cream. This is optional, you can use milk if desired but the cream gives it a luxurious flavor and texture to enjoy.
- Milk. I use both heavy cream and milk but you can easily use one or the other. Check out my tips in the recipe card on how to make this soup healthier!
- Toppings: cheddar cheese, green onions, sour cream and more.
Steps To Make This Recipe
- Step One. Cook the bacon in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp and browned. Use this same pot to make the rest of the soup!
- Step Two. Once the bacon is cooked to your liking, remove it and set aside, leaving drain most of the grease, but leave some for flavor. Add butter and chopped onion, cook over medium heat until onions are tender (3-4 minutes).
- Step Three. Sprinkle flour and seasonings and garlic over the onions, stir it in well. This is to form a roux.
- Step Four. Add diced, peeled potatoes to the pot with chicken broth, water, milk, heavy cream. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork (about 15-18 minutes).
- Step Six. Reduce heat to simmer. Carefully remove a few cups of the potatoes and soup mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. You can also use an immersion blender, just motion it up and down a few (maybe 3-4) times and it will thicken the soup up. Don’t do too much with the immersion blender, you want to leave several potatoes whole for texture.
- Step Seven. Let the soup come back to temperature. Serve the soup and garnish with chopped chives, chopped bacon crisps, cheddar cheese and a little dollop of sour cream. Enjoy warm!
Recipe Pairings
This soup is very hearty and filling, there is a lot to love here. it’s so nostalgic for me! It pairs great with Overnight Bread, Baked Jalapeños or a Simple Green Salad.
Cheesy Potato Soup Tips
- Try to keep the potatoes the same size throughout for the most even cook. I prefer them to be 3/4 – .5 of an inch.
- Don’t overcook the potatoes. They need to be just tender with a fork, you will want some texture to the soup (at least thats what I like!)
- Taste as you go, you may want a dash of more salt or chili powder.
- You can blend the entire soup if you prefer a very creamy texture throughout.
- Keep the bacon out of the soup until just before serving so it remains crispy and delicious.
- Make it healthier! Skip the heavy cream and just use 2% milk. You can also use Turkey bacon, and skip the cheese to cut some calories. It won’t be as creamy but it will still be so flavorful.
Loaded Potato Soup FAQs
What potato holds up best in soup?
Potatoes that are low-starch and high-moisture hold together better. Yukon Gold or even russet potatoes are on the medium-starch side and will hold their shape in soups.
What is the thickener in potato soup?
potato soup recipes with a roux to increase the soup’s chances for thickness. A roux consists of equal parts all-purpose flour and butter, plus aromatics such as garlic, onions, or celery, which you sauté for a few minutes to eliminate the raw flour taste. Blending some of the soup together also makes it thicker!
Other Soup Recipes TO Enjoy
Loaded Potato Soup
The family will love this one pot Loaded Cheesy Potato Soup. It's like a creamy baked potato in soup form! Cozy, hearty and so good.
Equipment
- large soup pot or dutch oven
- blender or immersion blender to blend some of the soup for thickness
Ingredients
- 6 large potatoes, peeled and diced, yukon gold or russet will work
- 6-8 slices bacon, uncooked
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour, use all purpose gluten free if needed
- ¼ cup yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp chili powder
- 4 cups chicken broth, low sodium
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup heavy cream , see notes
- 1 cup milk , 2%
Toppings
- crispy chopped bacon
- shredded cheddar cheese
- green onions, chopped
- sour cream
- hot sauce
Instructions
- Cook the bacon in a large Dutch Oven or soup pot over medium heat and cook until bacon is crisp and browned. Use this same pot to make the rest of the soup!
- Once the bacon is cooked to your liking, remove it and set aside, leaving drain most of the grease, but leave some for flavor. Add butter and chopped onion, cook over medium heat until onions are tender (3-4 minutes).
- Sprinkle flour and seasonings and garlic over the onions, stir it in well. This is to form a roux.
- Add diced, peeled potatoes to the pot with chicken broth, milk, heavy cream. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork (about 15-18 minutes).
- Reduce heat to simmer. Carefully remove a few cups of the potatoes and soup mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. You can also use an immersion blender, just motion it up and down a few (maybe 3-4) times and it will thicken the soup up. Don't do too much with the immersion blender, you want to leave several potatoes whole for texture.
- Let the soup come back to temperature. Serve the soup and garnish with chopped chives, chopped bacon crisps, cheddar cheese and a little dollop of sour cream. Enjoy warm!
Notes
- Try to keep the potatoes the same size throughout for the most even cook. I prefer them to be 3/4 – .5 of an inch.
- Don’t overcook the potatoes. They need to be just tender with a fork, you will want some texture to the soup (at least thats what I like!)
- Taste as you go, you may want a dash of more salt or chili powder.
- You can blend the entire soup if you prefer a very creamy texture throughout.
- Keep the bacon out of the soup until just before serving so it remains crispy and delicious.
- Make it healthier! Skip the heavy cream and just use 2% milk. You can also use Turkey bacon, and skip the cheese to cut some calories. It won’t be as creamy but it will still be so flavorful.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can freeze these for up to 2 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1.5 cups of soup with toppings | Calories: 753kcal | Carbohydrates: 98g | Protein: 22g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 71mg | Sodium: 625mg | Potassium: 2737mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 868IU | Vitamin C: 111mg | Calcium: 184mg | Iron: 5mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Leave a comment below!
We love this soup!
Your loaded potato 🥔 soup 🥣 🥓🧀🧈🌶🧂🍗 is soooh yummy 😋 and a family favorite ‼️ I love all of your recipes‼️
I am so happy to hear you enjoyed this one! Thanks for the review.