This easy potato soup recipe is creamy, comforting, and always a crowd favorite.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made this delicious, creamy potato soup! It’s simple and easy to make and so perfect on a chilly, damp day.”
– Katrina
Like A Warm Hug In A Bowl
Love a cozy bowl of homemade potato soup. ♡
It’s the kind of comfort food I grew up eating on chilly Midwestern nights — simple, hearty, and always so nostalgic. I spent years tweaking this recipe, and it’s now a forever favorite in our house. And after tens of thousands of you have made it (and raved about it!) over the past decade, I’d say it’s officially a reader favorite here too!
This homemade potato soup recipe is wonderfully creamy (without needing heavy cream), layered with cozy garlic and cheddar flavor, and easy to customize to your taste. Even better? It’s quick and unfussy and ready to go in just 30 minutes. Perfect for busy weeknights or lazy Sunday dinners or anytime you’re craving a cozy bowl of soup. One batch never lasts long in our house!
So if you’ve been searching for a tried-and-true potato soup recipe to keep on repeat, this is it!
Cheers,
Potato Soup Recipe | 1-Minute Video
Potato Soup Tips
Before you get cooking, here are a few simple tips to help your potato soup turn out extra creamy and delicious:
- Dice potatoes evenly: Smaller, uniform pieces will cook more quickly and evenly.
- Warm your milk: This helps prevent curdling and keeps the soup smooth.
- Grate cheese by hand: Pre-shredded cheese is often coated with anti-caking agents that can make the soup grainy — freshly grated melts much creamier.
- Add cheese slowly: Stir it in a handful at a time off the heat to avoid clumping.
- Storage tip: Cool leftovers before refrigerating in a sealed container for up to 3 days; rewarm gently to keep the texture creamy.
Recipe Variations
This homemade potato soup recipe is endlessly flexible, so feel free to try one of these fun twists:
- Make it vegetarian: Skip the bacon and use butter or olive oil instead of bacon grease. For extra flavor, stir in 2–3 teaspoons Cajun seasoning.
- Make it gluten-free: Omit the flour and instead whisk 1 tablespoon cornstarch into the cold milk before adding it to the soup. Or skip thickener altogether and simply puree half the soup to create a naturally creamy base.
- Lighten it up: Reduce the grease/butter by 2 tablespoons, skip the flour, and puree half the soup to thicken. Use skim milk and turkey bacon (adding a drizzle of olive oil or butter for sautéing if needed).
- Add extra seasoning: Stir in 1 tablespoon of your favorite blend for a new twist — Cajun, Italian, za’atar, or taco seasoning all work great here.
- Mix up the potatoes: Try a blend of Yukon gold and sweet potatoes for a sweet-savory spin.
- Add more veggies: Toss in chopped cauliflower and/or broccoli with the potatoes for extra nutrition and texture.
More Potato Soup Recipes To Try
Love a cozy bowl of potato soup? Here are a few other reader favorites you might enjoy next:
The BEST Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 5 slices bacon, diced
- 3 tablespoons (reserved) bacon grease or butter
- 1 cup diced white or yellow onion
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
- 2 cups milk, warmed
- 1.5 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, diced
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, or more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
- optional toppings: thinly-sliced green onions or chives, extra shredded cheese, extra bacon, sour cream
Instructions
- Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add diced bacon and cook until crispy, stirring occasionally. Transfer the bacon to a separate plate, using a slotted spoon, reserving about 3 tablespoons of bacon grease in the stockpot. (Discard any extra grease, or you can substitute butter in place of the 3 tablespoons of bacon grease. Also, if you are short on time, you can dice the potatoes and onion while the bacon cooks to save time.)
- Add onion and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft. Stir in the garlic and sauté for an extra 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant. Stir the flour into the mixture and sauté for an additional 1 minute to cook the flour, stirring occasionally. Then stir in the stock until combined, followed by the milk and potatoes.
- Continue cooking until the mixture just reaches a simmer, before it begins to boil. Then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft, being sure to stir the soup every few minutes so that the bottom does not burn. (The smaller you dice your potatoes, the faster your soup will cook.)
- Once the potatoes are nice and soft, stir in the cheddar cheese and Greek yogurt (or sour cream), salt, pepper and cooked bacon bits. Taste and season with extra salt and pepper, if needed.
- Serve warm, garnished with desired toppings. Or, transfer to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Be sure to also check out our Slow Cooker Potato Soup recipe too — made easy in the crock pot!
- This recipe was originally shared here in December 2014.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Made this today after making your broccoli,cheese soup yesterday. I used a leek and an onion, veg stock, and almond milk. Strong cheddar and tangy Greek yogurt and added chopped Vidalia onion as a garnish. Delicious!
We’re so glad you enjoyed it Cathy (the leek and onion sound like wonderful additions)! :)
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful recipe, my family and I enjoy it very much!
You’re welcome Shelby, we’re happy to hear that! :)
I have everything except sour cream/yogurt. Can I leave out or substitute? I need a quick answer so I can make for my husband’s lunch today. He’s working a lot of extra hours and I want to show him I think he deserves a little extra from me.
Hi Leanna, the only other thing you could use would be creme fraiche. Those products just add to the creamy, thick texture of the soup, and also provide a nice tangy flavor. You could leave them out if you don’t have time to pick them up at the store though. Do you have any heavy cream? You could add some of that to thicken it more. We hope this helps, and that you and your husband enjoy this!
Will a salad go good with this.
We think a salad would go great with this Phyllis, we hope you enjoy! :)
I made this soup tonight with just a few additions. Instead of just browning onion I made a basic mirepoix. I also added garlic and some chopped broccoli near the end of the cooking time. It was really good, but I think next time I’ll add more bacon, or better yet, pancetta! I garnished with copped green onion and it was perfect for a damp autumn night.
That sounds wonderful Tracy, and we bet pancetta would be amazing in this! We’re glad you liked it. :)
Love it!!! Add ham, carrots and celery! Super delicious! Served with garlic bread. Perfect fall dinner :-) Thank you!
Thanks Kelly, we’re happy you liked it, and your additions sound yummy! :)
Hi! This looks great with the exception of the cheese. Can’t eat cheese. Will it still be ok? Should I dubstitute with something or its ok to just omit??
Thanks Vanessa! You could just omit, or you could try a non-dairy cheese, such as Daiya. We hope this helps!
Hi there I can not have dairy , I do have rice milk do u think that would be ok and what could I use instead of yogurt and cheese because this soup does sound and look very nice Many thanx x
Hi Mandy! We have not tried a non-dairy version of this soup, so we can’t say for sure. However, we think (unsweetened, unflavored) rice/almond/soy/cashew milk should work. You could also try a non-dairy (vegan) cheese, such as Daiya, and plain soy yogurt or silken tofu (blended) with a little bit of lemon juice (in place of the sour cream. We hope this helps. Again, we haven’t tried it without dairy, so we can’t vouch for 100% for doing it this way, but we hope it works, and we hope you’ll let us know how it turns out if you try it! :)
Hi. I’m bummed this won’t freeze well. Sounds like the perfect lunch for work. I guess I will make it for dinner then eat it for lunch 3 days in a row lol. Approx how many potatoes is that? And approx how many did this feed?
Thanks,
Leigh
PS. Love your recipes!!!
Yeah, dishes with a substantial amount of dairy just don’t freeze well unfortunately. You could always just make half the recipe so you don’t have so much leftover? This will make about 6-8 servings if you do the full recipe. It would be about 4-5 medium yukon gold potatoes (but always weigh on the scale when you’re shopping). We hope this helps! :)
Can you freeze this soup? Will it taste weird once you thaw it?
Freezing this (because of the dairy) will cause it to separate, so unfortunately this will not freeze well.