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!
This is the best potato soup I have ever made. I was a little worried about cooking the potatoes in milk . Most of the time I cook mine in water.Turned out awesome! Very creamy and great flavor.
Wow! This recipe is stupendous! The creamy potato soup is outstanding. I enjoyed making it and the result was unbelievable, the absolute best. Everybody who tried it loved it.
I have made this several times even when I have invited visitors for lunch. It is so easy to make and requires ingredients that most of us already have in the house. This soup is the best potato recipe I have ever used. It is delicious and definitely my go to especially when last minute guests are coming.
This turned out so good. It was a touch thick so I thinned with chicken broth. I added celery and carrots.
I’ve tried soooo many baked potato soup recipes (my husband just LOVES this stuff) and they were always disappointing…. until now! Thank so you so much for sharing. I’ve finally landed on the recipe to keep.
The texture is PERFECT and no cream means I can make it completely lactose-free at home and still have a wonderfully textured soup. Not sure about the servings estimate as the recipe as written made enough for the two of us to have one dinner and there’s one bowl’s worth leftover for lunch. Definitely double this if you hope to feed more than 2-3 adults as a main course.
thank you it was delicious and easy to make. i put 8 slices of bacon in because it’s bacon lol.
First time I’ve made potato soup and it is delicious. I followed the recipe, used chicken bone broth, sour cream instead of the Greek yogurt, mashed some of the cooked potatoes in the pot, and based on comments I also added about 1/2 TBS of Cajun seasoning for a little kick, plus about a 1/2 Tsp each of dried dill and dried thyme, along with salt and pepper of course. The Cajun seasoning I have includes turmeric and that spice gave the soup a warm color. Looking forward to trying other recipes of yours!
Delicious! I made this soup exactly as the recipe is written and it is perfection. The author’s suggestion of Cajun seasoning as an additional seasoning was spot on! Our only garnishment was additional cracked pepper. We ate this delicious soup with sliced cheddar and jalapeño bread. Wow!
Excellent. Added two carrots and two celery stalks along with the onion (as some others did), which just added more depth and flavor. Ended a dash more salt and probably 1/8 teaspoon more pepper at the end. Was delicious. Made the Everyday side salad with dressing as linked here. What was nice about this is it didn’t feel like a heavy meal, even though it was substantial.
This potato soup is wonderful. I followed the recipe exactly as it is written starting starting with 3 Tbl. of butter since I don’t eat pork. The soup is easy to make and tastes great. I’ll stop looking for a potatoe soup recipe. Thank you for this recipe.
My daughter and I made this for the two of us and loved it! Thank you for sharing. I have a family of 5 and would need to at least double it to feed my hungry crowd!