This Slow Cooker Potato Soup recipe is easy to make in the crock-pot, and it’s perfectly thick and creamy and flavorful (without having to use heavy cream)!
Alright everyone, I think this one tops the charts as our most requested recipe on the blog ever, so I hope you like it. :)
That’s right, I finally made you a recipe for Slow Cooker Potato Soup!!!
The keywords, of course, being slow cooker.
Many of you have already discovered my classic Potato Soup recipe on the blog, which will forever and always be my favorite. But nearly every other comment we have received about this soup is from all of you slow cooking fans, asking if you can make the soup in your crock pots. As someone who shares a deep and undying love of all things potato soup and slow cooking, I was right there with ya! Unfortunately, the traditional recipe wasn’t one that that easily converted to slow cooking. Or at least, you couldn’t just dump all of the ingredients in and expect thick and creamy and delicious potato soup afterwards.
But I tested out a few different slow cooker approaches and finally figured out one that I think we’re all going to love. Just like my classic potato soup recipe, this one is super rich and creamy (but made a tiny bit lighter without heavy cream – yay!), it requires less than 20 minutes of prep time (mostly just chopping those potatoes), and it’s wonderfully comforting and delicious. But unlike my classic potato soup recipe, your crock pot gets to be the one to slow cook this soup to perfection.
Alright, let’s do this.
Slow Cooker Potato Soup Recipe Video (1 Minute)
The first step in this Slow Cooker Potato Soup recipe is probably the most time consuming — chopping up a storm. Chop up lots of potatoes (I strongly recommend Yukon golds), a big onion (white or yellow), and lots of cooked bacon (you can fry or microwave the bacon while you chop, or buy it pre-cooked).
Then toss everything in the slow cooker (<– this is the one I use) along with lots of good-quality chicken or vegetable stock. Set the timer for 3-4 hours (on high) or 6-8 hours (on low). Then walk away and let the slow cooker do its thing.
Then once everything has slow cooked, you’ve gotta do the final step on the stovetop. I know, I know, this recipe isn’t 100% slow cooker. But in order to have a soup that’s nice and thick and avoid using heavy cream, we need to make a quick and easy creamy roux on the stove.
So just melt your butter (or you can use reserved bacon grease, if you fried the bacon on the stove, which will be way more flavorful) and whisk it together with some flour to form a roux. Then whisk in a can of evaporated milk. And once the mixture comes to a simmer, it will thicken up into a really thick gravy-like mixture. Add that to directly to the slow cooker, and give everything a stir.
And then if you’d like an even thicker soup (which I recommend), use a potato masher to mash up about half of the potatoes in the soup. Or you can just leave them all chunky. Up to you.
(Or, some of you have asked about a slightly healthier soup. If you’d rather leave out the roux entirely and just have a brothy-er soup, you can do that, and/or just mash some of the potatoes if you’d like to thicken it up a bit.)
And then…ta da! A big crock pot full of delicious, creamy Slow Cooker Potato Soup will be yours to enjoy!
Slow Cooker Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 6 slices cooked bacon*, diced
- 3-4 cups good-quality chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes**, peeled (if desired) and diced
- 1 medium white or yellow onion, peeled and diced
- 4 tablespoons bacon grease* (or butter)
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 (12-ounce) can 2% evaporated milk
- 1 cup shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt or low-fat sour cream
- 1 teaspoon Kosher 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
- Add bacon, 3 cups chicken stock, potatoes and onion to the bowl of a large slow cooker, and stir to combine. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours, or until the potatoes are completely tender and cooked through.
- Once the soup has slow cooked and is about ready to serve, cook the butter in a small saucepan on the stove over medium-high heat until it has melted. Whisk in the flour until it is completely combined, and then cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Gradually add in the evaporated milk while whisking it together with the flour mixture, and continue whisking until the mixture is completely smooth. Let the mixture continue cooking until it reaches a simmer, stirring occasionally, and then it should get really thick.
- Immediately pour the milk mixture into the slow cooker with the potatoes, and stir until combined. Add in the cheddar cheese, Greek yogurt (or sour cream), salt and pepper, and stir until combined. If you would like the soup to be even thicker, you can use a potato masher or a large spoon to mash about half of the potatoes (while the soup is still in the slow cooker) to thicken the soup up. If you would like the soup to be thinner, add in an extra 1-2 cups of warmed chicken or vegetable stock. Stir to combine, then taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
- Serve warm, garnished with desired toppings. Or transfer to a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 3 days. (This recipe will not freeze well.)
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Wanted to let you know that we sub the evaporated milk for lactose free milk and it turned out great. We thought it could have used more bacon(we just love bacon)!!! Thanks!!! My husband never eats soup and this was thick enough he had 2 bowls..
Thanks for sharing that with us, Tami — we’re glad to hear it! :)
As a diabetic I like to know the nutrient value of each recipe. Even if the carbs are high, I usually can still eat if I use portion control. I have a wonderful cheesy potato recipe that is high in carbs but when you break it down to 12 services the carbs are within my needed ranged. Please share nutrient values of your recipes. Many look so yummy and I would like to try. Thanks.
Hi Mimi! We’re sorry but we are unsure of the nutrition facts/amount of calories in this recipe. We currently are not publishing nutrition facts on the site, as the nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
Can’t wait to try this! Our of curiosity, if I wanted to use heavy cream instead of the roux, what should I hypothetically do? :)
Hi Jennifer! The roux is ideal for this since it’s a slow cooker recipe (adding heavy cream or a lot of other dairy to the slow cooker in the beginning will cause the soup to break and the texture will be off). It’s best to add it at the end. We hope this helps! :)
Hi! I love creamy potato soup and can’t wait to try this recipe. Can I make this without the cheese? Do I need to adjust anything? Also, dies the sour cream help with the thickening? Just wondering. Thank you!
Hi Bella! Yes, you can leave out the cheese if you like. The sour cream is for flavor, creaminess and thickness. We hope you enjoy!
I am in the middle of a kitchen remodel with a makeshift kitchen in my living room which consists of a crock pot, pressure cooker, microwave and toaster oven. I am proud to say I made this tonight without a stove! I ended up using my pressure cooker to save time. I cooked through potatoes, onions, pre-cooker bacon and broth for 10 min at high pressure. I made the roux in the microwave! A little dangerous but it worked and it was absolutely delicious. (I used vegetable oil instead of butter.) This totally hit the spot! My husband is a picky eater and he is always so happy when I make your recipes. Thank you so much for this perfect comfort meal.
Thanks for sharing with us, Katie — we’re so happy you and your husband enjoyed it, and that’s very cool that you made it in your pressure cooker! :)
You say it serves 8. Is that like one large or small bowl each. Trying to decide if I need to double it
It should make 8 generous (meal-sized) servings. We hope you enjoy!
I made the potato/onion/bacon part. Cooked 4 hrs. Now I want to finish it tomorrow at a church gathering. Problem is there isn’t a stove. Microwave but no stove. Can I make the rue before I leave in the morning and heat it up right before serving in the afternoon?
To make it gluten free i use corn starch in place of the flour. And it is so good. i have also made it frying up some hot ground sausage and put that in it to give it a little spicy kick
Thanks for sharing with us — we’re so happy you enjoy it! :)
Leeks add more of an authentic potato soup flavor (imho). Just a suggestion.
Feel free to add them if you like! :)
Amazing recipe!!! I only substituted turkey bacon. The best potato soup I have ever made!!!! Thank you for the recipe!!
Thanks for sharing, Kelly — we’re so happy you enjoyed it! :)