This easy creamy loaded Potato Soup recipe is so good! It’s loaded with hearty potatoes and savory, crunchy bacon in a creamy base made without using heavy cream. This quick, 30-minute recipe is a total comfort food that you’ll make over and over again.
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We love easy creamy soups all year long, like fresh Corn Chowder, New England Style Clam Chowder, and this baked Potato Soup, because they are simple to make and are hearty enough to serve as the main course, paired with crusty Sourdough or French Bread.
The Best Potato Soup Recipe
This creamy, homemade potato soup is one of our favorite restaurant copycat recipes. It’s so easy to make from scratch and beats any restaurant soup. The base is so filling that it’s like a delicious loaded baked potato with all your favorite toppings or Loaded Potato Casserole, but in soup form–yes, please!
You’ll love how we thicken this potato soup! Instead of using heavy cream, we make a roux (a mixture of butter, flour, broth, and milk). So it’s creamy without the extra calories in the cream.
Potato soup is perfect for meal prep since it keeps well in the fridge and freezer and can be saved in portion sizes for a quick and easy meal.
Ingredients for Potato Soup
The soup uses ingredients you most likely already have at home and can be made so quickly. Whip it up as a satisfying meal on a busy weeknight evening or serve it as a comforting weekend meal.
- Bacon – crumbled bacon is the traditional potato soap ingredient, but you can substitute cubed ham if desired.
- Potatoes – our favorite potatoes for soup are Russet or Idaho potatoes but Yukon gold potatoes also work well. NOTE: If you’re using Yukon potatoes, the skin may be left on.
- Vegetables – we only added onion and garlic, you can add cubed carrots and celery in step 3.
- Broth – a roux thickens the soup with butter, flour, broth, and milk. We add sour cream for a bit of acid and creaminess. Chicken broth or vegetable broth works fine here. For a Gluten Free potato soup, you can substitute flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour.
- Cheese – Mild cheddar or sharp cheddar is great. Try to grate the cheese yourself, since pre-shredded cheese is coated to keep it from sticking, but shredded will work in a pinch.
Pro Tip:
For a spicy kick in the soup, add a 1/4 tsp (or to taste) of cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, smokey paprika, or chili powder.
How to Make Potato Soup
It’s simple to make this potato soup recipe for a weeknight meal or meal prep, but see our tip below for achieving the best consistency.
- Place potatoes in a pot, cover with water, season with salt, and cook until tender then drain.
- Saute bacon until crispy in a separate Dutch oven, remove and set aside, reserving 1 Tbsp bacon grease.
- Add onions and butter to the bacon grease and saute until soft. Add garlic, and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Whisk in flour, milk, and broth until smooth. Bring the mixture to a soft boil.
- Add drained potatoes and season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in sour cream, cheese and bacon. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.
Pro Tip:
We like a chunky soup, but you can adjust the thickness by blending a portion or all of the soup. Before adding the bacon into the pot in step 6, use an immersion blender or scoop some of the hot soup into a blender and blend to get the creamy texture you prefer.
Toppings for Potato Soup
Serve this easy potato soup recipe with your favorite toppings! We like to make it a truly loaded soup, so here are some of my favorite options:
- Bacon bits
- Shredded cheese
- Sour cream
- Diced avocado
- Cooked kernels of boiled corn
- Croutons
- Red pepper flakes
- Green onion or chives
What to Serve with Potato Soup
This hearty meal is thick and creamy and perfect for feeding a hungry family. To make it a more complete meal, try these side dishes that perfectly complement the warm soup:
- Crusty No-Knead Bread
- Soft Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Caeser Salad
- Garden Salad
- Carrott Apple and Walnut Salad
Loaded baked potato soup is comfort food at its finest. You’re going to love the combination of flavors in the soup. Every bite is loaded with creamy soup with chunks of potatoes, bacon, and cheese.
Storage
Loaded baked potato soup keeps well in the refrigerator and the freezer. Let the soap completely before storing.
- To Refrigerate: Store for up to 5 days in an airtight container
- Freezing: divide into portion sizes and freeze in freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months
- To Reheat: Thaw overnight in the fridge or reheat from frozen in a pot on the stove until heated through. You can slowly add more milk to get a creamier consistency.
More Easy Dinner Recipes You’ll Love
I love easy and quick but tasty meals for weeknight dinners, like this potato soup. Once you try this one, check out these other easy dinner ideas:
- Juicy Meatloaf
- Honey Garlic Chicken
- Monterey Chicken
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Cajun Chicken and Mushroom Pasta
- Taco Soup
- Pasta Primavera
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
- ½ tsp salt
- 8 oz bacon, bite-sized pieces
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ med onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour, or use Gluten Free 1:1 flour
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 1/2 cups chicken broth, or vegetable broth
- 1 cup mild or sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp pepper, or to taste
- green onions, to serve
Instructions
- Place sliced potatoes into a stockpot and completely cover with 1" of water. Season with ½ tsp salt and cook 8-10 minutes or until potatoes pierce easily with a knife then drain.
- Meanwhile, saute bacon in a Dutch oven until crispy and then transfer to a plate, reserving 1 Tbsp bacon grease in the pot.
- Add 4 Tbsp butter and chopped onions then saute until tender. Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Quickly whisk in the flour then slowly add 2 1/2 cups milk and 2 1/2 cups broth, whisking constantly. Bring the mixture to a soft boil.
- Add drained potatoes and season soup with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper or season to taste.
- Stir in 3/4 cup sour cream, 1 cup shredded cheddar, and half of your cooked bacon (reserving the rest for serving). Bring to a boil then remove from heat and serve with your favorite toppings.
This soup is AMAZING! This was my first time making potato soup, and it did not disappoint. My only changes were I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and a bay leaf as my seasonings. And I added a block of cream cheese for added creaminess. Also, I have picky kids, so I grated the onion instead of dicing it.
Hi Robyn! That’s great. Thank you for sharing your experience with the recipe.
Every time I need to refer to a recipe I always come to this page and I am never disappointed. Thank you
I’m so happy to hear that. Thank you!
Hi Natasha, i do not usually change anything in your recipes, but i am wondering if i could add 1/2 lb of mushrooms to this. If so how and when. Thanks
Hi David. I’ve never tested that in this soup but I don’t see why not. I would add them towards the end since it doesn’t take long for them to cook.
Hello, I just made the Loaded Potato soup again and it never fails, it’s so yummy!!!
Thank you so much! It’s one of our favorites!!
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad it’s being enjoyed.
So delicious ! Question…can you freeze potato soup? I’m pretty sure you can’t but thought I’d ask anyway. I love all your recipes so far! Yummy one and all!
Hi Georgia, I haven’t tried myself to advise on the true outcome, but I think that would work fine to freeze. I hope you love it!
I’ve made the soup several times and you can definitely freeze it. I use ziplock bags, super convenient! The soup is so delicious!
Thank you for sharing, Magda!
Question! How long is it good for in the fridge in airtight container? It was delicious!
Hi Ang! It refrigerates well for 3-4 days.
I appreciate you putting the measurements into the instructions. Makes it alot easier instead of scrolling back up all the time. Thanks
You’re welcome, Mary! I’m so glad that’s helpful!
This is delicious! Used leftovery ham instead of bacon and it was most definitely a winner. Will certainly make again.
Great to hear that you loved it!
I’m giving 5 stars becuase I’ve made it beofre and know its awesome. QUESTION though.
I only have heavy cream, I’m out of milk and don’t want to go to the store. Will heavy cream be OK in place of the milk or will it be too thick?
Hi Cris! Heavy cream creates a really rich and thick broth. You can add some water to your heavy cream to thin it out.
Thank you for the recipe for loaded potato soup. I have made several of your recipes and have enjoyed them all. This soup was wonderful. 5 stars.
Hi Jeanene! I’m so glad you are loving the recipes and so glad you loved this one! Thank you.
The best Loaded Potato Soup.
I followed the recipe to a T except for the salt. I did not add salt due to the bacon. My husband usually salts everything and I asked if he needed salt and he said no. This was a first. Thank you for the recipe and Please continue to share your recipes.
Thank you
God bless you and your family
Hi Mary! I’m so glad you’re loving the recipe. Thank you so much for the feedback.
The Best Loaded Potato Soup. I followed the Recipe to a T except for, I did not add salt. My husband salt’s everything. He said that this did not need salt due to the bacon.
Thank you Natasha for sharing your recipes. God Bless you and your family. Please keep the recipes coming.
I’m so glad you both loved this recipe, Mary! Thank you so much for sharing that with me! Merry Christmas!
Delicious soup! I wouldn’t change a single thing in the recipe.
So glad you loved this recipe, Cindy!
I just love all of your recipes that I have tried. This potato soup is next. Could you please tell me what the serving size is? Thanks, I cook for some families and the portion size would help.
Hi Jocelyn! Sorry, I don’t have the exact measurement. This serves 6, bowls.
OMG, made this exactly as written, only adding some celery and carrot – it is sooooo delicious!!!!!!!! I will make this again and again – thank you Natasha❤️‼️‼️‼️
That’s wonderful, Julie!
Omggg this recipe was so delicious. I like the idea of cooking the potatoes and then adding them to the roux. My son and I follow your Facebook page and we make a lot of your recipes have a wonderful holiday and thank you so so much.
So glad to hear that you both enjoyed this soup! Thank you for the good feedback, Susan.
Sooo happy I found this recipe! So easy to make, so quick and it was unbelievably delicious. It’s now a family favorite. Thank you Natasha for sharing your delicious recipes.
Hi Andrea! You’re very welcome. I’m glad you love it.
Hi there! I made this last night. It was fabulous. I did it in the crockpot. I cooked the potatoes and onions on high for about 4 hours (I also added carrots and celery) in the chicken broth, and when they were done I used the cooked broth to make the roux with the bacon grease/butter/flour/milk. I mixed it altogether with the prepared bacon and cooked for another hour or so, and it was delightful. Lots of leftovers for tonight too! Thanks for sharing this recipe – it was fabulous!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Jennifer! I’m so glad you loved it.
This is a new favorite for our family! So delicious and creamy, not to mention very easy to make.
I’m so glad to hear that, Andrea!
Very disappointed. I should have gone with my instinct and NOT added the cheese. I don’t know why so many newer recipes want cheese in them. I thought this was rather bland and will not keep the recipe.
Hi Patricia, did you add seasonings to taste? Sometimes not adding enough salt is enough to make a soup seem bland.
Patricia, it’s delicious as is. It’s potato soup. It’s loaded potato soup. I feel like you’re just trolling. I just made it as is for the second time.