There are soups that politely sit next to a sandwich. And then there’s Creamy Potato Soup—the kind of soup that shows up loaded with bacon, potatoes, cream, sour cream, and possibly cheese and basically says, “Don’t worry, I am dinner.”
This one is thick, creamy, savory, and packed with tender pieces of gold potato. Some of the soup gets blended until silky while the rest stays chunky, giving you the best of both worlds in every spoonful.
And somehow, all of this comfort happens in one pot and about 30 minutes.
Cold evening? Big game?
Random Tuesday when only potatoes and bacon will do?
Soup pot. Immediately.
What You’ll Need
For the Soup
You’ll need:
- 6 strips bacon, cut into small pieces
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 pounds gold potatoes, peeled and diced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 2 cups milk
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder
- 2/3 cup sour cream
For serving, you have the option of adding shredded cheddar cheese, chives, extra sour cream, and additional bacon.
That’s not a bad list of decisions to have waiting at the end of dinner.
A Quick Note About the Potatoes
Try to cut the potatoes into fairly even pieces and keep them no larger than about 1 inch.
Similar-sized pieces cook at roughly the same speed.
Otherwise, you can end up with one potato practically dissolving while another is still crunching back at you.
Nobody wants surprise raw potato in creamy soup.
10 Steps to Make Creamy Potato Soup
Step 1: Cook the Bacon
Put the bacon pieces into a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat.
Cook until the bacon becomes browned and crisp.
Once it’s ready, remove the bacon from the pot and set it aside.
But leave that bacon fat right where it is.
We’re not finished with it.
Step 2: Cook the Onion
Add the butter and chopped yellow onion to the same pot.
Cook over medium heat for approximately 3–5 minutes, until the onion becomes tender.
Now the onion is cooking in butter and those bacon drippings.
This soup understands priorities.
Step 3: Add the Garlic
Add the minced garlic.
Cook it for about 30 seconds, just until it becomes fragrant.
Garlic doesn’t need a five-minute speech here.
Thirty seconds. Smells amazing. Moving on.
Step 4: Stir in the Flour
Sprinkle the all-purpose flour over everything in the pot.
Stir until the mixture becomes smooth.
You can grab a whisk if necessary to help remove any lumps.
The flour will help turn all that broth and dairy we’re about to add into a thick, creamy soup rather than potato-flavored bathwater.
Important distinction.
Step 5: Add the Potatoes and Liquids
Add the diced gold potatoes.
Then pour in the chicken broth, milk, and heavy cream.
Add the salt, ground black pepper, and 1/4–1/2 teaspoon ancho chili powder.
Give everything a thorough stir.
The original recipe recommends starting with the smaller amount of ancho chili powder if you haven’t used it before, then adjusting after tasting.
Same idea with the salt—the amount you ultimately need can depend on how salty your chicken broth is.
Step 6: Cook Until the Potatoes Are Tender
Bring the soup to a boil.
Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.
This is why those evenly sized potato pieces matter.
Once the potatoes are tender, we’re ready for the trick that gives this soup its fantastic texture.
Step 7: Blend About Half the Soup
Reduce the heat to a simmer.
Carefully remove approximately half of the soup and transfer it to a blender.
That’s roughly 5 cups, but there’s no need to turn this into a measuring-cup marathon. Eyeballing half is fine.
Blend that portion until smooth.
Alternatively, you can use an immersion blender directly in the pot.
Just remember:
The bacon is still sitting safely on the side.
Don’t add it before blending unless you’ve always dreamed of bacon puree.
Step 8: Return the Blended Soup
Pour the smooth blended portion back into the pot.
Now you’ve got creamy pureed potato thickening the broth while plenty of actual potato chunks remain.
This is my favorite kind of creamy soup.
You still know there are potatoes in there without needing anyone to tell you.
Step 9: Add the Sour Cream and Bacon
Stir in the sour cream.
Then return those reserved crispy bacon pieces to the pot.
Mix everything together until the sour cream is incorporated and the bacon is distributed throughout the soup.
At this stage, tasting directly from the pot becomes increasingly difficult to resist.
Consider yourself warned.
Step 10: Simmer and Serve
Let the soup simmer for 15 minutes before serving.
Then ladle it into bowls.
If you want to finish it off, use the optional toppings from the recipe:
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Chives
- Additional sour cream
- Extra bacon
Use one. Use several.
I don’t manage your potato soup.
Why Blend Only Half of the Soup?
This is probably my favorite technique in the whole recipe.
You could blend everything and make a completely smooth potato soup.
But blending approximately half gives you two textures at once.
The pureed potatoes naturally make the soup thick and creamy, while the unblended portion leaves you with tender potato pieces in every bowl.
You don’t have to choose between chunky potato soup and smooth potato soup.
Apparently we really can have it all.
Don’t Blend the Bacon
This deserves its own reminder because timing matters.
After cooking the bacon at the beginning, keep it out of the soup until after you’ve finished blending.
Then add it back along with the sour cream.
That gives you actual little pieces of bacon throughout the finished soup instead of incorporating them into the puree.
Bacon should be seen. Bacon should be tasted.
Let’s give bacon the respect it deserves.
What’s the Ancho Chili Powder Doing Here?
The ancho chili powder is a small ingredient, but it’s an important part of the flavor in the recipe.
You’re only using 1/4–1/2 teaspoon, so this isn’t supposed to become a bowl of spicy chili.
It adds another layer of flavor to all that rich potato, bacon, and cream.
If ancho chili powder isn’t something you cook with regularly, start with 1/4 teaspoon, taste the soup, and then decide whether you’d like more.
No bravery medals are being handed out for dumping in the whole amount immediately.
How to Serve Creamy Potato Soup
This soup is already plenty substantial on its own.
Ladle it into a deep bowl and eat it as-is, or take advantage of those optional toppings.
A little cheddar can melt into the hot soup.
Chives bring a fresh oniony bite.
Another spoonful of sour cream makes things even creamier.
And extra bacon?
I don’t think I need to build a case for that one.
Can You Make the Soup Completely Smooth?
Yes.
If you prefer a completely smooth potato soup, you can puree all of it.
Just work in batches rather than trying to cram an entire pot of steaming soup into one blender.
But if you like some potato texture in each spoonful, stick with the original approach and blend roughly half.
That’s the sweet spot.
One Seriously Cozy Bowl of Soup
This isn’t trying to be a light little starter.
It’s proper comfort food.
You get tender gold potatoes, smoky bacon, onion and garlic, creamy broth, sour cream, and just enough ancho chili powder to bring everything together.
Blending half of the potatoes gives the broth that thick, velvety texture while still leaving plenty of chunks behind.
And if cheddar, chives, sour cream, and more bacon happen to find their way onto the top?
Well.
I’m certainly not going to stop them.
Make a big pot, grab a big bowl, and enjoy the kind of dinner that makes cold weather considerably easier to forgive.