Warm up on a cold day with this easy potato soup! Thick, creamy, and loaded with toppings like green onions and cheese, it's the ultimate comfort food.

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This potato soup recipe is the ultimate comfort food for a cold day! It’s like a loaded baked potato in soup form—the thick, creamy, savory soup is piled high with toppings like sour cream, shredded cheese, and green onions or chives. Jack loves it so much that he can polish off half the pot in a single night.

Luckily, this potato soup comes together in one pot with simple ingredients, so it’ll be easy to keep in our rotation this winter.

It’s one of those recipes that’s so much more than the sum of its parts. You start with humble veggies like celery and potatoes and end up with a deeply flavorful meal. Smoked paprika adds rich, smoky flavor (no bacon here!), and thyme brings in fresh, earthy notes. We’ll be making it all winter long. I hope you love it too!

Best Potatoes for Soup

I think Yukon Gold and yellow potatoes are the best potatoes for soup. They hold their shape when cooked, and they have an amazing creamy texture when blended. This soup is partially blended, so you get to enjoy them both ways! They have a nice buttery flavor too.

I wouldn’t use russet potatoes here, as they fall apart as they cook.

How to Make Potato Soup

You can find the complete potato soup recipe with measurements at the bottom of this post. For now, here’s a quick overview of how it goes:

Start by prepping the veggies. Cut the potatoes into roughly 3/4-inch chunks. Do your best to cut the pieces to a similar size so that they cook evenly. Chop the onion, carrot, and celery.

Then, sauté the onion and celery until softened.

Make a roux by adding flour to the pot and stirring until it coats the veggies. While stirring, gradually pour in the broth.

Next, simmer the soup. Add the potatoes, carrots, garlic, thyme, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 25 to 30 minutes.

When the potatoes are tender, partially blend the soup. You can do this right in the pot with an immersion blender, adding water as needed if the soup is too thick. Another option is to transfer half the soup to an upright blender and blend until smooth, then stir it back into the pot.

Tip: If you’re using an upright blender, let the soup cool slightly before blending.

Finally, add the cream and simmer for another 5 minutes. If desired, add a squeeze of lemon juice for a brighter flavor. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Don’t want to use cream? Half-and-half or milk (any kind) works too! These options will be thinner than cream, so I’d start with just 2/3 cup and add more as needed to reach your desired consistency.

Loaded Potato Soup Toppings

Half the fun of this easy potato soup is loading up your bowl like a baked potato! Don’t hold back on the toppings. Here are some of our favorites:

A dollop of sour cream, vegan sour cream, or plain Greek yogurt
Thinly sliced green onions or chives
Shredded cheddar cheese
Freshly ground black pepper

A few homemade croutons are great too!

Round out the meal with crusty bread and/or a simple green salad.

How to Store

Leftover potato soup keeps well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

It will thicken in the fridge, so don’t hesitate to thin it with water when you reheat. It reheats nicely in the microwave or over low heat on the stovetop.

Can you freeze potato soup?

I don’t recommend freezing this soup. It can become grainy when it thaws.

More Comforting Soup Recipes

If you love this creamy potato soup, try one of these cozy soup recipes next:

Creamy Potato Soup Recipe

rate this recipe:

4.97 from 123 votes

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 40

Total Time: 55

Serves 6

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This one-pot potato soup is creamy, comforting, and delicious! Loaded with toppings like green onions and cheddar cheese, it's a hearty, warming meal for a cold day.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups vegetable broth
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes or yellow potatoes, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
3 garlic cloves, grated
3 fresh thyme sprigs, bundled
2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, optional

Topping Options

Chopped fresh chives or green onions
Grated cheddar cheese
Sour cream

Instructions

Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 8 minutes, or until softened. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until the flour is lightly golden. While stirring, slowly pour in the broth.
Add the potatoes, carrots, garlic, thyme, salt, smoked paprika, and several grinds of pepper. Simmer for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
Remove the thyme bundle and use an immersion blender to blend the soup until it is mostly smooth but still has some larger potato chunks. If the soup is too thick to blend, add water, ¼ cup at a time, as needed to reach your desired consistency. Alternatively, allow the soup to cool slightly and transfer half to an upright blender. Blend until smooth, then return to the pot with the remaining chunky soup and stir to combine.
Add the cream and gently simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lemon juice, if using.
Season to taste and serve with desired toppings.

Notes

To make this soup dairy-free: Use vegan butter and replace the cream with your favorite non-dairy milk. The milk will be thinner than cream, so start with 2/3 cup instead of 1.

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Nutrition Facts

Creamy Potato Soup Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 343 Calories from Fat 180

% Daily Value*

Fat 20g31%

Saturated Fat 13g81%

Trans Fat 0.2g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 5g

Cholesterol 60mg20%

Sodium 1431mg62%

Potassium 756mg22%

Carbohydrates 37g12%

Fiber 4g17%

Sugar 5g6%

Protein 5g10%

Vitamin A 2862IU57%

Vitamin C 34mg41%

Calcium 60mg6%

Iron 2mg11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

155 comments

4.97 from 123 votes (50 ratings without comment)

Creamy Potato Soup

Best Potatoes for Soup

How to Make Potato Soup

Loaded Potato Soup Toppings