Loaded Baked Potato Soup
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Loaded Baked Potato Soup is what I make on a cold night when takeout is tempting, but I’d rather have that thick, loaded bowl at home. It’s finished the way you’d top a baked potato, with crisp bacon, sharp cheddar, sour cream, and green onion.
A few strips of bacon flavor the whole pot, so one small package stretches across six servings from a bag of russets. What keeps it smooth is going easy with the blender and never letting it boil once the dairy goes in, which is where this soup most often goes wrong.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A bag of everyday potatoes does the heavy lifting, stretching a rich, loaded soup across six servings with no specialty ingredient in sight.
- The russets thicken the soup themselves. Their starch gives it a velvety body once you blend it, so there’s no flour needed.
- You control the texture. Blend it smooth or mash it chunky, whichever you like that day.
- It’s the loaded, cheesy bowl you’d order out, made at home from everyday ingredients.
- Everything happens in one pot, from crisping the bacon to the last low simmer, so there’s less to wash.
- Leftovers keep for days and reheat into an easy lunch, and the base freezes if you leave the dairy out.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The full list and quantities are in the recipe card. These are the ones worth a word before you cook.
- Russet potatoes. The recipe uses five medium russets, peeled and diced. I use russets because they’re high in starch, which is what breaks down and thickens the soup into a velvety body once you blend or mash it. Waxier potatoes work but behave differently, which is worth a word in the variations below.
- Bacon. Three ounces, around six slices, chopped. It’s here for flavor and the crisp topping, not for bulk, which is how a small amount stretches across the whole pot. Leave about two tablespoons of the rendered fat in the pot to soften the onion and garlic, because that smoky base is flavor butter alone can’t give you.
- Cheddar cheese. Grate it yourself from a block; freshly grated melts far more smoothly than what comes in the bag. A cup and a half goes into the pot, with more held back for topping.
- Whole milk and heavy cream. A cup of each. Together they give the soup its richness without tipping it into heavy, and both go in near the end off a hard boil.
- Sour cream. Half a cup stirred in at the end adds tang and a little more body; on top of the dollop you can spoon it over each bowl.
How to Make Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Scroll down for the full recipe card containing a full printable recipe and measurements in both US customary and metric units.
Crisp the Bacon and Save the Fat
Set a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat and cook the chopped bacon until crisp, about 6 to 8 minutes. Lift it out with a slotted spoon and set it aside for topping, and leave about two tablespoons of the fat in the pot. That fat is the base for everything that follows.
Soften the Onion and Garlic
Add the diced onion to the bacon fat and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until soft and translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and give it about a minute, just until it smells fragrant, so it doesn’t catch and turn bitter.
Add the Potatoes and Broth
Add the diced potatoes and the butter, stirring to coat the potatoes. Pour in the four cups of chicken broth and bring it up to a boil.
Simmer Until Fork-Tender
Drop the heat to medium-low and simmer 15 to 20 minutes, until a fork slides easily into the potatoes. Cutting them to a similar size up front means they all get there at once, instead of some going mushy while others stay firm.
Blend to the Texture You Want
Blend the soup right in the pot with an immersion blender, or mash it with a potato masher for a chunkier bowl. Both work, so go with what you have and how you like it. The one thing to watch is the blender: the longer you run it, the more starch the potatoes release, and too much turns the soup gluey instead of creamy. A few passes is plenty.
Stir In the Dairy and Cheese
Stir in the milk, heavy cream, grated cheddar, and sour cream, then season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Taste before you add much salt, since the cheese, bacon, and broth all bring their own.
Finish on Low, Then Top
Keep the heat low and simmer 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until it’s hot and creamy. Don’t let it boil, because boiling breaks the dairy and leaves the soup grainy. Ladle it out and finish each bowl with the reserved bacon, a little more cheddar, and sliced green onions.
Recipe Notes and Expert Tips
- Grate the cheddar from a block. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking agents that stop it melting cleanly, which is the most common reason the soup turns grainy.
- Keep the heat low once the dairy is in and don’t let it boil. Boiling separates the milk, cream, and cheese and leaves the texture broken.
- Go easy with the immersion blender. Working the potatoes too long releases their starch and turns the soup gummy, so a short blend beats a thorough one.
- Cut the potatoes to a similar size so they all cook to fork-tender together during the 15 to 20 minute simmer.
- If it sets up thicker than you like, especially the next day, loosen it with a splash of broth until it pours the way you want.
- Salt at the end. The cheddar, bacon, and broth are all salty, so taste first and add from there.
Recipe Variations
- Swap in sharp cheddar for a more pronounced flavor. Mandy notes this on the recipe itself, so it’s a tested change that doesn’t touch the method.
- For more texture, mash the potatoes with a masher or run them through a ricer instead of blending smooth. The card offers both, so either way is tested.
- Being waxier than russets, red or Yukon Gold potatoes give a lighter, less thick result, but they work when that’s what’s in the bag. It’s a swap Mandy has tested and called out on the recipe.
- Stir a cup of cooked, diced ham into the finished pot for a heartier meal. That hasn’t been tested here and it adds salt, so go light on any extra salt if you try it.
How to Store Leftovers
To get ahead, make the soup up to the point before the dairy goes in, then reheat it and stir in the milk, cream, cheddar, and sour cream just before serving. The dairy holds up best added fresh rather than sitting overnight.
Get leftovers into the fridge within two hours of cooking and use them within three to four days. Drop that to one hour if your kitchen is over 90°F, and keep them in an airtight container. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave, stirring and adding a splash of broth if it has thickened, until it’s steaming hot, 165°F if you’re checking with a thermometer.
The soup freezes best without the dairy. Freeze the potato-and-broth base for up to three months, thaw it overnight in the fridge, and stir the dairy in when you reheat it, since cream and sour cream turn grainy once they’ve been frozen.
What to Serve With Loaded Baked Potato Soup
It’s a full meal in a bowl, but a side or two rounds it out. A piece of Garlic Bread is the natural partner for dunking into something this thick and creamy. And a cold, tangy Italian Pasta Salad With Salami cuts the richness if you want something fresh alongside instead of more bread.
FAQs
Yes. Cool it slightly and work in batches in a regular blender, holding the lid down with a towel, or skip the machine entirely and press the potatoes against the side of the pot with a masher for a chunkier bowl. Either way, stop early, since over-working the potatoes is what turns the soup gluey.
You can lean more on milk, but the cream is what makes it taste loaded rather than thin, so expect a lighter bowl. If you cut the cream back, warm the milk before it goes in so the temperature shock doesn’t curdle it against the hot soup.
More Soups to Keep in Your Cold-Weather Rotation
If this one earns a spot on the list, these are worth a look too:
- Ham and Potato Soup: the closest cousin to this one, a creamy potato base built around leftover ham.
- Potato Soup: a simpler, fully blended cousin built from baked potatoes and finished with bacon and sour cream, for when you want a pared-back bowl rather than this loaded one.
- Cheeseburger Soup: the same cheddar-and-potato profile with ground beef stirred in for a cheeseburger twist.
- Gnocchi Soup: a lighter, chicken-and-gnocchi bowl for the same creamy soup with a different starch.
Equipment
- Large stockpot or Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 5 medium russet potatoes peeled and diced
- 3 ounces bacon around 6 slices, chopped
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese plus more for topping
- ½ cup sour cream
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons sliced green onions for garnish
Video
Instructions
- Place a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chopped bacon and cook until crisp, about 6 to 8 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Leave about 2 tablespoons of bacon fat in the pot.3 ounces bacon
- Add the diced onion to the pot and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, until soft and translucent. Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.1 medium onion, 3 garlic cloves
- Add the diced potatoes and unsalted butter, stirring to coat the potatoes evenly. Pour in the chicken broth and bring the mixture to a boil.5 medium russet potatoes, 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, 4 cups chicken broth
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the soup to your desired consistency, or mash with a potato masher for a chunkier texture.
- Stir in the whole milk, heavy cream, shredded cheddar cheese, and sour cream. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.1 cup whole milk, 1 cup heavy cream, 1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese, ½ cup sour cream, Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the soup is hot and creamy. Do not allow it to boil.
- Serve hot, topped with the reserved bacon, extra shredded cheddar cheese, and sliced green onions.2 tablespoons sliced green onions
Notes
- Leave about two tablespoons of the bacon fat in the pot to soften the onion and garlic, for a smoky base butter can’t give.
- Use russets for their starch; it thickens the soup into a velvety body with no flour.
- Cut the potatoes to a similar size so they all cook to fork-tender together.
- Grate the cheddar from a block; pre-shredded cheese melts less cleanly and can turn the soup grainy.
- Go easy with the blender; over-working the potatoes releases starch and turns the soup gummy.
- Keep the heat low after adding the dairy and never boil, or the milk, cream, and cheese will break.
- Get leftovers into the fridge within two hours of cooking and use them within three to four days.
