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This easy Crockpot potato soup is absolutely delicious, and loaded with savory flavors and hearty ingredients. Made with a base of sautéed onions, garlic, and Yukon gold potatoes, enhanced with crisp bacon, cheddar cheese, and tangy sour cream. A favorite in my house for sure, this slow cooker soup will be a regular in your autumn and winter meal rotation.
Before You Get Started
- If you can, avoid the pre-shredded cheddar cheese hanging in the cooler at the grocery store. Those pre-shredded cheeses typically have starches and other anti-caking agents added to keep them from clumping in the package. Unfortunately, the additives keep the cheese from melting like it should, and can give the soup a gritty texture. Instead, pick up a block of cheddar from the deli counter and shred it yourself. It’s easy to do and the results are infinitely better!
How to Make This Recipe
Prep the Ingredients.
Shred the cheese. Chop the garlic. Dice the onion. Wash and peel (or don’t peel) the potatoes, then cut them into small chunks. Dice the bacon and fry it ’til it’s crispy. Make sure to save the leftover bacon grease – you’ll need that to sauté the onions and garlic and to make your roux later.
Slow Cook the Potatoes.
Simmer the onions, garlic, potatoes, and chicken stock for 3-5 hours in the slow cooker, depending on the temperature you choose. You may not need the full cook time, especially if you chopped the potatoes into very small chunks. Check them every hour or two by gently pressing the tines of a fork into them. If you can easily pierce the potatoes with a fork, you’re ready to move on to the next step.
Make It a Soup.
A thick, creamy potato soup needs potatoes, obviously. It also needs a roux base for thickening, a little milk for creaminess, and plenty of cheddar cheese! After mashing the potatoes and adding the remaining ingredients to the Crockpot, simmer everything for 30 more minutes to melt the cheddar and left the flavors meld.
Note: Make sure your milk, cheese, and sour cream are at least room temperature before adding them to the Crockpot! If they’re cold, they can curdle or separate when added to the hot ingredients.
What I Love About This Recipe
- This soup is thick and rich and creamy and savory. It’s legitimately the soup for cool weather because it’s so hearty and comforting. If you want to take it to the next level, serve it in a bread bowl using a beautiful crusty bread.
- Making potato soup in the slow cooker is not only incredibly easy, it’s practically foolproof! Admittedly, it’s a tad bit more involved than your average dump-and-go Crockpot recipe, but I promise those extra steps are worth the effort.
- We don’t use any frozen foods or canned soups in our Crockpot potato soup. Of course, you’re welcome to if you prefer it! I’m making things even easier.
Recipe Variations
- Make it Gluten Free: Use a gluten-free flour to make your roux. Any type, any brand, any blend will work fine!
- Make it Grain Free: Use cassava flour for your roux.
- Make it Dairy Free: Use an unsweetened almond milk or unsweetened coconut milk, and replace the sour cream with dairy-free yogurt or coconut cream. For the cheddar, you can use a plant-based cheddar, or you can omit the cheddar entirely.
Creamy Crockpot Potato Soup
The ultimate method for the ultimate comfort food! Rich and creamy, this easy slow cooker soup is a dream in the fall and winter.
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For the Crockpot Potato Soup
Serving Suggestions (All Optional)
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Line plate with paper towels and set aside.
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Place large skillet on stovetop over medium heat. When pan is warm, add 6 slices bacon and cook, flipping bacon as needed, until crisp.
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Transfer cooked bacon to plate lined with paper towels. Set aside. Transfer bacon grease from skillet to heat-resistant bowl or glass jar.
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Return 1 tablespoon bacon grease to skillet. Add 1 cup diced onion and stir to incorporate. Sauté onion 3 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
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Once onion has softened, add 4 cloves garlic (chopped) and stir to incorporate. Sauté garlic 30 to 60 seconds or until just fragrant.
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Once garlic is fragrant, transfer onion-garlic mixture to Crockpot. Add 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes and 2 cups chicken stock. Stir to incorporate.
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Secure lid on Crockpot and set to desired temperature setting. Cook potatoes until fork-tender, approximately 3 hours on HIGH heat or 5 hours on LOW heat.
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Place medium saucepan on stovetop over medium heat. When pan is warm, add 3 tablespoons bacon grease and continue warming pan until grease is liquid.
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Once grease is hot, sprinkle ¼ cup flour into saucepan. Vigorously whisk flour into bacon grease until paste is formed.
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Cook mixture over medium heat just until lightly golden, then remove saucepan from heat. Slowly add 2 cups whole milk (warmed) and whisk to incorporate. Return saucepan to heat and simmer mixture 2 to 4 minutes, whisking constantly, until mixture has thickened.
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Transfer milk mixture to Crockpot. Use potato masher to mash fully-cooked potatoes to desired consistency.
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Once satisfied with consistency, add 1 cup shredded fresh cheddar cheese, 1 cup sour cream, 2 teaspoons sea saltand ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper to Crockpot. Stir until ingredients are fully incorporated.
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Replace lid on Crockpot and set temperature to HIGH. Cook 30 minutes on HIGH heat.
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After 30 minutes, remove lid and stir soup well. Ladle soup into serving bowls. Top with cooked, diced bacon, shredded fresh cheddar cheeseand diced green onions if desired. Serve warm.
- Cheese: Prepackaged, preshredded cheeses have starches added to prevent clumping in the package. Those starches also keep the cheese from melting well and can give the soup a gritty texture. For best results, buy a block of cheddar cheese and shred it yourself.
- Leftovers: Refrigerate leftover soup in an airtight container up to 5 days.
Serving Size: 1servingCalories: 442calProtein: 14gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.04gCholesterol: 63mgSodium: 1030mgPotassium: 750mgTotal Carbs: 30gFiber: 3gSugar: 6gNet Carbs: 27gVitamin A: 433IUVitamin C: 25mgCalcium: 232mgIron: 1mg
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
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