The BEST Loaded Potato Soup
This soup is rich, its creamy, and filled to the brim with flavor! With bacon on top, what more could ya ask for?
Ingredients
- 6-8 Medium golden Potatoes ~4 cups diced
- 1 Yellow Onion diced
- 1 Tbsp Avocado oil or other neutral oil
- 1/2 cup Butter 1 stick + 1 Tbsp
- 1/2 cup All purpose flour
- 1 pack Bacon Turkey or pork
- 5 Scallions sliced
- 3 blocks Shredded cheese Cheddar, Muenster, & Gruyere
- 6 cups Preferred broth Chicken/beef/veggie your choice
- 1 cup Heavy cream Half-&-half can substitute
- 1/2 cup Sour Cream Optional + more for serving
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Get yourself a pot. A nice big 4–6-quart pot. Take your bacon of choice, we used turkey (this will matter later so take note) and slice it into ½ inch pieces. Now put all of that sliced bacon into your pot turning the heat to medium. Cook the bacon on until it is beginning to crisp with very few soft pieces left, but don’t burn it.
- Next, we can remove the bacon leaving as much oil in the pan as possible. Now the reason what kind of bacon you use matters is that turkey bacon produces significantlyless oil when cooked. This is where, if needed, you can add 1 Tbsp of Avocado Oil& 1 Tbsp Butter to help with the cooking process.
- Now we add our diced onion to the pot of bacon oil. Stir frequently, coating the onion with all that goodness, and once the onions become translucent (partially see through) toss that chopped garlic in as well. Cook until the onion just begins to brown.
- Once the onions begin to lightly brown, we want to melt that stick of butter. Once melted, add in the ½ cup of flour then stir stir stir! The ingredients should begin to come together in what’s known as a roux. You will know the roux is finished once the pot begins to smell faintly nutty
- You will need a whisk for this. Add the 6 cups of broth to the roux and stir with that whisk. We’re going to break apart the roux inside of the broth so that the soup thickens properly. Bring this to a simmer after mixing thoroughly
- After coming to a simmer add in your: diced potatoes, chopped scallions, garlic powder, onion powder, salt & pepper. Turn to high heat and bring to a boil, then down to medium for a simmer. Stir occasionally. Cook until potatoes are fork tender.
- Lower the heat and add heavy cream (and sour cream if your soup is too loose). Keeping at a low heat, add shredded cheese in batches stirring frequently. We’re trying to melt the cheese to make it a part of the soup without letting it fall and sit at the bottom of the pot (where it will burn!)
- Add back ¾ of the bacon that was removed. Stir, serve, and top with more cheese, bacon, sour cream, and scallions!
Notes
Turkey is a leaner meat and may need a little
help browning. You can add a drizzle of oil to
the bottom of your pan to help the turkey bacon
crisp up. We decided on the roux as not only would it
add more flavor, but it would pick up all the
goodies we had just cooked in the pot we were
using. The point of using heavy cream or half & half is
to give a creamy base to your soup without it
just tasting thick. Potatoes naturally have starch
and will thicken your soup on their own (like a
built-in slurry). Depending on ratios and
ingredients, it’s really your preference on soup
viscosity, and that’s where your choice of
adding sour cream comes into play.
help browning. You can add a drizzle of oil to
the bottom of your pan to help the turkey bacon
crisp up. We decided on the roux as not only would it
add more flavor, but it would pick up all the
goodies we had just cooked in the pot we were
using. The point of using heavy cream or half & half is
to give a creamy base to your soup without it
just tasting thick. Potatoes naturally have starch
and will thicken your soup on their own (like a
built-in slurry). Depending on ratios and
ingredients, it’s really your preference on soup
viscosity, and that’s where your choice of
adding sour cream comes into play.