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This creamy potato soup is exactly the kind of soup you want on a chilly day. It’s thick, creamy, and comforting, but the toppings might just be the best part: crispy bacon, crunchy roasted potato skins, and a vibrant green parsley oil. Because if you’re going to peel those potatoes anyway, you might as well turn the peels into something delicious!
Potatoes are obviously the star of this soup, but it’s also really easy to sneak in some extra vegetables. Try adding leeks, celery root, cauliflower, or zucchini. It’s an easy way to get a few more veggies on the table without completely changing the recipe.
Table of contents
Tip from Simone
Don’t throw away those potato peels! As long as you scrub the potatoes well before peeling, you can toss the skins with olive oil and roast them until crispy. They make a delicious crunchy topping for the soup and help reduce food waste at the same time.
Recipe Ingredients
This recipe is for roughly 4 to 6 people. Depending on how much you serve. It would also be good in a smaller portion as a dinner appetizer.
- starchy potatoes – Starchy potatoes are ideal here because they break down easily when cooked and give the soup a wonderfully creamy texture.
- olive oil – You’ll use this for the soup, the parsley oil and the crispy potato skins.
- onion – The base of the soup. Want to add another vegetable? Sauté a sliced leek along with the onion.
- garlic clove – For plenty of flavor.
- chicken broth – Vegetable broth works just as well. Use vegetable broth and replace the bacon if you want to make the soup vegetarian.
- heavy cream – Makes the potato soup extra rich and creamy. Half-and-half can also work if you prefer something a little lighter.
- diced bacon – Crispy bacon gives the creamy soup a delicious salty crunch. For a vegetarian version, leave it out or replace it with crispy sautéed mushrooms.
- flat-leaf parsley – Used to make the vibrant parsley oil.
- salt and black pepper – To taste. Keep in mind that both the broth and bacon can already be quite salty.
Add More Vegetables to Your Potato Soup
Potato soup is perfect for adding a few extra vegetables. You can replace about 10 to 14 ounces of the potatoes with cauliflower, celery root, zucchini, or leeks.
Cauliflower is especially good if you want to keep the soup mild and creamy, while celery root gives it a deeper, more distinctive flavor.
How To Make Potato Soup
Making this potato soup recipe is pretty simple overall. The only two elements that take a bit more time are the crispy potato skins and the parsley oil.
Crispy potato skins
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Scrub the potatoes well, then peel them and cut the potatoes into chunks. Keep the peels.
Spread the potato peels out on a baking sheet and drizzle with 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Toss well so all the peels are lightly coated.
Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy, tossing them halfway through. Remove from the oven and season with salt.
Making parsley oil
Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil and blanch the flat-leaf parsley for about 2 minutes.
Drain well and squeeze as much moisture as possible from the parsley.
Add the parsley to a food processor with the olive oil and a little salt and black pepper. Blend until very fine.
For a beautifully smooth parsley oil, strain it through cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer. Transfer to a small squeeze bottle or pitcher.
Don’t feel like taking that extra step? You can leave the parsley oil unstrained. It won’t look quite as polished, but it will still taste delicious.
How to Store Potato Soup
Refrigerator: Let the potato soup cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. Keep the bacon, crispy potato skins, and parsley oil in separate containers. The potato skins in particular will lose their crunch if you store them in the soup.
Freezer: You can freeze potato soup, although the texture may change slightly because of the heavy cream. Thaw and gently reheat the soup while stirring well. If you’re making the soup specifically for freezing, you can also leave out the cream and stir it in after thawing and reheating.
The crispy potato skins are best made fresh and shouldn’t be frozen.
FAQ Potato Soup Recipe
Starchy potatoes such as russet potatoes work best. They become very tender when cooked and blend easily, giving you a thick and creamy potato soup without much effort.
Absolutely. Replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth and leave out the bacon. For a crunchy, savory topping, try sautéed mushrooms or simply make some extra crispy potato skins.
Leeks, cauliflower, celery root, and zucchini all work well. You can replace some of the potatoes with vegetables or simply add extra vegetables to the soup. Cauliflower is particularly useful if you want to keep the flavor mild and the texture creamy.
Yes. The potatoes already give the soup a naturally creamy texture, so you can simply leave out the heavy cream or replace it with a plant-based alternative. Add a little extra broth if necessary to get the consistency you like.
Avoid overblending the potatoes. Blending them for too long can release too much starch, giving your soup a gluey or gummy consistency. Stop blending as soon as the soup is smooth.
Yes! Just make sure you scrub the potatoes thoroughly before peeling and remove any damaged areas. Tossed with olive oil and roasted until crispy, the skins make a fantastic crunchy topping.
Recipe Card Potato Soup Recipe
Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
Potato Soup
- 1 kg russet potatoes or other starchy potatoes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
- 1 liter chicken broth
- 200 ml Heavy cream
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Crispy Potato Skins
- Reserved potato skins
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- Salt to taste
Crispy Bacon
- 100 g diced bacon
Parsley Oil
- 30 g flat-leaf parsley
- 100 ml olive oil olive oil
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Scrub and peel the potatoes, reserving the skins. Cut the peeled potatoes into chunks.
- Spread the potato skins out on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons olive oil and toss well to coat.
- Roast the potato skins for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy, tossing halfway through. Remove from the oven and season with salt.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
- Add the potatoes and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are completely tender.
- Add the heavy cream and blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for 5 to 8 minutes, until golden brown and crispy. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
- Meanwhile, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Blanch the parsley for 2 minutes. Drain on paper towels and squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible.
- Add the parsley, ⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt, and black pepper to a food processor. Blend until very fine. Strain the parsley oil through cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer and transfer to a squeeze bottle or small pitcher.
- Ladle the potato soup into bowls. Top with the crispy bacon and roasted potato skins, then finish with a drizzle of parsley oil.
Notes
Nutrition Information per portion:
Disclaimer:
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
