Loaded Baked Potato Soup
We lightened up the classic Loaded Baked Potato Soup, but it is just as creamy and decadent! Topped with crispy bacon, cheddar cheese and minced chives, this delicious soup makes an easy weeknight meal and is a definite crowd pleaser!
Why We Love This Loaded Baked Potato Soup
This crowd-pleasing soup is a classic dinner mainstay for good reason! Loaded Baked Potato Soup is hearty and flavorful, easy to make, and totally customizable. With just 30 minutes and a handful of pantry staples, this family favorite meal will be on the table and happily filling hungry bellies.
Ingredients You Need to Make This Soup
One of the things that I love about this recipe is that all of the ingredients are things I regularly keep on hand. That makes it a great option for those days when we’re low on groceries or the day simply got away from me (which let’s face it.. happens more often than I might like to admit). Here’s the lineup:
- Potatoes (russet or yukon gold- you can also use leftover baked potatoes!)
- Butter (or olive or avocado oil)
- Onion (if you don’t like bits of onion in your soup, you can leave it out or substitute 1 teaspoon of onion powder for additional flavor)
- Garlic (we like to use fresh garlic, but you can substitute with 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
- Flour (the flour is used to thicken the soup- you can also use gluten-free flour)
- Milk (we used 2%)
- Half and Half (adds a nice richness to the soup, but you can substitute with additional milk)
- Chicken Broth (can substitute vegetable broth if you want to make a vegetarian version)
- Salt and Pepper (to flavor- we like coarse kosher salt)
- Cheddar Cheese (we used medium cheddar cheese)
- Plain Greek Yogurt (you can also use sour cream here)
- Crispy bacon, minced chives, and additional shredded cheese for serving
How to Make Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Cook the potatoes.
Peel and cube the potatoes; add to a pot of boiling water and cook until just underdone. Drain and set aside.
Make a roux.
In the same pot you used to cook the potatoes, melt the butter. Add the diced onions and cook until softened. Season with garlic, salt and pepper. Stir in flour, then slowly add the liquids while whisking continually. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5-7 minutes or until thickened.
Finishing touches.
Add the greek yogurt and cheese and stir until combined. Add the cooked potatoes and heat through before serving. Top with additional shredded cheese, minced chives, and crispy bacon bits if desired.
Although Loaded Baked Potato Soup looks (and tastes!) decadent, it’s also packed with nutrition. Sometimes potatoes get a bad rap.. but there’s a good reason to add them to your regular dinner rotation. Did you know that potatoes have..
- More potassium than a banana
- More vitamin C than sweet potatoes
- Fiber to help keep your kids regular
- Vitamin B6 for energy metabolism
- 6% of the recommended amount of iron
This soup is also a great way to use up leftover baked potatoes! When I’m planning on making baked potatoes, I usually bake up a few extras so I can have them for this yummy soup.
How to Serve Loaded Baked Potato Soup
I like to serve this bread with a loaf of crusty bread and maybe a simple spinach salad. And it makes great leftovers.. if you have any! This is one meal that my family is guaranteed to gobble up.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 4 medium russet potatoes
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1/3 cup flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- bacon, chives, shredded cheese for topping
Instructions
- Peel and cube potatoes. Add to a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Boil potatoes until just underdone; about 10-15 minutes. While potatoes are cooking, cook bacon; cool, crumble, and set aside. Drain potatoes and set aside.
- In the pot you used to cook the potatoes, add butter and melt over medium high heat. Add diced onion, and sauté for 3-4 minutes or until onion has softened and is beginning to turn translucent. Add garlic, salt and pepper, and saute for another minute.
- Add flour and whisk until combined with the onion. Slowly whisk in milk and half and half. Whisk until smooth and then slowly whisk in the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-7 minutes until the mixture has thickened a bit.
- Remove from heat and stir in the shredded cheese and Greek yogurt until incorporated. Add the potatoes back into the pot and give it a gentle stir.
- Top with bacon crumbles, green onion or chives, and more shredded cheese. Enjoy!
Nutrition
www.superhealthykids.com
Natalie Monson
I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.
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This looks so yummy! We’re having company later this week and I’ll be making this for them! Looks so tasty!
This looks really tasty. Do you know how many pounds of potatoes you used? Small potatoes seems subjective.
It ended up being about 8 cups worth of chopped potatoes. This recipe works with any amount though. Just depends on how thick you like it!
Great, thanks!
I’ve been craving some good potato soup now that it is fall, and think I’ll be making this recipe this weekend! Thank you!
I made this yesterday (minus the breadbowls) and added 3 finely chopped carrots when I sautéed the onions & garlic. I used an immersion blender to smooth it all out. It was DELICIOUS!!
You can see why my daughter has been asking for it all summer! huh?? Glad you liked it too!
OMG this look incredible. I love potato soup and I especially love it when it is in a bread bowl. So good.
Success! I made this for the second time and I just served bread on the side this time. I used rolls the first time and the flavor was good but I don’t think I presented it well. This time I made the soup and served it with a baguette and it was a success. We used unsweetened soy milk and it was still yummy. Thank you for a fun fall recipe!
Thanks for the feedback Lisa! I’m glad soy milk worked- We’ll have to try that.
With all the wheat sensitivities in people have you tried using other organic nonGMO types? Maybe brown rice, Kamut, Teff, Spelt?
im going to try this using pumpkin soup and just normal bread rolls using the same method .. yummmmmy
I had baked potato soup while in florida at the cheesecake factory. Lived it then so going to try your recipe
Hi! I so want to try the recipe, but I was wondering, can The «better than bouillon paste» be replaced by something else? I am not sure my grocery stores has it…. Thanks!
Yes, just use a tablespoon of any bouillon!
Hi, I tried this recipe today with a bread bowl and it tasted amazing, thank you!
but are there any tricks to make the bread bowl less absorbent? had to pick up a phone call today, when i was done, the bowl sucked up all my soup!
Hi, I tried this recipe today with a bread bowl and it tasted amazing, thank you!
but are there any tricks to make the bread bowl less absorbent? had to pick up a phone call today, when i was done, the bowl sucked up all my soup!
Oh no! Eugene- we’ve always eaten our soup too fast, we haven’t had that problem yet.
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Hello, thanks for the recipe. If you are vegetarian, what can you replace the bouillon with?
what can I use instead of bullion? I don’t use anything with msg.
I don’t eat msg either Susan. I always make chicken broth from real chicken. Great soup and great idea with the bread bowl Amy, loved it! ( the whole family loved it :))
How many people does this serve
You could try a Potassium Broth (found on the net). The OTC bouillon has msg in it which no one needs in their bodies.
I am a not the most practiced cook, but my milk/water blend is not thick! It is very runny. Ideas on how to fix it or where I may have gone wrong.
i would assume 8 since you make 8 bread bowls….
Sorry to be ingorant, but writing from England – is TBL a tablespoon?
Thanks
Sorry Sarah- I’m going to try to fix all those for everyone. It is tablespoon!
Thanks. 🙂
Not s big soup fan myself but this looks tasty.
Gmos are fine. Lose the sugar
I have the same question as another user. How can it make it vegetarian? Just use veggie broth?
My soup is very runny to. I understand the making the roux with the flour and butter. But you use the butter to saute the onions first correct? I’ve stopp e d adding water at 2 and a quarter cups I’m going to finish my 4 cups of milk and let it simmer down for a while. I added carrots and celery with the green I onions sautéing them as well. Maybe adding the potatoes will thicken it? Hehe I’m cooking right now
Awesome recipe 🙂 my eldest has allergies so I eliminated the dairy and used non-soy alternatives. I didn’t have whole wheat (was still amazing). This was INCREDIBLE!!!! How successful would I be making two loaves instead of 8 bowls?
??
Thanks Jaime!! That is awesome.
Definitely Gargi!
How did it go Amber? Sometimes just cooking it LONGER makes it thicker, as the moisture/water has time to get released.
It turned out very good. Everyone loved it. I wish I would have made the bread bowls but I’ll save it for another time. Just didn’t have to the time. The soup thickened up when I put the potatoes in. I mashed them a little with my spoon.
These bread bowls looks yummy and thanks for sharing this article.To buy more dinner bowls you can visit below website.
Buy Dinner Set Online
http://www.at-home.co.in/home-dining-dinnerware-dinner-sets-plates-bowls
Do you think I could use Yukon golds? Thanks
Definitely Kelly- any potato will do.
Hi can you find the chicken base stuff in the supermarkets in Australia? od is it order online only. Or is there a Substitute ? I cant find it in stores.
Marie, If you can’t find it, you can just leave it out, and when the water goes in, replace it with some chicken broth!
Hi Amy. I’m looking to make this on the weekend and went to the store (in Canada) and see there are several types of yeast as options to buy. What kind of yeast would you recommend (active dry yeast, instant dry yeast, etc)? Thanks!
Stefania- I’m not a good enough cook to notice any difference in the yeasts, and how they affect my breads. Honestly, I’ve used a variety and they’ve all turned out fine! LOL
Active Dry Yeast. This bread dough stays great in the fridge for quite awhile. ..look up ‘5 Minute Artisan Bread’ online for full details. It’s excellent! Becomes more of a sourdough as time passes. Anyway, Active Dry Yeast is what’s typical used in recipes or it specifies for Instant. Active Dry Yeast stores great in the freezer in an air tight jar/container, too. I hope this was helpful for you. Enjoy bread making!
Would half snd half instead of milk work? It just sounds like it would make it more thick and creamy
The soup is delicious but that bread recipe… Oh my, I’ve been making it so often since I first saw this last summer. It’s so good and so easy. It makes the best pizza dough too, we have homemade pizza weekly now.
Glad you like it Terry!
The bread recipe was great! But the instructions were missing the second rise time (I went to the SHK website to double check). The soup was disappointing, I think because of the potato water that I was instructed to add back in. It would taste much better with just milk in the soup base!
These bread bowls looking so delicious and thanks for posted this article its yummyful.
Are there actually 1606 calories in this soup with bread bowl? How much without the bread bowl? Also, are the calories for both soups or only one of them. Thanks for your response!!
Its a good recipe and makes a lot. I only wished the potatoes were represented using a weight (i.e. pounds, ounce, etc) instead of 15 small.
Delicious! A few modifications to make it dairy free such as using Almond milk and Smart Balance butter. Had to increase to 1/2 cup flour to thicken. Quick and easy to make!
I subbed chicken broth for the potato water instead of boullion bc I didn’t have any. Turned out great!
Very good flavor and texture.
Not my favorite but the kids ate and like it.
Used two cups of milk per cup of potato water. Delicious.
Ended up cutting up way too much potato, but soup was delicious!
A little bland but came out nicely
Delicious soup. My kids kept commenting on how good it smelled while I was preparing it. The quality of the bouillon matters.
I added some chicken to it and it was brilliant, but I think I will add some leaks next time, it would be even better with them in it! Yummm!
this recipe does not go into much detail. literally does not even say when to add the potatoes and is not accurate about which pot to cook certain stuff in. Hard to follow.
Hi Zack, thanks for reaching out. I reviewed these recipe directions and the info looks like it’s all there to me. (Check out step 6 to know when to add the potatoes.) I did clarify in the recipe which pot is which, and I hope that helps you have an easier time cooking. Cheers!