Looking for Comfort Food? Loaded Slow Cooker Potato Soup Is the Answer
Deliciously creamy and topped with plenty of bacon and cheese, this easy recipe will satisfy down to the last spoonful.
I don’t know about you, but all of us at Yummly have had a few life adjustments thrown our way lately. Schools closed. Trips canceled. Extra work-from-home days with kids and dogs climbing all over us. Not to mention much bigger concerns. This coronavirus stuff is far from over, but I do know we all gotta eat. And we need to be good to ourselves. If ever there was a time for comfort food—as in decadent, loaded-potato-soup comfort food—this is it.
A Yummly original, this new recipe for Ultimate Slow-Cooker Loaded Potato Soup more than deserves the “ultimate” in the name. It’s a set-it-and-forget-it Crock Pot meal that gives the cook extra bandwidth to deal with whatever comes along. Plus it satisfies everyone at the table with all those tasty toppings (the best part of the recipe, in my opinion). Here’s what you need to know.
What is loaded potato soup? Just as the name hints, loaded potato soup takes all the flavors you love in a loaded baked potato—sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, bacon, chives, and of course, the spuds (Yukon gold potatoes here, instead of russet potatoes)—and serves them up in soup form. You get the satiny, soothing soup, and you also get the salty, creamy, oniony toppings. And speaking of onions, you could swap green onions for the chives if that's more convenient.
How do you make slow cooker loaded potato soup? Making this crowd-pleaser is as easy as peeling the potatoes and popping them into a 4-quart Crock Pot with evaporated milk, vegetable broth (or 2 1/2 cups chicken broth if you prefer), butter, salt, and black pepper. While the soup simmers, you brown 12 slices of bacon, shred the cheddar cheese (or use pre-shredded cheese), and snip some chives. Total prep time, about 15 minutes.
What’s the secret to slow cooker potato soup? A can of evaporated milk cooks the potatoes to creaminess, but doesn’t curdle the way regular milk would if you cooked it for hours. (Heavy cream would also work, though that would make this crockpot potato soup even more decadent.)
How long to cook potato soup in a slow cooker? It takes a total time of 6 to 8 hours for the potatoes to get tender using the low heat setting of the slow cooker.
How do you create a creamy potato soup? The starch in the potatoes naturally thickens the soup, so you don't need to add cornstarch or all-purpose flour. (In case you wondered, the soup is gluten-free.) But to ensure a velvety texture, you'll give the soup a buzz with an immersion blender or regular blender; a potato masher won't do the job here.
So let's take a deep breath. Let’s serve up some good potato soup. We’ll get through this.
Ultimate Slow-Cooker Loaded Potato Soup by Yummly. Photo by Olga Ivanova
What, no Crock Pot?
Just in case a crockpot potato soup recipe doesn't work for you, we have plenty more delicious recipes on Yummly for loaded potato soups, including these, for stovetop potato soup, Instant Pot potato soup, and a stovetop recipe that’s on the leaner side. Rest assured, though: Each is still topped with crispy cooked bacon.