This easy Cheesy Potato Soup recipe is loaded with the BEST flavor combinations like caramelized onions, creamy mashed potatoes, and a 3-cheese combo! It’s easy to prepare and makes the best freezer meal!
Cheesy Potato Soup
Ever since I created my Baked Potato Soup awhile back, I have been trying to conjure out different variations of it, because it’s just one of the best soup recipes on earth.
This Cheesy Potato Soup recipe is similar, but different enough to deserve its own spot on the blog. 😉
What Makes It Different
Instead of making a roux out of bacon drippings like we do for Baked Potato Soup, we’re going to make caramelized onions for this broth instead. It gives this soup a gourmet flair and adds a subtle sweet offset to that savory 3-cheese combo!
The seasonings in this recipe are also a huge bonus. They combine to form the best flavor combination. (And don’t be thrown by the addition of soy sauce, hot sauce, or mustard powder- they are flavor enhancers only and you can’t taste them outright.)
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Toss diced onions in butter and olive oil and caramelize them over medium-low heat for about 45 minutes, stirring every few minutes. While they cook, prepare your mashed potatoes and measure out the remaining ingredients.
Slice the potatoes into 3/4-inch slices and submerge them in cool water. Gradually bring them to a gentle boil and let them cook for about 15 minutes, or until very fork tender. Drain and let the steam fully escape. Add the cream cheese and sour cream and mash until creamy. (Don’t over-mash.)
Add garlic, hot sauce, and soy sauce during the last minute of cooking the onions. Then toss with flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add chicken broth and half and half in splashes, stirring in between each splash. Add the seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the mashed potatoes.
Use a potato masher to incorporate the potatoes into the broth. (Or use an immersion blender or regular blender to briefly blend until smooth.) Add the shredded cheese over low heat and stir to incorporate. Garnish with chives, bacon, and/or more cheese and serve!
Pro Tips
- You can’t taste the soy sauce, hot sauce, or mustard powder in this recipe, they are used as flavor enhancers.
- If you don’t want to caramelize the onions, you can simply soften them for 10 minutes or so.
- For thicker soup: let it simmer and thicken with the lid off. For thinner soup: add additional chicken broth or some milk.
- Use high quality cheese shredded from a block, it makes a huge difference in the finished product. I use Cracker Barrel Yellow Cheddar and Belgioioso Parmesan cheese.
- Gruyere or Gouda cheese can be used instead of cheddar if preferred, it compliments the caramelized onions nicely.
- Vegetable broth can be used instead of chicken broth for a vegetarian option.
- The potatoes are boiled separately for this recipe instead of right in the broth so that we can rid them of excess starch prior to adding them to the soup. Otherwise the soup could end up with a gummy consistency.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. This soup does freeze and reheat well.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 3.5 quart Dutch oven– This is the one I have and is a great size for this recipe.
- Potato Masher– I swear by this dual-head potato masher, it really makes the potatoes nice and creamy.
- Box Cheese Grater– Shred the cheese from a block for best results.
- Immersion Blender– This is what I use for this recipe, it makes it easy to incorporate the potatoes into the broth without transferring to a blender.
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Cheesy Potato Soup
Ingredients
Seasonings
- ½ teaspoon each: dried parsley, oregano, mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon each: dried thyme, pepper
For the Potatoes
- 2 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, can sub russet
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
- ¾ cup sour cream
Soup
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 large yellow onion, or 2 small
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 3 ½ cups chicken broth
- 2 cups half and half
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
Optional Garnishes
- Green Onions or Chives
- Crumbled Bacon
- Extra Cheese
Instructions
Caramelize the Onions
- Note: If you are short on time, soften 1 medium yellow onion for 10 minutes or so and skip the full caramelization.
- Heat the olive oil and butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Dice the onions a little larger than you normally would as they reduce in size during caramelizing (see process shots above).
- Add the onions to the pot and toss to coat. Reduce heat to medium-low and caramelize for 45 minutes, stirring often. While they caramelize, cook the potatoes and measure out remaining ingredients.
Cook the Potatoes
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into ¾-inch slices. Submerge them in a large pot of cool water so that they’re covered by 2 inches. Gradually bring them to a gentle boil and add ¾ teaspoon of salt (boiling gently ensures they cook evenly and stay intact.) Cook until they’re very fork tender, about 15 minutes.
- Drain and return them to the warm pot they cooked in. Add the cream cheese and the sour cream but let the steam escape from the potatoes for about 10 minutes prior to mashing. Then mash until creamy, (don’t over-mash or they will become gluey). Set aside.
Make the Soup
- Once the onions are caramelized, add the garlic, hot sauce, and soy sauce and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the flour and toss to coat. Cook for 1-2 minutes to remove raw flour taste.
- Increase heat to medium-high. Add the chicken broth in splashes, stirring to incorporate. Add the half and half in the same manner. Add the seasonings.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add the mashed potatoes and use a potato masher to incorporate the potatoes into the soup. Alternatively, you can briefly use an immersion blender or regular blender to create a completely smooth consistency.
- Reduce heat to low and gradually sprinkle in the cheddar and Parmesan cheese, stirring continuously.
- Garnish with chives, bacon, or cheese if desired and serve!
Notes
- You can’t taste the soy sauce, hot sauce, or mustard powder in this recipe, they are used as flavor enhancers.
- 2 lbs. potatoes is equal to about 5 large Yukon gold potatoes or 4 large Russets.
- For thicker soup: Let it simmer and thicken with the lid off. For thinner soup: Add additional chicken broth or some milk.
- Use high quality cheese shredded from a block, it makes a huge difference in the finished result. I use Cracker Barrel Yellow Cheddar and Belgioioso Parmesan cheese.
- Gruyere or Gouda cheese can be used instead of cheddar if preferred, it compliments the caramelized onions nicely.
- Vegetable broth can be used instead of chicken broth for a vegetarian option.
- The potatoes are boiled separately for this recipe instead of right in the broth so that we can rid them of excess starch prior to adding them to the soup. Otherwise the soup could end up with a gummy consistency.
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. This soup does freeze and reheat well.
Im excited to try this recipe! We love loaded potato soup. But we do like chunks of potatoes in it as well. How would you suggest going about that for this recipe?
Hi Rachel! You can either add the mashed potatoes and stir them into the broth without blending them, or you a gently cook cubed potatoes in salted water, drain them, and add them into the soup and keep them whole. 🙂 Enjoy!
This was sooo good!! Creamy,thick,cheesy, ect!
Don’t hesitate to make this. A staple recipe from now on 🙂
Yayyy! I’m so happy you liked it so much Jenna, thanks for taking the time to leave a comment and review!💖
I used a small onion and a small fennel bulb. Added the diced fennel to the diced onion after about 35 minutes so the fennel could sauté the last 10 minutes. Followed everything else exactly as written and it was great!!! Thank you!
That sounds so good Stacie, nice work!🙌 Thanks so much for the great review, I’m so happy you enjoyed this one!
I made this and it was great. I didn’t have any half-and-half, so I used a cup each of milk and heavy cream. Delish!
I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed this soup! 🙂 It’s a big favorite of mine! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! -Stephanie
I don’t ever leave comments on recipes but, I had to this one!! I’ve tried a couple different creamy potato soup recipes and have never found one, I was satisfied with. This one is perfect!! Instead of using olive oil, I fried some bacon (for topping) and used the bacon grease to caramelize the onions in and it turned out great! Will definitely be making this one again!! Thank you!
This makes me so happy Stefanie! I’m so happy this recipe got you to write such a great review! I love what you did with the onions, yum! Thanks so much for the great comments and review!❤️
This was so good. I mashed the potatoes with a potato masher, and when I added the mashed potatoes to the broth, I blended them smooth with an old Sunbeam hand-held mixer. Carlene
I am so happy that you enjoyed this soup Carlene! Thank you for sharing your method for incorporating the potatoes as well, and for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! -Stephanie
I just made this soup today. It makes a lot but I have neighbors who I always share with. One is having company come in from Canada so when she said she wished she could save some for here I took over an extra carton.
Thank you for sharing this delicious dish
Awwwww that makes my day Martha!! I am so happy that you enjoyed it! Thank you so much!! ❤️❤️❤️
My wife wasn’t feeling the best today so I wanted to surprise her with dinner when she got home. I heard her mention your site a few times so I decided to find it and choose a recipe I could handle. She loves soup so i decided to make your Cheesy Potato Soup. I am not known for my culinary skills so I was careful to read the recipe through. I was a little short on the Parmesan so I improvised with a little extra cheddar. Otherwise I followed the recipe precisely and it came out beyond my wildest dreams. My wife asked what restaurant I ordered the soup from. After about three separate conversations about the soup, she finally believed me that I made it and didn’t just put it in a pot to pretend. The only thing that would have made it better would be if I had used bacon crumbles for the top. Next time!!! I don’t think my wife will let me get away with not making this again. What have I done? Anyway…an amazing success. Thank you!
Good for you Jonathan making this for your sick wife!❤️ That’s so funny she needed to be convinced you made it lol. Thanks so much for the great comments and for taking the time to leave a review!
This looks INCREDIBLE! I can’t wait to try it.
Thank you! Enjoy!😍
This is my new favorite soup! I used Gouda instead of cheddar and it was amazing. Made a big batch for the freezer so I can have yummy lunches. I took my time caramelizing the onions and I think that’s what adds so much flavor!
I think it may be my new favorite soup too Tammy! Glad to hear you enjoyed it with Gouda. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!😋