Crock Pot Potato Soup

This crock pot potato soup takes about 10 minutes to prep, is loaded with tons of flavor, and the best part is the slow cooker does most of the work for you! Whether you need an easy dinner on a busy weeknight or something cozy for Sunday night dinner, this potato soup is sure to be a family favorite!

The Best Crock Pot Potato Soup Recipe

• Most crock pot potato soups rely on condensed soup or evaporated milk to get the thick, creamy texture. While there’s nothing wrong with those products, they are not things that I routinely have on hand. So I wanted to thicken the potato soup using things that I’ve always got in my pantry and fridge – cornstarch and heavy cream. The starch from the potatoes will seep into the chicken stock, making it a little creamy on its own. Then the heavy cream and cornstarch slurry are added for the last 30 minutes of cooking and together they give this soup a rich, luxurious creamy texture – with no condensed soup or evaporated milk!
• This crock pot potato soup takes just minutes to throw together. The only prep work required is dicing up the potatoes! That means you can throw this together quickly in the morning and have a delicious lunch or dinner ready when you walk in the door after a long day!

Ingredients for Making Slow Cooker Potato Soup

• Herbs & Spices: Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and ground sage are my go-to spices for this potato soup. The dried herbs really give it a classic potato soup flavor and the garlic powder and onion powder just add another layer of aromatics.
• Yukon gold potatoes: I love Yukon golds for this potato soup because of their delicious creamy texture and thin skin. They don’t have to be peeled before cooking and hold their shape well in soup. You can sub with Russet potatoes, baby red potatoes, or fingerling potatoes as well.
• Chicken Stock: I like the added flavor that chicken stock has as compared to chicken broth for this potato soup. Since the ingredients in this soup are pretty simple, every little bit of extra flavor we can add is helpful. Veggie stock would work as well.
• Butter: Use unsalted butter if possible so you can adjust the sodium levels yourself. The butter brings an additional flavor element to the potato soup.
• Bay Leaves: Whether bay leaves actually do anything or not has been hotly debated, but in my experience they add some depth of flavor, especially when something is slow-cooked. Feel free to omit them if you don’t have any on hand.
• Heavy Cream: Heavy cream (AKA whipping cream) is the easiest way to add instant creaminess to any soup. In this recipe, it combines with the cornstarch slurry to create a rich, creamy broth for the potatoes. You can substitute with half and half but the consistency will be thinner.
• Cornstarch: Instead of using condensed soup or evaporated milk, mixing cornstarch with heavy cream and cooking it for 30 minutes will add to the creamy texture of this delicious potato soup.
• Cream Cheese: Half a block of cream cheese takes this soup from brothy to super creamy in just minutes! When paired with shredded cheese, it’s the absolutely perfect way to create a rich, luxurious texture.
• Shredded Cheese: Sharp cheddar is my favorite way to transform this into a cheesy potato soup. Mild cheddar will work as well. Feel free to use your favorite melty cheese.
• Balsamic Vinegar: Balsamic vinegar is my secret ingredient to elevate the flavors of any creamy soup. The acid balances out the creaminess and amplifies the flavor of all the other ingredients. If you are unsure, taste the soup before adding the vinegar and then again after. You can substitute with white balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, or apple cider vinegar. And don’t worry – you’re using such a small amount that the soup will not taste like vinegar. It will just taste better!

How to Make Potato Soup in the Slow Cooker

Add diced potatoes, chicken stock, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, ground sage, butter, and bay leaves, along with a few large pinches of salt and pepper to the slow cooker insert.

Stir until well combined. Add a splash of water if needed so that the potatoes are covered by liquid and not sticking out.

Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-8 hours. When 30 minutes of cooking time remain, stir cornstarch into heavy cream until the cornstarch dissolves. Pour the mixture into the slow cooker.

Cook for another 30 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the soup has thickened slightly. Let soup cool, then stir in shredded cheese, cream cheese, and balsamic vinegar.

Stir until the cheese melts and the soup is smooth and creamy. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Garnish with shredded cheddar, crispy bacon, and sliced green onion.

Tips for Making the Best Potato Soup

• Dice the potatoes in uniform-sized pieces about 3/4″-1″ thick. This will ensure that the chunks of potatoes cook evenly.
• Moderately season this soup with salt and pepper. The ingredient list here is pretty short and sweet, so salt and pepper go a long way in boosting the overall flavors of the soup.
• All crock pots will cook a little differently depending on the size and brand that you use. I like to put my instant pot on the slow-cook setting for this soup. I find that 2-2 1/2 hours on the high slow cook setting, plus another 30 minutes after the heavy cream and cornstarch slurry are added is the perfect amount of time to create a creamy soup with perfectly fork-tender potatoes.
• Before adding the heavy cream and cornstarch slurry you want the potatoes to be nearly cooked all the way. If you find that after 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low, the potatoes are still quite hard, add another 30-60 minutes of cooking time and then check again.
• If the soup looks greasy on top before you stir in the cream cheese and shredded cheese, don’t worry! This is normal. It’s just the butter and once you stir in the cream cheese and shredded sharp cheddar cheese it will completely incorporate with eh other ingredients and give you a super smooth, creamy potato soup.
• Don’t skip the vinegar! If you are unsure about adding the vinegar, I suggest trying the soup before adding the vinegar and then trying it again after. You’ll be amazed at how much more flavorful the soup is!

Best Types of Potatoes for Crock Pot Soup

You might be wondering which potatoes hold up best in soup? And the answer is: most of them! My favorites are Yukon golds, but honestly, you can use just about any potato you have on hand! Just be sure that you dice them into uniform-sized pieces!

• Yukon gold potatoes are my favorite for this creamy potato soup for their creamy texture and thin skin. Because their skin is so thin, you don’t necessarily have to peel them before adding them to the soup. However, you can peel them if you’d like to.
• Russet potatoes are another great choice but they don’t hold their shape quite as well once they’re cooked in soup and tend to break down a bit. Because their skin is thick, they also need to be peeled before adding them to soup.
• Baby red potatoes are waxy which means they hold up well and keep their shape in soup. They’re also a great option because their skin is thin so it doesn’t need to be peeled. Their small size also means you just have to halve them to quarter them before tossing them in the pot.
• Fingerling potatoes are another great option because of their small size and tender skin. Similar to baby reds, you can just chop them in half or quarters and they’ll hold their shape well in the soup.

Toppings for Potato Soup

• shredded cheese
• crispy bacon
• sliced green onion
• sliced chives
• sauteed broccoli
• sour cream

FAQ

Why is my potato soup not thickening in the crock pot?

Your potato soup probably isn’t thickening because you haven’t used a thickening agent. The slow cooker is different from simmering a soup on the stove in that the lid keeps the liquid in and it doesn’t necessarily get warm enough to simmer so it needs some sort of thickening agent. I like to use a combination of cornstarch and heavy cream in this recipe. Along with cream cheese and shredded cheese!

How do you thicken potato soup in the crock pot?

My favorite way to thicken potato soup is with heavy cream and a cornstarch slurry. This one-two punch adds the luxurious texture of heavy cream along with the thickening power of cornstarch. After cooking the soup for an additional 30 minutes and adding cream cheese and shredded cheese it becomes super thick and creamy.

Can you cook crock pot potato soup on high?

Yes! You can cook this crock pot soup on high for 2-3 hours or on low for 4-6 hours.

Do I need to boil potatoes before slow cooker?

There is no need to boil or par-boil the potatoes before adding them to your slow cooker. The slow cooker does all the work and cooks them perfectly fork-tender.

Making Potato Soup Ahead of Time

This creamy potato soup is the perfect make-ahead meal! Throw a batch together over the weekend and enjoy a hearty lunch or dinner in just minutes throughout the week.

Storing Leftover Potato Soup

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Freezing Slow Cooker Potato Soup

Freeze this creamy potato soup in an airtight container or freezer-safe Ziploc bag for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.

Reheating Potato Soup

The soup will thicken as it sits so plan to add a couple splashes of cream, milk, stock, or broth to the pot before reheating. Reheat leftover soup in a saucepan on the stove over medium heat. Cook until warmed through. You can also microwave the soup in 30-60 second increments until heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper before serving.

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