Creamy Potato Onion Soup

Potatoes are delicious in every form, including this Creamy Potato Onion Soup. Customize this smooth cozy soup for vegetarian diets, or use chicken broth and top with bacon bits for a rich winter meal. It’s truly a one-pot wonder!

What are the ingredients in this Creamy Potato Onion Soup?

If you tried, you could guess every ingredients in this soup. Good thing you don’t have to! The main two ingredients are in the title, and the rest of them are basically just normal soup ingredients. Here’s more info on each:

• unsalted butter & olive oil – Using both of these fats helps add flavor (from the butter) and increase and smoke point (from the oil).
• yellow onions – Grab two large onions and slice them as thinly as you can. You want to cook them for about 30 minutes total. They should have some nice golden color before you add the rest of the ingredients.
• fine sea salt or kosher salt – Either one of these salts will work just fine!
• garlic – Of course any good soup needs some garlic. Be sure to add this later after the onions. Garlic burns easily!
• fresh thyme – Fresh herbs are not always easy to come by, so if you need to pick between the thyme for cooking and the chives for topping, I would pick the thyme.
• all-purpose flour – Adding just 1 tablespoon of flour gives the soup a nice thickness on top of the blended potatoes.
• chicken broth – You can use chicken or veggie broth, but I usually have chicken broth on hand so that’s what I use. 5 cups of broth should be enough to just cover all of the potatoes in the pot.
• russet potatoes – For this soup, I look for 4 medium (or even slightly large) sized russet potatoes. I haven’t tested with other potatoes, but I like russet because they’re easy to peel and cut.
• heavy cream or half and half – Honestly, any cream or milk will work for giving this soup an even creamier texture. Heavy cream, half and half, or plain Nutpods are a good dairy-free option.
• fresh ground black pepper – I’m a huuuuge fan of fresh ground black pepper; in fact I literally never buy pepper that’s already ground! It goes really well in this soup, but you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to.
• optional toppings: homemade bacon bits, chopped chives, freshly shredded cheddar cheese

Equipment you’ll need to make this soup:

Here are my recommendations on tools you’ll need to make this recipe at home:

• immersion blender – This is the perfect job for a basic immersion blender. Almost any one you have will do. If you’re looking, I’d recommend this KitchenAid immersion blender (affiliate link!).
• cutting board – I recommend this Greener Chef XL Bamboo Cutting Board (affiliate link!). I use mine almost every day! The XL size is perfect and not too huge. I use it for everything except cutting raw meat.
• chef’s knife – Definitely look into getting yourself a Misen Chef’s Knife (affiliate link!). This is an affordable, all-purpose knife useful for everything, but especially cutting the vegetables in this recipe.

How to make Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

If you’ve got one pot and a little over an hour, you’re in business to make this soup for your household. Most of it is hands off after you prepare the veggies. You just have to give everything time to cook before moving on to the next step.

Start with a large heavy bottom pot, preferably stainless steel, but a nonstick or Dutch oven will work too. Place it over a medium heat and add the butter and oil. Let it melt and let the butter get frothy, then add allll the onions and a big pinch of salt.

You’ll want to stir them with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon every 5 minutes or so. This give them time to get some color but also rotate and move the onions around as they cook. Be sure to keep a close eye on them to prevent any burning towards the end of cooking time. Turn down the heat a bit if needed.

To cut down on the overall prep time for the recipe, you can use this time while the onions cook to peel and cut potatoes. Just make sure to keep an eye on the onions too.

After 25 minutes, the onions should be soft and just starting to turn golden on the edges. Make a well in the center – this just means to move everything else to the sides and expose the bottom of the pan. Add the garlic and thyme there, then stir it all together and let it cook on low for another 5 minutes.

Next, sprinkle the flour over the cooked onions and stir until no dry spots remain. Let the thickened onion mixture cook for 1-2 more minutes, before slowly adding in the broth, potatoes and some black pepper if desired. I like to add about 1/2 teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper total.

Increase the heat to bring the liquid to the boil, then reduce the temperature to medium low or so. Let it simmer for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender and fall apart when pierced. Turn the heat off and move the pot from the stove to a heat-safe trivet.

At this point, get out your immersion blender. Blend the soup directly in the pot (which is why immersion blenders are so awesome) until it’s completely smooth. Move the pot back to the warm stove, but leave the burner off and stir in the cream.

Give the soup a taste and add more salt and pepper if you’d like (I add another 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper). Serve in bowls a couple ladles each with your favorite toppings – I recommend homemade bacon bits, chopped chives, and freshly shredded cheddar cheese if I want it a little richer overall.

Best tips for making this Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

• Cut the potatoes all the same size so they all finish cooking around the same time. Note: if you’re trying to make it go a little faster, you can cut the potatoes into smaller pieces. Smaller potatoes will cook through faster.
• Make sure the potatoes are fully cooked before moving on. You can tell by pulling a piece of potato up with a spoon and then using a fork to pierce it. If it falls apart easily, the potatoes are done, and you can move forward with blending the soup.
• Don’t be afraid to taste and see what’s going on in the soup in the final steps! Depending on your broth, you might want more salt or pepper.

What to serve with Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

My favorite thing to do is load up this soup with toppings: homemade bacon bits, chives, and maybe a little shredded cheddar if I’m feeling like it.

Another option is to serve with some roasted veggies on the side: squash, red onions, mushrooms, bell peppers, with some olive oil and Italian seasoning.

Ways to customize this recipe:

There are a couple different ways to customize this soup recipe, both for varying diets, and for people’s preference on toppings.

• with or without animal products – I usually have chicken broth on hand, so that’s what I like to use. But if you’d like to adapt this recipe for vegan or vegetarian diets, start by swapping chicken broth for vegetable broth.
  • For a vegan version, swap the butter for oil or vegan butter, and skip the cream or use a dairy-free alternative like plain Nutpods.
• customize is with toppings – I like to add homemade bacon bits and chopped chives.
  • More toppings ideas: freshly shredded cheddar cheese, a drizzle of cream, a drizzle of olive oil, sour cream

Ways to meal prep this recipe:

There are a couple ways to save time by preparing all or part of this recipe ahead of time. Here are the options:

1. Complete prep: Prepare the recipe from start to finish. Then, store the soup in an airtight container to reheat and eat during the week.
2. Cook & freeze: Prepare this recipe from start to finish, but leave out the flour (thickener) and the cream.
3. A mixture of both: You can prep the recipe as directed (leaving out the thickener and cream), then eat some and freeze some for later. For a soup like this, I would use 2-Cup Souper Cubes Trays.

How to store leftover Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. 

How to freeze Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

If you plan to freeze the soup, leave out the flour thickener. It may create a gluey texture when the soup is thawed later. Freeze in a container like 2-Cup Souper Cubes Trays. For best results, use within 3-6 months.

How to reheat Creamy Potato Onion Soup:

Reheat from the fridge: Cook soup in a microwave safe container for about 2 minutes, or until steaming hot. Alternatively, heat in a small saucepan full of soup on the stove until steaming hot (about 10 minutes).

Reheat from the freezer: Place frozen cube or portion in a saucepan and heat over medium, covered but stirring occasionally, until completely thawed and steaming hot (about 15-20 minutes).

Recipe developed by Rachel Phipps.