Bacon Cheddar Potato Soup Recipe: There are lots of chopped bacon, cheese, and potato chunks in this soup with bacon. It’s a simple and quick supper that the whole family will enjoy.
It’s almost time to say goodbye to the comforting winter evenings and put away our sweaters, but before we do, I’d like you to try one last soup recipe: potato bacon soup.
This soup is perfect for a cozy meal. It’s quite simple to make and tastes rich and corny. And you should definitely include it right now to your soup rotation.
Bacon Cheddar Potato Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 ounces uncooked bacon sliced into 3/4-inch pieces
- ½ medium onion diced small
- 2 celery ribs diced small
- 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced medium (about 4 cups)
- 4 cups (2 15-cans) chicken broth
- 5 tablespoons (71g) butter, salted or unsalted, is fine
- ¼ cup and 1 tablespoon (44g) all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk, any percentage
- 6 ounces (about 1 ½ cups) shredded cheddar cheese plus more as desired for topping
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Salt
- Sour cream is optional for topping
- Sliced green onions are optional for topping
Instructions
- In a large pot, add the bacon bits. Reduce heat to medium and cook until bacon is crispy but still fully cooked. Transfer the bacon with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels, then set it aside.
- Remove and throw away all except one tablespoon of the bacon fat with a spoon. Stirring often and scraping the pan’s bottom for any browned, cooked-on parts, add the onions and celery to the pot.
- Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the onions have just started to become translucent around the edges.
- To the pot, add the potatoes and chicken broth. After bringing to a simmer, cook for ten to fifteen minutes, or until potatoes are readily mashed up against the pot’s side.
- Roughly mash half of the potatoes in the pot using a potato masher or spatula.
- Melt butter in a medium pot over medium heat, then stir in flour. Cook for approximately a minute, whisking constantly, or until flour starts to turn light golden.
- Pour in the milk gradually, whisking continuously to remove any lumps. Cook for about 5 minutes, whisking constantly, or until the mixture thickens and bubbles around the edges.
- Take the saucepan off the burner and gradually whisk in the cheese, a few pieces at a time. Stir the cheese sauce into the soup when the cheese has melted completely. Add some pepper. If necessary, add salt after tasting the soup.
- Reserving ¼ of the bacon for the topping, add roughly ¾ of the bacon to the soup and mix to combine.
- Spoon into bowls; garnish with sour cream, chopped green onions, reserved bacon, and extra cheese, if like. Have fun!
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FAQs AND QUESTIONs
How to Make Potato and Bacon Soup
- In a large pot, cook chopped bacon until barely crispy. While super crispy crunchy bacon is delicious, it isn’t great in soup. Cook the bacon until it’s just cooked through and a little crisp around the edges, but still pliable and then use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a plate
- Spoon off and discard all but about a tablespoon of the bacon grease (it doesn’t need to be exact) and cook the onions and celery until the onions begin to turn translucent around the edges.
- A Note on Bacon Grease: While it’s tempting to leave a ton of bacon grease behind when cooking the onions and celery, don’t leave too much. During testing, when I left a lot of grease in the pan, I found that it left an oily sheen on the top of the soup when it was finished cooking. About a tablespoon was the perfect amount to keep that bacon flavor without making the soup too oily.
- Add potatoes and chicken broth and simmer until the potatoes are fork-tender. Once the potatoes are tender, use a potato masher or fork to roughly smash about half the potatoes.
- Â Make the cheese sauce. While your soup simmers, make a roux of butter and flour and then slowly pour in the milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thick and bubbly. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese until smooth.
- Stir the cheese sauce into the soup and add salt and pepper to taste. Potato soups tend to really soak up the salt, so you may need to add more than you expect. Add about 3/4 of the bacon back to the pot, reserving the rest for topping.
- Dish up the soup, top with sour cream, more cheese and green onions if desired, and chopped up bacon, and enjoy!!
