This easy potato soup (potatissoppa) is a creamy, hearty, warming and comforting soup, perfect for a cold winter’s day. It’s so easy to make and you use just one pot, so cleanup is a breeze! It’s delicious as a meal or enjoy it with some roasted chicken or a salad.
Want more potato recipes? You’ll love my Smashed Potatoes with Parmesan and Herring, Beet Mashed Potatoes, and Jansson’s Temptation (Swedish Potato Casserole) recipes!
This is such a great soup because it’s so quick and easy to put together. It makes a great weeknight meal, and the leftovers are wonderful the next day! It’s a very simple soup with ingredients you most likely have on hand. The ingredients are relatively inexpensive (is anything inexpensive these days?), making this a delicious economical meal.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Potatoes: I used russet potatoes because I like their starchiness and that they really soak up the liquid they’re cooked in. They also make a super creamy soup when blended.
- Unsalted butter: I use unsalted butter so I can control the amount of salt.
- Onion: I used a yellow onion because they’re great to use in soups. Their strong flavor mellows and sweetens when cooked and they add wonderful flavor and depth.
- Garlic: I’m a big fan of garlic so I used 3 large cloves in this soup. If that’s too much for you, just reduce the amount or just leave it out.
- Stock/Broth: Use a good quality store-bought chicken stock or, even better, homemade! If you’re watching your salt intake, use a low-sodium chicken stock. Use vegetable broth to make this soup vegetarian.
- Heavy cream: Cream is what makes this soup extra creamy and velvety. If you don’t have cream, try substituting sour cream, half-and-half or even plain yogurt in its place.
- Salt and white pepper: I love the flavor of white pepper and like to use it in light colored dishes. You can use black pepper or no pepper.
How to Make Potato Soup (Potatissoppa)
- In a large stockpot, melt the butter over medium-high heat.
- Once the butter has melted, add the onions and sauté until they’re soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté for about 1 minute.
- Add the potatoes to the pot along with the stock, salt and white pepper.
- Cook the mixture until it just begins to boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.
- Stir in the cream and let the mixture warm for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and blend smooth using an immersion blender. Alternatively, you can use a food processor, or even a potato masher if you want some small lumps in the soup.
- Taste and season with more salt and pepper if necessary. Enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Cut the potatoes into similar sized pieces – Cutting the potatoes into 1/2-inch pieces will help ensure they cook evenly. You don’t want to end up with large pieces of uncooked potato in your soup!
- Make it chunky – If you’d like to add some texture to the soup, remove some of the potato cubes before pureeing and add them back in once the soup has been blended. Then you’ll have some tasty potato chunks in the soup.
Can I Make This Potato Soup Vegetarian or Vegan?
Yes! You can make a wonderful vegan potato soup by swapping out the butter and cream for plant-based products and using vegetable broth in place of the chicken broth.
To make this soup vegetarian, just replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth.
What to Serve with Potato Soup (Potatissoppa)
- With some Swedish pickled cucumbers (pressgurka) on the side.
- Sprinkle some crispy smoked salmon bits on top!
- As a side dish with my Danish breaded pork patties (karbonader)
- With some of my creamy egg butter spread on a slice of rye bread.
- Serve it with my stuvade makaroner (Swedish milk stewed macaroni)
Topping Suggestions
- Bacon – Everything’s better with bacon! Bacon is especially delicious when paired with potatoes. Crumble up strips of bacon and sprinkle over the soup to add flavor and crunch.
- Green onions or chives – Adds extra onion flavor and a bit of color.
- Cheddar cheese – Sprinkle on top of the soup or mix it in to add some cheesy gooeyness. Try other varieties of cheese like Swiss, Havarti or Fontina.
- Red pepper flakes – Adds a spicy kick to the soup.
- Parsley or dill – Herbs add a freshness and a pop of color to the soup.
How to Store Potato Soup (Potatissoppa)
Store this soup in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Reheat it either on the stove or in the microwave.
I haven’t tried freezing this soup because cooked potatoes can become grainy as they thaw, and cream tends to separate when thawed and reheated. But, if you do want to try to freeze it, put it in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Defrost it overnight in the refrigerator and reheat it on the stove or in the microwave.
Other Soup Recipes You’ll Love
Easy Potato Soup (Potatissoppa)
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- 2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp white pepper
Instructions
- In a large stockpot, melt butter over medium-high heat.
- Once butter has melted, add onions and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
- Add potatoes to the pot along with stock, salt and white pepper.
- Cook until it just begins to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for about 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.
- Stir in cream and let mixture warm for 1-2 minutes.
- Remove from heat and blend smooth using an immersion blender. Alternatively, you can use a food processor, or even a potato masher if you want some small lumps in the soup.
- Taste and season with more salt and pepper if necessary.
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