This loaded baked potato soup is packed with crispy bacon, cheese, chives, and tender chunky potatoes that are simmered to perfection in a crockpot. It’s perfect any day of the week, but especially good on a cold winter day. This easy soup recipe only takes 15 minutes to prep and is ready in 3 ½ hours!
Nothing beats a hot bowl of soup on a cold night. Traditionally you may lean for tomato soup, but I love a good trusty slow cooker recipe that is filling. Because creamy potato soup is pure comfort food in a bowl, we enjoy it year-round! If you have leftover potatoes that still need to be used, dice them up for a bacon cheeseburger soup!
We love eating this as our main meal, but you can always serve it with a famous grilled cheese or ham and cheese sandwich (we like these in the air fryer, they are so simple!). As for my other favorite soups, I can never turn down a bowl of creamy chicken stew, vegetable beef, or chicken tortilla!
Why You’ll Love Crockpot Potato Soup
- It’s truly loaded with thick slices of bacon, sharp cheddar cheese, and chives – all of your favorite toppings!
- A hearty soup that is best when cold weather hits.
- Minimal prep work and cleanup are required.
- Can easily be doubled if needed.
- A great way to use up potatoes.
- Calls for simple ingredients.
What Ingredients do I Need for Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup?
- bacon
- medium onion
- Yukon Gold potatoes
- chicken broth
- black pepper
- cream cheese
- sour cream
- shredded cheddar cheese
- all-purpose flour
- heavy cream
- chives – could also top the soup with thinly sliced green onions.
PREP: Chop the bacon into half-inch pieces. Over medium-low heat in a large skillet, saute the bacon until crisp. Remove and set aside.
COOK: Add the diced onion to the bacon fat and cook until translucent. Transfer the cooked onions to the crock pot. Reserve 2 tablespoons of bacon grease. Add the diced potatoes and chicken stock. Cook covered on high for 3 hours.
ADD REMAINING INGREDIENTS AND THICKEN: Stir in the cream cheese, a cup of cheddar cheese, and sour cream. Then continue cooking for 30 more minutes until it has melted. Mash the mixture or use an immersion blender to break down some of the chunks. To thicken, add 2 tablespoons of flour to the reserved grease. Heat until bubbly while stirring constantly, and whisk in heavy cream until smooth paste forms. Stir the flour mixture into the soup and cook for 15 minutes, then fold in half of the bacon.
SERVE: Ladle the soup into bowls and top with potato toppings such as chives, lots of cheese, bacon, and even a dollop of sour cream. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
- Cooking the onions and making the roux using bacon grease adds so much flavor to this soup. If desired you can use olive oil or butter to saute the onions.
- To make the roux without grease, use 2 tablespoons of butter, 2 tablespoons of flour, and cream.
- For a thicker soup, use just 4 cups of chicken broth and keep the other ingredients the same.
- We like adding the bacon flavor from the onions and roux versus placing the bacon strips directly in the pot. If you simmer bacon in a crockpot for a long time, it tends to get rubbery. Stirring the pieces in just before serving adds full flavor and a crunch!
- An immersion blender is easy to use to mash the chunks, but a potato masher also works great.
Fun Fact
Did you know that raw potatoes are made up of about 80% water? Another fun fact, an 8-ounce baked potato only contains 100 calories without toppings!
Substitutions and Variations
- Milk can be swapped for cream.
- Mild or medium cheddar can be used, even though we enjoy using sharp.
- Russet potatoes also work great in cheesy potato soup, but we do not recommend red potatoes. These tend to get a little mushy after cooking for 3-4 hours.
Keep leftover soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Because of the cream and cheese in this soup recipe, we do not recommend freezing. The consistency may change during the thawing and reheating process.
More Satisfying Soup Recipes
Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 pound bacon
- 1 medium white onion diced
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes peeled and diced into ½” pieces
- 6 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 8 oz. cream cheese cut into cubes
- ½ cup sour cream
- 3 cups grated cheddar cheese medium or sharp cheddar
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ cup chives finely chopped
Instructions
- Chop bacon into small pieces (about ½”). In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the bacon until crisp. Remove bacon from the grease with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the diced onion to the bacon grease in the skillet and saute (over medium heat) until translucent. Transfer onion to the bottom of the crockpot, reserving about 2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the skillet.
- Add potatoes and chicken stock to the crockpot.
- Cook on HIGH for 3 hours.
- Add cream cheese, sour cream, and 1 cup cheddar cheese to the crockpot and continue cooking an additional 30 minutes until the cheeses have melted.
- Use a potato masher or immersion blender to break down some of the potato chunks until desired consistency is reached.
- To further thicken the soup, add the 2 tablespoons of flour to the reserved 2 tablespoons of bacon grease in the skillet. Cook over medium heat until the flour is bubbly. Whisk in heavy cream until a smooth, but thick paste forms.
- Stir the flour/cream mixture into the soup. Cook 15 more minutes.
- Stir in ½ of the bacon pieces.
- Serve soup with reserved cheese, bacon, and chives.
Notes
Nutrition
Make this recipe?
Share it with me on Instagram @girlinspired1 and follow on Pinterest for more!
Comments & Reviews
Jean Vilmenay says
I did add my own twist to this recipe but it was definitely so good! Thank you so much for your post. I will make it again for sure! One tip I might add if I may be so bold, better than bouillon can just be added to your water for the potatoes. I used garlic, chicken, and vegetable, rather than using chicken bullion. Just toss some in the water to taste. Love this recipe!