Creamy Potato Leek Soup Recipe
There's one simple trick to my potato leek soup: I sear the leeks first until they are golden brown. That small step brings out a natural sweetness and infuses the whole soup with flavor. I make it with Yukon gold potatoes, leeks, celery, chicken stock, and a touch of cream, seasoned simply with salt, pepper, thyme, and bay leaf. The whole soup comes together in about an hour.
Servings: 6
Calories: 259.34kcal
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 leeks
- 3 celery ribs
- 2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 fresh thyme sprigs
- 4 cups chicken stock
- salt
- fresh cracked black pepper
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
Cleaning Leek:
- Cut off the dark green leaves and the very bottoms by the roots. (Discard the dark green leaves or save it for making homemade stock.)
- Cut the white stalks in half, length-wise. Rinse off each half under some cold running water. Make sure to get in between the layers because dirt likes to hide there. Shake the water off very well and the halves are not ready to slice.
Potato Leek Soup:
- Slice each leek half into thinly, width-wise. Wash and slice celery ribs as well. Peel or wash potatoes and cut them into cubes.
- Preheat the pot over medium heat and melt butter. Sear the leeks in butter until soft and starts to become golden brown. Add celery and sauté it until leeks start to get some sear.
- Add potatoes and saute for a couple more minutes.
- Add bay leaf and thyme sprigs to the pot and pour in chicken stock. Pour in enough chicken stock just to cover the potatoes. (Too much stock will result in a thin soup.)
- Season with salt and pepper, stir well, bring the soup to boil and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook until potatoes are tender, make sure to stir from time to time.
- Take out the bay leaf and thyme sprigs.
- Stir in heavy whipping cream until completely incorporated.
- You can transfer the soup into a blender or use an immersion blender to blend the soup. Pulse a few times just until smooth. Note: Blending the soup too much will lead to a gummy texture. Break up as much of the potatoes as you can with a wooden spoon before adding them to the blender. Just pulse a few times until blended.
Video
Notes
- Store: refrigerate in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
- Freeze: without the cream, up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then reheat and stir in the cream.
- Heavy Whipping Cream swap: sour cream plus half and half or whole milk in a pinch; use plant-based milk and sour cream to keep it dairy free.
- Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.
Nutrition
Calories: 259.34kcal | Carbohydrates: 27.71g | Protein: 8.2g | Fat: 14.26g | Saturated Fat: 8.51g | Cholesterol: 42.22mg | Sodium: 130.37mg | Potassium: 854.73mg | Fiber: 4.63g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1233.11IU | Vitamin C: 23.11mg | Calcium: 92.48mg | Iron: 6.22mg