This Broccoli Potato Soup is creamy, cheesy, and comforting, but also packed with veggies! This cozy one-pot wonder is a family favorite.
This broccoli potato soup is everything you love about soup: it’s thick, creamy, hearty, cheesy, and packed with fluffy potatoes, tender broccoli, and crispy bacon!
Ingredients
Using equal parts broccoli and potato ensures you have a bite each in every spoonful!
- Bacon – use thick-cut bacon, because it’s easier to slice before cooking than “regular”. Bacon adds a great smoky flavor and crispy, yet chewy texture. Replace the bacon with 1/4-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or unsalted butter if you’d like to make this vegetarian.
- Onion, Celery, and Carrots – aka “mirepoix”. This is a very common base for soups that provides flavor, texture, and nutrients. Any variety of onion (white, red, yellow or shallots) may be used. Some grocery stores carry a pre-chopped mirepoix in the produce section, which would save quite a bit on prep time.
- Garlic – adds a subtle nutty flavor. Use fresh cloves or even pre-minced jarred garlic. If using fresh, I love my garlic press to quickly “mince” the garlic.
- Seasonings: Salt and Pepper – keeping the seasonings simple allows the flavor of the bacon, potatoes, broccoli, and cheese to really shine. If you like a bit of heat, try sprinkling in some red pepper flakes.
- Flour – used to thicken the broth. All-purpose flour is the best flour to thicken a soup, because of it’s moderate levels of starch and protein — it will thicken the soup *just* right. Be sure to cook the flour for a minute before whisking in the broth to remove the “raw” flour taste.
- Chicken Broth – the base for our soup to create a broth that’s thick, but not too thick. Vegetable broth may be used as a substitute. Water may also be used, but the broth won’t be as flavorful and you’ll definitely need to add additional seasonings.
- Half and Half – a dairy product that’s half cream half milk. If half and half isn’t available — make your own! Use 1 cup cream and 1 cup milk of choice to replace the pint called for in the original recipe.
- Potatoes – Yukon gold potatoes are the best potatoes for soup, because they’re sturdy enough to hold their shape, but soft enough to become perfectly fluffy. I always peel my potatoes, but if you like a hearty soup and the texture doesn’t bother you, feel free to leave them on. If leaving the skins on, it’s extra important to give them a good scrub and wash before stirring them into the soup.
- Broccoli – 1 pound or about 2 heads of roughly chopped broccoli florets are needed for this soup. How much you chop the broccoli is up to you (do you like bigger chunks or smaller bites?), but I do recommend removing the very large stems, because they take longer to cook. See below for instructions if you’d like to use frozen broccoli.
- Cheese – apple smoked gruyere provides a rich, cheesy, smoky flavor and smooth, creamy consistency. Any cheese that melts well such as cheddar, fontina, monterey-jack, and swiss would be great substitutes. Be sure to use a cheese that you enjoy the flavor of!
How to make
This soup does require some chopping, so prep in advance if you can! Don’t forget: some grocery stores carry a pre-chopped mirepoix, which would save at least 10 minutes of prep time!
- Cook bacon until crispy in a large stockpot over medium heat, then reserve grease, but remove bacon, and set aside.
- To the hot pan and grease, add in onion, celery, carrots, garlic, salt, and pepper, then cook until the carrots are tender.
- Sprinkle in flour, then cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in chicken broth, then pour in half and half and potatoes.
- Cover and simmer for 5 minutes, then stir in broccoli, and simmer for an additional 10 minutes
- Remove from heat and slowly stir in gruyere until the cheese has fully melted. Stir in bacon, taste and re-season, if necessary, then serve and enjoy!
What potatoes to use
Yukon gold potatoes are the best potatoes for soup. They’re hearty enough to hold their shape, but buttery enough to become fluffy when cooked. White potatoes, red potatoes, and purple potatoes would all be fine substitutes. Russet potatoes will work in a pinch, but they’ll likely fall apart more.
I always peel my potatoes, but if you like a hearty soup and the texture doesn’t bother you, feel free to leave them on. If leaving the skins on, it’s extra important to give them a good scrub and wash before stirring them into the soup. If using russet potatoes, be sure to peel the skin.
Can you use frozen broccoli?
Yes. Replace the 1 pound of fresh broccoli with 1 (16 oz) bag frozen broccoli florets. Check the package for cook time.
Keep in mind, the potatoes need to simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes, so if the broccoli takes 5 minutes to cook, simmer the potatoes for 10 minutes, then add in the broccoli and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. This way, the potatoes and broccoli will finish cooking at the same time!
How to thicken
If made as directed, this soup will be perfectly thick and creamy. If it’s too thin, here’s how to fix it:
- Keep simmering. Simmer, uncovered, after the cheese has been added, stirring occasionally to prevent the cheese from sticking to the bottom.
- Make a cornstarch slurry. Mix together equal parts cornstarch and water then whisk slowly into the simmering soup.
- Blend it. Scoop some of the mixture into a high powered blender, blender until smooth, then stir back into the soup. Repeat as needed to achieve the desired texture.
What to serve with broccoli potato soup
I love serving soup next to a salad and a sandwich or roll/biscuit to make this a complete meal!
- Pear, Blue Cheese, Candied Pecan Salad
- Steak Sandwich
- Drop Biscuits
- Leafy Green Salad with Italian Dressing
- Air Fryer Grilled Cheese
- Homemade Croutons (for a crispy, crunchy garnish)
How to store
Store leftover soup in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. To enjoy again, heat on the stove or in the microwave until warm.
Can you freeze broccoli potato soup?
I don’t recommend freezing soups like this that contain dairy and potatoes, because the dairy will likely separate and the potatoes will become grainy when thawed.
– Jennifer
Broccoli Potato Soup
Equipment for this recipe
Ingredients
- 8 slices thick-cut bacon roughly chopped
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 2 ribs celery diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon salt plus more to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 (32 oz) carton chicken broth
- 1 pint half and half room temperature
- 1 pound Yukon gold potatoes peeled and cut into 1/2 - 1 inch cubes
- 1 pound roughly chopped broccoli florets about 2 broccoli heads
- 1 (8 oz) block apple smoked gruyere cheese shredded
Instructions
- Place bacon in large stockpot over medium heat.
- Cook until crispy, then reserve grease, but remove bacon, and set aside.
- To the hot pan and grease, add in onion, celery, carrots, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Cook, stirring often, until the celery and carrots are tender, about 10 minutes.
- Sprinkle in flour, then cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in chicken broth.
- Pour in half and half and potatoes, then bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
- Cover and simmer (you'll probably need to reduce heat to low) for 5 minutes.
- Uncover, stir in broccoli, then re-cover and simmer for an additional 10 minutes, or until the potatoes and broccoli are cooked to your liking.
- Remove from heat and slowly stir in gruyere until the cheese has fully melted.
- Stir in bacon, taste and re-season, if necessary, then serve and enjoy!
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Nutrition Information
*Note: Nutrition information is estimated and varies based on products used.
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