Simple Potato Soup Recipe

I'll put the recipe part up front because I'm not an asshole.

Made in a pressure cooker, then slow cooked.

First off, apologies for not offering measurements. I am of the “until it feels right” persuasion in my cooking, but I think you can figure it out.

• Potatoes, large diced

• Celery, chopped

• 1 leek, base and green bits

• 1 yellow onion, 3/4 small diced 1/4 large chopped

• 1 stick of salted butter halved

• Bit of olive oil

• Heavy cream

• Chicken or vegetable stock

• Salt and pepper

• Thyme

• Basil

• Itty bit of dehydrated carrots (optional)

• 1 medium jalapeño deseeded and small diced (optional, but trust me)

1. You take half the stick of butter and the olive oil and sauté the onions and leek until the butter turns dark blonde and smells a bit like burnt popcorn, then remove them from heat.

2. Combine the potatoes, vegetables, salt and vegetable or chicken stock in the pot and boil, adding the pepper in stages. Use plenty of pepper.

3. If using dried herbs add early. Fresh, add late.

4. When the soup has thickened and the potatoes are soft add the second half of the stick of butter and let it melt.

5. Set the heat source to low and wait until it stops bubbling, then add the cream slowly and give that baby a stir or two

6. Let it sit for 2-4 hours on low to develop the flavors

Garnish it however you’d like. I know some who enjoy it with shredded cheddar. You could put crushed crackers on it or eat it with a hearty bread. However you want to eat it, the soup does just fine on its own.

Some personal notes about this soup

I’ve been cooking it for a million years because it is inexpensive, filling, smells amazing and my children, friends and family universally love it. It’s easy to cook but makes a person feel like a gourmand once it’s been served.

My da (stepdad who I was very close to) loved this soup. Any time I visited him I cooked this for him and he’d hum while he was eating it. Feeding people makes me happy and feeding him was the absolute best.

In March of 2020 I flew back to Wisconsin (and boy were my arms tired) to be with him and my family because he decided to stop all life-saving measures and let himself succumb to organ failure. It was one of the most profound experiences of my life. My brothers and I got to hold him and each other as he took his last breaths. Before he became non-responsive he requested this soup. I spoon fed him two bowls full. It was the last thing he ate. What a blessing to this home cook’s heart that was.

This soup can be frozen, but I don’t think you’ll have any left over to freeze.

Why dehydrated carrots? Well, fresh carrots can overpower the flavor of the potatoes with their sweetness. Why carrots at all? It can be a pleasant little crunch in a bowl full of cream and it adds a bit of color.

Why jalapeño? While the black pepper does the heavy lifting and the herbs help develop the flavor, a little bit of hot pepper warms the whole body. Once it’s cooked down long enough and without the seeds you’re really not dealing with much spiciness.

I hope you enjoy cooking this as much as I always have. I can’t believe I have never written it down, but here we are. Have a lovely winter. Stay warm and well fed.