How To Thicken My Potato Soup (2024)

FAQs

How To Thicken My Potato Soup? ›

To thicken potato soup without creating lumps, you can use a roux made of equal parts butter and flour. Melt the butter in a separate pan, add the flour, and whisk until smooth. Slowly whisk the roux into the soup, and let it simmer until thickened. Be sure to whisk continuously to prevent lumps from forming.

Cornstarch is a very effective thickener, and a little bit can go a long way. Add cornstarch to a small amount of cold water or other liquid (wine or stock) and whisk into a thick slurry. Then the slurry can be stirred into a simmering soup, a bit at a time to set the final consistency.

Tip: Cornstarch will thicken your soup more than flour, but both are a good option if you need to thicken a very thin soup. Pour in 1 cup (60 g) of instant potato flakes for a quick fix. This will add extra potato flavor to your soup, so you don't have to worry about changing the taste.

There are a few ways to fix it. You can create a slurry using cornstarch or flour mixed with cold water, then slowly whisk it into the soup and continue to simmer until it thickens. Another method is to remove some of the potatoes from the soup, mash them, and return them to the pot to help thicken the soup naturally.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Stir in cheese, sour cream, salt and pepper, to taste. If the soup is too thick, add more milk as needed until desired consistency is reached. Serve immediately, garnished with green onion, cheese and bacon, if desired.

It's important to note that cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. If you need to substitute cornstarch to thicken liquid in a recipe that calls for ¼ cup (four tablespoons) flour, you only need two tablespoons cornstarch.

Cornstarch, potato starch, and chickpea flour are a couple of pantry-friendly ways to thicken soups, stews, and sauces in the slow cooker. Just a tablespoon or two of any — added towards the end of cooking — will thicken sauces especially well.

Honestly, if you just stir in a little instant mash, like Smash, your soup will thicken up in no time at all. Now, you may end up needing more than a spoonful, but it's best to add a little at a time, because remember, you can always add more of it, but you can't take it away.

Soup Thickening Method: Cornstarch Slurry

I made a classic slurry by whisking cornstarch and hot broth until smooth in a small bowl. I drizzled it into the soup gradually, and brought it to a boil to fully activate, thicken, and cook out the starch flavor before adding more.

The freezing and thawing process can affect the texture of ingredients that are kept whole in a soup, like noodles or chunks of vegetables. Potatoes are very starchy and can turn mushy when defrosted. An easy way to avoid that is to opt for a soup recipe with puréed potatoes instead of chunks.

How do you thicken runny potatoes? ›

You can use what you have on hand: Flour, cornstarch, or powdered milk are all solid options that are probably already in your pantry. Potato flour and potato starch would work as well. Stir in the thickening agent gradually, about a tablespoon at a time, until the potatoes have reached your desired consistency.

Cut the potatoes into rissolettes and blanche them (i.e. cook them briefly, not to full doneness). Use the water you used in the soup and put the potatoes back in when you go to warm the soup again for serving. Since they're cut fairly small, they should be just about done without being mushy when you go to eat.

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute. For the best results, never add flour or cornstarch directly to your soup. If you do, it will clump up on top. Instead, ladle a small amount of broth into a separate bowl and let it cool.

This is a traditional way to thicken potato soup. Simply remove some of the potatoes from your soup or you use freshly boiled potatoes. Mash the potatoes in a bowl and add milk, softened butter and salt and pepper to make a paste. Then add potatoes back into the soup.

Leftover Mashed Potato Soup FAQ's

Store any leftovers of this mashed potato soup in an airtight container for up to 3 days. When reheating, you may want to add some additional broth or milk to thin it out. The soup will get thicker as it sits in the fridge.

Adding/mixing water in the soup makes the soup less thick. (discrepencies apply. You could use more vegetables/fruits/ingredients with water in them in your soup or just plain ol' pour in water, though ratio applies. Some ingredients have more water than others.

Heavy cream

Use heavy cream as a keto-friendly thickening option for your soups and broths. Heavy cream has more fat than regular whole milk, so you can add it to your soup recipes without worrying about it curdling.

In the case of soups, it will thicken the broth and it also adds in vitamins from the potatoes. It's kind of like getting a freebie vegetable supplement in with whatever you are making! You can add potato water to breads to give them a nice texture and some added flavor (versus just adding plain water).