Dive into a bowl of thick and creamy comfort with this easy recipe for gluten-free potato soup! Dollop with loaded baked potato toppings or enjoy with a simple sprinkling of bacon and watch your family devour!

Enjoy Potato soup, gluten-free!
You may be wondering, aren’t all potato soup recipes gluten-free? Unfortunately, no.
Typically potato soup recipes use a roux, which is a mixture of butter and flour to achieve a thick and creamy consistency. However, no flour is necessary when utilizing some simple tricks learned developing my gluten-free cookbook and gluten-free soups for the site.
To thicken potato soup without flour, the right type of potatoes must be used. While some baked potato soups use Yukon gold or red potatoes, these do not break down as much as russets or Idaho, naturally thickening the soup.
Also, a cornstarch slurry gives an extra boost of thickening, which is similarly used in Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup and Gluten-free Corn Chowder. Stir in the cornstarch / water mixture after the veggies and potatoes have cooked in the broth.
These suggestions, along with a secret ingredient for ultra creaminess, makes the best gluten-free potato soup recipe ever!
Ingredient Notes / substitutions
- Bacon – Used to sprinkle on for serving and the drippings flavor the soup. For vegetarian potato soup, omit the bacon and use 1 tablespoon additional butter.
- Potatoes – While many baked potato soup recipes use a variety of potatoes, I strongly recommend only using russet potatoes. They soak up the liquid, breaking down slightly to thicken the soup, which is a technique used in gluten-free au gratin potatoes as well.
- Vegetables – Combination of yellow onion, carrots, celery, and garlic give an extra flavor dimension.
- Broth – Use either vegetable broth or chicken broth, depending on preference.
- Evaporated Milk – Another secret weapon for making creamy soups! Since water content has been removed, evaporated milk really adds a velvety taste. (Same trick used in creamy Chicken Dumpling Soup and gluten-free chicken soup) Substitute with whole milk, half and half, heavy cream, or preferred dairy-free milk.
- Optional toppings – Cheddar cheese, green onions, chives, sour cream
how to make gluten-free potato soup
(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)
- First, fry the bacon pieces in a large pot over medium heat. Once the bacon is crisp, use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a paper towel lined plate. Leave one tablespoon bacon fat in the pot.
- Add butter to the bacon drippings and sauté the onions, celery, and carrots until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer.
- Stir in the broth, potatoes, onion powder, salt and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. Partially remove the lid, lower to a simmer, and cook until the potatoes are very tender, about 10-15 minutes.
- Use an immersion blender to blend about half the soup. Alternatively, transfer about 2 cups to a blender to process. Add back to the pot.
- Mix together the cornstarch and water and stir into the soup, cooking for about 1-2 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in evaporated milk. Serve with reserved bacon and optional cheddar cheese, sour cream, or chives for gluten-free loaded baked potato soup.
best potatoes to use
When researching this recipe, I found many versions use Yukon gold potatoes or red bliss. While this works for traditional potato soup because they are thickened with wheat flour, it doesn’t work for a gluten-free recipe.
Russets have a high starch, lower moisture, meaning they absorb a lot of liquid as they cook. This causes them to break down and naturally thicken the soup.
If you would like to use other potatoes, I suggest using a combination with the russet potatoes. You may have to add slightly more cornstarch, depending on how thick you like your soup.
dairy-free modifications
To make gluten-free dairy-free potato soup, the butter and milk will have to be replaced with non-dairy substitutes. Use a vegan, plant based butter or olive oil in place of the butter.
For the evaporated milk, replace with a dairy-free milk of choice, such as almond milk. You may also use coconut milk for a creamier flavor, but it will add a slight coconut taste.
Topping ideas
Have the hankering for gluten-free baked potato soup or want to serve this as part of a loaded soup bar? Offer some of the suggestions below, many which can be used for Instant Pot Loaded Potato Soup.
If you are looking for what to serve with potato soup, try some of the suggested listed in gluten-free tomato soup recipe.
- Bacon
- Chives or green onions
- Sour cream
- Nutritional yeast
- Steamed broccoli florets
- Cheese – cheddar, parmesan, colby jack, or pepper jack
- Crushed gluten-free crackers (I love Simple Mill Almond Four Crackers)
storing, freezing, and rewarming
Store leftover soup, refrigerated, in an airtight container up to 5 days. To reheat, transfer to a saucepan and rewarm over gentle heat. If the soup is too thick upon reheating, add a splash of milk.
Freezing potato soup isn’t recommended because the potatoes will break down, become grainy, and lose its creamy consistency.
If you do wish to freeze the soup, the taste will be fine after thawing, but the texture will be off. To “save” the soup from an unappealing texture, use an immersion blender to puree back to smooth creaminess.
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more gluten-free soup recipes
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BEST Gluten-Free Potato Soup (Ultra Creamy)
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 celery diced
- 2 carrots diced
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2½ pounds russet potatoes peeled and diced in ¼" cubes
- 4 cups gluten-free chicken or vegetable broth
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 12 ounce can evaporated milk
- Optional toppings: grated cheese, chives, sour cream, bacon
Instructions
- Add the chopped bacon to a large saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the bacon is crisp, about 7-10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a paper-towel lined plate. Carefully tilt the pot, and you should have about 2 tablespoons grease left. Discard any extra.6 slices bacon
- To the bacon grease add the butter to melt. Add the onions, celery, and carrots. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer.2 tablespoons butter,1 small yellow onion,2 celery,2 carrots,3 cloves garlic
- Stir in the broth, potatoes, salt, onion powder, and pepper. Cover and increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.2½ pounds russet potatoes,4 cups gluten-free chicken or vegetable broth,1¼ teaspoon salt,½ teaspoon onion powder,¼ teaspoon pepper
- Partially remove cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the potatoes are very tender.
- Use an immersion blender to blend about half the soup. Alternatively, transfer about 2-3 cups to a blender and process until smooth. Add back to the pot.
- Mix together the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water. Stir into the soup, heat over medium heat, cooking and stirring for about 1-2 minutes, or until the soup has thickened. Stir in evaporated milk.2 tablespoons cornstarch,12 ounce can evaporated milk
- Serve with reserved cooked bacon and optional toppings, such as cheese, chives, or sour cream.
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Equipment Needed
Recipe Notes
DAIRY-FREE OPTION
To make dairy-free potato soup, the butter and milk will have to be replaced with non-dairy substitutes. Use a vegan, plant based butter or olive oil in place of the butter. For the evaporated, replace with a dairy-free milk of choice, such as almond milk.VEGAN / VEGETARIAN OPTION
Omit the bacon and replace the drippings with 2 tablespoons plant-based butter or olive oil. Replace the milk with any preferred dairy-free options.Nutrition
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Linda Lowry says
Just made this soup for the first time. Needed for map friendly so green scallion, no garlic. It’s delicious! Thanks so much! Just curious about the prep time…took me way more than 10 minutes but worth it!
Melissa Erdelac says
Hi Linda,
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Yes, I agree, if you count up all the chopping time, it probably is more than 10 minutes. In my mind I consider prep time as the amount needed before beginning the recipe, although this might be wrong? So, for this recipe I would start cooking the bacon and as it cooks, prep the veggies. Hope that makes sense!
Best,
Melissa
Marisa says
This was absolutely perfect and delicious! I have a slight dairy intolerance so I’m always looking for a hearty soup with minimal less heavy dairy ingredients. I’m not a fan of non dairy options so I just try to find minimal dairy ingredients. My whole family absolutely loved it! I threw in some kale in my soup, and my moms. YUM! Thank you for sharing!
Melissa Erdelac says
Love the idea of adding kale! Thanks for the idea, Marisa!
Best,
Melissa
Cynthia says
I made this for family today and they LOVED it! It makes a nice, creamy, comfort food style meal! I think next go round, I’m going to sneak some cauliflower in !
Melissa Erdelac says
That sounds like a great idea, Cynthia! Thank you so much for taking the time to write!
Best,
Melissa