Potato Leek Soup
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Cozy up with this comforting potato leek soup, a classic French dish that’s easy to make and endlessly customizable.
Potato leek soup, or potage parmentier, is a French classic. It’s one of the first dishes I learned to make in culinary school, right after a proper omelette and basic vinaigrette, because it’s an essential base soup in French cuisine. You can add watercress to make potage au cresson, serve it chilled as Vichyssoise, or top it with bacon, fried leeks, fresh herbs, or diced vegetables. There are endless variations—just use your imagination (or whatever you have in the kitchen) to make it your own. This potato leek soup recipe is simple to whip up and can be served as an appetizer, paired with a Reuben sandwich or wedge salad, or enjoyed as a satisfying lunch on its own.
What You’ll Need To Make Potato Leek Soup
Step-by-Step Instructions
Potato leek soup is simple to make, but first you have to deal with the leeks. They’re notoriously sandy and dirty, and very good at hiding it, so be sure to wash them well. Start by cutting off and discarding the root ends and thick dark green parts. Cut the leeks in half lengthwise and rinse each half under cold water, pulling apart the layers to remove any grit that’s tucked inside.
Once the leeks are clean, roughly chop them — you should get about five cups of chopped leeks from four large leeks.
To make the soup, melt the butter in a Dutch oven or large soup pot, then add the chopped leeks and garlic.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and wilted.
Next, add the potatoes, chicken broth, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil.
Then cover, reduce the heat, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
Fish out the bay leaves and thyme sprigs.
Purée the soup with a hand-held immersion blender (or in a regular blender) until smooth. (If using a standard blender, be sure not to fill the jar more than halfway; leave the hole in the lid open and cover loosely with a dishtowel to allow the heat to escape.)
Finally, add the heavy cream. You can reduce the amount if you’d like but I wouldn’t leave it out entirely. Cream makes the soup deliciously silky, rich, and smooth—just add it little by little until the soup tastes good to you.
Bring to a simmer, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve hot, garnished with fresh thyme, chives, or anything you like.
Video Tutorial
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Potato Leek Soup
Cozy up with this comforting potato leek soup, a classic French dish that’s easy to make and endlessly customizable.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large leeks, white and light green parts only, roughly chopped (about 5 cups)
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped into ½-inch pieces
- 7 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Chives, finely chopped, for serving
Instructions
- Melt the butter over medium heat in a large soup pot. Add the leeks and garlic and cook, stirring regularly, until soft and wilted, about 10 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary so as not to brown.
- Add the potatoes, broth, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper to pot and bring to a boil. Cover and turn the heat down to low. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are very soft.
- Fish out the thyme sprig and bay leaves, then purée the soup with a hand-held immersion blender until smooth. (Alternatively, use a standard blender to purée the soup in batches; see note.) Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. If soup is too thin, simmer until thickened. If it's too thick, add water or stock to thin it out. Garnish with fresh herbs if desired.
- Note: If using a standard blender to purée the soup: be sure not to fill the jar more than halfway; leave the hole in the lid open and cover loosely with a dishtowel to allow the heat to escape; and pour blended soup into a clean pot.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The soup can be frozen, without the cream, for up to 3 months. Defrost the soup in the refrigerator for 12 hours and then reheat it on the stovetop over medium heat until hot. Once heated through, add the cream and bring to a simmer before serving.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Serving size: about 1-1/2 cups
- Calories: 454
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated fat: 14 g
- Carbohydrates: 49 g
- Sugar: 10 g
- Fiber: 5 g
- Protein: 12 g
- Sodium: 828 mg
- Cholesterol: 78 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Has anyone tried adding cheese? What kind would you recommend?
I love potato leek soup with sharp cheddar and ciabatta 🙂
Followed the recipe, substituting 1 can of organic unsweetened coconut milk and adding some chopped carrots, cauliflower & a sprig of fresh rosemary. Absolutely delicious! It does not taste like coconut at all, the herbs took care of that. I used my immersion blender but also left some chunks the way I like it. This is such a hearty, filling soup that would be great for breakfast, lunch or dinner! I wasn’t sure how it would turn out so I didn’t plan to serve it with anything else, but next time, for dinner, I’ll serve it with a spinach, bacon w/ warm vinaigrette salad.
Absolutely delish! I recommend adding a handful of chopped carrots 🙂
👍
Noor???? As in my favorite youtube gal?
Don’t worry if you don’t have any cream, this soup is delicious even without it. I have made it several times and it really hits the spot in this cold weather. Thank you for a yummy recipe.
This is on my regular meal rotation. I usually add more leeks, potatoes and stock so both my husband and I have enough for the week. I buy russet potatoes and I don’t peel them. Super easy and tastes amazing every time.
Amazing soup!! My fiancé and I devoured it. I added a sprig of rosemary to the pot. Garnished with parsley & a few crispy shallots & potato’s – (fried them up in a separate pan). I will be making this again for my entire family. Thank you!
Delicious!!!! My husband and I loved it and made exactly as written except for the salt. only added 1/4 teaspoon instead of 1 teaspoon. We generally like less salt and we were very pleased with your recipe and will definitely make again. Thanks for sharing your recipe and looking forward to checking out your website in the future.
I love this soup so much exactly as written. However, I recently developed a dairy sensitivity so would need to substitute the heavy cream… Do you have any suggestions? I have used coconut whipping cream in other recipes which is good texture wise, but not really the flavour I want for this soup. I can try oat milk, since that is what I have on hand.
Hi Carly, So glad you like the soup! You can use oat milk, but try the soup first as you may like the way it tastes already. 🙂
Blending silken tofu with water makes an excellent cream substitute. I use nori-mu silken tofu as it comes ina tetra pack so it is always on hand in the pantry and doesn’t go bad.
Amazing soup, and will be making it again! (I added a chilli which gave it a bit of a kick)
Made this last weekend exactly as written. Would have made more, as usually make a double batch when I’m making soup, but was unsure as never made potato leek soup before and did not want to waste time and ingredients in case it wasn’t a “keeper”. Turned out great. Everyone loved it… Making again this weekend, but this time a double batch! Thanks for the recipe!