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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Comments
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I have made this soup twice, it’s a great recipe, plus it is so simple to make. Thank you for sharing!
Hi there, I’m wondering if you take out the bay leaves and thyme before blending? I’m going to try this soup out this week. Thank you 🙂
Yes Nat, you take both out before blending. Enjoy!
I made this soup for dinner tonight and the whole family loved it, including our kids (ages 5-9)! I didn’t have a sprig of fresh thyme, so I put in ~2 tsp dried thyme leaves. I used salted butter for sauteing the vegetables, and chicken bullion for my stock base, so I reduced the salt to 1/4 tsp. And I used 1% milk instead of the cream. It turned out delicious!
Can this potato/leek soup be frozen?
Sure Dolores, the soup can be frozen; just add the heavy cream when you’re reheating the soup. Hope you enjoy it!
Awesome for a cold rainy spring day in Santa Fe! I added some fresh celery leaves and used herbs de Provence, a pinch of rosemary, and a pinch of sage. I substituted 1/2 cup of milk mixed with 1/2 cup of half &half instead of heavy cream and it was just as tasty and a little lighter. My family of four kept eating until it was all gone!
This soup is absolutely delicious. I actually think it tastes better on the second day once all the ingredients get time to meld together. I like to add a pinch of crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese to the top. Yum! I have frozen this soup with the heavy cream in single batches. I find you just need to whisk the soup when reheating and it all comes back together. I will be making this for years to come.
Thanks for the info, Sandy D. I added the cream in accordance with the recipe. I now have a giant vat of soup with no possible way to eat it all. I’m relieved to know that I can freeze it even with the cream added in. This soup was the perfect vehicle for all the leeks I’ve gotten in my CSA share. At the suggestion of my boyfriend, I added bacon and some cheddar cheese. Really delicious.
Excellent potato soup. I used non-fat half and half instead of heavy cream. I think the Yukon potatoes are the very best to use in this recipe. Delicious!
This recipe turned out great, and I already had a great potato leek soup recipe that I was hesitant to deviate from today. I used a teaspoon of dried thyme in an infuser ball since I didn’t have fresh. I also used half and half because it’s hard to find cream without carrageenan in my area. I simmered for at least 30 minutes after adding half and half. It seemed to really help the flavor in addition to thickening the soup.
Can you freeze this soup?
Yes, this soup can be frozen, but add the heavy cream when you’re reheating the soup. Enjoy!
My French friend came to stay with me for a couple of weeks; this is only thing he ever requested more of next meal! haha