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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My potato leek soup turned out super good, i didn’t add heavy cream and I used 1/2 cup of plain yogurt. thanks
I’m not a soup fan but dang! This soup is one that I will be making SUPER often. Definitely one of my favs ever! It took just over an hour to make and was super easy. Creamy, rich, and delicious.
I loved this! I am in Maryland I used this a side soup for sauteed garlic butter & leek shrimp. I added 3tsp old bay seasoning to the soup (more to taste if you like). I used Kosher salt in the recipe (carefully of course), and fresh ground multicolor peppercorns.
Very good recipe. I did not puree it, b/c i wanted to see the leek, and used soy milk instead of cream, but the flavor was just right. Was trying to approximate the Cream of Leak soup of my childhood, which, no doubt, came out of a packet.
Did not have enough potato so made a roux…I also prefer red potato for this kind of soup.
I also used white pepper instead…Thanks
I also used fresh chicken necks and backs which i cooked separately and then used for the broth.
Was tired of this Lentil soup which I have had a lot
lately:https://bodymindwellnesscenter.com/vegan-turkish-lentil-soup/
This soup is ELEGANT! I made it this afternoon to serve with dinner, but we decided to “have just a taste”, and two bowls later….. I guess we’ll have it as an appetizer tonight. It’s delicious AND easy to make, which is the perfect combination for a recipe. Thanks for sharing this!
Can I tell you how happy I found this recipe? it was most delicious. And can I tell how much I enjoy browsing through this web site? It IS the BEST food site I have ever visited. Jenn Segal has perfected the perfect blog. I love the fact that I can move right to the recipe and bypass further instructions. I have been cooking for 40 yrs and the fact that I don’t have to wallow through the basics or photos is brilliant! And, you can choose between metric or Imperial measures. I only just stumbled upon your site as it was all about Potato Leek soup tonight. I wish you loads of success and know I will be using your recipes for years to come.
Thanks for your very sweet words ❤️ (and glad to hear you enjoyed the soup)!
Can u make this soup without the cream?
Yes, it will still be delicious!
also works great with vegetable stock and without cream to make it vegan! thanks, I loved it!
We use coconut milk or cream to keep it vegan AND get super creamy! (It’s very good without, too!)
Awesome! My whole family loved this soup. I was out of bone broth but made veggie stock from frozen scraps instead and still loved the soup. What shocked me is how filling this soup is. We only ate the leek soup for dinner and everyone was full with no snackie feelings later. I topped each bowl with a small spot of Kerry Gold butter and enjoyed the depth it added.
I garnished this fabulous soup with fried leeks and fried prosciutto twists. Fabulous.
Absolutely beautiful, very delicate flavour and such an old fashioned taste. Would I make this again , most definitely.