Mashed Potato Soup is an excellent way to use up leftover mashed potatoes! This creamy and delicious potato soup is quick to prepare because to the mashed potatoes, and it's ready to enjoy in 30 minutes. Put those leftovers to good use by preparing another dinner.
I prepare this soup every time I make my Mashed Potato Cakes (Potato Patties) or these Super Creamy Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes for meals or holidays.
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Mashed Potato Soup Recipe
This recipe for potato soup is ideal because I often have leftover mashed potatoes from holiday dinners or get-togethers! Make this incredibly creamy, thick, smooth, and cheesy potato soup with your leftover mashed potatoes.
When leftovers can be used to prepare a whole meal, there's no reason to throw them out. Like everyone else, I'm a huge fan of leftovers, but sometimes you want to do something more with them than just reheat them.
With leftover mashed potatoes and a few other simple ingredients, this soup is incredibly easy to prepare. In about half an hour, ready for dinner!
Ingredients Needed
This basic dish calls for only a few ingredients. Here are the major items you'll need:
- Butter - You can use unsalted or salted butter. I prefer salted butter and kosher salt. If using unsalted butter, you may need to add more salt. Wait until the end and try it to see.
- All Purpose Flour
- Whole Milk - I strongly recommend using just whole milk. You don't want something with a high fat content because the soup will be too thick, and you don't want something low fat since the soup will be too thin.
- veggie or Chicken Broth - For a vegetarian option, choose veggie broth. Either can be used in this recipe with excellent results. When I make it, I use veggie broth, as this is how the recipe was tested.
- Leftover Mashed Potatoes - For this soup, you'll need 4 cups mashed potatoes.
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese - The recipe was designed and tested with medium cheddar cheese.
- Kosher Salt - You can use any salt, such as sea salt or table salt, but use less if using a different type. Begin with half the quantity and progress from there.
- Black Pepper
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese, Sliced Green Onions, Smoked Turkey, and Sour Cream - Garnishes that improve any dish of potato soup.
How to Make Mashed Potato Soup with Leftovers
Discover how to prepare this simple recipe for potato soup. To find a printable recipe card, a pin it button to save it for later, and a comprehensive recipe card with all the ingredients and instructions to make it at home, be sure to go all the way to the bottom of the post.
- Roux: In a large pot over medium-low heat, melt the butter. After it has melted, gradually add the flour while whisking continuously to create a thick paste-like consistency. This shouldn't take too long. less than half an hour. Add the whole milk right away, stirring often to avoid scorching, and heat until thickened.
- Add the veggie broth to the mashed potatoes and stir to incorporate. Add the mashed potatoes, 1 cup of the cheese, kosher salt, and ground pepper after bringing to a simmer, or a gentle boil. Mix to blend.
- Serve: When the soup is thick and thoroughly heated, and the cheese has melted, it is ready. Serve with chopped green onions, sour cream, smoked turkey, and shredded cheddar cheese.
Leftover Mashed Potato Soup FAQ’s
Any leftover mashed potato soup can be kept for up to three days in an airtight container.
You might wish to thin it out with more milk or broth while reheating. As the soup rests in the refrigerator, it will thicken.
This soup can be frozen for up to two months in a Ziploc bag or freezer-safe container if desired.
I don't freeze this soup because I particularly dislike freezing dairy goods. The dairy has a tendency to separate as it thaws.
You may either put the frozen soup in the slow cooker and cook it on LOW heat until it's well heated, or you can thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
When reheating frozen leftovers, you will want to add more milk or broth.
Vegetable Broth: If you want, you can try using vegetable stock or chicken stock in place of the chicken broth. I do advise sticking to the low-sodium broth that the recipe calls for. However, you can use full-salt broth if you'd like.
Kosher Salt: Rather than merely making food taste salty, kosher salt enriches its flavors, which is why I adore using it. Use any salt you desire, such as table salt or sea salt, but use less if you're using a different type for this soup.
Smoked Turkey: Use smoked chicken instead of smoked turkey.
Cheese: Cheddar cheese works best. Although mild or sharp cheddar cheese can be used, I personally like medium cheddar.
Recipe Tips
- Tips for Roux: A roux is what gives a soup its rich, creamy consistency. It can be difficult to make a roux if you have never done it before. When preparing it for this recipe, here are some of my suggestions. The thick paste-like substance known as roux is produced when flour is whisked into melted butter. The secret to making this is to gradually add the flour while whisking continuously. Add the milk right away and mix until thoroughly blended once it is thick, smooth, and whitish in color.
- Cheddar Cheese: To enhance the flavor of the mashed potatoes, I use medium cheddar cheese in my potato soup. If you'd like, you can also use sharp or mild cheddar cheese. Instead of using shredded cheese from a bag, I strongly suggest grating cheese from a block. Compared to powder-coated shredded cheese, which keeps the cheese from clumping inside the bag, freshly grated cheese melts much more smoothly and blends in more easily.
- Garnishes: Smoked turkey, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, and green onions make potato soup even nicer. You can use pieces of smoked turkey, roast smoked turkey and slice it up, or use smoked turkey that cooks rapidly in the microwave.
- The finest milk to use for this recipe is whole milk. This makes the soup rich and creamy while also aiding in its thinning. A lower-fat milk will thin the soup, therefore I don't advise using it.
- The main ingredient in this soup is the mashed potatoes! Save the leftovers from your favorite mashed potatoes for this soup for a later meal. You could use instant mashed potatoes (the dry potato flakes in a bag), but this could add salt to the soup, so be careful about how much salt you apply and perhaps wait until you taste the soup.
If you tried this Leftover Mashed Potato Soup or any other recipe on my website, please feel free to leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. And remember to tag me on Instagram!
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Recipe
Leftover Mashed Potato Soup
INGREDIENTS
- 5 tablespoons butter
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups whole milk
- 4 ½ cups vegetable broth
- 5 cups leftover mashed potatoes
- 2 ⅓ cup shredded medium cheddar cheese
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon black pepper or more to taste
Garnishes for Serving
- sour cream shredded cheddar cheese, smoked turkey, sliced green onion
INSTRUCTIONS
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-low heat. After it has melted, gradually add the flour while whisking continuously to create a thick paste. Continuous whisking for less than 30 seconds should do this. You do not wish to set it on fire. Simply stir until well incorporated and a thick paste forms. Before beginning the recipe, make sure the flour is measured out and ready to use. The milk should also be measured and prepared for pouring.
- After adding the full milk, mix everything together. Simmer for approximately five minutes, whisking often, until it thickens.
- Bring the soup pot to a simmer, or a gentle boil around the rims, after adding the veggie broth.
- * If necessary, increase the heat to medium to bring the broth and soup to a simmer, or a gentle boil. Keep a close eye on it and whisk often to prevent the milk from scorching.
- Add the black pepper, kosher salt, mashed potatoes, and shredded cheddar cheese. Stir to melt the cheese and mix everything together.
- When the soup has thickened and the cheese has completely melted, it is ready to serve. Serve with sliced green onions, sour cream, more shredded cheese, and chopped smoked turkey.
NOTES
- Serving Size: There are eight servings of this soup, each containing one cup of soup. There are no garnishes included in the nutrition information.
- Butter: I use salted butter, but you may also use unsalted butter.
- Cheese: Medium cheddar cheese was used in the creation and testing of the recipe. If desired, you can use either mild or sharp cheddar cheese in its place. For this soup, I strongly suggest grating cheese from a block. Compared to the bagged shredded kind, it tastes better, melts more smoothly, and is creamier.
- Salt: The flavor of this soup may vary depending on how seasoned the leftover mashed potatoes were initially. I would add as little salt as possible (½ teaspoon) at first, then taste the soup at the end and add more if needed. The soup may taste too salty or too salty depending on the brand of broth you choose. When I prepare this recipe, I use standard vegetable broth, salted butter, and the ½ teaspoon of kosher salt that the recipe calls for. As necessary, adjust the salt. Start with ¼ teaspoon of table salt or sea salt and work your way up.
- Vegetable Broth: Vegetable broth has been used to test and develop recipes. If desired, you can use chicken broth.
- Mashed Potatoes: You may use instant mashed potatoes (dried potato flakes that you add water to) in place of the leftover mashed potatoes, which is what I suggest using in this soup. Just taste the soup after adding the instant potatoes to see whether you need to add salt or not.
- Thinner Soup: If you want a thinner soup, feel free to add extra milk or broth. If you want a thinner soup, you can also use 2% milk, however I don't advise it.
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