Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I’m sure I’ve said this before on this site, but potatoes are my favorite, favorite, favorite food. Fries? Yes. Twice baked? Yesss. Mashed? Baked? Tots? Hashbrowns? Anyway. You get it. ;) This soup has all the amazing flavors of a baked potato, but in a simple soup form. The texture can be what you want it to be, but I like mine to have some bites of potato amidst the backdrop of smooth, creamy soup.

Top it with sharp cheddar, chives and bacon and you’re all set. One thing to keep in mind when you make this is that potatoes are tremendously bland on their own. They need a lot of salt to wake them up. Add some salt, stir, taste, and go from there. Remember that you can’t remove salt once you add it, but you also need to reach that magical point where the salt lifts up all the flavors of your meal. It’ll go from meh to amazing once you hit the perfect amount! This amount will feed a crowd. Enjoy!

LOADED BAKED POTATO SOUP:
INGREDIENTS:
- 6 strips thick cut bacon, diced
- 1/2 white onion, diced
- 3 T butter
- 3 T flour
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 3 cups milk
- 5 russet potatoes chopped in large chunks
- 1/4-1/2 t cayenne pepper
- 1/2 T garlic powder
- 2 t salt may need more!
- 1 t pepper
- 3/4 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese, separated
- 3 chives, finely diced
- diced scallions, optional
- sour cream for toppings

DIRECTIONS:
1.) Heat your Instant Pot on sauté mode. Dice bacon into 1/2-1” pieces, and drop onto base of pot. Stir and cook until browned.
2.) Remove bacon and set aside. Remove majority of grease, saving 1 T in pan. Add diced onion to pot. Cook until translucent.
3.) Hit “Cancel" and add butter to pan. Once melted, add flour. Stir to create a roux. Cook together for a minute or more, then drizzle in 1 cup of chicken broth.
Slowly combine until the mixture gets nice and thick. Slowly add remaining 2 cups of broth, stirring constantly to create a congruent mixture.
4.) Add milk, potatoes (peeled and diced into large chunks), cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
5.) Add lid to Instant Pot, and cook on Manual mode for 11 minutes.
6.) Let soup natural release for 5 minutes, then quick release and remove lid. Stir in 1/2 cup of grated sharp cheddar cheese.
Using a potato masher, break down the potato bites until you reach desired consistency. I like a mainly smooth soup, with some bites of whole potato throughout.
7.) Sprinkle in half of chives and bacon bits, leaving remaining amounts for toppings.
8.) Taste! Add salt and pepper as necessary. Top individual bowls with scallions, chives, bacon, cheese and sour cream. Enjoy!