Easy 5-Ingredient Potato Soup (Freezer-Friendly & Gluten-Free)

This easy 5-ingredient potato soup is the perfect recipe to have in the freezer this winter! It’s also gluten-free and delicious!

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I have been on a soup bender this week. Soup is a great way to use up your leftover garden produce, and is a super great brunch or lunch option. This leek, garlic, and potato soup is a great way to use up the last of your winter-stored potatoes that are getting floury.

This easy potato soup recipe is quick to whip up – it cooks in about 25 minutes, and it is very filling and very delicious. It freezes well, and one batch makes up about 6-8 portions.

To serve I like to add a blob of sour cream or a swish of cream, but the actual recipe itself has no dairy in it. Add a piece of buttery toast and I am a happy camper!

Reasons why this soup is so popular with us and our friends…

• With just a few ingredients, this is a really inexpensive meal that can be easily sized up to feed a crowd.
• This potato soup is quick to prepare, so it’s great for when you’re in a rush.
• The garlic adds an extra depth to the leek flavor and makes an already great dish absolutely fabulous.
• Because it’s made without flour, this potato soup recipe is naturally gluten-free.
• Because it’s made of stock instead of milk, this soup is dairy-free.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the thickener in potato soup?

Most soups use cornstarch and water to create a slurry, but we find the starch naturally occurring in the potatoes does the trick. We don’t add additional thickeners.

What’s the best kind of potato for soup?

Yellow or Yukon gold potatoes are the most versatile potatoes and work well in soups that will be blended. Russet potatoes are the best for naturally thickening soups because of their high starch levels. Having said that, I’ve used all types of potatoes we’ve grown on our homestead and all of them worked just fine.

What goes well with potato leek soup?

If you’re looking to make your soup a side dish, some popular entrees in our household include roast beef or ham sandwiches, baked chicken legs, spinach salad (I make a little extra bacon so we can top the salad as well), or homemade sloppy joes.

Leek, Garlic, and Potato Soup Instructions

Chop the leeks in half lengthways, then into thin slices. These leeks will offer a light onion flavor. If you prefer a stronger onion flavor, you can swap out the leeks for green onions. Wash the slices under running water in a colander or sieve to remove the dirt.

Cut the bacon into 1/4-inch pieces.

In a large pot over medium heat melt the fat (bacon grease works great) or oil. Once the fat has melted or the oil has heated up, add the leeks, bacon, and crushed garlic. Cook this down until wilted being sure to stir from time to time.

While they cook, chop the potatoes into 1-inch cubes. You can peel them if you like, but I tend to leave the skins on.

Add the potatoes, stock (you can use chicken broth if that is what you have on hand, but omit additional salt until the end), and water to the pot, along with about 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook until the potatoes are soft.

Either wiz with an immersion blender (I really like this immersion blender that is cordless and has a bunch of attachments) or mash with a potato masher until it has reached the texture you desire.

Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. Serve this creamy potato soup with a crusty roll, buttery toast, a blob of sour cream, unsweetened yogurt, or a sprinkling of cheddar cheese.

How to Freeze Your Soups

The information below works for most soups, so go ahead and make up a big batch on those chilly days and enjoy the leftovers for up to 6 months.

Portion Sizes for Freezing Soup

Soups can be frozen in family sized or in portion sizes. I personally prefer portion sizes because they thaw faster and people in the household can pick and choose which soup they want on those nights you don’t feel like making a big meal.

What Container to Freeze Soup In

Any airtight container, except glass, can be used.

I typically choose freezer Ziplock bags for freezing our soups, but they have some flaws. Although they take up very little space, it takes a bit of patience for the soup to thaw enough to be removed from the bag.

If you aren’t as patient, Ziplock has some neat little round containers that are freezer-safe. I haven’t used them for soup yet, but I have used them with our basil pesto. They work great!

Cool Your Soup Before Freezing to Prevent Freezer Burn

This is a two-step process that really should be observed for all freezing projects.

1. Let your soup cool to room temperature.
2. After reaching room temperature, put soup in the refrigerator until it cools down to 40°F or less.

This may seem excessive, but it goes a long way to preventing freezer burn down the line. You also don’t want to warm the other food in the freezer with the heat coming off the warm soup.

Another step when it comes to preventing freezer burns (and possible expansion explosions) is to leave 1/2″ headspace in your containers. This is less important with bags but is vital with plastic containers. A neat trick I learned storing my pesto in the freezer is to lay a piece of saran wrap over the pesto so it sits on the surface before applying the lid. It prevents oxidizing. That trick would work nicely with starchy soups, like this garlic potato soup, as well.

If you’re looking for more soups to use up your harvest or to warm you up from the inside out, might I recommend 2-for-1 Crockpot Beef Roast plus Bonus Bean Soup and The Best Winter Soup Recipes to Warm You Up?