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Flavorful and deeply comforting, this Potato Leek Soup is a must-make during soup season! It’s creamy (without any cream added) and made simply with just a few ingredients. This hearty soup is gluten-free and optionally made dairy-free!
Easy Potato Leek Soup Recipe
Is there anything better on a cold, chilly winter night than a big bowl of warm and comforting soup? This Potato Leek Soup is so creamy and totally satisfying. Using simple wholesome ingredients paired thoughtfully together, and a few cooking classic cooking techniques, this deeply savory soup is going to be loved by everyone!
Ingredients Needed
- Yukon Gold Potatoes
- Leeks
- Butter or Ghee
- Olive oil
- Shallots
- Garlic
- Dijon mustard
- Salt + Pepper
- Bay Leaves
- Veggie Stock or Chicken Stock
- Garnishes (see below for options!)
For Vegan / Dairy-Free:
Use ghee for a fully dairy-free soup, or swap it out with olive oil for a vegan soup. And of course, use veggie stock.
Best Type of Potato to Use
A “creamy” potato is the best type of potato for potato leek soup. Look for yellow potatoes labeled as Yukon Gold, or sometimes they can just be labeled as creamer potatoes.
Russett potatoes would be an alternative choice if you can’t find Yukon Gold potatoes. Avoid the use of red potatoes in this soup as they’re a bit too waxy.
How to Wash Leeks
Leeks can be notoriously dirty. It’s important to clean them well before using them. To clean leeks:
- Cut off the hard and dark green parts of the leeks off and discard. Cut off the bottom of the leek and then slice the leek in halve. Take that halve and slice it into 1/4″ pieces.
- Fill a large bowl with cool water.
- Submerge the leek pieces and swish around for 10 seconds.
- Let the leeks sit for 1 minute in the cool water to let any grit sink to the bottom of the bowl.
- Without agitating the water too much, quickly pick up the leeks directly out of the water, leaving behind any sand or dirt.
- Empty the water and rinse out the bowl and repeat this until step until the water is clear after you remove the leeks.
How to Make Potato Leek Soup
While this soup feels creamy, there is absolutely no cream or dairy-free cream replacements in here. Instead, this soup relies on some good cooking techniques, and the potatoes to get that creamy feel.
To start, cook down some shallots, garlic and leeks and with a combination of butter and oil. If you are making this totally dairy-free, obviously omit the butter or use ghee. Cook down the leeks until they are softened and aromatic.
Next, add in the remaining ingredients and cook until the potatoes are tender. Once they’re tender it’s time to puree the soup! I recommend using a stand blender, instead of an immersion blender for the creamiest feel. I’ve found the immersion blender didn’t do as good of a job of pureeing the stringy leeks as much as my stand blender did.
Now it’s time to taste and adjust the seasoning.
Toppings to Add
Sometimes with pureed soups, it’s all about the added toppings! You can go minimal like we’ve done here by adding in a simple almond milk yogurt swirl and some herbs, or you can go big and add on some crispy bacon pieces, croutons, or hot sauce. Think of a topping that might go well with a baked potato, and that would be a great choice to add on here.
Instant Pot Option
We’ve included instructions in the recipe for cooking this on the stove top and on the Instant Pot. Full disclosure, they take just about the same amount of time to make, so it’s really a matter of which method you want to use to make it!
How to Freeze and Reheat Soup
Let the soup fully cool down before transferring to a freezer-safe container. You can freeze in storage containers, mason jars or even freezer-safe plastic bags. The soup can be frozen for up to 6 months.
The best way to reheat is to let it defrost overnight in the refrigerator and then reheat in a pot on the stove.
If you don’t have time to fully defrost it overnight, you can place the container in a bowl of warm water until the soup can easily pop out of the container. Once you are able to get it out, place the soup in a pot with about 1/4 to 1/2 cup water. Cover the pot and cook over medium to medium-low while stirring semi-frequently. Bring the contents up to a boil to make sure it’s fully reheated.
If you like this soup recipe, check out these others:
Potato Leek Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter or ghee
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 shallots sliced thin
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 lb. leeks cleaned well (see note), diced
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1-1/2 lb. yukon gold potatoes cleaned, peeled and diced
- 1-½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 bay leaves
- 4-6 cups veggie stock or chicken stock
- Greek yogurt dairy-free if needed, for serving
- Scallions thinly sliced, for garnish
- Thyme leaves for garnish
Instructions
To Make on the Stove:
- Heat butter and oil over medium heat, add shallots and garlic, cook until softened about 3-5 minutes.
- Add leeks and cook until fully sweated down, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add mustard, potatoes, salt, pepper, bay leaves and 4 cups of veggie stock and bring up to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer, until potatoes and leeks are fully tender, about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove bay leaves. In batches if necessary, carefully puree the soup in a blender. Return to the pot and add up to 2 cups of additional stock, to get your desired consistency. Turn the heat to medium-high and bring back up to a boil. Shut off the heat.
- Taste, and adjust seasoning.
- Serve with warm with a splash of greek yogurt, herbs, and an extra pinch of black pepper.
For Instant Pot:
- Press the saute function in a 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot. Add butter and oil. Once heated, add shallots and garlic, cook until softened about 3 minutes.
- Add leeks and cook until starting to sweat down about 5 minutes. Shut off saute function.
- Add potatoes, salt, pepper, bay leaves and 4 cups of veggie stock and scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pot. Close the lid, set the pressure valve to sealing. Cook on manual high pressure for 10 minutes. Let the pressure naturally release for 5 minutes, then turn the know to quick-release to release any remaining pressure.
- Remove bay leaves. In batches if necessary, carefully puree the soup in a blender. Return the soup to the Instant Pot and add up to 2 cups of additional stock, to get your desired consistency. If adding in any additional stock, turn the Instant Pot on to saute and bring the soup back up to a boil before serving.
- Taste, and adjust seasoning.
- Serve with warm with a splash of greek yogurt, herbs, and an extra pinch of black pepper.
So good! I love the hint of mustard .
Could this also work with sweet potatoes?
It can but it will change the flavor signicantly.
It’s amazing how these simple ingredients come together so beautifully! Lexi’s recipes never disappoint! ❤
Thank you for your kind words!