This Smoky Chipotle Potato Cheese Soup is the perfect recipe to warm you up on chilly days. It’s thick & creamy with just a hint of spicy heat. It’s like queso you can eat with a spoon!!!
Potato Cheese Soup
I’ve seen more cross country skiers going down our street than cars today. Portland got hit with about a foot of snow last night and it was totally unexpected. It’s amazingly beautiful, fluffy, white snow and so much more appreciated that the sheets of ice that we typically get for our “snow days.” But, unfortunately, we are scheduled to fly out to Napa tomorrow morning for an extended weekend. Right now, I’m not so sure that our plane will take off.
But, for now, I’m just going to make the most of this beautiful and unexpected snow day – Starting with cooking up a batch of soup.
The grocery store is only a couple blocks away, but the snow currently comes up to my shins, and since we’re hopefully headed out tomorrow, I figured why not scour the fridge and put together a yummy Potato Cheese Soup using what we already have on hand – Potatoes, red onion, a bit of milk, some of my bone broth (which I always keep on hand), and a couple chipotles.
Do you ever cook with chipotles? Chipotle peppers are sold in small cans, packaged in a bit of adobo sauce. They’re smoky, with almost a barbeque sauce like essence, and they pack a good amount of heat.
I use them in lots of recipes that typically call for only one or two of the peppers. The small cans usually come with at least a dozen chipotles packed inside. I’ve found that they freeze wonderfully. Just pack the rest of the peppers and the adobo sauce into a small ziploc baggie and place it in the freezer. When you need a chipotle or two for a recipe, just let the baggie thaw in a bowl of warm water for 5-10 minutes.
It works perfectly and makes it easy to always have chipotles on hand. Try them in your stir frys, throw some of the adobo sauce into some scrambled eggs, or add some to your weekend Bloody Mary for a smoky twist. I love their flavor and I thought they would be perfect to give a kick to potato soup.
This potato soup turned out well seasoned, with the addition of some cumin, coriander and the smoky chipotles. But, it still needed a little something… Cheese. I had some extra sharp cheddar cheese on hand, so I threw that it there. It made it extra creamy and added a bit of tang. This would also be wonderful with some smoked cheddar, or even pepper jack cheese. Use whatever cheese you have on hand and put your own creative twist on things.
As a garnish, and to give this Potato Cheese Soup a hint of extra fresh flavor, I made a salsa of sorts using bit of red and yellow bell pepper, some fresh cilantro and a good squeeze of lime juice. Add a dollop of that to the top of your soup for a zesty, citrus kick that adds a nice bit of texture to the otherwise creamy soup. It was next level yummy.
Wine Pairings for Potato Cheese Soup:
- This potato cheese soup pairs well with a rich, brightly acidic white like a Pinot Gris.
- A dry Riesling, with its hint of sweetness and rich acidity, is another great match for this creamy, slightly spicy soup.
If you loved this Smoky Chipotle Potato Cheese Soup recipe I would appreciate it so much if you would give it a star review! Also, be sure to snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #platingsandpairings and tagging me @platingsandpairings.
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More Soup Recipes:
- Hungarian Mushroom Soup with Fresh Dill
- Instant Pot Cabbage Roll Soup
- Creamy Italian Quinoa Soup
- One Pot Lasagna Soup
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Potato Recipes:
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes with Sour Cream
- Grilled Potato Salad with Tangy Mustard Dressing
- Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Mojo Sauce + VIDEO
- Instant Pot Baked Potatoes (with Crispy Skins) + VIDEO
- Potato Vindaloo
- Healthy Potato Leek Soup
What to Serve with Potato Soup
- Arugula Salad
- Baked Chicken Legs
- Radicchio Salad
- Pretzel Bites
- More → 25+ BEST Sides for Potato Soup
Potato Cheese Soup Recipe
Smoky Chipotle Potato Cheese Soup
Ingredients
- 2 pounds russet potatoes (peeled and quartered)
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion (chopped (reserve 1 Tbsp for garnish))
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 4 cups bone broth (vegetable stock or low-sodium chicken stock)
- 1 cup milk
- 2 canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 cup grated sharp cheese
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
Garnish:
- 1/2 red bell pepper (seeded and diced)
- 1/2 yellow bell pepper (seeded and diced)
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro (chopped)
- 1 Tablespoon chopped red onion
- 1 lime (juiced)
Instructions
- Add potatoes to a large pot and add enough water to cover. Add a pinch of salt to the pot and bring to a boil. Cook potatoes 20 minutes, until easily pierced with a fork. Drain.
- While the potatoes are cooking, heat olive oil in a dutch oven or large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until the onions have softened, about 5 minutes. To the pot add the chicken stock, milk, chipotle peppers, cumin, coriander and the cooked potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer 10 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a blender (or use an immersion blender), add the cheese, and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl mix together the bell peppers, cilantro and red onion. Add lime juice and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with a dollop of the pepper mixture.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally published in January 2017. It was updated in December 2019 to add new photos and an instructional video. The original recipe remains the same. Enjoy!
Yummm! You are so on top of it, what a gorgeous recipe and productive use of the snow day!! :O I hope you make it out to Napa safely!
I have bought those chipotle peppers in adobo sauce before and used a couple and left the can in my fridge for ages not knowing what to do with it. Brilliant about freezing! I will try that next time!
Thank you Suzannah – Fingers crossed! Right now we’re still on schedule to fly out today 🙂
Since there are 10 in the can and you can freeze them, my I suggest freeze them With sauce in ice cube trays . Then put them in Ziploc bag. You can pick out one cube or two cubes or however many chilis you need and not need to defrost an entire bag. I beat up eggs and I put the eggs in an ice cube tray. And freeze them so I can take out one or two or three cubes when a cake recipe or cookies call for an egg or two eggs. .
What a great idea!
This soup is so perfect for the weather! If I could get to the grocery store- I’d certainly make this. We are trying a butternut squash soup- because we have it on hand. Thanks for sharing- def saving this one!!
I love potato soup, and it’s fun to buck tradition every so often with a different take on a classic!
I love soup and could eat it every day. This looks so delicious. I love cooking with chipotle! I love the garnish you used too. I want to stick my face right in it! Yum.
Thanks Elaine!
I cannot find the chipotle chilies in adobo sauce. Looked in the Mexican shelves in many stores. Any suggestions? I’m in Ont.
Want to make this soup…looks so good and of course, all your reciipes are.
Warmest regards.
Gail
Hi Gail – That’s such a bummer. Unfortunately, there is not really a substitute for the canned chipotles in adobo sauce. They’re smoky, and the sauce is almost BBQ like… Perhaps you can try ordering online?
I make my own chipotle in adobe. You just have to find chipotle peppers which are jalapeno peppers that had been smoked for 2 fays than dried… You can find the recipe How to make it in adobe sauce usually on the pepper packaging or on the internet. I usually put he finished product in several small jars and store in the freezer for future use.
Rich and satisfying with just the right amount of heat. Mine turned out to be not the most appetizing shade of wallpaper paste beige instead of the golden orange color of the soup in the picture, but it tasted great. Will definitely make again.
I’m glad you enjoyed the soup Ellen, even if the color wasn’t quite the same 🙂
That sounds wonderful! I love the smoky flavor of chipotle, and adding that kick to a cheesy creamy potato soup is perfect!
Thanks so much Anne! I enjoyed this soup and hope you will too!
This looks really delicious! Your pictures are gorgeous…,they make me want to start cooking this right now! Yum!
Thank you Maria!
Very good recipe. I did reduce the chipotle pepper to just one as I just cant do the heat. The pepper mixture on top was also good and made it look very pretty. I also served with sour cream for those who wanted and it was good with the condiment also.
I love your addition of sour cream Nancy – I’m sure that it made this soup even more delicious!
Just made this for dinner, delicious! Added an extra chipotle pepper and about a tablespoon of adobo sauce, and doubled the cheese because why not. Mine also is a not so appealing shade of beige, but the flavor more than makes up for it.
Would this freeze well?
Just made it tonight and it’s great, but with just the two of us we can’t eat it all. Wondering if you think it’d hold up well in the freezer.
Hi Gretchen – You can definitely freeze this soup. It should last about 3 months.