This Potato Leek Soup recipe is delicious, home-style comfort food at its finest – with a healthy twist! It’s easy to make in your slow cooker and it makes a quick weeknight meal or lunch.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
This Leek and Potato Soup – a delicious and comforting slow cooker meal that our family just can’t live without! Coming in from the cold and warming ourselves up with this hearty bowl of soup is perfection.
We love making recipes in our slow cooker. We’ve already shared several of our favourite slow cooker recipes with you, like this Healthier 3-Ingredient Crock Pot Hot Chocolate recipe, or our favourite Crock Pot Vegetarian Chili recipe, and so we knew that we had to share this Crock Pot Potato Leek Soup recipe with you too!
This timeless leek and potato soup is made from the simplest ingredients. For the best flavour it is important to use fresh and good quality ingredients.
- Ripe Potatoes- Most often Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes are used for soups because they give a good hearty texture and flavour. Feel free to try different potatoes to find your desired texture.
- Fresh Leeks- make sure to wash them thoroughly to get all the dirt off. Then cut off the root ends and the dark green tops. Slice the remaining white and green parts.
- Bacon- pick good quality bacon to cook and crumble.
If you know us at all you’ll probably know we are not the biggest fan of creamy soups – we find them so heavy, especially when they’re made with full-fat cream, so we like to make ours with milk or even coconut milk. This Leek and Potato Soup is ultra creamy thanks to the potatoes and a little bit of whole milk added in at the end. We’ve actually used low-fat coconut milk in this soup before as well as soy milk and they both work very well to make this soup dairy-free! And feel free to add some shredded cheese to the top if you’d like for some extra sharp flavour!
A slow cooker is needed to make this soup and there are several kinds to choose from. Here are some helpful tips to decide which one is right for your family.
1. Size: Slow cookers come in a variety of sizes, typically measured in quarts. Consider the number of servings you’ll need to feed your family and the space available in your kitchen to store it. A 6-quart slow cooker is a sufficient option for most households, but if you have a larger family consider an 8-quart slow cooker.
2. Programmable or Manual: Programmable models offer the flexibility to set cooking times and switch to “Keep Warm” mode automatically. Manual slow cookers require manual intervention to turn off the heat. If you work from home and can monitor the slow cooker throughout the day, a manual one would work just fine. If you’re away from home, a programmable slow cooker is a better option.
4. Other Features: Some slow cookers come with additional features like sauté functions, browning capabilities, digital timers, or are multi-cookers that also work as a pressure cooker or air fryer. These can be a valuable addition to your kitchen if you are short on space and need one gadget that can serve many purposes.
Here’s a list of some slow cookers we recommend (paid links):
- Our favourite tried and true programmable Crock Pot Slow Cooker (8 quart)
- Our favourite manual Crock Pot Slow Cooker – a very economical option (7 quart)
- Our trusty pressure cooker & slow cooker Instant Pot Rio (7 quart)
- Our favourite small Crock Pot slow cooker, great for cooking for two (2.5 quart)
You will also need these items on hand to make this Leek Potato Soup recipe (paid links):
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You’ll need these ingredients to make this Leek and Potato Soup recipe (paid links):
- 3 large potatoes peeled and chopped
- 2 medium leeks washed well and sliced
- 200 grams sliced bacon cooked and crumbled
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- black pepper to taste
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- crumbled bacon optional (for garnish)
- chopped fresh parsley optional (for garnish)
- Make it Vegetarian – swap out the chicken broth for vegetable broth and leave out the bacon. Feel free to add in more vegetables like carrots, celery or spinach.
- Chowder- add in corn to the slow cooker and shredded cheddar cheese right before serving.
- Protein- Add in cooked ham to the slow cooker.
- Baked Potato version- in addition to the bacon bits add chopped green onions, sour cream and shredded cheese.
Time needed: 6 hours and 30 minutes
Follow these simple steps to make this leek and potato soup in your slow cooker.
- Add ingredients.
Add in the chopped potatoes, leek, bacon, onion, spices and chicken stock to the crock pot.
- Stir.
Stir well to combine, put on the lid and turn the slow cooker on high.
- Cook.
Let it cook on high for 6 hours.
- After the 6 hours, whisk.
Whisk together the milk and flour until well combined and no lumps remain.
- Turn to the low setting.
Add in the milk and flour mixture and stir well to combine.
- Cook a little more.
Add the lid and cook on low for 30 more minutes.
- Garnish.
Garnish with fresh parsley and crumbled bacon and serve!
Here are some options to serve alongside this savoury soup:
- A crusty Bread
- A side salad – Caesar salad
- A simple green vegetable – steamed asparagus, roasted vegetables or roasted brussels sprouts.
- Crackers
- Grilled cheese sandwiches
If cooked on a stove how long should I cook it and when should the milk be added?
Yes, you should cook it until the potatoes are falling apart and tender. Add the milk mixture after that.
Can this soup be frozen?
Yes, it can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Do you use a blender or hand mixer to get a smooth finish?
The soup stays chunky. It is still a creamy soup because the potatoes crumble in the soup. If you want it smooth you can use an immersion blender.
Can this soup be made dairy free?
Yes, instead of milk you can use soy milk or low fat coconut milk.
Can this potato leek soup be made in an instant pot?
Yes, sauté the bacon, leeks and potatoes first and then add remaining ingredients. Seal the instant pot and cook for 8 minutes.
We hope you enjoy this recipe! Let us know in the comments below, what’s your favourite slow cooker recipe this season! We’d love to know!
Looking for more recipes like this? You’ll LOVE these:
Watch the video below to see exactly how we make this recipe. You can find many more deliciously simple recipe videos on our YouTube channel!
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Slow Cooker Potato Leek Soup
Recipe: Equipment
Recipe: Ingredients
- 3 large potatoes peeled and chopped
- 2 medium leeks washed well and sliced
- 8 ounces sliced bacon cooked and crumbled
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
- pepper to taste
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- crumbled bacon optional (for garnish)
- chopped fresh parsley optional (for garnish)
Recipe: Instructions
- Add the potatoes, leeks, bacon, onion, sea salt, thyme, parsley, pepper and chicken stock to your slow cooker.
- Stir well to combine, add the lid and turn the slow cooker to the ‘high’ setting.
- Cook on high for about 6 hours.
- After 6 hours have passed, whisk together the milk and flour until well combined and no lumps remain.
- Turn the slow cooker to ‘low’ and add the milk and flour mixture to the slow cooker, stirring well to combine.
- Replace the lid and cook on low for another 30 minutes.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and crumbled bacon, if desired, and serve!
Recipe: Notes
Storage Instructions
Store this soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.Freezer Instructions
Freeze this soup in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.Recipe: Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
QUICK & EASY WEEKNIGHT MEALS
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I will be gone longer than 6 hours more like 10. Is it possible to cook this on low?
Yes, it definitely is possible to cook on low. I’d recommend adding 3 hours to the cooking time if you’re cooking on low. Good luck!
If I made this on the stove how long should I cook it, when should I add the milk?
Good question – you should cook it until the potatoes are falling apart and tender, and add the milk mixture after that. Hope you enjoy it!
I made this today and it was amazing! My picky husband ate three bowls!
Wow! So glad you both loved it so much!!
This was really great! A perfect stick-to-your-ribs potato soup for a cold day. However, I would add more broth and less flour next time. Mine was super thick but the flavor was still amazing. I was also able to use up some produce I had laying around before it went bad. Great recipe!!
Thank you Brenda! Glad you liked it!🙂
Can this be frozen?
Yes! It can be frozen for up to three months!
Do you use a blender or a hand mixer to get a smooth finish?
No, the soup stays chunky but also creamy because of all the potatoes that crumble in the soup. If you do want it smooth, you could use an immersion blender.
I added cream at the end too 🙂
Cream sounds like a great addition. We’re so happy you enjoyed it! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
I was in a rush and hubby was helping put this on to cook, he saw it needed 2 cups of milk and added them in before we’d even put this on to cook, will this cause the milk to curdle?
Yes, it will most likely curdle, depending on the milk you used.