Cheesy Slow Cooker Hashbrown Soup

This hashbrown soup is easy to throw together in the morning. You can add them frozen or defrosted in the morning with a few ingredients more. Make in the slow cooker or on the stovetop even faster for lunch or dinner. Based off our ever so popular Crockpot potato soup with frozen hash browns with a few adjustments.

Slow Cooker Hashbrown Soup

We have used the same frozen potatoes to make Crockpot funeral potatoes too. A nice kitchen hack that makes things a lot easier. They come in a few different looks and brands. Shredded is most popular and can be used for this but I like cubed instead so it takes longer to cook. Many times I’ll throw it all in after eating lunch. Then it will switch to warm until we’re ready to eat.

The shredded versions are great to make things like our 5 Ingredient Hash Brown Casserole with meat or without. I typically will buy several bags to keep in my fridge when I find any shape on sale because they’re so handy to have in the freezer. Name brand vs. Great Value from Walmart doesn’t seem to make much of a difference.

Crockpot Hashbrown Potato Soup

We have made loaded baked potato soup with whole potatoes diced up into pieces too. Very similar to this one except I use cream of mushroom and sour cream instead of creamed. Turns out very much like this one except takes almost all day to get to the creamy consistency like this one.

It depends how much time I have that morning, which one I decide to make. I mean homemade from scratch is always the way to go but sometimes getting ready for the day gets away from me and I can’t prep it all before leaving for the morning. That is when this version comes in awful handy.

• 32 oz frozen shredded hash browns cubed
• 16 oz chicken broth
• 2 tbsp Ranch dressing mix – the dry kind
• 8 oz cream cheese, or you could use a dairy free variety but I wouldn’t use low fat
• 1 can cream of chicken soup 10 oz
• 1 c cheese shredded cheddar cheese
• 4 oz bacon bits or makes a great leftover ham recipe too after the holidays

You could in fact leave out the dry Ranch mix if you didn’t have it on hand, just adds more flavor and a bit of a kick to potato soup recipes of all kinds. If you don’t want to use condensed soup follow our Hash Brown Casserole without Soup and thin it out as you wish.

Easy Hash Brown Potato Soup

We have a lot of Crockpot recipes with cream cheese we love. Yes it does add more calories but makes it awful creamy. If you needed a lactose free alternative you can find Lactaid versions of that or sour cream that works just as well.

• In the slow cooker, combine the frozen hashbrowns, chicken broth, ranch seasoning, cream cheese, and cream of chicken soup. Mix together.
• Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or low for 3 hours. LOW is by far better.
• Then lift lid and stir in the bacon pieces and cheese.
• Cook on high for another 2 hours or low for 2 hours 30 minutes to 3 hours.
• Prior to serving, stir the soup.
• Garnish with green onion, bacon pieces, salt and pepper to taste and additional cheese as desired

Nothing doctored up on these photos, it was taken on one of the many nights we made and enjoyed this popular dish. Once the taters are cooked down and as tender as you’d like them to be it is basically done. Adding extras like bits of precooked meats are a bonus but of course optional.

Hash brown Soup on the Stove

If you wanted to make this as a Dutch Oven recipe on the stovetop instead you totally could. You would follow the same steps but have it set to medium heat. You’d want to stir it intermittently so it doesn’t burn on the bottom so it does take more attention than the other version below. This will take closer to 1 hour or until as tender and smooth as you’d like.

Hashbrown Soup with Fresh Potatoes

If you did want to make from fresh you could as I mentioned below. I like dicing them but if you wanted it to cook much faster just use a cheese grater to shred russets instead. How to peel fresh potatoes you just;

1. Use starchy potatoes like russet potatoes for the best results. They have a high starch content and low moisture, which makes them ideal for shredding.
2. Wash thoroughly under cold running water to remove any dirt or debris from the skin.
3. You can peel if you prefer, but it’s not necessary. Leaving the skin on can add extra flavor and texture.
4. Fill a large bowl with cold water. This will prevent the shredded potatoes from oxidizing and turning brown.
5. If you’re using a box grater, choose the side with larger holes. If you’re using a food processor, use the grating attachment.
   • Hold the peeled or unpeeled potato against the grater and move it back and forth in a steady motion to create shreds. Be careful not to grate your fingers!
6. As you grate the potatoes, immediately transfer the shreds into the bowl of cold water. This prevents them from browning and helps remove excess starch.
7. Drain in a colander. Then, wrap the shreds in a kitchen towel or cheesecloth and squeeze out as much water as possible. Removing excess moisture will help your dish crisp up nicely during cooking.
8. Now that your shredded potatoes are ready, you can use them in your chosen recipe. Whether it’s making hash browns, air fryer latkes, or this!!

Remember that shredded potatoes tend to oxidize and turn brown if left exposed to air for too long. So, it’s a good idea to work efficiently and keep them submerged in water until you’re ready to use them in your recipe.

Pressure Cooker Hashbrown Soup

If you wanted to make a version of this faster you could. We have made this we call Instant Pot potato cheese soup and it is fabulous.

If you have leftovers wait until it completely cools first. Then transfer into airtight containers and store in the fridge. It will thicken more as it sits so when you reheat you may want to mix in a bit more broth. Reheat in the microwave for 1 minute stirring in the middle of that time.

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