One of our all-time favorite soups, this Cream Cheese Potato Soup with Ham is deliciously creamy and the garlic and dill give it a wonderful flavor. It’s simple and easy enough for weeknight dinners but special enough to serve to guests!
There are affiliate links in this post for your convenience. You can read my full disclosure policy here.
Eating this soup always takes me down memory lane because my mom served it for lunch the day that we were setting up our wedding reception. We had a bunch of friends and family there helping with all the setup and last-minute details and this soup totally hit the spot.
Everyone kept commenting about how tasty it was and we actually ended up eating up every last bit of the huge pot full she had made! Clearly, it was a hit.
What I love about this recipe:
- It’s easy and ready in just 30 minutes.
- It’s economical to make, especially if you buy the cream cheese at Aldi where they have it for around $1.00 a block.
- It’s hearty and filling.
- It’s great for using up any leftover ham at Easter or Christmas.
- It’s creamy, comforting and simply delicious!
Watch Video: Learn How to Make this Recipe
Ingredients for this Cream Cheese Potato Soup:
- Potatoes. You can use any variety of potatoes in this soup. However, I’ve discovered that thinner-skinned varieties work best as they will hold their shape and don’t get mushy as quickly.
- Ham. Ham steaks work great for this, but a cheaper alternative is to just use any leftover ham that you have.
- Onion. If you are short on time or don’t have onions on hand, you can easily just use onion powder instead of chopped onion.
- Cream Cheese. This is what makes the soup so amazingly creamy and delicious. I’ve used both full fat and reduced-fat cream cheese, as well as Philadelphia Neufchatel. They all work equally well!
- Water and Bouillon. A good quality bouillon will really up the flavor of this soup!
- Garlic Powder. I love the hint of garlicky flavor this gives the soup. It’s not overpowering but just adds a little extra flavor.
- Dill Weed. In my opinion, the dill is partly what makes this soup amazing and unique. It complements the ham and cream cheese flavors so well and just takes the soup to the next level!
How to Make Cream Cheese Potato Soup with Ham
STEP ONE: In a large pot, combine the water and the bouillon. Add the cubed cream cheese, cook on medium-low heat until the cream cheese is melted, stirring frequently to mix the cream cheese into the liquid. I find a whisk works really well for this.
STEP TWO: Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
STEP THREE: Simmer, uncovered, for 18-20 minutes or until the potatoes and onions are tender.
FAQ and Expert Tips
- Do I need to cube the cream cheese? Yes. Cubing the cream cheese before adding it to the soup helps it melt more quickly. If you don’t do this, it’s going to be really hard to get the cream cheese to melt and mix into the soup.
- Can you freeze potato soup? I wouldn’t recommend it as potatoes tend to get mushy when frozen.
Other easy soup recipes you’ll enjoy:
Cream Cheese Potato Soup with Ham
Ingredients
- 6 c. water
- 7 tsp. chicken bouillon
- 2 packages 8 oz. cream cheese, cubed
- 4 c. diced potatoes, peeled or unpeeled (diced into ¾ in. pieces)
- 1 ½ c. fully cooked ham, cubed
- ½ c. chopped onion (see Notes below)
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. dill weed
Instructions
- In a large pot, combine the water and bouillon.
- Add the cream cheese; cook on medium-low heat until the cream cheese is melted, stirring frequently. (I like to use a whisk for this.)
- Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
- Simmer, uncovered, for 18-20 minutes or until the potatoes and onions are tender.
Notes
- Vidalia Chop Wizzard - I love using this handy tool to dice potatoes and onions quickly! It's one of my favorites.
- Onion- If preferred, you can substitute 1 ½ tsp. onion powder for the chopped onion.
Niki
I am making this right now and I can’t stop tasting it! The dill weed makes it! I would have never thought to use cream cheese. Even though the potatoes are still cooking, I already know that I will be making this again. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Lydia Beiler
You are so welcome, Niki! Yes, the dill (and the garlic too, I think) just give this soup an amazing flavor. Thanks for taking the time to let me know how much you liked it!
Monica
Could you use lower fat cream cheese?
Lydia Beiler
Yes, that should be totally fine, Monica!
Emily Watts
I am a regular visitor of your site. I tried this recipe yesterday and my partner loved it. Very happy to share it with your.
Lydia Beiler
Emily, I’m so glad that you all loved this recipe! Thanks for taking the time to let me know. That always means a lot!
Carolyn
When my sons were 4 and 5 yrs. old, I made a Mexican Salad Dressing. They loved it. Through the years i didn’t use it. But my now 55 year old son was asking about the recipe. Thank you for having it on your link.
Lydia Beiler
Carolyn, so happy to hear that you were finally able to locate that Mexican Salad Dressing that your boys loved here on my site! 🙂 It’s a simple, but good one. I hope it brings back happy memories as you all enjoy it again.
Danielle Cook
To makes things easier, I would use a bag of frozen hashbrown potatoes next time. Other than that, it’s a simple and delicious recipe! I have worked for St Louis Bread Co aka Panera since 1995 and my favorite soup that we used to sell was Potato Cream cheese. This recipe is pretty darned close to it! Thank you for bringing some great memories back.
ThriftyFrugalMom
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Danielle! Yes, frozen hashbrown potatoes would definitely work and would speed up the recipe prep. And I had no idea that Panera Bread used to have a Potato Cream Cheese soup. If it was a good as this, I wonder why they stopped making it! 🙂
CeCe
Do you cook the potatoes first?
ThriftyFrugalMom
No, they go in raw.
Stacy Pannunzio
Can you use chicken broth in lieu of bouillon?
ThriftyFrugalMom
I think it would change the flavor quite a bit actually, but it may still be good. If you try it, let me know what you thought!