Dad's Cream of Potato Soup

This potato soup is a true four-ingredient comfort recipe, the kind dads have been making for hungry kids for generations. Diced potatoes simmer in salted water with butter and onion until tender, then milk goes in along with “riffles," small lumps of flour and butter rubbed between fingers that thicken the soup naturally as they dissolve.

The riffle technique is an old-fashioned trick worth knowing. Instead of making a separate roux, you rub flour and butter together with your fingers into pea-sized clumps and drop them right into the simmering pot, where they dissolve into a thickener without lumps. Bacon bits, sour cream, and scallions on top turn a simple bowl into something restaurant-style.

Pro Tips

• Dice the potatoes uniformly. Even pieces cook at the same rate, while uneven cubes give you some mush and some still-firm chunks in the same bowl.
• Don’t boil the milk after adding it. High heat causes milk to curdle and break, leaving a grainy soup. Hold it at a low simmer once dairy goes in.
• For a creamier finished soup, blend half the potatoes with an immersion blender before serving and leave the rest chunky. This gives you body without losing texture.
• Skip the riffles if you want a thinner, brothier soup. A few cubes of mashed potato at the end also work to thicken if you don’t want to make riffles.

Variations

• Stir in a cup of shredded cheddar for a cheesy version, more like a loaded baked potato in soup form.
• Add a handful of chopped cooked bacon or smoked sausage to the pot for a meatier soup.
• Substitute half the milk with chicken stock for a lighter, less rich soup that’s still creamy.