Ah, potato soup – yes, even including the bacon grease (as opposed to rendered lard) – is my “go to” soup when I need something warm, comforting and delicious for dinner at a moment’s notice. This soup is also a great way to get loads of healthy fats into your friends and family without them even knowing what is happening!
Some of you may gasp about the several ounces of bacon grease included in this recipe. There is a perpetual myth in our culture that bacon is somehow bad for us and that bacon grease is the worst of the worst. On the contrary, bacon grease is a very healthy, traditional fat particularly when it comes from pastured animals that have access to fresh air and sunshine.
Bacon grease is loaded with Vitamin D when the pigs are allowed to run around outside! Considering that 90% of people are vitamin D deficient in the USA alone, need I say more?
The parent of one of the kids in my child’s class told me on a field trip recently that his mother used to drink a small glass of bacon grease every morning with breakfast. He indicated with facial expressions how gross this was to him, but my question back was, “Uh, and how old did she live to be?”   The answer was somewhere in the 90’s range (I’ll bet she wasn’t overweight or dropped dead of a heart attack either).
Case closed on the bacon grease!
This soup is so delicious, you won’t believe it and it’s the bacon grease that makes all the difference to the amazing flavor! When a whole food has this much amazing flavor naturally, this means loads of nutrition, so eat up and enjoy!
Potato and Bacon Soup (made using ALL the bacon grease)
makes about 3 quarts of soup
Ingredients
2 quarts homemade chicken stock (where to find)
6 organic, medium sized Yukon Gold potatoes
2 large organic, white onions
3 Tbl grassfed butter (where to find)
8 thick slices pastured bacon, broiled with bacon grease reserved
Sea salt to taste
Instructions
Bring chicken stock to a boil in a large pot. Add sliced potatoes and simmer. Meanwhile, chop onions and saute in butter until caramelized and broil the bacon in a baking dish in the oven until crispy, turning every few minutes as necessary.
Add the caramelized onions to the simmering chicken stock and potatoes. Pour all the bacon grease into the chicken stock mixture once the bacon is done. Once the bacon has cooled (just a few minutes), crumble into small pieces and add to the chicken stock mixture.
Puree with a handheld blender. Add sea salt to taste.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Is this safe to give a little bit to a 10 month old?
This is absolutely, hands-down, my favorite potato soup! We love it at our house!
Mmmmmm bacon. Lady, you are speaking my language!
Made this tonight…. AWESOME!!
I just discovered your website, and hallelujah! Bring on the bacon! I use bacon drippings to season my dried beans when I cook them. Nothing better! I also enjoy a wilted spinach salad made with spinach, tomatoes, and hot bacon drippings. Then there’s the always-wonderful bacon/tomato sandwich (no lettuce – yuck!). Thanks for sharing your homespun wisdom. I’ll keep reading!
The soup looks lovely, and as an English person, I am of course all in favour of bacon and eggs. It is, after all, our national breakfast. However, I don’t think we should all get over-excited about bacon fat being actively good for us. It won’t do you any harm as part of a balanced diet – everything in moderation, you know? However, the grandparents everyone is citing here worked a darned sight harder, physically, than we do. They didn’t have dishwashers and washing machines and all the other labour-saving devices, nor did they have central heating. They were burning off the extra fat in their diets. We, for the most part, don’t. So yes, by all means indulge in a bit of bacon fat now and again – it is probably the most delicious frying medium there is (mm, my mouth is now watering, oh dear!). But don’t expect to stay slim and healthy if you’re eating a lot of it, unless you’re going down to the river and banging your clothes against a rock, then coming home and splitting logs to heat your house!
Hey Sarah,
Thanks so much for the yummy recipe! I love potato soup but have always heard to stay away from potatoes because of the insulin spike/candida. Do you think the fat in the recipe cuts down on the effects from the sugar excess in the potatoes? Thanks so much!
Hi Rachel, yes the fat in the soup cuts the glycemic factor of the potatoes significantly.