Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
Creamy and dreamy and made easily in your trusty slow cooker! Our Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes recipe is how we save valuable stovetop space and prepare this beloved side in advance. It’s worthy of a holiday table and easy enough for a weeknight meal!
Mashed potatoes, but made easier! If your kitchen is like ours when it comes to the holidays, then you know that every bit of that oven and stovetop is valuable, but so is one of the most important sides of the meal! That’s why we’ve moved this classic to our slow cooker. Our Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes recipe ensures we have this creamy and dreamy potato side, while also freeing up the stovetop space and allowing for the work to be done in advance, without sacrificing everything we love about this classic side!
Ingredients Needed
- Potatoes – Russets are our favorites to use, but Yukon Gold are also great for nice creamy mashed potatoes.
- Chicken Stock – The liquid that the potatoes slow cook in, which doesn’t need to be drained! No need to worry about that big pot of boiling water here!
- Milk or Cream – At least 2% or, if you want to go real decadent, half and half or heavy cream!
- Butter – Are they even true mashed potatoes without it? Salted is our preferred!
- Sour Cream – To add more creaminess and a subtle tangy flavor.
- Seasoning – Salt, pepper, onion, and garlic powder are all our favorites for the ideal mashed potatoes.
SO Easy to Make
The best part about these Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes is that you can make them in advance! It’s one less thing to have to juggle when you’re trying to get the timing of everything else right!
Peel and chop those potatoes, add them to the crock pot with the stock and seasonings, and then let your slow cooker do its thing for the next 3-4 hrs!
Next, it’s just a matter of mashing and adding the warm butter, milk, and sour cream.
Add Warm Butter, Milk, and Sour Cream!
This is a key step to ensure that you get fluffy, creamy mashed potatoes! If you add cold, straight from the fridge ingredients to your hot mashed potatoes, you can “shock” the starches in the potatoes and cause a gummy-like texture. Slowly warm the milk and the butter in either the microwave or on the stovetop. Once the butter is mostly melted, add the sour cream and mix it just enough to warm. Don’t heat it all together, because this may cause the sour cream to curdle.
Mash and mix those potatoes, but be careful not to overmix because that can cause the potatoes to have a gummy texture from overworking the gluten.
Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes! Ready when you are, without taking up any space on your stovetop! Even better, you can mash and mix the potatoes and then keep them on warm in the slow cooker for a couple of hours before serving.
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- Crispy Garlic Rosemary Potato Wedges
- Leftover Mashed Potato Waffles and Gravy
- Baked Parmesan Baked Fries and Garlic Aioli Dipping Sauce
- Roasted Parsnip and Potato Soup
- Easy Homemade Rice Pilaf
- Garlic Butter Rice
So creamy, flavorful, and worthy of a holiday table, but also easy enough for a weeknight meal, too!
Got leftovers? Then be sure to use them in our Leftover Mashed Potato Waffles!
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
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Crock Pot Mashed Potatoes
Equipment
- potato masher optional
Ingredients
- 4 lbs russet potatoes
- 1 cup chicken stock or vegetable stock
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 cup milk 2%, whole, or even half and half
- 1/2 cup sour cream 4.5 oz
- 6 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- Grease Slow Cooker Crock: Cut 6 tablespoons from a stick of butter. Fold down the wrapper and grease the bottom and edges up 2 inches of the crock of the slow cooker. Set the remaining butter aside at room temperature.
- Prep Potatoes: Peel potatoes and dice into 1 inch cubes. Add to the greased slow cooker.
- Slow Cook: Add the chicken (or vegetable) stock to the potatoes and the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. Cook on high for 3-4 hours.
- Warm Butter, Milk, and Sour Cream: Just before you're ready to mash the potatoes, add the set aside butter and 1/2 cup of milk to either a small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl. In a saucepan, heat over medium-low to melt the butter and warm the milk for 1 minute. Just before the butter is mostly fully melted, remove from the heat and stir in the sour cream. For the microwave, heat on medium power in the microwave for 45 seconds and then add the sour cream and mix.
- Mash: When ready to mash, turn the slow cooker to warm. Use a potato masher or a fork to mash the potatoes, adding a little bit of the warmed butter, milk, and sour cream at a time as you mash until creamy.
- Serve and Enjoy! Garnish with fresh minced parsley, chopped chives, or another tab of butter and serve. Or cover and keep on warm for up to 2 hrs before serving.
Such a simple recipe but this really creates the perfect mashed potatoes! My new go-to recipe.
Amazing to hear, Jen! Thanks so much for sharing and taking the time to leave a review!
I love how convenient it is to use a slow cooker for making mash and keeping it warm. Let’s face it, festive family dinners are not complete without mashed potatoes.