The Secret Ingredient to the Most Flavorful Mashed Potatoes

Stir onion soup mix and sour cream into mashed potatoes for an easy side dish that will outshine the main course. (Alex Lepe/TNS)

In my opinion, French onion dip is one of the greatest dips of all time. When you take one of those unassuming seasoning packets and mix it with sour cream, it becomes so much greater than the sum of its parts. So, I applied that same idea to mashed potatoes! Meet: French onion mashed potatoes.

Here, I marry creamy mashed potatoes with onion dip, creating a side dish that brings the flavor to your plate. And, at just three ingredients, this dish couldn’t be simpler to make.

As a bonus, the leftovers are equally exciting. Use them to make fried French onion potato croquettes or as the ultimate topping for shepherd’s pie.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• Yukon Gold potatoes: For buttery and creamier mashed potatoes, start with Yukon Gold potatoes. They’re less starchy than russets, yielding a more concentrated flavor and creamier texture.
• Onion soup mix: The dehydrated onions will soften when mixed with the potatoes, but the flavor still packs a punch.
• Sour cream: Its creamy tang ties everything together.

Make This Dish Your Own

French onion dip mashed potatoes are delicious on their own, but you can add toppings to make them even more special. Try it with a few pats of butter, thinly sliced chives, or even a handful of crushed potato chips for an extra touch.

French Onion Mashed Potatoes

Makes about 7 cups; serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

• 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
• 8 ounces full-fat sour cream (1 cup)
• 1 (1-ounce) envelope onion soup mix, such as Lipton’s
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter (optional)
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped chives (optional)

1. Peel and cut 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes into 1 1/2-inch chunks. Place in a large saucepan or pot and add enough cold water to cover by about 1 inch. Add 1 tablespoon kosher salt and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and cook until the potatoes are knife tender, about 15 minutes.

2. When the potatoes are ready, reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Drain the potatoes. Return 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid to the now-empty pot and add 8 ounces sour cream and 1 packet onion soup mix. Stir until smooth.

3. Pass the potatoes through a ricer into the pot, or return the potatoes to the pot and mash with a potato masher until desired consistency. Gently stir to combine. If the mashed potatoes are too thick, add more of the reserved cooking liquid as needed to loosen. Taste and season with more kosher salt and black pepper as needed.

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4. Transfer to a serving bowl. Cut 4 tablespoons unsalted butter into pats and scatter over the mashed potatoes if desired. Garnish with chives if desired.

Recipe Notes

• Make ahead: The potatoes can be peeled and placed in the pot with the water and kosher salt and kept at room temperature for up to 4 hours before cooking.
• Storage: Leftover mashed potatoes can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to four days.

Rachel Perlmutter is a culinary producer for TheKitchn.com, a nationally known blog for people who love food and home cooking. Submit any comments or questions to [email protected]. Copyright 2023 Apartment Therapy. Distributed by Tribune Content AGency, LLC.