Loaded Mashed Potatoes

These Loaded Mashed Potatoes are rich and creamy, packed with cheddar, crispy bacon and spring onions, then baked with even more cheese until golden and bubbling.

Prep Time20

Cook Time45

Total Time1 5

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Author: Chris Collins

Equipment

Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
Potato Peeler
Large Pot & Colander
Frying Pan or Baking Tray & Paper Towels (for bacon)
Potato Masher
Cheese Grater
Suitably Sized Baking Dish (mine was an 11" x 8" x 2" oval dish)
Serving Spoon

Ingredients

2.6lb / 1.2kg Baking Potatoes, peeled & diced into chunks (Maris Pipers/Russets)
5.3oz / 150g Streaky Bacon (see notes)
4 tbsp / 60g Butter, sliced into small cubes (leave at room temp)
1/4 cup / 60ml Whole Milk, leave at room temp
4oz / 120g full-fat Cream Cheese, leave at room temp
1/3 cup / 80ml Sour Cream, leave at room temp
1 1/4 cup / 125g freshly grated Cheddar
3 Spring Onions (Scallions), thinly sliced with the white/light-green parts kept separate from the dark-green tops
3/4 cup / 75g freshly grated Red Leicester (sub more Cheddar - see notes)
Salt & Black Pepper, as needed

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400F/200C.
Add the potatoes to a large pot of cold water with 2 teaspoons of salt and bring to a boil. Cook for 12–15 minutes, or until knife tender, then drain. Leave them to sit and steam in the colander for 1 minute to allow some steam to escape.
During this time, you can pan-fry or bake the bacon until crisp. Rest on paper towels to soak up excess fat, then dice when needed.
Tip the potatoes back into the pot and mash with the butter and milk until smooth. Stir in the cream cheese and sour cream until well combined, mashing a little more if needed. Stir in all of the cheddar, half of the bacon and at least half of the spring onions, using the white/light-green parts first and topping up with the dark-green parts as needed. Season well with salt and black pepper; I typically do 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper, but work to taste (just don't leave it bland!)
Scrape everything into the baking dish, then top with the Red Leicester and bake for 20 minutes, until golden and crisp on top and bubbly around the edges. It might be a little loose fresh out of the oven, but it firms up more as it rests.
Sprinkle over the rest of the bacon and spring onion, then serve and enjoy!

Video

Notes

a) Potatoes - Use a floury/starchy potato such as Maris Piper or Russet. For reference, the 1.2kg/2.6lb weight is before peeling.

b) Bacon - I used smoked streaky bacon, but unsmoked will work just fine (in the US, you're just using regular sliced bacon). You can pan-fry or bake it; just make sure it's nice and crispy.

c) Cheese - I recommend sharp/mature cheddar for a good hit of flavour through the mash. I love Red Leicester on top for its lovely colour and flavour, but you can absolutely use more cheddar if you can't find it.

d) Consistency - Be cautious of over-working the mash, and definitely don't use a hand-blender. If they're overworked, they'll turn gluey. A few lumps and bumps are fine, especially given there will be bacon and spring onion stirred through anyway. The mash might seem a little loose when first removed from the oven, but will firm up as it rests.

e) Prep ahead - This is best made fresh, but you can assemble it a day ahead. Leave to cool, then cover and promptly refrigerate overnight. Ideally, remove from the fridge 30–60 minutes before baking to take some of the chill off. Add the cheese and bake as instructed, allowing extra time until piping hot right through (loosely cover with foil and lower the heat slightly if the top starts browning too much).

f) Calories - Whole recipe divided by 6.

Nutrition