These Cheesy Mashed Potatoes are loaded with 3 different kind of cheese, bacon and chives! They are taken to the next level of deliciousness and are the perfect side dish for the holidays, gatherings or potlucks!
The Best Cheesy Mashed Potatoes Recipe
Mashed Potatoes! One of the easiest side dishes you could probably ever make. It is also probably one of the first things I learned to make as a little girl helping my mom out in the kitchen. Although my mom’s version is very simple, but tastes great nonetheless, I like to experiment with my recipes a bit.
My mom’s mashed potatoes are made with milk and butter and she’d whip them up in a mixer so they were always light and fluffy. All I can say is there are never any leftovers. Mashed potatoes with a nice roast chicken and a great salad, my kind of Sunday supper.
These mashed potatoes, however, are taken to the next level. They’re amplified in flavor, texture, and creamy dreamy cheese pulls! They’re super creamy, since they’re mashed with butter, milk and sour cream then I loaded them with 3 different kinds of cheeses; cream cheese, mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese.
If that wasn’t enough, I then added some bacon because, well bacon, and some chives for a bit of onion flavor and most of all some green color among all that cheese.
Why You’ll Love These Cheesy Potatoes
- Easy Recipe! This simple recipe is made with just a few basic ingredients, and requires little prep.
- Creamy Cheesy Potatoes! Potatoes and melted cheese are a match made in yummy heaven. Then top them with some crispy bacon and it’s next level deliciousness.
- Crowd Pleaser! Your guests will love these cheesy mashed potatoes. You can serve them any time of year and they are perfect side dish for holiday dinners, potlucks and family gatherings.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Potatoes – I prefer Yukon Gold potatoes or Russet Potatoes.
- Salt and Pepper – Just to taste, you may find that the bacon is salty enough to omit the salt entirely!
- Butter – I always use unsalted butter in most of my cooking and baking because this way I can control the amount of salt that goes in my food.
- Half and Half or Milk – My mom usually uses milk but if you would like these potatoes to be a bit creamier go with half and half cream which contains 12 % fat. You can even go ahead and use heavy cream which usually contains 38 % fat.
- Bacon – I used 8 strips of bacon that I then cooked and crumbled up to include in this dish. I insist on using fresh bacon – none of that pre cooked crumbled up stuff!
- Dairy – We’re using both sour cream and cream cheese today for flavor, creaminess, and lots of tang. Believe me you’ll want both.
- Cheese – Fresh shredded mozzarella and cheddar are key for getting those cheese pulls that dreams are made of.
- Chives – Chopped up nice and fine for a nice and mild onion flavor.
How To Make Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
You really can’t screw this up, it’s really an easy recipe, about as simple as they come. I have to admit this isn’t for those who are watching their weight, but if you aren’t counting calories, well this is for you! Or perhaps, you could have a small portion, I won’t tell!
Preheat The Oven
To start, get your oven hot and ready to go before you even begin the recipe. The dish will not cook as well if the oven is not hot enough before you put the potatoes in to bake. So preheat your oven to 350°F (176°C) and then move on to the next step.
Cook The Potatoes
Peel the potatoes, and cut them into cubes. Then, add the potatoes to a large saucepan and add enough cold water to cover them by a couple inches. Cook the potatoes on medium heat for about 15 minutes or until you can easily pierce them with a fork. Transfer to a colander to drain.
Cook The Bacon
While the potatoes are cooking, chop the bacon slices into small pieces. Transfer it to a skillet and cook it until crispy and browned. Alternatively, you can cook the bacon slices first, then chop them up into small pieces. Place the bacon on a paper towel lined plate to soak up some of the fat.
Make The Mashed Potatoes
Using a potato masher or fork, mash the potatoes in a big bowl until fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, sour cream, milk, half the cheddar cheese, half the mozzarella cheese and mix until well combined. To make them even fluffier you could use a hand mixer and mix until light and fluffy. Add the chives, half the bacon and salt and pepper. You might also want to reserve some chives for the topping.
Assemble The Casserole
Stir everything together until well combined then transfer it to a buttered baking dish. Finally, you’ll want to top with remaining cheddar, mozzarella cheese and bacon.
Bake
Transfer the casserole dish to the oven and bake it for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and bubbly.
What Potatoes Are Best For Mashing?
You might think that any potatoes can be mashed, and while that may be true, there are certain varieties that make the best mashed potatoes, so without further ado here they are. Yukon golds or russets are perfect for this dish as they result in a creamier and more heavenly mash.
What Else Can I Add To My Mashed Potatoes?
You can add whatever you’d like to this cheesy, crave-able, and oh so rich dish. Here’s some flavorful or creamy additions.
- Fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme or parsley.
- Eggs – raw eggs that is. This is my husband’s favorite, it totally adds a little extra richness
- Any kind of mild melty delicious cheese that you’d like!
Expert Tips
- Just like you always salt your pasta water, you need to salt the water that the potatoes cook in. The starch granules swell and absorb water and salt. If you add salt while cooking the potatoes, you won’t need to add as much later on.
- Be sure to drain your potatoes completely before mashing them to prevent mushy potatoes.
- Don’t use cold butter in this dish, be sure it’s come up to room temperature before introducing it to your piping hot potatoes.
How To Serve
These mashed potatoes are so rich, cheesy, and bacon-y, I like to snack on them all on their own! If you’d like a nice big entree to spoon these alongside, then here’s some picture perfect dishes!
- Garlic and Paprika Chicken
- Baked Chicken Breast
- Prime Rib Roast
- Beef Bourguignon
- Crock Pot Roast
- Meatloaf
- Honey Mustard Glazed Ham
- Pork Schnitzel
Leftovers
Store leftover cheesy mashed potatoes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days. Be sure it’s completely cooled before putting away.
Freezer
Freeze mashed potatoes in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 10 months.
More Must Try Potato Recipes
- Brown Butter Mashed Potatoes
- Crockpot Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
- Scalloped Sweet Potatoes
- Roasted Potatoes with Garlic Aioli
- Potatoes Au Gratin
- Baked Potatoes
- Funeral Potatoes
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Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2.5 pounds potatoes such as Russets or Yukon gold
- 8 slices bacon
- 4 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- ¼ cup butter unsalted, melted
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup milk
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- ¼ cup chives minced
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
- Peel the potatoes, and cut them into cubes. Add the potatoes to a large sauce pan and add enough cold water to cover them by a couple inches. Cook the potatoes on medium heat for about 15 minutes or until you can easily pierce them with a fork. Transfer to a colander to drain.
- In the meantime chop the bacon slices into small pieces. Cook the bacon until crispy and browned. Alternatively, you can cook the bacon slices first, then chop them up into small pieces. Place the bacon on paper towels to remove some of the fat.
- Using a potato masher or fork, mash the potatoes in a big bowl until fluffy. Add the cream cheese, butter, sour cream, milk, half the cheddar cheese, half the mozzarella cheese and mix until well combined. To make them even fluffier you could use a hand mixer and mix until light and fluffy. Add the chives, half the bacon and salt and pepper. You might also want to reserve some chives for the topping.
- Stir everything together and transfer to a buttered baking dish. Top with remaining cheddar, mozzarella, bacon and chives.
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until top is golden brown.
- Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- Just like you always salt your pasta water, you need to salt the water that the potatoes cook in. The starch granules swell and absorb water and salt. If you add salt while cooking the potatoes, you won’t need to add as much later on.
- Be sure to drain your potatoes completely before mashing them to prevent mushy potatoes.
- Don’t use cold butter in this dish, be sure it’s come up to room temperature before introducing it to your piping hot potatoes.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.
- Freeze mashed potatoes in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 10 months.
I cooked a easter meal for 17 family members and made your baked mashed potatoes, let me tell ya go ahead pat yourself on the back. IT WAS A HUGE HIT 😃 😊 Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
My pleasure, so glad you guys enjoyed it!
We all loved this recipe I added a little more butter before putting it in the oven than suggested as it was dry but turned out perfect
This was very good! However, I needed 4lbs of potatoes. I weighed exactly 2.5lbs of potatoes and added the other ingredients that were all measured to the exact weight needed, and it was the consistency of soup. I had to cook the remaining 1.5lbs of potatoes I had and add them to add to the potato mixture. It was still a bit soupier than I would have liked, but it was delicious!
I can’t make this dish with the sour cream, (sour cream doesn’t like me) is there any else I can use?
You can use some Greek yogurt 🙂
These look terrific. I’m tempted to try them with egg added. Would you add just one along with cream?
Exactly, I usually whisk it with the cream then add it to the potatoes.