Silky Bacon Beef Soup (Printable Recipe)
# What You’ll Need:
→ For the Soup
01 -
5 bacon strips, chopped into tiny bits
02 -
1 lb ground beef
03 -
1/4 cup butter
04 -
1/4 cup chopped onion
05 -
2 celery stalks, chopped
06 -
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
07 -
6 tablespoons flour
08 -
4 cups chicken broth
09 -
1 cup heavy cream
10 -
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
11 -
1 lb Yukon potatoes, skinned & cut into small chunks
12 -
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
13 -
Salt & pepper to taste
14 -
1/4 cup chopped pickles (if you want)
# Step-by-Step Directions:
01 -
Cut bacon into small chunks with kitchen shears. Fry in your soup pot on medium-high until crispy, roughly 10 minutes. Move bacon to a plate lined with paper towels, but keep the grease in the pot.
02 -
Toss ground beef into the same pot and cook until it turns brown, breaking it up as you go. Drain off the fat and put the meat on another paper towel-covered plate.
03 -
Drop butter into the pot to melt, then cook onion and celery for 4-5 minutes till they're soft.
04 -
Toss in garlic and flour, then stir for about 2 minutes to get rid of the flour taste and make your base thickener.
05 -
Slowly whisk chicken broth in until everything's smooth with no flour lumps. Add cream, Worcestershire sauce, potatoes, and put the beef back in.
06 -
Crank up the heat to high until it boils, then turn down to medium-low for a gentle bubble. Cover the pot but leave a little gap, and cook about 15 minutes until potatoes are soft. Give it a stir now and then so nothing sticks.
07 -
Turn off the heat and slowly add handfuls of shredded cheddar, stirring until it melts. If it's too thick, splash in more broth, milk, or cream to thin it out.
08 -
Stir in most of your bacon, but save some for topping each bowl. Add salt and pepper how you like it. You can throw in chopped pickles now or let folks add them on top if they want.
# Additional Notes:
01 -
You'll get way better results grating your own cheddar instead of buying the pre-shredded stuff, which has additives that make it melt poorly.
02 -
This soup gets thicker as it sits. When you warm up leftovers, you'll probably need to add a splash more liquid.
03 -
Want to jazz it up? Try adding chopped green onions, a dollop of sour cream, or a few drops of hot sauce on top.