The Ingredient Swaps To Make For Vegan Loaded Baked Potato Soup

There's nothing heartier and more satisfying than a buttery baked potato bursting with sour cream, cheese, bacon, and chives. A loaded baked potato soup has all of these rich, flavorful elements blended into a creamy pot that you can eat all week. Other than chives and potato, how could a vegan loaded baked potato soup recipe possibly replicate the luxurious depth and umami that dairy and bacon provide? Swapping animal-based ingredients for plant-based ones is easier than you might think, and just as luxurious!

In her recipe for vegan loaded baked potato soup, Tasting Table recipe developer Miriam Hahn uses a mix of store-bought plant-based dairy products and scratch-made swaps. Hahn opts for plant-based butter as the foundation of the soup, melting a cube or two in the pot to fry aromatics. For the creamy, savory cooking liquid, Hahn uses a blend of vegetable broth, plant-based milk, and scratch-made cashew puree. While you can use any type of plant-based milk, oat, coconut, and soy milk are especially creamy with a nutty flavor profile that works well with the earthiness of potatoes. For a thinner, more liquid consistency, Hahn makes cashew puree by soaking raw cashews in water and running them through a food processor or blender. This three-ingredient cooking liquid has the thickness and richness that you want in a baked potato soup.

Plant-based butter, cream, and broth build a luxurious consistency and rich taste to complement the potatoes and aromatics, but seasonings and garnishes are what distinguish a loaded baked potato soup from a cream of potato soup. While Hahn omits vegan cheese, she brings cheesy flavors and a pop of heat and smokiness to her loaded baked potato soup with a few ingredients that vegans know very well. Nutritional yeast is every vegan's secret weapon for adding a salty, cheesy element. In fact, cashews and nutritional yeast are a common duo in vegan cheese sauces and cashew sour cream. It'll disperse into your bubbly soup easily, evoking that melted cheddar cheese essence. A blend of paprika, black pepper, and liquid smoke bring spicy, smoky notes to cut through all of that plant-based dairy.

Liquid smoke is also a key ingredient in Hahn's vegan take on bacon bits, which she makes with large coconut flakes. She replicates the umami, sweet, and smoky trifecta found in bacon by tossing coconut flakes in a blend of soy sauce, maple syrup, and liquid smoke before sliding them into the oven for 5-8 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. The coconut flakes will absorb the liquid seasonings and crisp up beautifully, resulting in the perfect bacon swap to top your bowl of soup. Vegan sour cream and cheese are widespread products that you can buy to accompany the bacon, finishing it all off with a sprinkling of chopped chives.